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Agralite Electric’s new headquarters will open soon in Benson on the cooperative's existing footprint. The 63,000-square-foot building will accommodate the cooperative's growing fleet and operations, feature modern infrastructure to support advanced technologies and provide members a secure and communal space.Headquarters underscores Agralite’s commitment to communityConstruction on the estimated $16 million...
Powering Progress: Stearns Electric’s New Headquarters Takes Shape—See the Transformation!
Apr 21 2025Stearns Electric Association is constructing a new operations center and headquarters in Melrose to replace its existing facility, originally constructed in 1970. Construction is over halfway complete and remains on budget, with completion and move-in expected by late summer 2025.New headquarters to enhance serviceThe new facility will feature expanded service...
Aitkin struck ‘black gold’
Mar 31 2025The signs greeting those entering the town of Aitkin used to read, “The Home of the Gobblers,” an identity earned decades ago in reference to one of the most prominent industries in this Mississippi Riverboat town — the turkey-processing plant located just off Main Street.Gone today is that once lucrative...
The Department of Agriculture on March 25 announced next steps to release previously obligated funding under key programs that will help electric cooperatives modernize their systems.The announcement advances the Trump administration’s review of funds awarded through the USDA’s Empowering Rural America (New ERA), Powering Affordable Clean Energy (PACE) and Rural...
MLEC Finalizes Sale of Headquarters Building
Mar 20 2025Mille Lacs Energy Cooperative (MLEC) is excited to announce the transition of our former headquarters to Stevo’s Dock & Lift, a valued local business! In 2020, MLEC embarked on the journey to relocate our operations, with the primary goal of finding a buyer who would contribute positively to the economic...
Busy year for East Central Energy’s RLF program
Mar 18 2025The board of directors for Great River Energy member-owner cooperative East Central Energy (ECE) approved four new Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) loans in 2024, providing $730,000 in financing to support a variety of economic development and business expansion projects in east central Minnesota. From food processing to fire trucks, this RLF...
Reaffirming the value of rural economic development loan & grant programs and their impact
Mar 18 2025Rural communities often depend on strategic investments from innovative economic development programs to support local businesses, infrastructure and community development projects. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Rural Economic Development Loan & Grant (REDLG) Program has played an instrumental role in many such initiatives, providing low- or zero-interest loans in...
Strengthening the roots of rural health care
Mar 15 2025Family ties and connections to the area brought physician Melissa Herbranson to Aitkin County several years ago. She grew up in northern Minnesota and Wisconsin and her parents and in-laws are retired in the McGregor area. Melissa has been married to her husband, Jon, for 12 years and the couple...
Minnesota’s ethanol industry contributed $2.1 billion to the state’s gross domestic product in 2024, according to a new study by the University of Minnesota Extension.The study said 1.4 billion gallons of ethanol was produced in Minnesota last year, which in turn, generated $5.2 billion in economic activity and supported 18,434...
Minnesota employers added 9,600 jobs in January, the largest monthly gain since March 2024, and the labor force grew by 4,800 people, according to data released today by the Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED).Minnesota's 0.3% job growth in January was three times faster than the nation as a...
Solving the rural meat processing bottleneck
Mar 13 2025Rural Wabasso farmer Paul Sobocinski is one of three individuals who will share an endowed chair position at the University of Minnesota to help solve the rural meat processing bottleneck.Sobocinski, Tom Nuessmeier and Julie Cesar Tena Soria serve as the Minnesota Farmers Union “Solving the Local Meat Processing Bottleneck Project”...
Governor Tim Walz and the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) announced that exports increased 7% overall between 2023 and 2024, exceeding national export growth of 2% in the same period. Minnesota exported nearly $27 billion in agricultural, mining, and manufactured goods to about 200 countries, ranking 13th...
Data Center Industry: Full Speed Ahead
Mar 10 2025Data centers faced their toughest power challenges yet in 2024, but the industry didn’t just survive – it thrived, according to JLL’s new North America Data Center Year-End 2024 Report. The sector is charging full speed ahead, with colocation vacancy plummeting to a record low of 2.6% and absorption levels...
Star Tribune: Twin Cities families are on the move elsewhere, so greater Minnesota had better get recruiting
Mar 10 2025Minnesota may be losing residents to nearby states, but communities outside the metro area are gaining people from migration. Researchers are urging those cities and towns to work together to keep people migrating in.A new report from the St. Peter-based Center for Rural Policy and Development highlights how migration has...
Surging demand from organizations’ use of AI is driving the record data center development, CBRE says.The demand is giving AI-related occupiers increasing influence over data center development decisions like site selection, design and operational requirements. These occupiers are “prioritizing markets with scalable power capacity and advanced connectivity solutions,” the report...
The race for power is reshaping the data-center landscape.Groups building power intensive data facilities are having to look farther afield for opportunities. A recent report by Cushman and Wakefield Inc. found that among 569 data-center facilities in markets across the Americas, the vacancy rate stood at 4.9% at the end...
A growing number of businesses are struggling to find smaller warehouse spaces, even though the pandemic-era uptick in warehouse demand has cooled. According to real-estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield, the vacancy rate for U.S. warehouses under 100,000 square feet was 3.9% in the fourth quarter, much lower than the...
The Workforce Crisis in Rural AmericaWorkforce shortages are one of the biggest obstacles rural communities face today. Businesses are struggling to fill open positions, young professionals are leaving for bigger cities, and many rural regions simply aren’t on the radar for job seekers. The issue isn’t always about the availability...
The Minnesota Chamber held its annual Workforce Summit, where we had a terrific turnout and important discussions about the future of our state’s workforce. A key highlight was the release of a new report—the first in a series—analyzing the economic contributions of new Americans in Minnesota.You might be wondering, why...
With a momentous 2024 for investment in Minnesota, including $12 billion from high-growth industries, Catalina Valencia, Director of Business Development with the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development talks about the Star of the North as a hotbed of growth.Click here to listen to the podcast from The Business...
The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) today announced nearly $6.2 million in grants to support local community and economic development on Minnesota's main streets.Nine partner organizations will use their Main Street Economic Revitalization grants from DEED to offer assistance – 30% matching grants up to $750,000 –...
Mesabi Tribune: City of Hibbing, Tourist Center recognized on national stage for Mining education efforts
Feb 27 2025The city of Hibbing and Tourist Center Senior Citizens were honored earlier this month for their contributions to educating folks about mining.The Society for Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration presented the entities with the Minerals Education Coalition (MEC) Partnership Appreciation Award at the MINEXCHANGE 2025 SME Annual Conference and Expo in...
A south metro not-for-profit power cooperative is looking to relocate to Lakeville with expanded headquarters, according to planning documents.The Dakota Electric Association, or DEA, has submitted a preliminary plat to the city of Lakeville for a project that, if built, would develop a building that’s about 176,700 square feet with...
Formulating an effective economic development strategy requires asking a full range of questions to identify community needs and priorities. Comprehensive economic development plans should address pressing and long-term needs in a community. Collaborating with key stakeholders ensures challenges and opportunities across all community sectors are acknowledged and considered as strategies...
