CEDA

Community Economic Development Associates

News + Announcements

St. Charles, MN Receives $10,000 CEDA-Authored Minnesota Twins Grant

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Article by: Mary Kennedy
The baseball fields at City Park in St. Charles, Minnesota will be undergoing some exciting changes starting this summer. CEDA team member Cris Gastner authored and was awarded $10,000 from the Minnesota Twins Fields for Kids program. These funds will assist the City in their efforts to improve accessibility throughout the complex.
The full scope of the project includes improving handicap accessibility in the seating area, increasing accessibility to the ballfield from the parking lot, and controlling stormwater runoff by fixing ruts in the walkways. Funding projects of this scope and size can be difficult for small communities, so receiving grants like those offered by the Minnesota Twins is extremely helpful.
 
“We are really excited about this project because by making it less of a challenge to get on the field, people with physical disabilities still get to be involved in baseball and softball. Also, visitors and community members with mobility challenges will be able to sit with the rest of their friends and family and we hope that enhances the overall experience for everyone,”
said Gastner.

Stewartville, MN High School Seniors Learn About Business Planning with CEDA/EDA Guidance

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The Stewartville, MN EDA regularly works with the local high school economics classes, and this semester they are providing a whole new project for the students. CEDA team member Joya Stetson worked with Stewartville High School economics instructor Sue Grant in designing an assignment that would teach the students about the time and considerations that go into a business plan for a new start up.  In addition, students were taught about the Journey to Growth (J2G) Venture SE MN Diversification Loan Fund which was proposed in the Minnesota legislature to create a $25 Million revolving loan fund to assist eligible businesses with low interest loans.

Stetson produced an outline that asked the students to come up with a business plan for a company that could potentially utilize the Venture SE MN Diversification Loan Fund dollars to create new industry in a currently vacant building or on vacant land in the City of Stewartville. In order to complete the assignment effectively, CEDA Senior Vice President Cris Gastner first shared his business planning knowledge with the students. Gastner spoke to the classes about important components of business plans such as product/service description, market research, advertising, financial projections, future plans and more. “It was very encouraging to see the level of interest from the students” Gastner said. “They were highly engaged and had thoughtful questions. Their final projects will certainly be impressive!”

Stetson and City Administrator Schimmel spent another day with the students to act as consultants, providing them with advice and insight that will help their projects be even more successful. “I believe this project offers students the opportunity to get a feel for what starting a business looks like. The information that they were given is based on actual discussions with new business owners” Stetson shared. “Furthermore, the assignment is teaching students about how legislation can affect you and your community on the local level.”

Students will present their final projects in-class on April 15, and some students may choose to present their business plans to the EDA at its regular meeting on April 16!

CEDA Team Members Author New Housing Program in Northeast Iowa

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Article by: Spiff Slifka

CEDA team members serving Howard County Business and Tourism in Cresco, IA recently authored a new program to promote access to well-maintained, safe and affordable housing. The Residential Home Removal Program allows cities, counties, and housing non-profit organizations within the Northeast Iowa Housing Trust Fund area to apply for grants up to $5,000 per home to assist with nuisance housing issues. The CEDA team members developed the program based upon feedback from local communities and recent housing studies.

Since 2010, the five-county partnership that makes up the Northeast Iowa Housing Trust Fund has contributed over $3.2M to improving the housing stock in that region and promoting regional cooperation in providing assistance for individual housing needs. With this new program in place, cities will have grant funds as they continue to find ways to remove nuisance homes and utilize these in-fill lots towards building new housing opportunities.

CEDA is Helping to Promote Outdoor Recreation in Fillmore County

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Article by: Marty Walsh
CEDA team member Marty Walsh helped the Fillmore County EDA to host their annual Economic Development Summit at Eagle Bluff Leaning Center on March 29th. The event included seven speakers detailing the impacts of Outdoor Recreation on the tourism economy and quality of life in the county. Over 75 attendees from all corners of the county and beyond saw presentations from a wide variety of partners including the County Attorney presenting on the legal challenges of Outdoor Recreation, a local non-profit which built a private trail that brings regional tourists, the National Trout Center, Explore Minnesota, and Go Advntr (a start-up based in the region bringing a new customer engagement model to adventure based businesses).
The Event also was the launch of the new Comprehensive Recreation Map Web App which combines the recreational assets of the county with State, Local and Non-profit recreation assets in a  groundbreaking tool for planning and business development. The Map concept, which was proposed by Walsh, was developed over a year of partnership between the Fillmore County EDA and Saint Mary’s University GeoSpatial Services utilizing data from the Department of Natural Resources, County GIS Program, the National Trout Center, Local Cities and other organizations. It will be used as a promotional tool for local tourism businesses as well as a planning tool for tourism and residents alike seeking to access Fillmore Counties great outdoors. To check out the newly launched Recreation Map, CLICK HERE!

Congratulations to CEDA Director of Grants, Michelle Vrieze, As She Retires After 25 Years!

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A Note From Our President/CEO, Ron Zeigler:

Oh behalf of the CEDA Board of Directors and team members, I want to extend a very deep, heartfelt thank you to Michelle Vrieze.  Michelle will be retiring from full-time CEDA work at the end of February.  Michelle will stay on with CEDA into the early Fall for one day per week to finish a project – that speaks volumes to who Michelle is.

Michelle started with CEDA on February 14, 1994.  In our profession, three years in a position seems to be the going average of tenure nowadays.  25 years is a rarity!  Over these years, Michelle has authored numerous grant applications which have resulted in many individual projects in many of the communities in Southeast Minnesota.  As an example, just over the past handful of years, Michelle has authored grant applications that have been approved that have provided for renovation/improvements for 77 commercial projects, 170 housing projects and two waste water treatment plants.  The impact that she has had on Rural America is phenomenal and we thank her for that.

Through these projects, Michelle has created a very impressive reputation across the state as an expert in the field.  The relationship that she has created with the DEED staff is very good.  We will miss this base of knowledge.

For the past six months, Michelle has been working with Allison Wagner to become the Small Cities Development Block Grant expert for CEDA and it is a definite help that Michelle will be with us in a limited capacity for a few more months.

We are so thankful for Michelle Vrieze for a job well done.  She has made a huge difference in so many lives in our Region!  We wish you the best in your well-deserved retirement!

To honor Michelle, we would like you to join us for a reception in her honor on Friday, April 12, 2019 from 1 to 4 p.m. at II Luigi Restaurant at 100 West Jessie Street, Rushford, Minnesota.