WILLMAR — In a unanimous vote Tuesday, the Willmar City Council approved a 10-year tax abatement for Willmar’s Kandi Mall. A public hearing was held before the vote.
The Kandiyohi County Board also met Tuesday and unanimously approved the county’s share of the abatement.
RockStep Capital, who purchased the mall last year, is planning on a major rehabilitation project at the mall. It includes the remodeling of the old Kmart store space at the south end, constructing a new retail building
WILLMAR—Northern Kandiyohi County has been selected as the preferred area for a broadband expansion project that will be submitted next month for possible state grant funding.
The proposed target area was unveiled Tuesday to the Kandiyohi County Board of Commissioners.
Deciding on a service area is one of the key steps as the county and Consolidated Telephone Co. of Brainerd, the county’s private-sector partner, ready themselves to apply for a share of $35 million through the state’s
WILLMAR—A proposal to grow fresh lettuce and herbs year-round with nothing more than air, light and a fine mist of water and nutrients was presented last month to a local ag-based committee that is more familiar with growing crops in soil.
Aeroponics, which involves growing plants by having roots exposed to oxygen and fed with a mist of water, could be an answer to consumers who want locally grown product and an answer to an entrepreneur looking for a new business, said Dana Anderson, CEO of Living
NEW LONDON—Mark Tanner’s business of raising walleye to stock popular fishing lakes is about as Minnesotan as you can get.
But he hopes his new sideline business of raising saltwater shrimp for people to buy fresh by the pound and take home to grill, boil or saute with butter will become a new Minnesota tradition.
“They’re good,” said Tanner, commenting on the home-grown shrimp he taste-tested recently.
Locals will have a chance to find that out for themselves this week
WILLMAR—Expanding broadband to all the areas of Kandiyohi County that are unserved or underserved will cost an estimated $60 million to $68 million, a feasibility study has concluded.
The study also found significant demand for better broadband in rural Kandiyohi County and ripe opportunities for addressing what has long been seen as a critical infrastructure need.
“There is great support in the county for the project,” said Blake Griffin, an engineer with Communication Network Engineering,
WILLMAR—The city of Willmar has already issued more new home construction permits in the first seven months of 2016 than it did all of last year.
“I think the demand is there,” said Bruce Peterson, Planning and Development Services director.
There have been 31 single-family dwelling construction permits this year, totaling about $6 million in permit value. Last year there were 12 single-family and 10 twin homes, Peterson said.
Peterson said he believes a majority of the new homes going
The University of Minnesota Extension’s report shows manufacturing leads the Mid-Minnesota region in total output at 41% and is second in employment at 14%, just behind health care at 16%. Read the full report here.
Willmar Industrial Park is 31st site to receive designation in Minnesota
ST. PAUL—An industrial park located on the west side of Willmar has been certified for the Shovel Ready Program by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED).
The 181-acre site in the Willmar Industrial Park is the 31st site designated in Minnesota and the second site in the nine-county area around Willmar to be certified under the program. Shovel Ready certification means planning, zoning,
WILLMAR—An angel investment group that will have up to $3 million in funds to focus on agricultural development in Kandiyohi County could have enough investors to launch a project yet this year.
In the works for two years, the newly named West Central Angel Fund 1 has 13 initial investors who have worked with a capital investment consultant in recent months to create a formal limited liability company structure for the fund.
All that behind-the-scenes-work has placed the investment group in a position
Watch our videos about the upcoming telephone survey calls related to Kandiyohi County’s Broadband Internet Feasibility Study.
The county is using these calls to generate a statistically valid, randomized sample of county residents in order to better understand the interest in county-wide Internet service.
The calls are a part of a larger feasibility study being performed by CNE Engineering, with offices in Fargo North Dakota and New London, Minnesota, which will take place in phases throughout
