One of Dillon's signature buildings will undergo a major renovation after holding strong for more than 100 years.

Now, the next hundred look very bright on the campus of University of Montana Western.

The university's Main Hall is the beneficiary of a boost in funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, also known as the nation's "stimulus package."

Montana Western receives $6 million in funding from the stimulus and will use an additional $4.5 million from the state for a variety of upgrade projects.

"We'll refurbish floors and walls. We'll do all kinds of things with the infrastructure in terms of heating and ventilation, air flow, energy projects to make it a much more energy efficient building. We'll modernize it with technology so we can do a better job with our students and faculty in teaching. If you think about it, this is a model of small town America taking advantage of the stimulus package. We're doing exactly what the federal government intended," University of Montana Western Chancellor Dick Storey said.

The university's Vice Chancellor Susan Briggs says bidding opened in Helena Wednesday for the first phase of the project, which includes infrastructure construction and programming for all projects.

The state has 30 days to award the low bidder with a contract.