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WILLMAR—While proceeding with eminent domain to acquire just over 36 acres of land needed for the Willmar Wye rail bypass project would be Kandiyohi County’s last resort, the county commissioners approved a resolution to allow that to happen if needed. The resolution to start the eminent domain process passed unanimously at Tuesday’s county board meeting, […]
WILLMAR—If all moves along smoothly, an addition to Willmar Middle School could open as soon as Sept. 1, 2021. The planned addition would have a larger gym and a small alternative learning center for the school district and a wing for special needs students served by the Southwest West Central Service Cooperative. Willmar School Board […]
Today, Aaron Backman, Executive Director of the Kandiyohi County and City of Willmar Economic Development Commission, announced the release of the Willmar Opportunity Zone Prospectus. The prospectus highlights the designated census tract in Willmar to potential opportunity zone investors and developers. Opportunity Zones are low-income census tracks designated by governors and certified by the U.S. […]
Clara City promotes itself as the “Crossroads on the Prairie,” but there is a downside to the meeting of state Highways 23 and 7 at the south end of the community. Traffic accidents at the intersection of the two highways have long been a concern for emergency responders and law enforcement. At the urging of […]
WILLMAR—While it is not exactly the dark ages in downtown Willmar, home to many successful businesses and low vacancy rates, there is also plenty of opportunity for development, whether it is upgrading an older building or constructing a project from the ground up. The area is already part of Willmar’s only Opportunity Zone, which provides […]
A small 3D print shop in central Minnesota is building parts for some of the state’s biggest companies. At DI Labs’ office about two hours west of Minneapolis, machines operate 24 hours a day printing prototypes of parts and thousands of other components for 3M, Toro, and a handful of other companies throughout the Upper Midwest […]
WILLMAR — The spark of inspiration can happen at any time and be caused by the smallest of things. For Steve Vossen and Julie Vossen-Henslin of Willmar, it was the two inches of shampoo left in the bottle after the pump stopped working. “I used to cut the bottle off,” Vossen said. At first, trying […]
SPICER—Brand new, pint-sized tables and chairs, books, cribs and colorful toys were unpacked from boxes Monday, and in a mad dash against the clock, were put in place in the new child care center in Spicer in time for a ribbon-cutting Thursday morning. A collective “whew” could be heard by the volunteers and staff from […]
Governor Mark Dayton qualified one area of Willmar, out of the 128 census tracts throughout the state, to be qualified as an Opportunity Zone. An Opportunity Zone designation provides potential investors with tax breaks while funding development or redevelopment of the neighborhood. The Kandiyohi County and City of Willmar Economic Development Commission contracted with Golden […]
On October 25th, we received exciting news from the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development (DEED). DEED Commissioner, Steve Grove, approved a $1.3 million IBDPI grant with the City of Willmar for the Epitopix sewer line project. The EDC prepared and submitted the grant application on behalf of the City. Epitopix, LLC is a […]
A contract with Compass Consultants Inc. for an engineering study will determine fiber broadband feasibility in rural Kandiyohi County townships, including Dovre, Mamre and St. Johns townships. Pending the study outcomes and a positive response from the township constituents, we will submit a Border-to-Border application to the Minnesota Office of Broadband Development (OBD) by August […]
Family childcare and childcare centers are businesses with accounting measures and regulations to follow. They are essential for maintaining the workforce for our businesses and instrumental in providing early education at a critical stage of child development, beginning the preparation of our future workforce. Understanding the problem A 2018 study completed by First Children’s Finance […]
