MinnEcon Category Archive: Greater Minnesota

Glencore ups it stake in controversial PolyMet mine

Posted at 10:01 AM on December 1, 2011 by Dan Kraker
Filed under: Greater Minnesota

The giant Swiss metals conglomerate Glencore has made another major investment in PolyMet, the mining company hoping to open a controversial precious metals mine outside Hoyt Lakes, on the eastern edge of the Iron Range.

Glencore has agreed to purchase another 13.3 million shares of PolyMet at $1.50 per share, for a total investment of $20 million. Glencore now owns 24.1 percent of PolyMet's stock (worth a total of roughly $125 million), with the option to increase its holdings to as much as 35.1 percent of PolyMet shares.

PolyMet spokeswoman LaTisha Gietzen called the cash infusion "a significant event." She said it provides the mining company "funding for the next couple of years to get through the environmental review and permitting process."

The Minnesota DNR, U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are wrapping up work on a supplemental draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the project that's expected to be released to the public in the second quarter of 2012. The Environmental Protection Agency criticized the initial EIS, raising concerns about wetlands, water quality and a land exchange between PolyMet and the Forest Service.

The proposed open-pit copper-nickel mine has drawn fire from critics raising concerns about the potential for acidic runoff to cause serious environmental damage in or near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Some environmentalists have expressed concern about Glencore's track record as well. Polymet officials say they will protect the environment with containers for waste rock, and water treatment systems.

Northern Minnesota more reliant on state paychecks

Posted at 3:20 PM on June 7, 2011 by Molly Bloom (2 Comments)
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment

We still don't know which government jobs will be deemed "essential" and "non-essential" (Justice Ed Stringer explains how they decided in 2005), but it does look like a shutdown could have a greater impact on Northern Minnesota than on the state as a whole.

Public Insight Network source Aaron Brown lives on the Iron Range and keeps an eye on Northern Minnesota for MinnEcon. Back in March, Paul Tosto spoke with Brown:

[Brown]'s also keeping watch on the political debate over public employees (he's one). He's not sure that people realize employee layoffs could cascade through the economy, hurting retail and other consumer spending. "The implications could be deeper here than in other parts of the state."

Turns out, he's right that Northern Minnesota is more reliant on state jobs in an important respect. MPR News Business Editor Bill Catlin has been looking at who makes up Minnesota's state employee pool and he's been crunching some numbers (see Marty Moylan's story here). When compared to the statewide totals, Northern Minnesota's workforce does not have a much higher percentage of state employees.

The impact would come from the wages they earn. The amount of money earned by state employees accounts for 2.7 percent of all wages earned in Northern Minnesota. In the metro, it accounts for 1.8 percent. While the numbers may seem small, this shows that state wages are 50 percent more important in northern Minnesota than in the overall state economy.

These wage calculations exclude the pay of state workers in the educational services field -- people who provide instruction and training -- because it unclear how the University of Minnesota and MnSCU schools would be affected by a shutdown. MnSCU schools appear more likely to be affected. When we do include state government employees who work in education, the difference is more stark. In this case, 5.6 percent of Northern Minnesota wages come from state employees' salaries, compared to 3.6 percent for the state overall.

Here's the breakdown (click on the table for a clearer view):

Nate Dorr is a Public Insight Network source who works for the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) as a regional analyst in Bemidji. His town has a high rate of state employees and he's worried about what a state government shutdown would mean for Bemidji. He writes, "Bemidji was hit hard by the recession, and this second or third wave of layoffs would be bad." He's concerned that some of the temporary layoffs that come with a shutdown could become permanent.

Help us cover this story: What else should we know? How would a shutdown affect your community? Drop us a line.

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Minnesota's economy from the bakery window

Posted at 10:30 AM on March 11, 2011 by Molly Bloom (1 Comments)
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, MinnEcon Indicator, Small business

Cold Spring Bakery wedding cakes on display

Cold Spring Bakery in Cold Spring, Minn. has been open for over 60 years and Lynn Schurman has worked there for nearly 40 of them. Lynn is the co-owner of the bakery along with her husband and brother-in-law and she was kind enough to take a break from her busy day to tell me how her business if faring these days. Here are three key insights she shared with me:

Weddings are back

Weddings can serve as a pretty good economic indicator (as we've looked at before here at MinnEcon) and 2010 was not a great year for weddings.

But business at Cold Stone Bakery is up since October and Lynn attributes some of that to the increased number of wedding cake orders that are coming in.

Experienced bakers are hard to find

Cold Spring Bakery, which has about 60 employees, is having a hard time finding bakers who have been trained in commercial baking. In part, that's because Minnesota no longer has trade schools producing the qualified graduates Schurman is looking for. Dunwoody as well as technical colleges in Mankato and Duluth all used to have programs, but starting eliminating them about 10 years ago. Television shows like Ace of Cakes may be driving more people to culinary school, but they are trained there to be pastry chefs, not bakers that make 300 pounds of bread at a time.

Their business is half retail and half wholesale, and they have open positions that they have not been able to fill. They are able to do some training on the job, but some positions, like bakers in charge of mixing large batches of dough, require more specialized training. They will have some interns coming in from out-of-state programs this summer and Schurman hopes they'll develop into the employees that the bakery needs.

Ingredient costs are rising fast

The price of honey and flour have both doubled since last year at this time. Flour has jumped from $12 to $24 per 100 pounds. Sugar has gone up 50 percent since last year and is now nearly $30 per bag. They've been able to hold their prices steady up until now but have just started to have to raise prices on some of their products. Cake prices are going up nearly six percent and breads and buns are going up as much as seven percent. "If flour is your main ingredient, you've got to do something," Schurman said.

Schurman said bakers are coming together to challenge the rising sugar prices. She recently signed a petition through "End the Big Sugar Bailout" and the American Bakers Association and the Retail Bakery Association are coming together to lobby Washington on this issue.

Lynn Schurman is a source in our Public Insight Network and we'll check back with her in a few months to see how her business is doing and if prices are stabilizing. You can tell us about your business here or in the comments.

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New credential, new training, same job

Posted at 10:30 AM on January 25, 2011 by Molly Bloom (1 Comments)
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment

Brian Finstad sought retraining after being laid off from his factory job, only to find himself back where he started.

We went down to Springfield, MN to hear his story and to see his work at the Sanborn Manufacturing plant.

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Farming: The Next Generation

Posted at 2:23 PM on December 23, 2010 by Molly Bloom (2 Comments)
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment

In farm communities around Minnesota, farmers are wondering who will carry on their work after they are gone. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Census of Agriculture, the average age of farmers is rising. In 2007, the average age of farmers in Minnesota was 55.3, up from 49.6 in 1992.

Kristin Wilson, who works with 30 farm families through the Whole Farm Co-op in Long Prairie, said most of the farmers she works with are in their 50s and many do not expect to pass their farms on to offspring. She worries about the future of the state's farms.

"I fear losing the real knowledge of farming the land as our small farmers age out of productivity," said Wilson, the farm co-op's internet sales manager. "Of all the farmers I work with, not one is recommending that their children carry on the work."

David Greenley of Minneapolis grew up in a farming family but was never interested in becoming a farmer and his family didn't encourage it. After serving in the military he earned a college degree and became a public safety officer.

Greenley, 31, is the first in his family to graduate from college. After his grandparents passed away, and his father retired, his cousin took over the farm but now rents out the land.

"It's really hard to continue farming in my generation because it's so expensive," Greenley said.

Many farmers he knows need to have second jobs to make ends meet.

Efforts are underway to prevent the loss of farming culture and to address the issue of rising costs associated with starting a farm. One of these efforts is Farm Beginnings, a project of the Land Stewardship Project designed to help "launch the next generation of farmers" (MPR's Ambar Espinoza reported on the program this summer).

If this program is any indication, the next generation of farmers will not come from those born into it.

Parker Forsell, program organizer in their southeast Minnesota Lewiston office, said only about a third of participants come from family farming backgrounds. The majority of participants either became interested in farming through school or want to start farming as a second career.

Farm Beginnings can train farmers from 40 potential farms each year. Interest has grown every year since it started 14 years ago. For the first time, this year it has a waiting list.

Marie Ljosenvoor is one of the few following in her family's footsteps. The 26-year-old recently moved back to the small Maple Lake dairy goat farm that she grew up on. She's taking over after her father's off-the-farm job was transferred to Chicago. Ljosenvoor will keep her job as a pharmacist, as will her husband, a teacher. Burt they look forward to learning more about farming from nearby farmers.

The Ljosenvoors will also be adding a large vegetable garden they will use to primarily feed themselves. Most of the young farmers Ljosenvoor knows are in similar situations. They started farming primarily to feed themselves and then started selling Community Supported Agriculture shares to support their families.

For them and the other families farming is "not about money and more about stewardship of the land," she said.

Are you a farmer? Thinking about becoming one? Share your story with MinnEcon here.

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Minnesota farmers, "Main Street" debts

Posted at 4:00 PM on January 19, 2011 by Paul Tosto (1 Comments)
Filed under: Greater Minnesota

Back before the winter holidays, we came across some data that really threw us -- a huge jump in shaky debt that Minnesota farmers owed to their local businesses.

The numbers came from University of Minnesota Extension's farmer-lender mediation program. Its fiscal 2010 report showed rising numbers of requests to negotiate debts that farmers couldn't pay on time.

Given the recession and how hard it's hit livestock producers especially, a nine percent jump wasn't a shock.

Digging into the data, though, a whole different story emerged.

The value of debt addressed in mediation nearly doubled year over year from $322 million to $624 million.

Most surprising: The biggest percentage jump came in the "Main Street Suppliers and Small Businesses" category. That has implications for small town Minnesota businesses as well as farmers.

It's shocking, too, because fiscal 2008 showed only $9.5 million mediated in that category and $16 million in 2009. By fiscal 2010, the past due farmer IOUs to Main Street and small town businesses in Minnesota ballooned to $173 million.

These debts are for things like repairs, feed, fuel, veterinary services, seed and supplies, the U Extension says. Check out the extension group chart (click on the chart for a larger view).

There are real implications here for small town Minnesota businesses as well as farmers. Mediation means the debt is in some jeopardy of not being paid. You can find good definitions and specific explanations here.

We've talked a lot about the struggles of those in the Twin Cities economy. Maybe we need to have a deeper discussion about how long it will take rural Minnesota to see a real recovery out of the Great Recession.

"It's sort of a split ag economy out there," Extension economist Brian Buhr told us when we asked about the data in late November.

"Most of the crop side of the world -- corn, soybeans, wheat -- has been doing pretty well. The side with really difficult times the last three or four years has been dairy and swine."

The financial woes of those livestock producers are turning up in in problem debt owed to Main Street vendors.

Demand for grain and ethanol are driving the woes for livestock producers. Grain prices have surged the past few years and that's bad news for livestock producers seeing the costs of feeding their herds rise faster than the animals' value.

Overall, the ag picture doesn't look all that bad but livestock's really been hit, Buhr added. The economy has "sort of decoupled the fortunes of grains and livestock."

It's also apparently put a big hurt on the lenders and small businesses who've extended credit and are owed money.

We're hoping to dig deeper into this issue in future posts. It's not clear from the data we've seen if the problem "Main Street" debt is concentrated in any particular county or region of Minnesota.

Help us build on this initial bit of reporting. Tell us what you're seeing in your part of Minnesota, especially if you're a farmer or a small business person who's been part of the Extension mediation program.

Post something below or contact us directly at MinnEcon.

1/20 UPDATE: Dick Senese, associate dean with University of Minnesota Extension, sent us some additional thoughts on the jump in troubled debt owed by farmers to Main Street businesses.

In times of tight credit, Main Street Businesses do often decide to increase the amount of debt that they carry. This is unexpected overhead for Main Street, and it demonstrates the commitment that rural businesses often have to their community and its economy.

As in all business risks, this can result in both profit or loss. In mediation, the goal is to get everyone paid if at all possible when that debt goes bad.

The degree to which the debt is past due is very specific to the lender.

The law says that creditors with a secured debt of more than $5,000 against an agricultural property must offer Farmer-Lender Mediation before proceeding with foreclosure, repossession, cancellation of contract, or collection of judgment. The point at which lenders pursue that would depend upon their agreements and debt tolerance.

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In Cass County, signs of the next mortgage mess

Posted at 10:09 AM on October 20, 2010 by Paul Tosto (1 Comments)
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Housing & mortgages

Back in March we talked about the approaching next mortgage mess and how the Twin Cities ex-urbs and selected parts of central Minnesota were likely to feel it worse.

So we took notice this morning when we read in today's Brainerd Dispatch, "Foreclosures increase in Cass County." Cass and the Brainerd Lakes areas were among the areas we highlighted in the spring. MPR reporter Tom Robertson focused in, too.

The Brainerd story reports data showing 35 Cass County properties went into into foreclosure from July to September compared with 33 last year.

While the number didn't change that much the nature of those foreclosures shifted.

The value of properties foreclosed remained at about 10 for those under $100,000 and about a dozen for those worth $100,000 to $200,000, but the number valued at $200,000 to $400,000 more than doubled from five to 11. Only one property worth over $400,000 went into foreclosure this year, compared with five in 2009.

It looks like what John Patterson, research director for the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency identified earlier this year.

Patterson built maps examining non-prime adjustable rate mortgages that have yet to reset their interest rates. Here's the map from June. The darker the color the bigger the potential problem. (Click on it for a larger view.)

The map's important because there's an ongoing concern the last chunk of adjustable rate mortgages made while economic times were good and home values were still rising, are the ones likely to cause trouble in coming months.

These would be ARMs built to reset their interest rates and recast their monthly payments after five years. Think of it as the "deals" from 2005 coming back to haunt in 2010 and beyond.

Back in the spring, looking at similar maps from December, it looked like the potential problems were concentrated in some of the farthest reaches of the Twin Cities suburbs and in central Minnesota where lots of larger, expensive homes were built earlier in the decade.

The Brainerd story offers some evidence that's what we're seeing -- foreclosures rising now for houses in the $200,000 to $400,000 range. I'll speculate that these are folks who found a way to afford lake homes using adjustable rate loans and who couldn't make it.

We're not talking about the super rich or low income folks or people who were the worst credit risks. As Patterson notes:

The foreclosure crisis is transforming from a subprime crisis to a prime crisis.

-- Between 2007 and 2010, the subprime market's share of residential mortgages in foreclosure dropped from 54% to 25% in Minnesota.

-- During the same period, the prime market's share increased from 40% to 60%.

Yes, it's only Cass County and a small sample size. But that's typically how these bigger problems surface, not as a huge wave but a trickle.

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Think we're off base on the housing and mortgage concerns? Tell us. Post below or contact us directly at MinnEcon.

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Big brands move into growing gluten-free market

Posted at 10:27 AM on October 14, 2010 by Molly Bloom
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Small business

Jewel's Food Market in Baxter, Minn. Jewel's will start selling products exclusively online next month.

When Amy Hansmann's brother was diagnosed with Celiac disease in 2004, she and her mother would spend hours trolling the grocery store, reading labels, looking for food he could eat.

Celiac disease is an autoimmune disease in which eating gluten causes damage to the small intestine. Gluten is found in flour, but also in barley, malt, rye, spelt and in ingredients like modified food starch."

Because it was not easy to find products that were completely gluten-free in 2004, Hansmann and her mother considered driving nearly 500 miles from their home in Baxter, Minn. to a store in Milwaukee that sold them.

The hunt for these foods led Hansmann to open up Jewel's Food Market, a store catering to those with Celiac and food allergies, in 2008.

With Celiac disease becoming more common and gluten-free diets gaining popularity, there are more gluten-free products available than ever before. In 2004, when Amy's brother was diagnosed, the gluten-free market was worth $580 million. By 2012, it's expected to be worth $2.6 billion. It's not just small companies anymore either; Anheuser Busch has released a gluten-free beer and General Mills has gluten-free Bisquick and cake mixes.

This growth, however, doesn't translate to more business for Amy Hansmann. Customers can now go the local Cub Foods and buy many gluten-free products, often for less than what Amy can sell them for.

"People have come to expect Wal-Mart prices all the time," Hansmann said. "But they don't understand why the prices are so low."

A small store like hers can't buy from General Mills since the company requires a minimum order of $3,000 worth of merchandise per week. So Hansmann sells products from smaller companies that have higher wholesale prices.

At the end of this month, Hansmann is closing her storefront in Baxter and moving her business exclusively to her company's website. She also plans to focus marketing efforts on small town clientele across the country who don't have access to big grocery stores, but whose food allergies make shopping difficult.

Hansmann will move her inventory to a space in a shared warehouse and will no longer have to pay $2000 a month in rent.

We'll check in with her in a few months to see how the transition is going and whether she's able to tap into the expanding gluten-free market.

Hansmann is a source in our Public Insight Network. Do you have a story you'd like to share with us? Tell us here.

Economic Lookout: Art crawl as economic development

Posted at 2:30 PM on September 17, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota

MinnEcon note: Brent Olson is a Big Stone County commissioner who keeps a close eye on the western Minnesota economy. A few weeks ago he looked at whether the hundreds of one-person businesses in his rural county are being shut out of grants and other aid because they're technically not creating jobs.

In today's post, he tells us how the Upper Minnesota River Art Crawl, held in early October, has turned into kind of a big deal, economically. (Disclosure: He's affiliated with the event. I don't think it discounts his points.)

"What's interesting is that every year the sponsors are easier to find, because local businesses have realized that scruffy potters and musicians might not have much money, but they can attract folks who do have money." says Olson.

"Some of those people will look at the cost of real estate and the other attractions of the area and make a move...As economic development goes, it's a long way from attracting a computer factory or building an ethanol plant, but it works, and providing a welcoming community for artists can pay dividends a long way down the road."

Check out his video, then post your thoughts below.

Interested in being an Economic Lookout? Contact us directly at MinnEcon.

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In Minnesota and nation, a look at rural jobs lost

Posted at 1:40 PM on September 15, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota

I'm doing a little double duty these days, helping out as temporary editor of MPR's Minnesota Today site while still trying to keep posting here.

So I'm leaning on colleagues this week and next to help find cool stuff to post. Today, Dave Peters, who oversees MPR's Ground Level project, shot me an interesting look at the job winners and losers in the nation's rural counties.

Here's a look at the chart, from the web site Daily Yonder:

Here's the breakdown by Minnesota county, showing unemployment rates in July 2007 and July 2010 and the difference over three years in the number of employed people.

I don't quite know what to make of it. McLeod, Crow Wing, Winona and Steele were the counties that lost more than 1,000 jobs the past three years. But if there's one explanation that covers those counties, I don't see it.

As we've written before, the pattern of job losses and job opportunities seems to have cut a tornado like path across Minnesota.

Nationally, the researchers note:

There are nearly 1.2 million fewer jobs in rural counties this July than there were in July 2007, just a few months before the recession officially started. Yet, in five states -- Alaska, Arizona, Kansas, North Dakota and Texas -- the number of rural jobs has increased in those three years.

Take a look at the Minnesota data and let me know what you think.

And let's hope for good numbers tomorrow when the Department of Employment and Economic development delivers Minnesota's jobless data for August.

Economic Lookout: 'One-man' businesses shortchanged?

Posted at 9:26 AM on September 7, 2010 by Paul Tosto (1 Comments)
Filed under: Economic Lookouts, Economic stimulus, Greater Minnesota

MinnEcon note: Brent Olson is a Big Stone County commissioner who keeps a close eye on the western Minnesota economy. In August, he shared some thought provoking short videos on how his friends and neighbors are doing in the recession.

In this latest post, he looks at whether the hundreds of one-person businesses in Big Stone County are being shut out of grants and other aid because they're not creating jobs.

The economy depends on the 400 or so people who run the one-person car repair shop, store, salon and similar businesses, he says. Yet they aren't viewed as job creators and that puts them at a disadvantage.

"If you look at any sort of government aid program, stimulus money or if you're applying for a grant, you'll see a line that says how many job will this create," says Olson. "If you put 'zero,' you're out of luck.

"You can't get any help at all. You're not even on the radar and that's a real issue.... the government is telling us, 'Yeah, you don't matter'... people who contribute $17 million to the economy in Big Stone County, they're cut off from just the little bit of extra assistance that could really make a profound difference."

Interested in being an Economic Lookout? Drop us a line.

Olson is a western Minnesota writer and Big Stone County commissioner

Bonus Info: Here's a chart from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development showing 13 month unemployment in Big Stone County, the region around it, and Minnesota (click on the chart for a larger view).

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Goat farmers struggle to cash in on cheese

Posted at 1:11 PM on August 30, 2010 by Molly Bloom (2 Comments)
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Small business

Goat cheese for sale at the Mississippi Market Natural Foods Co-op. (MPR Photo/Molly Bloom)

A growing market for goat cheese presents an opportunity for central Minnesota's goat producers, but they are unable to help meet demand now that a Canadian company has stopped processing their milk.

Woolwich Dairy Inc., a Canada-based company that makes goat cheese, told 20 central Minnesota dairy goat producers last month that the company would no longer pick up their milk to process.

That's a serious issue for the state's goat dairy farmers, many of whom are not close to processing facilities, said Georgia Raymond, the cheese buyer for one of the Mississippi Market Natural Foods Co-ops. In Minnesota, processors are few and far between. That's why most of the local goat cheese the co-ops carry is produced in Wisconsin.

One of these farmers who depended on Woolwich is Missy Isder who has a small dairy farm just north of Little Falls. Since Woolwich ceased its pick-ups, Isder has been feeding some of the milk produced by her 140 milking herd to calves and dumping the rest.

Isder would be interested in processing the milk herself but has not seriously looked into it because it's prohibitively expensive to install the equipment and obtain inspections. A pasteurizer alone can cost over $12,000.

Next week, Isder will begin paying Eichten's, the Center City, Minn. cheese producer, to process some of her milk (though she'll still have a good deal left over). She and four other goat dairy farmers have come together to split the $1,200 that Eichten's will charge them to process 5,000 pounds of milk. Eichten's will process the milk into cheese and then she and the other farmers will be responsible for selling it.

Anna Severson, a goat farmer in Swanville, Minn. said part of the problem is that while there is plenty of support for cow dairy farmers looking to start similar projects, this help does not exist for goat dairy farmers.

Swenson used to be a goat dairy farmer but has since moved on to breeding goats since she had no outlet for the milk she was producing. What really bothers her is that she's been watching demand for goat cheese rise while she isn't able to pursue the market.

"I go to the store and see imported goat cheese selling for $6," Severson said.

Whether the cause is the Food Network, Top Chef and increased foodie-ism or lactose intolerance (goat milk may be easier to digest) more people are interested in buying goat cheese.

Georgia Raymond, the cheese buyer for one of the Mississippi Market Natural Foods Co-ops, said demand has just been going up since she started working there in 1994. Three years ago they had four varieties of goat cheese and now they have 25.

Although the lack of processing facilities remains an obstacle, she would love to see more Minnesota goat cheeses on the market.

"I'm always looking for good goat cheeses to sell," Raymond said. "Send them my way."

This news comes from the Public Insight Network, people across the state who share their knowledge and experience to help guide our reporting. We'd love to hear from you - click here to get started.

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Looking sunnier for solar in MN

Posted at 7:47 AM on August 18, 2010 by Molly Bloom
Filed under: Economic stimulus, Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment

As of March 2009, Minnesota had just 286 homes and businesses with solar installations, according to Department of Commerce data (on par with Wisconsin but well short of California's 60,000).

But a new Iron Range solar manufacturing project is set to give the state's energy mix a sunnier disposition. Silicon Energy, a Washington-based manufacturing company, is turning an old Iron Range mine dump just outside of Virginia, MN into a solar panel manufacturing plant early next year.

This plant will be the first business at the 40-acre site, which Mountain Iron hopes will be come a thriving renewable energy park. Silicon Energy says funding from the Iron Range Resources Board and incentives for Minnesotans to install solar panels were big factors in their decision to come to Minnesota.

Silicon Energy will be the 14th solar component maker in the state, according to the Minnesota Solar Energy Industries Association. That's far fewer than the hundreds of solar companies operating in states like California, but it's progress - and jobs.

Jennifer Hawkins, Renewable Energy and Clean Technology Industry Specialist with DEED, says that they're focusing on supporting development of the solar industry supply chain. So when companies like Silicon Energy are looking for a place to land they see Minnesota's healthy solar ecosystem as friendly place to be.

Not only are Minnesotans manufacturing more solar components in the state, we're installing more too, thanks in part to government incentives and Xcel Solar Rewards.

Public Insight Network source Daniel Williams is the vice president of Powerfully Green, a solar installation company. Williams says he's seen a serious uptick in business over the past year, especially during the last six months.

No wonder. It's hardly an explosion of activity, but it's still impressive: In the last five months alone, 250 new homes and businesses have been approved to receive solar installation rebates with another 104 requests still under consideration. That's nearly double the number in the state as of March 2009.

Xcel spokeswoman Patty Nystuen says there have been an additional 27 solar installation projects completed through their Solar Awards and another 150 likely to be completed by late fall.

Have you installed a solar project - or considered it? Post something below or drop us a line to share your experience.

Photos from CERTs via Flickr.

Economic Lookout: The economy as your neighbors see it

Posted at 1:00 PM on August 19, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Economic Lookouts, Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment

Brent Olson is a Big Stone County commissioner who keeps a close eye on the western Minnesota economy. In May, he told us about spotting some hopeful economic signs in his hometown of Clinton.

In this latest post, he tries a cool experiment. "In one pleasant evening when we had a house full of people...I asked them to tell me what they wanted to about the economy."

The result: short videos that open a window on how our friends and neighbors are doing in the recession.

Given today's economic news, I thought this was a great time to post these. Minnesota's July jobless rate came in at 6.8 percent, unchanged from June.

The data came with some positive signs -- Minnesota has added 29,100 jobs over the past 12 months -- mixed with the reality that construction and other sectors are still struggling badly and job-wise, it's a long climb back.

The recent gathering at Olson's house offered a range of views and experiences on the state's labor market, which intrigued him. He wanted to get their unfiltered accounts.

"The guests ranged from a 17 year old about to be a high school senior who needed more hours (working) at the nursing home to a University of Minnesota employee with a PhD and a statewide staff," he told us.

Check out Olson's videos, then post your thoughts below. Tell us what you're seeing in this economy.

Interested in being an Economic Lookout? Contact us directly at MinnEcon.

Olson is a western Minnesota writer and Big Stone County commissioner

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Economic Lookout: On the Range, jobs beyond mining?

Posted at 9:58 AM on August 11, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Economic Lookouts, Greater Minnesota

MinnEcon note: Aaron Brown gave us a view this spring on the hopes and concerns for Minnesota's Iron Range economy.

Today, Brown, a source in MPR's Public Insight Network, looks at the rebound in the region's core mining business and the potential for copper exploration.

While these are positive signs in a region that's been hit hard in the Great Recession, Brown worries about the Range "once again focusing on minerals to save an economy."

Policy makers should also be looking at ways to help people "make a living out here that aren't like the old ways."

Check out Brown's video report and then post your thoughts below.

Interested in being an Economic Lookout? Contact us directly at MinnEcon.

Aaron Brown writes the MinnesotaBrown blog. He teaches communication at Hibbing Community College.

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In central Minnesota, an ancient skill in short supply

Posted at 11:50 AM on July 23, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment

MinnEcon note: Dave Peters directs MPR's Ground Level project, a cool local journalism effort. He gave us a heads-up on a dispatch from Nancy Leasman, a Ground Level blogger in Todd County.

Nancy found a neat story about a Todd County business -- a barrel maker that can't find the workers it needs to grow.

It's a small reminder that while we wring our hands about high tech jobs and training, there are still jobs out there that rely on ancient skills and apprentice workers.

Here's her report.

Earlier this week, I had a lovely conversation with this area's only coopers. Yes, Todd County has a barrel making business: Black Swan Cooperage, just north of Clotho, next to the Berkness Sawmill. Heidi and Russ Karasch sat down with me and I learned about the fascinating history and present day job of barrel making.

I'll be writing about the cooperage for print publications but one of the Karaschs' comments really hit me as I look into the future of this county. They said that they can't find employees here in Todd County.

Historically, becoming a cooper required a seven year apprenticeship. Apprentices received a small amount of pay but since they started young, often around 14 (which Heidi did as she learned the trade from her father), by the time they were ready to start a family, they had a living wage.

Black Swan Cooperage pays a living wage; starting pay is $10 / hour. With modern day mechanization of parts of the process, it takes about two years to become a good cooper. The cooperage invests in its employees by teaching the necessary skills.

According to a recent MPR essay, our society has so emphasized education and technology that the number of skilled artisans is at an all time low. The essayist suggested a return to valuing the skills of hand work. But, are young people willing to take on the physical labor that goes with hand work?

The Karasches recently hired six new employees. Only one showed up on the first day of work. They don't know why the others didn't arrive for work. They tried to hire non-English speaking workers but found the communication barrier a stumbling block in crafting barrels.

This is one small example but what would this mean if it becomes a trend? What happens to an aging county if the work force is unwilling or unavailable to support the local economy?

Job loss, opportunity twister cuts across Minnesota

Posted at 12:05 PM on June 30, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment

Brent Olson, a Big Stone County commissioner, told us a story back in April of the huge demand for a single government job.

Based on the county jobless rate, Olson figured "nearly thirty percent of the people looking for a job applied for ONE job."

It was a mind-blowing observation. But Olson's one of MinnEcon's Economic Lookouts and his insights into the western Minnesota economy have been spot-on.

We recalled his words this morning as we read through new research released today by the state Department of Employment and Economic Development that shows the Great Recession has carved tornado-like paths of job losses and shrinking job opportunities across Minnesota.

Some of the worst hit counties sit next to the counties showing job growth. Here's a map produced by DEED. (Click on the map for a larger view)

The report notes:

Between third quarter 2007 and third quarter 2009, Minnesota lost 143,000 jobs or 5.3 percent of total employment. Nicollet County in southern Minnesota, with the highest employment loss (12.6 percent), is near counties with some of the lowest losses. Employment gains have been witnessed in nine counties, with Murray County in southwestern Minnesota having the highest gain of 4.7 percent over two years.

Here's a county map for reference:

Big Stone County was one of those nine that saw job gains. But it's a grimmer picture in the counties around it.

And you can see Olson's April observations come to light in DEED's data on shrinking job opportunities.

The Upper Minnesota Valley counties include Big Stone, Chippewa, Lac qui Parle, Swift and Yellow Medicine. At the end of last year, that region had nearly 40 unemployed Minnesotans for every job vacancy.

The state says:

Overall, the number of statewide job vacancies dropped 55 percent between the fourth quarter of 2006 and the fourth quarter of 2009.

The gap between job opportunities and the number of unemployed is much more drastic in Greater Minnesota. While there are 7.5 unemployed per job opening in the seven-county Metro Region, there are 10.2 unemployed per opening in Greater Minnesota.

These ratios have increased substantially since 2006. Upper Minnesota Valley represents the worst-case scenario of going from one of the lowest unemployment ratios to the highest--up 15.8 times over three years.

As Minnesota gropes its way out of recession, that job opportunity gap might end up more worrisome than the unemployment rate.

It's worth repeating that in some parts of Minnesota there were five unemployed people per job opening at the end of 2009 while in other parts there were 40 jobless people per vacancy.

Since then, the overall statewide unemployment picture has improved . But it's increasingly clear that it'll take some parts of Minnesota a lot long longer than others to recover from the recession's damage.

What's the job picture look like in your part of Minnesota? Drop us a line and tell us. Help make us all smarter about what's happening across our state.

BONUS INFO: Online help wanted ads in Minnesota dropped in June, MPR reported today.

Commercial real estate concerns: Two more views

Posted at 11:00 AM on June 3, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Housing & mortgages, Twin Cities metro

We raised the issue a few days ago about the problems some are seeing in the Twin Cities commercial real estate markets -- specifically concerns about financing and a coming foreclosure wave.

We reached out to more than a dozen experts from MPR's Public Insight Network for perspective and got some great feedback, including two more views we thought were important to highlight in a second post.

"My clients are experiencing more difficulty getting their properties to appraise at a level sufficient to refinance existing principal mortgage balances," said Brent Holmes, owner / broker with the Twin Cities firm Holmes | Tongen Investment Real Estate Sales.

"As a result, my clients are more frequently having to bring additional cash (aka equity) to close a refinance of their properties. "

The same is true on acquisitions; in many cases purchasing power has declined - in some recent examples it takes 3 times the equity to make the same acquisition as it did 2 to 3 years ago.

Owners / investors are experiencing an erosion in their balance sheets, which makes it much more difficult to borrow dollars. Operating lines of credit have been eliminated or much diminished even for very strong clients.

All this leads to a cash crunch and higher risk of problems coinciding with the maturity of debt. There is an inability to sell and an inability to refinance -- yuck!

There are owners with strong equity in their properties, he adds. "Most owners that I am in touch with are finding there way through, but it remains a difficult uncomfortable time."

Tarry Edington typically deals with residential housing in Grand Rapids with teh Itasca County Housing and Redevelopment Authority

But the housing development specialist was willing to share his commercial real estate observations on the town he's lived in for 20 years. He says he's never seen so much commercial real estate for sale and for lease.

What I see is that which is advertised for sale or lease, most of which is retail and office space. I am certain there is other property, as there always is, that is vacant and available but not openly advertised.

I have seen some of the advertised property vacant for well over a year. And, it appears there are additional properties coming into the market regularly. In addition to the vacant properties, I observe an increased number of small businesses for sale. It is my conclusion that the vacant commercial real estate and the businesses for sale are a reflection of the general economic conditions.

While the Grand Rapids community remains vibrant it is obvious there is a retraction in the level of economic activity... Some of the "strip mall" and "reuse/conversion" properties have never been occupied because they were just coming to market when the recession and meltdown events occurred.

Minnesota Public Radio's Dan Olson gave us an in-depth look last year at the commercial real estate market in the Twin Cities and the potential for a foreclosure storm. The basic problem then -- making payments and refinancing -- haven't gone away.

"Those issues are largely hidden from public observation," Edington added. "In large part, the resolution of those issues will be dependent upon equity, cash flow, property valuation and lender forbearance. We will all get to observe as it plays out in the days ahead."

UPDATE: A new University of St. Thomas survey shows "light at the end of the tunnel for commercial real estate in the Twin Cities market," signs of recovery over the next two years. We'll interview the St. Thomas prof who oversees the survey and post later.
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Think these concerns about commercial real estate are on point or out of line? Post your insights below or contact us directly.

Economic Lookout: Dumpsters and other hopeful signs

Posted at 11:00 AM on May 24, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Economic Lookouts, Greater Minnesota

MinnEcon note: Brent Olson is a Big Stone County commissioner who keeps a close eye on the western Minnesota economy. In April, he shared a story of high demand in Big Stone County for a single government job.

Today, he tells us about spotting some hopeful economic signs -- remodeling dumpsters and a new grain dryer -- in his hometown of Clinton, MN.

"Out here on the prairie I haven't detected anyone singing 'Happy Days are Here Again,' he says. "But it's my opinion that things are looking up, just a little."

Check out his video post and then add your thoughts below.

Interested in being an Economic Lookout? Contact us directly at MinnEcon.

Olson is a western Minnesota writer and Big Stone County commissioner

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Microlending in Minnesota: Interest is growing. Does it work?

Posted at 12:00 PM on May 20, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Small business

MinnEcon note: My colleague Dave Peters has been doing great work leading an MPR News project called Ground Level, bringing reporting and citizens together in new ways. Today, he gives us a heads-up on microlending in greater Minnesota.

Tell us what you know about microlending. Post below or contact us directly at MinnEcon. Here's Dave's post:

I mentioned here a couple weeks ago that I was hearing more about interest in microlending in Minnesota and I've been sorting through some data to get a better handle on it. There's no question interest is rising in using small loans as a tool to get entrepreneurs off the ground.

The Aspen Institute for almost two decades has been surveying organizations giving the small loans, and when it conducted another round of research last summer and fall, it found more such organizations than ever.

It compiled the results in a report you can read here. There's even a searchable database here, which identifies 10 organizations in Minnesota that responded to an Aspen survey about their 2008 lending activities.

The biggest one, with 47 microloans disbursed for a total of $550,000, is the Northeast Entrpreneur Fund, which serves 11 counties in northeastern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin.

In all, the Aspen study identified well over 100 microloans given out by Minnesota organizations in 2008, totalling more than $1.5 million. A lot of the activity researchers found was outstate -- other active microlenders were non-profits like the Southwest Initiative Foundation in Hutchinson and the Northwest Minnesota Foundation in Bemidji.

Given those numbers, it's clear we're not talking about the kind of 22-cent or $5 microloans that gave the field great visibility and one of its promulgators, Muhammad Yunus, a Nobel Prize a few years ago. The Grameen Bank in Bangladesh gave very tiny loans to people, mostly women, to let them invest in small-scale operations in their homes in an effort to alleviate their poverty.

In the American microenterprise world, the definition of a microloan can go as high as $35,000, but the targets still tend to be low-income, inexperienced people unable to get credit through normal banks.

Mary Mathews, president and CEO of the Northeast Entrepreneur Fund in Duluth, says "demand is through the roof." The number of loans her organization provided rose to 65 last year, she said. This year demand is still up.

A big reason is that bank credit is hard to come by, and microlenders fill a gap. It's hard to know when bank credit might ease, but the state and non-profits are increasingly exploring microlending.

The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development got approval in the legislative session just ended for a plan to make $500,000 in federal money available to outstate Minnesota communities.

The communities need to contract with non-profits to give small entrepreneurs technical assistance. DEED's Bart Bevins says the department has been hearing from organizations who say there's a need and "we'll test that. We're going to find out if there's interest."

At the same time, two regional development commissions serving 10 counties in central Minnesota are conducting a feasibility study and expect next month to roll out a plan that would address any microloan needs they identify.

There's been debate over the effectiveness of microloans in alleviating poverty in Asia and Africa and whether it feels right as for-profit investment operations get into the business. And, as microloan providers will tell you, the need is great for, not just money, but technical assistance to help new entrepreneurs.

(For an interesting look at what those microloans do and don't accomplish, check the May 17 New Yorker profile of Esther Duflo, a young economist who conducts research into Third-World development ideas.)

Are these efforts working in Minnesota? Are small new concerns actually getting going?

Mathews says 85 percent of the small businesses her organization helps are still in business two years later.

What other evidence is there? What are the right ways to measure success?

Economic Lookout: Sacrifices in a 'jobless recovery'

Posted at 12:00 PM on May 11, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Economic Lookouts, Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment

MinnEcon note: Jessica Sundheim gave us a view recently on the health of the economy in and around Fergus Falls. Today, she gives us a personal look at the jobless recovery and what it means for Ottertail County.

Interested in being an Economic Lookout? Contact us directly at MinnEcon.

A great deal of attention is paid to the want ads in our household. My husband has never really quit looking for a job since we moved here five years ago.

His current employment is not related to his educational background. With a bachelor's degree in biology and a teaching certificate, he is suited to be a naturalist in the field. For a few years he managed an environmental learning center, but the private funding was cut and we were back at square one.

Right now, my husband works for a company selling food door-to-door. He leaves around 8:30 a.m. and comes home at around 10:00 p.m.

When he started the position he made straight commission, which made for some interesting months. Over the years the company set up a more consistent pay structure in exchange for mandated quotas.

The hours are difficult for our family of six, but the job pays better than retail and includes benefits.

Yes, I single-mom it during the week. But harder than that is watching the dreams, hopes and aspirations of a person I dearly love slowly dwindle. Nearing forty, I feel that my husband is resigning himself to whatever the market will offer.

In rural communities teaching jobs are somewhat precarious because of declining enrollment and tight budgets.

Teachers who have the least amount of seniority are the first ones cut. The insecurity coupled with a very low starting salary has left my husband completely disillusioned with the idea of being a science teacher.

It's not just our family. Many of our friends have similar stories, although some offer hope. One friend stuck it out with a pop delivery job for years in order to keep their health insurance.

Others work alongside my husband and share job leads as they all compete for something with better hours and lower pay.

Another friend drove 45 miles back-and-forth for work until just recently when, after three years, he was able to find a job in his field, here in town.

There are often of jobs available in retail, service, and factories, but they all offer low wages and a high rate of turn over. Many do not include benefits. As a result, when my husband recently applied for a factory job with Cargill, there were quite a few applicants.

They first had to complete a series of personality type tests, and interviews followed for those who passed. Fifteen people, including my husband, were interviewed for two positions. The job entailed working a swing shift, 7 a.m.-7 p.m. or 7 p.m.- 7 a.m., with a few days off in between. It also required working all major holidays, but we were thrilled with the idea of my husband either finishing work at 7 p.m. or going into work at 7 p.m.

Twelve years ago, I could not have imagined him applying for this type of position, so far outside of his skill set.

However, today that position would translate into at least three hours of family time per day, plus having him home during the supper hour! The salary was similar to his current salary, except it offered annual increases in pay (not hours worked). The position also included benefits.

Unfortunately, my husband did not get the job, but he responded as he always does, by immediately getting back out there and combing the want ads.

I often hear speculation about whether this will be a "jobless" recovery. Lately, national numbers show businesses are hiring again, and I was pleasantly surprised to see that reflected in our local want ads.

There was a period of about a month this spring when there was nothing of note in the paper, and prior to that the ads were sparse. Though there is a seasonal fluctuation in employment in our area, the new job listings contain some real winners. Because health care is one of the area's biggest employers, most of the "good" jobs (living wages + benefits) require medical training.

Others also involve technical expertise -- computing, electrical engineering, agricultural background, or at least one year of experience in the field. The rest of the job openings are in retail / service industries (Pizza Hut needs servers) or in factories or processing plants (i.e. turkey production).

As a full-time student at our local community college, many of my colleagues are younger than 20 working toward nursing degrees, getting generals out of the way, or earning college credits while still in high school.

In one class, our instructor asked more than twenty-five students how many planned to stay in the area or return after completing their education.

I was stunned when I looked around the room and I was the only one with her hand raised.

This is a fabulous town with excellent schools and beautiful surroundings. Yet, how can I blame them? How many in my generation would have ever volunteered to work twelve to fifteen hour shifts and Saturdays, in careers far outside of our interests, for wages that offer lifestyles that pale in comparison to what our parents had at our ages?

I came out of the 1990's when a student went to college to earn her bachelor of arts degree with the encouragement of a bright future in whatever field she so desired.

My colleagues are far more savvy.

Many are highly specializing in technical fields that result in careers that cannot be exported, and hold no illusions of finding employment close to home.

Jessica Sundheim is a full-time student and mom

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Minnesota's budget: Local governments deal with the fallout

Posted at 12:00 PM on May 6, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Twin Cities metro

We're hearing a lot today from Statehouse leaders scrambling to figure out what's next following Wednesday's Minnesota Supreme Court decision that's thrown the state budget into chaos.

But local leaders are the ones, ultimately, who'll have to make it work. Whatever solution is hatched in St. Paul, county and city leaders will still have to find a way to pay the bills. In Aitkin County this Saturday, there's a "Radiothon" to raise money to keep library branches fully open.

We reached out to local officials in MPR's Public Insight Network Wednesday after the state Supreme Court rejected Gov. Pawlenty's use of "unallotment" power to make deep budget cuts.

While it's good to debate the merits of taxes vs. debt vs. smaller government, local officials are faced with a practical problem of watching the Statehouse and waiting for the fallout and we wanted to hear from them.

"As a 15-year public employee these are probably the most difficult times I've seen," said Stony Hiljus, Coon Rapids city attorney.

"There is a significant level of anxiousness, frustration, and fear in public employment right now and I know of colleagues who are considering transitioning to a private law practice as a result. These fears are shared amongst all sectors of public employees."

Hiljus made it clear he was speaking only for himself. But it's a sentiment we've heard from other public sector folks the past few months.

Below are responses we got from our Public Insight sources. Take a look and post your thoughts below or contact us directly.

Rick Morris, Waseca County Commissioner

As a county commissioner our county program aid has been cut from over $1 million to just over $300,000 by unallotment. This has caused us to give less to the library and they in turn have reduced their budget by reducing hours and cutting their book and materials budget by 50%.

We have not filled positions left open by retirement in our highway department, Auditor-treasurer's office, Land fill and recorders' office. These reductions have caused reduced services in each of these departments.

While the Supreme court ruling is important it doesn't affect the problem of lost revenue to the State. I am only one commissioner but I suspect we will continue to cut our budget reflecting what we believe will be an end to county program aid in the future. All indications are that the state will have less in the next biennium.

On the other hand we will be looking at other ways to raise revenue short of raising taxes. The cost of Government continues to rise so we need to balance our own budget with user fees, cuts, etc.

Stony Hiljus, Coon Rapids city attorney

Like many local governments we have taken many different actions in response to unallotments and cuts to LGA and MVHC. We eliminated positions, laid people off, held positions open, delayed projects, looked for alternative revenue sources to fill gaps where we felt we couldn't make employee cuts etc.

I know that here in Coon Rapids we have tried to make our local budget as much "State-Proof" as we can ... I can say that despite rhetoric from the State there have been cuts to police and fire and a change in how we provide emergency services. These services cannot withstand further cuts without seriously restructuring emergency response.

I think it is unlikely that you'll see many cities file a lawsuit against the state over unallotment. There seems to be some thought that doing so will only make things tougher for local governments in the future. I also think the polarization at the state and national level between the dems and reps is starting to filter down to local government politics and we will be in for a difficult election cycle.

Jim Hurm, city administrator, Austin

The City of Austin has lost $2.1 million in LGA (local government aid) over the last 16 months. Our annual budget is about $14 million. Cities were not part of the "unallotment" lawsuit and have taken a significantly harder hit than other areas of the state budget.

Austin's City employment is down to 138, a drop in jobs of about 2 a year over the last 25 years. We are lean and do well in financial management.

More cuts in LGA ... and levy limits will mean even more local government jobs in poor outstate communities. Goodbye "Minnesota Miracle."

Pat Sharbonda, Supervisor, Crow Wing County Social Services

It's too early to tell exactly how the ruling will impact the budget for the remainder of 2010 and as we move into 2011.

The greatest fear is that if all the funding that was unallotted is restored that will increase the shortfall which will require deeper cuts then already planned. So it's kind of a mixed bag... I am glad that they ruled the way they did.

Gord Prickett, Aitken County planning commission

In Aitkin County the very effective "Sentence to Serve" program was threatened when state funding that supported it was cut.

This program puts county prisoners out into the community doing essential work, under close supervision. The County Commissioners will keep the program alive by shifting extremely limited monies around.

We are having to hold a "Radiothon" to raise the $7000 this year to keep the Aitkin and McGregor Libraries open 6 days a week.

County funds were short, with LGA cuts, so Commissioners have made reductions to the East Central Library system. In hard times our public libraries are more important than ever, for job searching and internet use. And family and children's reading. Plus public meetings and programs

BONUS INFO: Listen today's Midmorning discussion on the budget featuring Rep. Paul Kohls: R-Victoria, who serves on the House taxes committee, House majority leader Rep. Tony Sertich: DFL-Chisholm and Minneapolis Mayor R. T. Rybak.

Click on the play button to listen:

Foreclosure tide rising again across Minnesota

Posted at 12:00 PM on May 4, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Housing & mortgages, Twin Cities metro

Like a pummeled prize fighter, Minnesota housing markets continue to rise but stagger.

Positive signs -- supply and demand of homes for sale is stabilizing in the metro area -- continue to be met by data showing more problems on the way.

The latest troubling numbers come from HousingLink, a Twin Cities housing and research group that found big percentage increases in foreclosures in the Twin Cities suburbs and exurbs in the first quarter of 2010 vs. 2009.

CORRECTION: HousingLink corrected several numbers this afternoon. A double-counting issue by Dakota County led to numbers being overstated in the HousingLink report. That threw off the overall numbers. Dakota County showed 545 foreclosures in the first quarter of 2010, a 36 percent increase over the same time in 2009.

I've corrected the data below and updated the charts.

Overall, the HousingLink data showed nearly 7,000 6,716 Minnesota foreclosures in the first three months of 2010 -- up 31 28 percent over the same period last year.

"I think we're seeing somewhat of a realization of a foreclosure crisis that has gone from being more of a metro and urban phenomenon (lending/borrowing practices) to one that hits more broadly across all geographies as a result of unemployment," said Dan Hylton, research manager with HousingLink.

The Minnesota Home Ownership Center notes that pre-foreclosure notices are up nearly 20 percent between the first quarter of 2010 and 2009.

"I do believe that we are seeing the number of notices trending upward in the suburban and exurban areas," said Ed Nelson with the center, a non-profit group that counsels people in danger of losing their homes.

"All of the suburban counties are trending upward for 2010... and are already ahead of where they were during the same time period last year."

While the numbers are definitely not good news, Realtor Aaron Dickinson notes the market is in much better shape to handle the next wave of mortgage problems than it was in 2008.

"For a year or so there have been stories of more foreclosures coming," Dickinson wrote on his Twin Cities real estate blog.

"While I don't doubt the warning and we're starting to see a tick up in sheriff sales, I do think that given the speed that the banks are going that it will be 2011 before we see much of this expected surge of foreclosure/(real estate owned) inventory on the market."

We wrote a few weeks ago that the next wave of mortgage problems was approaching.

While they won't swamp the market like they did two years ago, the newest wave will continue to push back the day when we can declare the market recovered.

BONUS: Listen to HousingLink's Dan Hylton talk about the numbers with MPR's Tom Crann:

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What's the housing market like around you? What story(ies) should we be reporting on when it comes to housing?

Tell us. Post something below or use this form to share a story.

Economic Lookout: At Duluth job club, a portrait of unemployed

Posted at 12:00 PM on April 23, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Economic Lookouts, Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment, MinnEcon Indicator

MinnEcon note: JP Rennquist told us in December he was "new to unemployment" but working his contacts and staying positive. In his first Economic Lookout report, he gives us a look at the challenges of being jobless in Duluth and the hope for better days.

Interested in being an Economic Lookout? Contact us directly at MinnEcon.

Monday Morning Job Club, Duluth. After a six week hiatus I finally returned to job club last week. And it had grown.

The club is a semi-formal gathering of unemployed people led by staff from the Minnesota workforce center and the city of Duluth workforce development program.

We had our biggest group ever.

That may have been due to the fact that we had a recruiter from Thrivent Financial for Lutherans looking to fill a few spots in its newly expanded Duluth office.

Or it may have been just that unemployment keeps rising here in Duluth, in spite of a few glimmers of hope .

I started coming to job club after I lost my non-profit job last November. It draws people from the old economy (teachers, manufacturers, construction workers) and the new economy (writers, web developers, telemarketers).

Some are displaced homemakers dealing with an empty nest, a divorce or the loss of a primary wage-earner in their family. Some are ex-prisoners navigating the difficult passage from incarceration to independence. Others are baby boomers nearing the end of their professional careers or young adults at the dawn of their working lives.

One man is trying to get back into the workforce after taking six years off to be a stay at home dad to his special needs daughter, who is now in school. Another guy, a recent addition who showed up during my hiatus, got laid off by Sam's Club when they outsourced their food samplers to an outside firm.

The structure is pretty simple: start with who you are and the kind of work you have done or what you might be interested in doing, later we go around the tables again and share the results from our efforts or things we'd like help with. If there is time, we share goals for the next week. Along the way there is a lot of conversation and, perhaps surprisingly, a lot of laughter.

There is definitely a lifeboat philosophy there - people realize that everyone is essentially in the same boat and they offer lots of support, encouragement and ideas to other job seekers.

Each person gets a piece of heavy card stock paper to write their name on and put in front of them on the table.

When I started coming, the name cards fit neatly in two rows on just one table. Now they cover almost two full tables. There is a stack of cards about 2 inches high for people who have been gone for awhile, either for jobs or other distractions. That's where I found mine.

I had gotten a job but instead of a new career it turned into a temporary position. They couldn't afford me, "after all," the owner said, sales were in a real slump.

I was a little embarrassed to go back after telling everyone I had a job. The people at job club were sorry to hear that my job didn't work out, but they were also happy to welcome me back.

Most of them had been through something similar before.

In March Duluth's Advanstar communications announced they were laying off 100 employees. Well, they weren't just laying them off, the company, which specializes in publishing, events and web design, said it was outsourcing them to a company in Asia.

Some of those outsourced employees have already been to job club even though their severance packages run through the summer.

Being unemployed is not fun in this job market, it's a real challenge, it's demoralizing and sometimes it seems like it's never gonna end.

But for me, and a thick stack of other attendees, Monday morning job club at least makes the job search much more bearable, and for some people who have come and moved on now, it's helped to make their searches successful.

JP Rennquist describes himself as "pretty broke" but with a million-dollar view of Lake Superior from his modest home in Duluth's Central Hillside neighborhood. He runs a couple of micro-businesses out of his house, does a lot of volunteering and is "waiting for his ship to come in."

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Economic Lookout: Sustaining the economy in Fergus Falls

Posted at 11:00 AM on April 22, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Economic Lookouts, Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment

MinnEcon note: Jessica Sundheim is a Fergus Falls student and mom and one of the most active sources in MPR's Public Insight Network.

In November, she gave us a personal look at how the federal stimulus was helping her family. In February, she relayed stories of friends who've had to roll the dice on health coverage.

Today, she gives us a thumbnail look at the economy around her in Fergus Falls and Otter Tail County.

Creating jobs that can sustain a family is probably the region's biggest struggle, she says. Area farmers also had a tough 2009.

Still, "our economic outlook isn't all that bad," Sundheim says. "We're able to continue to attract new businesses. And those that have been here for over a century continue to make it even in the toughest of economies."

Check out her report and then post your thoughts below.

Interested in being an Economic Lookout? Contact us directly at MinnEcon.

Unemployment in Otter Tail County (click on the chart for a larger view)

Source: Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development

Jessica Sundheim is a full-time student and mom in Fergus Falls.

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Big budget worries for small towns: Join our discussion today

Posted at 11:40 AM on April 13, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota

My MPR colleague Mike Caputo is inviting MinnEcon readers to drop in at 2 p.m. today to talk budget choices and challenges facing Minnesota's small towns.

You can read it and jump in right here in the box below.( UPDATE: The discussion's over but you can find it archived below.)

Caputo writes:

Look at the news over the past few days and you can see the examples of budget struggles in Winona and Willmar and Sherburn. The League of Minnesota Cities reports that there appears to be more than 4,000 "budget-balancing actions" being made or being considered in the 427 cities of Minnesota.

We've been looking from time to time at how these small communities make due in tough economic times.

Today we're going to pursue another way of getting at this issue. MPR News will host an Online Forum right here at MinnEcon. We have invited three city leaders and an expert on city issues to participate in a discussion beginning at 2 p.m. today:

· Jim Weygand - mayor of the city of Carver

· Rod Otterness - administrator for the city of International Falls

· Mark Sather - manager for the city of White Bear Lake

· Jim Miller, executive director for the League of Minnesota Cities

What we want to know is what people who monitor these city budgets are going through? How are they making these tough decisions?

Perhaps more importantly, how are city leaders trying to involve the public in understanding the reasons behind cuts being made or taxes being raised?

This online forum is a place for you to add your questions or comments. So plan to join us at 2 p.m. today.

If you can't make the forum, drop us a line and tell us about a novel approach cities, towns and counties are taking to make ends meet without cutting services too much.

Economic Lookout: Housing frustration in Rochester

Posted at 12:00 PM on April 27, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Economic Lookouts, Greater Minnesota, Housing & mortgages

MinnEcon note: Teri Gibbons is a Rochester nurse and a MinnEcon economic lookout, sharing stories about the economy around her. A few weeks ago, she gave us a thumbnail look at Rochester.

Today, she shares a story of being sideswiped by the real estate crisis.

Interested in being an Economic Lookout? Drop us a line.

Last summer I needed to find a new place to live. Considering the number of homes being foreclosed on I could find three homes on almost every street for sale in the areas I was looking at.

It was obvious many houses were being sold for far less than they were worth but even more were being sold for much more than they were worth so the owners could try to catch up financially.

I asked if I could rent with option to buy since I've lived in an unexpected money pit or two over the years. The answer was that it was a final sale or nothing.

To my way of thinking, if a person was due to be foreclosed on, any income that could go to a mortgage payment was better than none whether it was by renting out the property or selling it.

The reason I had to move was because the landlord had failed to make payments and the house had been foreclosed on.

I called the Realtor that was handling the property and the mortgage company that held the lien to the house.

Both agreed to me continuing to live there and keep the property up (improve it, actually!) but the bank said I would have to completely move out for two months and then they would sell it to me.

Sorry, but once I move my furniture it's staying there for a while.

Most of the houses that owners refused to rent out remain vacant almost a year later.

The house I had been renting has fallen into such disrepair it will need to be condemned
or the bank that owns it will have to put thousands of dollars into repair before it will meet any code and be available for sale.

The legal notices in the paper have gone from a few pages of foreclosures and delinquent taxes ( I personally find it painfully humiliating to those that have struggled in good faith but fell on hard times, a further insult) to full sections of the newspaper.

"Experts" may say the market is rebounding but I have to wonder.

Teri Gibbons is a registered nurse in Rochester. She says she's always looking at what's going on around her, trying to be impartial.

Bonus Info: In 2007, nearly one in four homeowners and four of ten renters spent 30 percent or more on housing in Rochester's Olmsted County, according to the Minnesota Housing Partnership.

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Economic Lookout: Tempered optimism in Rochester

Posted at 12:00 PM on April 19, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Economic Lookouts, Greater Minnesota, MinnEcon Indicator

MinnEcon note: Teri Gibbons is a Rochester nurse and source in MPR's Public Insight Network who keeps a close eye on her local economy. In her first Economic Lookout dispatch, she gives us a thumbnail view of Rochester.

Interested in being an Economic Lookout? Contact us directly at MinnEcon.

As I drive around Rochester, I see work in process with public works projects and it provides hope that things are finally improving.

Family members tell me more are eating out and shopping which has increased their hours in minimum wage jobs. If someone wants to be a newspaper carrier there are plenty of openings.

But what about nurses and teachers?

Teachers and paraprofessionals fear budget cuts may mean larger class size and less services. It will be a summer of wondering if the funds will be there for them to return or not.

This has happened before and the funds were available at the last minute but will this be the case again?

Hospitals are hiring from within, shifting staff from areas that were barely adequately staffed for the most part; nursing home positions are not as available as they once were.

So, my question to you is ... as we drive on our improved roads to school or to the hospital are we any better off?

I'll grab a fast food sandwich on my way to Wal-Mart and ponder this.

Teri Gibbons is a registered nurse in Rochester.

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Want to be an Economic Lookout? Drop us a line.

More trade with Cuba could aid Minnesota but it needs to go both ways

Posted at 3:36 PM on April 8, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota

Rep. Collin Peterson and Sen. Amy Klobuchar recently introduced the Travel Restriction Reform and Export Enhancement Act in the House and Senate. The bill would remove travel restrictions between the U.S. and Cuba and make it easier for Americans to sell goods there.

Removing those barriers would roughly double American agricultural exports to Cuba and greatly benefit Minnesota farmers. But it does nothing to help Cuba export goods in which it holds an advantage.

That's a problem.

The only way Cubans can ultimately pay for American imports is to export goods and services to the U.S and earn U.S. dollars. Cuban importers could borrow the money from U.S. banks to buy American products.

The legislation makes this easier to do. But Cuba will have to earn U.S. dollars to pay back the loans because U.S. banks won't accept loan payments in Cuban currency

The bill does nothing to alleviate this problem. In fact, it sets up the banks to make loans that have a high chance of not being paid back if we continue to ban imports from Cuba.

There are Cuban exports that Americans would want. Cuba's largest export is sugar, and there is clearly a large American appetite for sweeteners.

But sugar beets are one of Minnesota's major agricultural products and that would pit the export interests of some Minnesota farmers against the business interests of others.

Free and open trade is a policy about which almost all economists agree. The logic of trade is simple: A country should export the goods in which it has a comparative advantage and import goods in which they do not have a comparative advantage.

Political considerations, concerns about environmental and labor standards, and other factors are important determinants of trade flows, and clearly play a role in U.S.-Cuba trade.

In the long run, however, the economic reasoning is inescapable: we need to let Cuba sell stuff to us so that we can sell stuff to them.

Johnston teaches economics at St. John's University and the College of St. Benedict and is a regular voice on MPR News.

Economic Lookout: Eye on the Range

Posted at 12:00 PM on April 8, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Economic Lookouts, Greater Minnesota

MinnEcon note: We're pleased to launch a regular feature called Economic Lookouts -- Minnesotans in MPR's Public Insight Network sharing first-person accounts of the economy around them.

It's a natural next step for MinnEcon. We've really tried to let the economic stories and insights of Minnesotans drive what you see here. With Economic Lookouts, we'll let folks talk directly about the economy as they see it.

Today, Aaron Brown, gives us a read on the Iron Range. He writes the MinnesotaBrown blog and teaches communication at Hibbing Community College.

The Range has struggled in the recession. Hibbing unemployment spiked to nearly 19 percent last year. It's better now but still higher than the rest of Minnesota.

"We need a dose of creativity and we need a dose of 21st century thinking to get us out of this mess," Brown says in his video. "We're not there yet."

Check out Brown's report and then post your own thoughts below.

Interested in being an Economic Lookout? Contact us directly at MinnEcon.

Unemployment in Hibbing (click on the chart for a larger view).

Source: Department of Employment and Economic Development

Aaron Brown is the author of "Overburden: Modern Life on the Iron Range" and the MinnesotaBrown blog. He teaches communication at Hibbing Community College.

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Economic Lookout: High demand, few jobs in western Minnesota

Posted at 10:00 AM on April 14, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Economic Lookouts, Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment, MinnEcon Indicator

MinnEcon note: Brent Olson was one of the first voices in our original Economic Lookouts project. He's a county commissioner and keeps a close eye on the economics of western Minnesota.

He helped us last summer examine job creation and the stimulus.

Today, he shares a story of high demand in Big Stone County for a single government job.

Based on the county jobless rate, Olson figures "nearly thirty percent of the people looking for a job applied for ONE job."

Check out Olson's report, then post your thoughts below.

Interested in being an Economic Lookout? Contact us directly at MinnEcon.

(Unemployment in Big Stone County (click on the chart for a larger view)

Source: MN Dept of Employment and Economic Development, seasonally unadjusted

Olson is a western Minnesota writer and Big Stone County commissioner

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Small towns, big boxes. Join our discussion today

Posted at 10:22 AM on April 6, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment

We've heard the "buy local" call from many merchants during this recession. Even in good economic times, many struggle to compete against national chains and it's been harder in the downturn.

The reality is consumers on tight budgets want the best deals and lots of choices.

So what do you do? You can tell us today.

MPR is hosting an online forum at 3 pm on the decisions confronting Baldwin Township, a fast growing community north of the Twin Cities trying to decide what it wants to be.

A central question is how much to throw open the door to retail developers and big businesses that can keep taxes low and deliver convenient shopping but potentially wreck Baldwin's rural, small town nature.

The live forum today at 3 pm will take on the question: How do you know when the "big box" development is right? You can join in below.

Even if you're not connected to Baldwin, we want you to tell us where you shop and if you think it matters. Pose a question and join the conversation.

USDA suspending rural home loan guarantee program

Posted at 8:00 AM on March 16, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Housing & mortgages

A federal home loan program that does a lot of business in greater Minnesota expects to be out of funds by the end of next month.

The Single Family Housing Guaranteed Loan Program run by the U.S. Department of Agriculture expects to run out of budgeted funds by the end of April, which will stop the program through September, the end of the federal fiscal year.

A new federal budget should contain new money after that, but USDA is telling lenders it's not certain when new guarantees will be be available.

The federal program provides lenders with a 90 percent loan guarantee. Prospective homeowners don't have to put any money down and don't have to pay mortgage insurance. It's especially popular in Minnesota.

It makes a "big impact in rural Minnesota by supporting a strong rural housing industry and increasing home ownership opportunities, which helps create employment opportunities, retain population, and create overall economic development," said Adam Czech, USDA spokesman in Minnesota.

Strong demand for the program nationally led to the shortfall, he added.

Here's the mortgage volume guaranteed by USDA in Minnesota under the program.

2006: $185 million
2007: $164 million
2008: $273 million
2009: $440 million (3,781 total loans in 2009)

Much of the 2009 funding -- $280 million for 2,379 loans -- came from the federal stimulus bill.

"It normally runs out early but this year it's far sooner than typical," said Aaron Dickinson, a Realtor and source in MPR's Public Insight Network who first alerted us to the USDA funding stop.

"My bet is it's because of the dearth of other zero down financing options and the surge of first time buyers who would want that."

USDA's getting inquires from lenders, Czech said. With the uncertainty in the guarantee program, the agency's been highlighting it's direct home loan program.

"These loans are intended for qualified very low and low income applicants," Czech said.

"Sometimes borrowers who qualify for the guaranteed loan may also qualify for the direct. These loans come directly from the government and interest rates are based on repayment ability. Sometimes, an individual will receive a direct loan and then move into the guaranteed program at a later date."

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We're checking with some of the state's rural and independent lenders to see what kind of effect the program's suspension will have on part of Minnesota. If you have some insights, post below or contact me directly.

This USDA map shows how critical the guarantee is in parts of rural Minnesota: It's also being used in exurban counties. Click here for a larger view.

Brighter in the solar business?

Posted at 2:30 PM on January 5, 2010 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment, MinnEcon Indicator

We've been writing a lot of downer posts the past month. It's just the way things are for so many Minnesotans struggling in this economy. So when Jesse Dahl dropped a note today to tell us things were looking up for him, we jumped at the chance for something upbeat.

Back in 2008, Dahl was an unemployed union electrician on the Iron Range when he started helping MPR News get a fix on the Minnesota economy. He was among the original Economic Lookouts, the project that spawned MinnEcon.

The future wasn't looking all that great at that point. But then he started to transform himself. He trained to install solar electric arrays and started to get steady work. He caught a wave of interest in green energy that's grown with new federal incentives for renewable energy.

Now he's teaching others. A call over the summer from one of his old electrical instructors at Hibbing Community College led to a gig this fall teaching a new class on installing solar photovoltaic cells.

We asked Dahl to tell us what he's seeing in his classroom. His students, he said, come from a wide range of ages (19 to 40) and backgrounds.

Some of them are right out of high school, some have been working low wage jobs and are looking for a new career, some worked construction doing roofing and iron work, and a couple couldn't get into the electrical program this year because the classes were full so they are taking this first and next year they will start the electrical classes.

It is a certificate program. At the end of the year they will be taking the NABCEP entry level exam. (MinnEcon note: That's the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners).

The job prospects look pretty good. A couple of the students are willing to move, so I have been emailing with some of the contractors on NABCEP's job board to get info for the students.

The Cities offers a chance to some of the students, and there is a contractor in Duluth that installs solar.

The solar wave has come and gone before. It's hard to tell if it's here to stay this time or what will happen when the incentives end.

For now, at least, it's one pathway out of this lousy economy, toward a potentially bright future.

"My plan is to get my masters license this winter and my contractors license in the spring," Dahl told us. " I have been meeting with another electrician and we might team up and start our own shop."

BONUS INFO: Listen to an interview with Dahl over the summer on the solar electric business in Minnesota.

1/6 BONUS INFO: U.S. Labor Department releases $5 million in federal stimulus grant money for clean energy job training targeted to dislocated workers in Minnesota..

What will it take to get young people to help grow rural Minnesota?

Posted at 12:00 PM on December 14, 2009 by Paul Tosto (2 Comments)
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment, MinnEcon Indicator

My MPR colleague Mike Caputo pulled together a neat virtual forum Friday asking if rural Minnesota was losing its best and brightest young people.

To build on that conversation, here's a map with a bunch of responses we received from sources in MPR's Public Insight Network on the issue of rural Minnesota, retaining and attracting young people and what can/should be done.

This is one of those issues where lots of voices are needed. So post below or click here to add your voice.

One of the interesting things to me is that some of Minnesota's rural areas boast the lowest unemployment rates in the state.

Counties in southwest Minnesota especially have stayed really resilient in the recession, with jobless rates consistently better than the state or the nation.

"Let's make it clear that it's not all gloom and doom in rural America," said Amy Hoglin, economic development director in Murray County in the southwest.

"We need to think about the messages that we're sending to young people. Yes, it's important for them to leave and get additional education and/or experience the world, but we're not encouraging them to come back. We do have some good career options here and those who are accustomed to and appreciate small town living can have a great life here!

In other parts of Minnesota, however, it's a different story.

Robyn Bertelsen of Ely told us her job as food service director for the local public schools was eliminated recently "due to budget constraints fueled by declining enrollment."

Ely's a tourist destination but "does not provide long term living wage jobs for most," shae said. "Not only have I watched the best and brightest leave our town for 'real opportunity', I have had to encourage my own daughter to 'get outta dodge' to pursue her goals."

Tell us what you're seeing.

BONUS INFO: MPR blogger Bob Collins posted his take on the rural issue, asking, "Why live in rural Minnesota?"

Comment on this post

The state has a shortfall, but is it local government that feels the pain?

Posted at 8:47 AM on December 8, 2009 by Michael Caputo
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, MinnEcon maps, Saving & spending

The state's $1.2 billion budget deficit likely means cuts are coming, and that has county, city and other municipal officials worried about how much of the state's loss they will be forced to absorb.

Last year, when state government cut aid to municipalities, Aitkin County let workers go in the sheriff's department and in the health and human services division, according to Gord Prickett, chairman of the county's planning commission. Waseca County Commissioner Rick Morris said his county escaped 2009 without layoffs by not filling vacancies.

"It looks like we'll have to add other alternatives to our list of options," said Morris.

He and Prickett are sources in MPR's Public Insight Network who responded to questions about the effects of the state budget deficit on government programs and services.

An MPR analysis of job numbers gave a more nuanced picture of what's happening. State Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) job figures from 2001 to 2009 show the local municipal workforce fell by 2,200 jobs or about 1 percent. Meantime, state government jobs increased 10,100 or 11.5 percent.

At first blush, the numbers suggest the state workers have been less affected by budget cuts than those employed by local government. But there are mitigating factors to consider, said Steve Hine, labor market analyst at DEED. State numbers include figures from the University of Minnesota and the Minnesota State Colleges and University system. In 2009, about 59,100 out of the 97,900 state jobs were in higher education. And higher education jobs rose by 15 percent from 2001 to 2009. The rest of the state workforce grew at 6.4 percent.

On the local level, Hine says 6,000 jobs were lost in the health and human services sector due, in large measure, to reclassification of jobs at the Hennepin County Medical Center. That's because in late 2006 the hospital went from county-owned to a county subsidiary run by a non profit. The job numbers were taken out of the local government numbers, but the jobs were not lost.

"You can dig into these numbers and see deeper reasons for jumps and dips," Hine said.

Even so, government officials in the Public Insight Network said they will have to look beyond job cuts and consider raising revenue if the state pulls back on local government assistance to balance its budget.

In Aitkin County, Prickett says, the planning and zoning department already has raised permit fees "two and three times," to cover department expenses.

I looked at revenue data from the state's office of Management and Budget and, after adjusting for inflation, found that county, city and townships saw a 14 percent cut in state aid from 2001 to 2008. During the same time period, they increased property taxes 11 percent and other taxes and fees 13.5 percent.

But it's also interesting to note that during the same time period, state aid to local school districts rose 33 percent, when inflation is factored in. Meanwhile property tax revenue raised by local schools dropped 17 percent.

Finally, some counties have to delay or scrap projects to save money. Brent Olson, a Big Stone County commissioner, says they'll scrutinize economic development and road projects, "simply because those are the sort of things that can be delayed."

To see the full range of comments on this topic, click on the map icons below to read what public employees and officials in Minnesota said about budget cuts... then share your story.

A "loyalty bonus" for toughing out the recession

Posted at 3:00 PM on December 4, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment

Like many organizations, the Myles Reif Performing Arts Center in Grand Rapids took a hit in the recession. So as the financial picture started to ease recently, leaders wanted to recognize those who kept the place going in the hardest times.

The result: six workers will receive up to $400 in what David Marty, President of Reif Arts Council described as a "loyalty bonus."

It's an intriguing idea, one I hadn't thought about before: rewarding people who weathered the worst of the recession with the same company or group.

If anyone's received -- or paid out -- this kind of bonus or heard of anything similar in the non-profit or corporate world, please post below or contact me directly.

Here's how Marty, a source in MPR's Public Insight Network describes it:

This is a performing arts center that was hit pretty hard by the market slowdown last year. As a direct result, the organization was forced to make some very painful cuts, including salary freezes, elimination of many benefits, furloughs, cutting hours and taking two full time positions to ¾ time. This started in June, and the two most-affected employees left in October.

The board has approved a bonus payment for all six employees (not including Executive Director) here. These are small bonuses (largely symbolic) with the largest being $400, but the message from the board is that the organization wants to support and thank employees for doing as well as possible under highly adverse conditions.

We continue to face enormous challenges (as does everyone), but the spirit and morale are quite high, and staff members are very proud of being able to make a difference in our community.

One thing that helped: Funds from Minnesota's "legacy" constitutional amendment.Arts and other organizations (including Minnesota Public Radio) started getting money earlier this year from the measure backed by state voters last year.

The flow of "legacy" dollars and an improving budget picture the past few months "has resulted in some optimism," Marty says.

Mankato entrepreneur a finalist for Forbes.com competition

Posted at 6:00 PM on November 30, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota

Mankato entrepreneur April Femrite has an interesting story to tell. She manufactures clothing from bamboo fibers. If you don't know her business yet, you might soon.

She's a finalist for the Forbes.com "Boost your Business" competition, a sort of "American Idol" for entrepreneurs looking to make it big, or at least bigger.

At stake is $50,000 in Forbes advertising and another $50,000 in investment capital. In this latest round, each of the five finalists had to submit a detailed business plan then fly to New York to deliver a 10 minute presentation and answer unscripted questions.

Readers get to vote on the plans and the reader vote and the judges observations will decide who wins.

We're going to talk to Femrite on Tuesday and we'll post her story later in the week. Today was the last day for the public to vote.

Here's the background information on her company and what she'd do with the money.

If you have questions for her, contact me directly.

Contests don't usually interest me. But Femrite's story dovetails with many of the questions we've been asking the past few months: How will Minnesota build its economic future and what will that look like? Can Minnesota keep and nurture its home-grown entrepreneurs? Can it capitalize on the "green," sustainable movement?

What happens if it can't?

Some of the biggest economic thinkers in Minnesota are asking these questions aloud. No matter what happens to Femrite in the Forbes contest, her story may help us understand Minnesota's economic future.

A look at Minnesota's broadband divide

Posted at 9:00 PM on November 19, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, MinnEcon maps, Twin Cities metro

Broadband access is now a legal right in Finland. In Minnesota, not so much.

A recent state report urged Minnesota to do more to get citizens online at high speed. While the report found most citizens have some access to broadband, many aren't bringing into their homes, especially in rural Minnesota.

We asked Minnesotans in MPR's Public Insight Network to tell us a little about their Web connections and why it was important. We were surprised to hear stories of people in greater Minnesota still dealing with dial-up.

Others told us lack of competition was a problem in some areas of the state, keeping the price unaffordable. Solutions? Some said the government needs to do something. Others, tired of government spending, said that was the last thing needed.

There wasn't much argument, however, about the need.

"Access to high speed internet is as important to me as access to a railroad was to my great-grandparents when they homesteaded here," said Brent Olson of Ortonville, a writer and Big Stone County commissioner. Service, he added, is "very spotty, depending on which phone or cable provider you have."

Mitch Jasper, the mayor of Jackson, said he and others are pulling together a group of towns in southwestern Minnesota "to band (no pun intended) together to apply for monies through the stimulus.This plan is to put fiber optics in every home and every business."

3/8 UPDATE: Jackson and those Minnesota towns scored nearly $13 million in federal stimulus money for their broadband project.

Click on the map icons below to see what others in our Network had to say.

Click the little box on the upper right hand corner of the map to see it in full screen.

Lois Garbisch, a home manager from Cook, laid out the frustrations of a slow connection in a fast world.

I have dial up with an accelerator. Dial up would be intolerable without that. In town and at the lake there is Quest DSL, which I've heard is quite fast. But for the rest of us, our choices are only satellite, which is expensive and not all that fast, and by radio signal, which has an expensive set up charge. I'm only a mile from the edge of town but Qwest won't bring broadband to our road.

That's an issue MPR's Dan Olson noted in his recent report. Money is a big factor determining how soon more Minnesotans will have faster Internet speeds.
Companies selling Internet services prefer to have a batch of subscribers ready to sign up before they start installing the infrastructure.

The state task force urged that Minnesota become one of the national leaders in broadband access and use by 2015. They didn't say how to pay for it but called on the public and private sectors to work together.

It wasn't that long ago that broadband, high speed Web service was a luxury. Not any more.

"High speed internet service permits more working at home which is good for the environment and increases an individuals productivity," said Doreen Mahoney, a Network source and real estate lien search supervisor in Nisswa.

For her, that means, "I will be able to provide care to my elderly parent at home which also avoids senior care expenses and improves my mothers quality of life and keeps her healthier and happier."

Canoeing and haggling: An early look at the summer 2009 tourism economy

Posted at 2:51 PM on August 25, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment, Saving & spending

Public Insight Editor Andrew Haeg files a post on the trip that has been this summer vacation season.

Just like everyone, we here at MinnEcon are loathe to admit that the summer's coming to a close. But, when State Fair chatter ramps up you can no longer deny it.

So we thought it a good time to see how the state's vacation economy has been faring over the summer. The prediction back in April from Explore Minnesota Tourism and from MinnEcon's (now vacationing) Paul Tosto was that area businesses could benefit as more Minnesotans stuck around and took resort or canoe trips in their home state.

We just got a note from Public Insight Network member Belle Scott of Minneapolis telling us business is booming at her daughter's resort on the Canadian border, and that she'd just returned from Door County where things were likewise bustling.

Scott's anecdotal take is rosier than the emerging picture of the state's summer tourism economy, which is mixed at best. "You show me one area of the state that's doing well and I'll show you one that's not," says John Edman, director of Explore Minnesota Tourism.

Results of their formal member survey are due out mid-next week. Edman says he's hearing that campsites, festivals and county fairs are doing well this year. "You're seeing a lot of people discover things in their own backyards and neighborhoods," he says. What's not doing well are big resorts, Twin Cities hotels and facilities that depend on conventions or big groups. He's heard many reports of families making rare last-minute resort reservations, and even talk of widespread haggling (e.g. "Come on, you can do better than that!"), which he says almost never happens.

In general, Edman says cheap, simple and close-to-home are the themes of this summer. One of the beneficiaries of this confluence of trends is Public Insight Network source Sue Ahrendt, who (along with her husband) runs Tuscarora Canoe, a Boundary Waters-area outfitter based in Grand Marais. She's also behind a new project called Becoming a Boundary Waters Family, which is designed to bring more young families to the Boundary Waters. She's not sure whether to credit the strong summer to that initiative, to the recession encouraging more families to take cheaper, simpler vacations, or to the increasing awareness of "nature-deficit disorder" as highlighted in the popular book "Last Child in the Woods." All Ahrendt knows is that she's never seen so many young families paddling into the wilderness.

Ahrendt charges a family of four anywhere from $300 to $800 for a three-day canoe trip (depending on how much gear they need). It's easier and cheaper than heading to Lake Wallenpaupack or enduring 1,500 miles of squabbling, DVDs and road games to get to Disney World.

That, at least, is the notion that gets families excited when Ahrendt pitches at sports shows. But, Ahrendt says, something even better happens in the woods. One family of four emerged after a rain-soaked, buggy weekend spent mainly in their tent. Ahrendt feared they'd had a rough time of it. The kids went off and got some ice cream and, when they came back, looked up at their father and said, "Daddy, we never knew you could laugh so hard."

We'd love to hear your stories about how the summer vacation went. Did you haggle? Were crowds bigger or smaller than normal? Did you discover something new in your own backyard?

Tell us here.

MinnEcon indicator | Town festivals stay strong despite economy

Posted at 8:08 AM on October 20, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, MinnEcon Indicator

Pretty much every town in Minnesota celebrates something during the year with a festival. Ice fishing. Rhubarb. Buffalo. My friend Dominic Papatola did a lovely job in June talking on MPR about his favorite Minnesota summer festivals.

But the MinnEcon nerds (OK, me) don't think about fun. We wonder about what stuff means for the Minnesota economy. How have these small town festivals fared in the worst recession in decades?

Anecdotal evidence suggests they're doing OK.

I'm painting with broad strokes here. But Trisha Reinwald, executive director of the Minnesota Jaycees and a source in MPR's Public Insight Network dropped us a line recently to let us know that the hundreds of festivals, tournaments and other charitable events put on by local Jaycees are finding sponsors and drawing crowds despite the tough times.

That includes places with the some of the highest unemployment rates in Minnesota. Reinwald tells us:

We have gotten a lot of anecdotes saying that this past summer/fall that even with the economic situation- our local organizations had high attendance from the community and that donations from local businesses for these events and festivals held steady this year (both in-kind donations and cash donations).

Festivals and special events are economic drivers in many of our small towns -- we are thinking that many of these communities see how much they rely on these events to drive tourism in the summer/fall.

Perhaps localization of our economies is one way that smaller communities can/are staying afloat.

The Jaycees, she says, don't track from year to year the number of attendees or donations for its events on a statewide basis, but she noted that in Hutchinson, wracked by job losses at Hutchinson Technology, the local Jaycees chapter "was worried that it would be difficult to pull off their Annual Water Carnival. But the event fared well this past summer," says Reinwald.

In Brainerd, where unemployment topped 20 percent earlier this year and remains in double digits, the Jaycees run the $150,000 Ice Fishing Extravaganza together with local businesses. Given the scale of the event it's easy to see the positive effect on the economy, she adds.

Festivals won't pay all the bills, of course. There are plenty of cities struggling to close budget gaps and survive in this recession. But even in a lousy economy, the town festival still has the power to draw people and dollars together. For local economies in Minnesota, that's a positive indicator.

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Have you helped run a small town festival or event this year in Minnesota? How did the recession effect it? Post a comment below or click here and share a story.

Check the map below for some positive economic signs sent to us by Minnesotans in our Network, then share your own.

What happens when you're a farmer without good health coverage?

Posted at 8:00 AM on October 16, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Health care, Small business

Good health coverage became a luxury for many small businesspeople in this recession. So imagine owning a small business in one of the nation's most dangerous sectors.

That helps to understand the results of a new report showing the consequences of medical debt carried by some family farmers in Minnesota and six other Midwest states.

Health coverage was one of the top concerns during our recent online forum featuring entrepreneurs from MPR's Public Insight Network.

But it creates a special kind of burden for farmers. Many rely on off-farm jobs as their source of health coverage. The danger inherent in agricultural work can make good coverage expensive and force some hard choices.

"There are no fair/affordable options for farmers and other self-employed persons to access affordable health insurance or health care. Why not?" Kenyon farmer and Network source Rae Rusnak asked us last winter.

Rusnak, a widowed single parent, has insurance but told us recently,

If I take a full-time off-farm job in order to get health care benefits, then my farm business will suffer, I will have to pay child care costs, and I will not get to spend as much time with my child. I choose to be with my child and pray that my health insurance rates do not go any higher. We are already experiencing the sting of high orthodontist bills.

Another Network farmer, Gary Brever of Parkers Prairie, said he's on MinnesotaCare, subsidized coverage for low- and moderate-income families.

"I'm very appreciative that we are elgible," he said. "Over the next year our farm income may rise to the point where we may have to pay increasing premiums but for all I know we will still be elgible for health care through MNCare. I have not looked into alternatives if our coverage is dropped."

Brenda Jannsen, a small beef and dairy farmer in southeast Minnesota told us several months ago her family was considering quitting farming -- health care was one of the major reasons.

Sadly, that's coming to pass. Jannsen told us a few days ago they've begun to sell off the dairy herd.

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MPR and the investigative reporting outlet ProPublica queried thousands of Americans earlier this year to find out where the health care system is succeeding and failing. More than 500 people responded.

Check out the responses mapped below, then add your own story.

Food shelf sees few signs of recovery

Posted at 12:58 PM on October 14, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment

One way to judge if we're in a recovery is to see if things are improving for Minnesotans struggling the most. If you're looking from Sue Estee's vantage point, it's clear we are not there yet.

Estee runs the Second Harvest North Central Food Bank, serving Grand Rapids, a regional hub, and small towns, including Bovey, Coleraine, Calumet and Cohasset. The number of households seeking the shelf's help jumped 13 percent between the first nine months of 2008 compared to the same period in 2009.

"We expect the trend to continue at least until next spring sometime. It will take a while for an improving economy to trickle down," Estee, a source in MPR's Public Insight Network, told us recently.

We asked her for more detail. Estee gave us a view on the needs in her part of Minnesota, where the jobs picture is improving but unemployment in August was still in double digits. She's seen a big jump in new households seeking help and evidence more people are moving in with family or friends

The most startling statistics are a 15% increase in the numbers of adults, (not seniors or children) coming for help. This indicates that there are more people affected by the economy, likely job loss or cuts in hours...people who were getting by on their own prior to this economic crisis.

Other rural food shelves, she adds, have not seen big increases. That may be because some needy people may have moved away from the very small communities, she says. Getting to the food shelf is also a problem in rural areas, she adds. And then there's the stigma.

The volunteers at the food shelf are likely to know you or your family. Especially for the newly poor, due to job loss, shame will keep people from coming for help. We had one mother last week who only had some packets of instant oatmeal to feed her 3 kids that week. She wasn't eating at all. (She left with a lot of food!)

The fierce independence that has driven many to live up in the woods also keeps them from asking for help when they need it. Children particularly suffer hunger when the parents can't bring themselves to admit they need help providing enough food.

So far, she says, her food shelf has met the increased needs and she gives a nod to the 2007 Farm Bill, which she says made more commodities available to food banks in Minnesota. "It couldn't have come at a better time."

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Check out the map below for stories Minnesotans in our Network are telling us about spending, saving and the economy. Then share your story.

Kids lead a buy local effort in Northfield

Posted at 1:54 PM on March 24, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Saving & spending

Teacher Michelle Martin started talking to her fourth- and fifth-graders at Prairie Creek Community School in Northfield, MN, about the tough economy. That talk has turned quickly to action.

When the kids learned two local stores in Northfield were closing, "they became very concerned about the local economy. When another student's mother lost her job at a downtown store and they learned that Tiny's (our beloved hot dog joint) was struggling, they decided they had to do something"

That something was the "Northfield First"pledge. Martin, part of our Public Insight Network, told us:

"They've created a pledge they've called which people sign if they will look in "stores unique to Northfield" before they buy things elsewhere. They made posters for local stores and organized a rally on our town square. So far, over 150 people have signed the pledge."

Northfield is an interesting place -- small town Minnesota that's home to Carleton College and St. Olaf College. It's long had a vibrant, local downtown and the colleges have kept it somewhat insulated from recessionary swings over the years.

Besides the important economic lesson -- the kids see how economic decisions affect a community's health -- the Northfield First effort appears to be changing behavior. Martin on Monday wrote us:

"A parent from another class came to me just today to share a conversation she had overheard at Kids on Division (a local kids' clothing store.) The store employee was chatting with another customer and shared that things had been more busy recently. She then shared that about seven people had come in and commented that the Northfield First project was what prompted them to shop locally and think about where they were buying things."

Tell us a story about what's happening in your local economy.

Will stimulus money make it to small town Minnesota?

Posted at 1:46 PM on March 31, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Economic stimulus, Greater Minnesota

We've been asking citizens in our Public Insight Network the past few weeks about what piece of the federal stimulus they might be seeking. But imagine being a mayor in small town Minnesota trying to tap the fund.

We got a great response the other day from Toni Wilcox, mayor of Squaw Lake, Minn., (population 99 in the last Census) in north central Minnesota. Her town has needs similar to the Bigs but:

It is really hard for smaller communities to stay on top of the stimulus opportunities-grants are being posted to grants.gov daily and the turn around time for applications is really quick. We have no full time staff and our part time clerk is already putting in more hours than she should for what we pay. I'm paid $35 a month as mayor so all the hours I put in on this is strictly a labor of love.

If you're trying to track stimulus money in Minnesota or learn more about what's available. there are a few ways. Rep. Tim Walz has a good guidebook on the stimulus money in Minnesota. There's also a site listing all the shovel-ready projects in Minnesota (not all will get funded). The state finance and budget department also has a good site.

Call of the wilderness in a down economy?

Posted at 9:52 PM on April 20, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Saving & spending

Tourism is a big deal to Minnesota's economy and summer is an especially crucial time. So we were intrigued by a recent note from Steve Piragis, an outfitter in Ely on the edge of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and someone who keeps us posted regularly on the economy of northern Minnesota.

Steve, part of our Public Insight Network, told us:

In a poor economy Ely and the Boundary Waters Wilderness seem to be popular vacation choices. Reservations for canoe trips and spending on wilderness related gear is up this year once again.

Is it because the canoe trip is a relatively inexpensive vacation choice or is it the back to nature experience that people crave in troubled times? For whatever reason it appears that the northwoods will have a very good summer economy once again reflecting what has happened in other recessions.

That may be a good sign for Minnesota, especially since tourism and travel in Minnesota sustains nearly 250,000 jobs and last summer the season was so-so at best.

I'd be interested in hearing from others in Minnesota's tourism and travel business if they're seeing seeing the same thing as Steve.

Below are some recent responses from Minnesotans telling us what they're spending or not spending on these days. You can help by telling us your own leisure spending plans this summer.

A mill shuts, a Minnesota worker waits and hopes

Posted at 10:24 PM on April 21, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment

There are employed and unemployed Minnesotans. And then there are people like Val Littfin.

Until last week, Littfin, 52, was working happily at Hedstrom Lumber in northeast Minnesota. Then came word the mill was shutting down for two weeks because of the economy and would reopen at only two-thirds capacity.

Littfin, who's from Grand Marais and is part of our Public Insight Network, describes being in a kind of employment limbo, waiting for a callback from the mill, unsure when it will come, concerned about the future. She captures the hopes and worries of many Minnesotans these days.

We asked Littfin to talk about the economy, starting with a basic question: Do you have a job?

"I did. Perhaps I still do. It's all rather nebulous. I know I am not on the first tier call back list. Missed it by one person. The owners have told me that everytime they talk to an employee, my position shifts on the second tier call back list. The owners say my name keeps creeping higher up the list.

June will be my two year anniversary with the company. I really like my work. I like my fellow employees. I had a job where I woke up looking forward to going to work. The seven of us in the planing mill had jelled into a tight, cohesive team. We had developed our sense of teamwork to the point where we could run off hand signals and simply knew what to do next. A great place to work with a great team.

My first hope for the future is that I get back to the mill sooner or later.

Right now it's difficult to remain or perhaps stay hopeful. I feel federal spending is out of control and the national debt is going to hurt and ultimately drive business to use developing countries so they can stay competitive in an internationally based market.

The lumber industry is hurting. Perhaps commercial building and some of the major infrastructure projects in the stimulus package will start the cycle moving upward. Anytime there is cement poured, there is some wood associated with those forms.

The industry is learning to run leaner and more efficient. I've sat through two state of the business meeting at the mill. Some costs, such as fuel, cannot be controlled. Others can. Every year, the employees at Hedstrom became a wee bit more efficient.

In the planing mill, we developed new stapling patterns to use fewer staples during packaging. We modified the way we built lifts so that we'd use less packaging material. We became more and more efficient in our turn around time at the end of product runs. No humongous savings, but those pennies add up.

My hope is that the fear mongering ends. My friends talk about they'd like to spend some money but they are worried. So they don't spend. So it doesn't go into the economy.

My friends are talking about not taking vacations, at least not to away places, but closer places. The car they wanted to trade-in this fall will now half to last them longer.

As the fear increased, the pocket books snapped shut. Much of the money is still there, few want to open the purse strings.

Friends of mine purchased a home during this time. The hoops they had to jump through! Excellent credit, but everything was double and triple checked. Answers to questions were suspect. They had the credit rating and the money but the mortgage company did not want to believe them. Another set of friends, both with secure jobs, are as if we are already in depression.

Another friend who owns a rental business has seen a change in who is renting the equipment, but the business is steady. However, last time they advertised for a shop manager, they got 75 applications rather than the typical 15.

As long the Wall Street, the newspapers, TV and the Feds keep talking how bad it is, fear will have food on which to grow. Once the focus changes to looking at the bright spots, fear will start wilting and the economy will flourish.

In the meantime, I am hopeful I will be back at the mill in June.

Below are some other stories about employment and jobs from our network. Check them out, then add your story.

Uptick in southern Minnesota?

Posted at 10:04 PM on April 29, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota

Most of Minnesota's economic numbers haven't been great lately. But we're always on the lookout here for signs of something better.

Paul Heimgartner of Blooming Prairie told us recently he spotted some signs in southern Minnesota that the economy might be improving. Heimgartner, a source in or Public Insight Network, wrote:

Within the last two weeks I'm seeing a lot more people shopping in Owatonna and Austin. I'm seeing local government making as many moves as they can to get stimulus money.

The housing refinance is so hot you have to wait two or three weeks for banks to respond (in Rochester). There is no better time to buy a house for first time home buyers (low rates+8000 tax credit) , except maybe this fall in larger markets.

Bottom of the stock market is a month past. Jobs losses are going to climb through all of 2009, but I think the worst monthly numbers are done.

If anyone else has a read on what's happening in those southern Minnesota towns, please post below or drop us a story.

Below are responses we've mapped from folks seeing signs of something good happening in the economy. Check it out, then tell us what the economy is like around you.

MinnEcon indicator: Library computer use morphs in a tough economy

Posted at 9:28 PM on May 28, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment, MinnEcon Indicator

Unemployment in Wadena County, Minn., typically runs in cycles -- up in cold months down in warm. But this recession is altering a lot of patterns and Wadena's jobless rate isn't falling the way it has in the past, hitting 13.6 percent in March, the highest in two decades

Wadena, in north central Minnesota, caught our interest after Laura Spilman shared a different look at unemployment from her vantage point -- she's a library assistant at the Wadena city library where job searching, she says, has trumped chatting and games on the library's free computers.

Spilman, part of MPR's Public Insight Network, writes:

It used to be that our 7 public internet computers stood fairly open during the school day, then, we would be overrun with school kids coming in to play the computers games and do the chatting stuff that kids like to do. Now, and especially since last Sept. or so, the computers are usually almost all in use from the time we open until we close. The increase is in the number of adults coming in to use them.

Now, we do not make a habit of prying into what people are using the computers for, but one cannot help but notice when a patron asks for assistance. We have many people coming in to do their weekly unemployment as well as apply for jobs, work on resumes etc. I don't think a day goes by that we don't get at least one patron asking for help in navigating the not so user friendly job service site, because they have little to no computer experience.

We had someone ask at the desk just the other day if we were hiring at the moment and of course we are not. Her rather frustrated reply was, "Geez,you know, not even Wal-Mart is hiring around here." That kind of sums up the situation around here.

Click on the chart for a view of Wadena County's unemployment

Retailing and manufacturing drive the region's workforce. Among the largest private employers: Wadena-based outdoor furniture maker Homecrest Industries.

Earlier this week, the Minnesota Labor Department reported the county's jobless rate fell to 11 percent in April. But that's not the kind of spring boost the county's come to expect.

"It appears the pattern of dropping in the spring has resumed albeit at a much higher level of unemployment for April than in the three previous years," says Paul Sailer, the county's human services director.

The county, he adds, has also seen "an upward trend" in demands for food support, medical assistance, child support and unemployment since January.

Spilman worries the library will be viewed as expendable despite the rising need. That's could make life difficult for the people who depend on the library. It could also make life challenging for her.

"My husband is currently laid off because of the downturn in the house market. So, coupled with that and my feeling that cuts to my position could happen, we have really tightened the belt a lot (not that we were extravagant spenders to begin with).

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We're on the lookout for unusual or offbeat Minnesota economic trends. What are you seeing on the economy that's a little different that's telling you things are improving or worsening?

Click here, shoot us a note and tell us what you're seeing, then type "MinnEcon Indicator" in the headline box and send it.

Wadena County's recession, by the numbers

Posted at 9:26 PM on May 28, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment, MinnEcon Indicator

I posted earlier today on the recession's impact from the vantage point of a librarian assistant in Wadena, Minn., who's seen the library's Internet use morph from kids chatting and playing games to adults searching for jobs.

But unemployment -- 11 percent in April and 13.6 percent in March -- is only a piece of the picture of Wadena's recession.

Paul Sailer, human services director in Wadena County has been tracking data showing the rising needs of citizens there. Below is the detail he sent me. Most of it is self-explanatory. The Minnesota Family Investment Program is the state's family welfare program.

What do you see in the data? I'm struck by a couple of stats: the jump in the number of households on food support and the jump in the number of non-custodial parents receiving unemployment benefits. That matches up with what we posted earlier this week that the tough economy often translates into more child support cases.

Food Support
(April)			2006	2007	2008	2009
Adults			480	565	616	778
Children			250	304	325	478
Total Households			386	447	477	610
Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP) and Diversionary Work Program
(April)			2006	2007	2008	2009
Adults			111	124	111	103
Children			200	221	194	187
Total Households			120	120	106	111
Medical Assistance and General Assistance Medical Care
(April)			2006	2007	2008	2009
Adults			1,344	1,391	1,446	1,547
Children			1,052	1,096	1,104	1,273
Total Households			1,452	1,496	1,527	1,632
Family Emergency Assistance			2006	2007	2008	2009 (year to date)
Total Spent ($)			25,437	28,784	35,282	11,323
Unduplicated Cases			2006	2007	2008	2009
(April)			1,489	1,520	1,576	1,711

Child Support Caseload
	Caseload Size	Non-custodial Parents Receiving Unemployment Benefits
2008
September	853	12
October	850	18
November	855	28
December	861	49
2009
January	864	68
February	863	70
March	871	78
April	872	73

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We remain on the lookout for unusual or offbeat Minnesota economic trends, something a little different from the typical data that you're using to judge if things are getting better or worse.

Click here, shoot us a note and tell us what you're seeing, then type "MinnEcon Indicator" in the headline box and send it.

Minnesota tourism: Crisis. Or not?

Posted at 4:32 PM on July 6, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Saving & spending

Here's a question with a bunch of different answers: Is Minnesota tourism suffering or holding its own in this recession?

We've seen a spate of local tourism-down stories and opinion pieces lately, most tied to Sen. Amy Klobuchar's push for the Travel Promotion Act, intended to raise money from parts of the U.S. travel industry and foreign travelers. The money would go to lure international tourists.

But how bad is the tourism industry in Minnesota? Maybe not as bad as you think.

Looking at jobs data, the state's hospitality and tourism business is doing relatively well, losing about 4,900 jobs from May of this year to last, a 1.9 percent decrease, one of the smallest drops of any Minnesota economic sector.

State data also show the industry added 7,100 jobs in May as summer tourism cranked up. Much of the boost came in bar and restaurant jobs, according to the state Labor Department.

While a pre-summer survey by Explore Minnesota found nearly half of lodging businesses (from resorts to campgrounds) expecting a tougher summer than in 2008, only 16 percent described their business as "declining."

Back in April, Steve Piragis, an Ely outfitter and a source in MPR's Public Insight Network told us:

In a poor economy Ely and the Boundary Waters Wilderness seem to be popular vacation choices. Reservations for canoe trips and spending on wilderness related gear is up this year once again. Is it because the canoe trip is a relatively inexpensive vacation choice or is it the back to nature experience that people crave in troubled times?

For whatever reason it appears that the northwoods will have a very good summer economy once again reflecting what has happened in other recessions.

I'm planning to check in with him later this month to see if business met his expectations.

UPDATE: Steve this afternoon tells us: "So far so good up here at our business. I hear some reports of early season blues from resorters but we are ahead of last year by a couple teenies. Even a little up is far better than behind. I'll give you an update as we hit mid season at the end of July. By then the total picture will be clear. "

There's no doubt that the worst recession in more than 25 years is dampening Minnesota tourism. But the tourism business also seems like its doing a lot better these days than many other part of Minnesota's economy.

Below are some recent responses from Minnesotans telling us what they're spending or not spending on these days. You can help by telling us how the economy's doing in your part of Minnesota this summer.

Too good at farming hogs in Minnesota?

Posted at 4:30 PM on July 6, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Small business

Confusing economic signals make my head hurt. So I've been reaching for the ibuprofen lately every time I read something on Minnesota's hog business.

One of the nation's largest hog producing states, Minnesota is part of a crisis so big that the state ag commissioner is asking the feds to buy another $50 million in pork products.

At the same time, Minnesota's annual hog production has exploded in this decade with rising new pig crops and a huge jump in the number of pigs per litter.

USDA says Minnesota hog producers intend to farrow (birth) 570,000 sows between June and November of this year -- unchanged from the same period last year.

So shouldn't there be a pullback when all the economic signals seem to be yelling "Stop!"

Maybe it's just human nature not to pull back, even when you're losing $15 a head. You're a hog farmer so you keep producing hogs thinking the other guy will cut back and prices will rebound.

Plus, productivity's improved dramatically. The Minnesota Ag Department notes that big advances recently in animal health have cut death loss on farms and helped boost hog numbers. And a recent post by University of Missouri economists notes increased productivity nationally is offsetting recent declines in hog breeding herds.

One guy who knows a lot about the business is Irv Busman, a southern Minnesota farmer who's a source in our Public Insight Network and helps us keep watch on the region's farm economy.

Irv last week told us:

We have cut back our hog operation dramatically, and we are very happy we did...One individual who used to feed for us, in an older barn, has since torn down his hog barn. Another had the opportunity to feed for a large operation.....some of the larger operations haven't "blinked" as of yet...

I know of a few independent hog operations that have lost massive equity in the past year. ... I think there are some real struggles in the dairy business around here as well. One nearby 3 generation dairy was told that they have the bank's support until this fall.

I don't really know what that means, but I know the bankers are really struggling with some of these long established operations. Land is being sold/signed over to lenders in some of the dairy operations.

As my colleague Bob Collins has noted, these problems tend to run in cycles. Ten years ago, MPR News was reporting "Hog Farmers Losing Money Due to Over-Supply."

The difference: That happened when the overall economy was great. What happens now?

Birdwatching's economic payoff. I will Tweet this!

Posted at 4:09 PM on July 16, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Saving & spending

As an economic report, this seems kind of suspect. But Minnesota's in the Top 5, so here we go.

A new report from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service shows:

One of every five Americans watches birds, and in doing so, birdwatchers contributed $36 billion to the U.S. economy in 2006, the most recent year for which economic data are available.

States with the highest birding participation rates: Montana (40 percent), Maine (39 percent), Vermont (38 percent), Minnesota (33 percent) and Iowa (33 percent).

I think there's a great case to be made that tourism connected to bird watching pump's dollars in to selected Minnesota economies.

But the Fish & Wildlife report bar is pretty low. You're basically defined as a birder if you try to identify birds in your yard. People who notice birds while cutting their lawn don't count. And that zoo trip won't help you either.

Otherwise...

More interesting to me is another Fish & Wildlife report showing Minnesotans among the top states for photographing birds. About 12 percent of us 16 and older were interested enough in birds to pull out the camera (.pdf page 19).

We're always looking for stuff we didn't know before, so check out the new report and drop a line if you see anything that surprises you. Meanwhile, I need to post the birding report on Twitter.

Doesn't Marshall know there's a recession?

Posted at 4:04 PM on July 20, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota

Unemployment less than four percent? It's the economic equivalent of defying gravity. That's Marshall, MN right now.

The southwest Minnesota town has the best jobless rate of any Minnesota city tracked by the state Labor Department. It peaked in March at 4.5 percent then slipped back to 3.9 percent in May, less than half the state rate.

Compare that to the hardest hit city in Minnesota, Brainerd, with a jobless rate of 15.7 percent.

On Tuesday, the department releases county and local rates for June (seasonally unadjusted) so it'll be interesting to see if Marshall stays below four percent.

UPDATE: Marshall's June unemployment came in at 4.6 percent. Higher but still among the region's best.

Either way, something good is happening there. Pretty much for this decade, if you live in Marshall, you're employed if you wanted to be.

In a lot of smaller towns, the biggest employers are often government, the hospital and the school district, so job growth can be iffy. If one big private business dominates the landscape, a downturn can cause some serious problems.

Marshall's a lot more diverse.

Mark Hanson, the city's economic development director who's part of our Public Insight Network, says the town offers opportunities for people from all kinds of economic backgrounds. He told us today:

The Schwan Food Company employs from all walks of life and all types work skill sets (Line worker, call center, research, to senior VP).

U.S. Bancorp hires young professional from the area (graduates of Marshall-based Southwest Minnesota State) and has stated the MN phone etiquette and work ethics have kept them in Marshall and allowed them to grow from 250 employees in 2006.

Ralco Nutrition (specialty feed producer) has grown from 40 employees 2 years ago (to 90)...Ralco is ready for its 3rd expansion since 2006.

Hanson's list of biggest local employers includes Schwan (2,200), US Bancorp (600) and Avera Marshall Regional Medical Center (512).

I've got a call in to folks at the state Labor Department to see if they can tell me more about what's going on in Marshall. If anyone has a story to tell us about the town or the southwest Minnesota economy, please post below or share a story here.

And check the map below for stories people from the network are sharing with us about the the job climate around them.

BONUS INFO: Of 372 metro areas in the country, the best unemployment rates for May were Bismarck, ND (3.5%), Iowa City, IA (3.7%) and Ames, IA (3.8%); Worst? El Centro, CA (26.8%) and Yuma, AZ (23.3%)

Hibbing takes it hard: 18.7% June unemployment

Posted at 3:56 PM on July 21, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment

It's roughly a five hour drive from Moorhead to Hibbing. But those Minnesota towns live on different planets when it comes to unemployment.

Hibbing's jobless rate hit 18.7 percent for June, twice what it was a year ago and four times greater than Moorhead, the state Labor Department reported Tuesday.

Hibbing's was the highest among Minnesota's major cities, with Virginia, another Iron Range town, recording 17 percent. (Those are seasonally unadjusted

Rangers have ridden the economic roller coaster for years. This cycle, though, seems particularly difficult.

News from the Duluth Ports Authority today that shipments of taconite, that vital piece of Range economy, are down 61 percent from last year, didn't make the jobless numbers easier to take.

"I don't think the higher unemployment rate is a surprise to anyone who lives or does business here," says Lory Fedo, a source in our Public Insight Network who heads the Hibbing Area Chamber of Commerce. Fedo told us today:

Much of the job loss is due to the idling of Hibbing Taconite and Keewatin Taconite as well as layoffs at the other mines and mining vendor business.

The hardest pill to swallow is the fact that last year at this time we were looking at a boom in the local economy and for the first time in decades people were not afraid to invest in growing their businesses or were hanging on just to get to the boom.

We were hopeful and excited to be a part of a new era. We still have great hopes for projects like Essar Steel and the nonferrous projects proposed north of Hibbing I firmly believe these projects will be a big part of Hibbing's economic future.

Jesse Dahl, another Ranger and Network source, says building trades are doing fairly well right now:

All electricians are out working, and there are also travelers from all over the state. The same is true for Pipe fitters. Carpenters are a little slow, I think its due to the lack of commercial jobs in the area.

"The governor's budget cut a lot of money for this area," adds Dahl, who was an unemployed electrician last year but trained for solar installation and has found steady work. "Towns, hospitals, nursing homes and the like have had to lay off. Those are some of the biggest employers in the area."

While Moorhead's the extreme, Duluth might be a better comparison to Hibbing. Duluth's June jobless rate hit 8 percent, better than the region around it.

Duluth's been able to reinvent itself over the years from a "classic old Great Lakes natural resources city" to one with a more diverse economic base including health care, technology and higher education, says Drew Digby, who tracks the region for the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.

That might be a good lesson. While mining jobs are "incredibly good" and pay well, says Digby, "getting back to the same (pre-recession) level of employment could take a long time."

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Check out the map below for other stories people in our network are telling us about the job situation around them. Then share your story.

Big bus stimulus for St. Cloud? Maybe not

Posted at 3:32 PM on July 31, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Economic stimulus, Greater Minnesota

Four months ago, a St. Cloud-based bus factory was the poster child for federal stimulus opportunity. Today, instead of buses, a big dose of reality got delivered.

The New Flyer factory acknowledged a major order to build 140 diesel electric hybrid buses in St. Cloud -- work that was supposed to begin this week -- has been postponed indefinitely.

The CEO said the customer (didn't say which customer) planned to buy the buses using only state (didn't say which state) money because federal stimulus money available to buy the buses wasparceled out to other capital projects. The customer is seeking state funds but doesn't know when that will come, so the order's been postponed.

Ordinarily, this is not a huge deal. Companies cancel orders all the time. New Flyer says the $122 million order represented only about three percent of its total order backlog.

But here's the thing: In March, Vice President Joe Biden came to laud the plant as the kind of company that would benefit big-time from the federal stimulus. In a video of the speech prominent on the New Flyer site, Biden said:

...because of the recession, local governments are having trouble and that's why the Recovery Act is providing the help to local governments, including $8 billion specifically to local governments to fund their mass transit systems. In other words, to buy the buses that you're gonna make.

New Flyer says it has received orders from cities including Philadelphia, Chicago and Milwaukee to buy buses fully or partially with stimulus funds. So it's not like money isn't flowing.

But as MPR and ProPublica have reported the past couple weeks, the stimulus package isn't as stimulating as people in St. Cloud expected.

And what test do we use for deciding stimulus success?

Metro Transit today announced it got $1.5 million in stimulus money to hire some new officers. The first bunch of Minnesota transportation projects that got stimulus money included snow fences and resurfacing.

We've been asking citizens in our Public Insight Network about their expectations for the stimulus. Most of the 40 or so folks who've responded expected some benefit didn't think it would help tremendously.

Dan Hauck of Cedar, MN, thought it would hurt the economy ultimately. "It will affect me and my kids by putting an incredibly large debt on all tax payers for many years," he wrote us.

So what is the right way to think about the stimulus? If it does something to get us out of the economy is that enough? Even if it comes up short of expectations in places like St. Cloud?

If you some insight on a local stimulus project or expect to benefit from stimulus money, drop a line and tell us.

Meanwhile, check out the map below to read what people in ourNetwork are telling us about the job climate around them.

Stimulus scorecard: Rural MN project brings boost, no new jobs

Posted at 3:27 PM on August 4, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Economic stimulus, Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment

Big Stone 75 in western Minnesota was one of the first 60 greater Minnesota projects to get federal stimulus dollars. It's done now. What's the payoff?

The road, a key artery through Big Stone County, offers a check on the benefits of the federal stimulus plan. Some good got done. But how do we judge if it's worth it?

Big Stone County Commissioner Brent Olson is a source in our Public Insight Network who's been great about sharing his vantage point on the economy and the stimulus. We asked him to size up the $7million resurfacing project. He tells us:

I think the Highway 75 project played out about the way we thought it would. It is all done - the crews work incredibly hard - and they are off to the next project. The pace of the work was perhaps the greatest surprise.

No new jobs were created in Big Stone County as a result - highway crews STAYED employed, there was a boost to the local economy due to gravel sales, meals, hotels, etc...There was a boost in morale to see some much needed work actually get done, and that shouldn't be undervalued.

Roads need repair, railroads need upgrading, sewers and septic systems are in disrepair - there is a lot of work out there that have been ignored for a long time and seeing some of those needs addressed are as good for the soul as a fresh clean coat of paint in the living room. Decay of infrastructure was stopped and in a small part reversed, which is of great value to our local area.

So there's no doubt that something positive came out of the project. Olson notes that without the federal stimulus money, who knows when the repaving would have happened?

But is that enough? We're already seeing evidence in Minnesota that the projected job creation benefits from the stimulus are not matching up with reality. Nationally, the stimulus bill will add $787 billion to the national deficit through 2019.

Adds Olson:

I'm not sure what people expect from the stimulus package. If you had a job as a salesclerk at Gap or something similar and lost your job, you can't learn how to be a machinist, a pipe fitter, or a heavy equipment operator overnight - these are demanding, technical jobs that require training and experience and they are the type of jobs that are helped by infrastructure work.

I can't think of a federal stimulus program that would help lost jobs in the retail sector, unless restoring confidence and providing already employed workers with steady paychecks is enough.

Weigh in here on the stimulus package, how you're seeing it and how it might be affecting you.

Also, here are maps of greater Minnesota projects and Twin Cities projects.

I'm especially interested in hearing from people like Brent Olson who can talk about the pros and cons of specific projects or spending flowing from the stimulus.

Better times for antiques business? Will economy follow?

Posted at 3:25 PM on August 5, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Small business

It's spotty and anecdotal at this point, but if you're looking for some evidence people might be willing to spend again on non-essentials, we're hearing stuff from some antiques dealers.

A source in our Public Insight Network from central Minnesota tells us she was at an antiques sale in Cambridge, MN recently and started talking to dealers who were upbeat about the business at the Cambridge event and a recent event in Grand Rapids, MN. She says:

They said the show in Grand Rapids was as good as it was 10 years ago, and the Cambridge show was good also. What does this mean?

Having been a dealer for years and now not active because of the low market, it tells me something must be getting better.

Could be that people are buying more used items, and found out they can buy furniture cheaper used than at furniture stores, she notes.

It might also be a green shoot on the economy.

"I think it's turning upward," says Bill Carlson, a Twin Cities antiques dealer and board member of the Minnesota Antique Dealers Association, who points to an antiques show at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds in early June where attendance was up significantly from the prior year.

The recession's been pretty tough on dealers, he adds. "When the economy's way down people really tighten the belt...discretionary money is tight and if you're having any kind of financial problems in your own life, you're not going to be buying antiques."

Some have dropped out, others are managing to keep going through online sales and consignments. Those "reasonably well funded and are not out on a limb" are holding their own. "Borrowing money to buy antiques is not a good thing to do," he adds.

The local antiques market will get a get a good sense of direction next week when two major shows set up in the Rochester area, including Gold Rush Days in Oronoco, MN.

"I think the signs are positive," Carlson adds. "If consumers are willing to spend money at the shows, hopefully the shop business will also turn around."

8/7 UPDATE: Richard Lee, a Network source and antique dealer from Duluth says he's not seeing a recovery in the business.

Business still sucks...there are still more sellers than buyers, and when they do buy it's generally the shelf fill and not anything of any consequence.

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Got another take on the antiques business, as a buyer or a merchant? Drop me a line and let me know. Otherwise tell us what the economy's like around you these days.

Check out the map below for what others in our Network are saying about money issues.

Americans and spending: a view from the antiques business

Posted at 3:00 PM on August 31, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Saving & spending

We talked recently about signs the region's antiques business might be improving and asked if that signaled anything about the economy's health. Local dealers were looking for clues from two big August antiques shows, including Gold Rush Days in Oronoco.

Now, one of our Public Insight Network sources, Duluth antiques dealer Richard Lee, tells us he saw positive signs at Oronoco, though there's still plenty of uncertainty. He also gave us some great insights on the shift in American spending habits, a topic dear to us.

Here's what Lee heard from other dealers:

At most shows (antiques and collectibles) are impulse purchases. It used to be in the '90's that one could count on the average impulse purchase to be in the $35 to $45 range. After 9/11 that dropped to $20 to $25. Customers now still want to spend money, just not a lot of money...This show/market the average sale was $5 to $8--it takes a lot of $5 sales to pay your expenses.

Furniture items are not selling due to the uncertainty in the housing market. Many purchased more house than they could afford in the '90's, and then they couldn't afford to furnish them anyway. Now people are just having trouble holding on to their houses.

Dealer to dealer sales are down, "and that is what hurts sales the most." Among the reasons: "No one knows what to buy, because customers have not followed any trends; prices are stabilizing after wild escalation, hence many are selling items for less than what they paid for them. No one wants to get burned.

Lee also reports the business is struggling to position itself for the future.

Items offered by dealers appeal to a generation that is attracted to items they remember their parents or grandparents valued. That generation is not buying, and the generation that is buying is looking for "retro", or items from the 70's and 80's.

"Real" antiques are too old for the new buyers to know anything about and most of those are already in collections and won't become available again until the estate sales start happening.

Most dealers have difficulty purchasing or identifying with items that they or their kids purchased new a mere 30 years or so ago, hence they aren't able to offer the public what they want.

Many dealers are are leaving, he adds, although, "Overall I'd say that Oronoco was a success and it does seem to suggest that the future is going to be brighter for those who stay in the business."

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Got another take on the antiques business, as a buyer or a merchant? Drop me a line and let me know. Otherwise tell us what the economy's like around you these days.

Check out the map below for what others in our Network are saying about money issues.

MN home value worries: Not just a Twin Cities thing

Posted at 9:21 PM on September 8, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Housing & mortgages

We've been reporting a bunch about home prices in the Twin Cities. But David Frank reminds us that values across Minnesota have been hit as hard or harder than in the metro area.

Frank lives in Canby in western Minnesota's Yellow Medicine County near the South Dakota border. He calls his economic outlook these days "worrisome," telling us recently:

Here in "The Sticks," the value of houses has dropped dramatically. Not only have the values dropped but sales are at a bare minimum. Of the three real estate brokers in town, one of them told me just two weeks ago that she doesn't have a single looker for any of her homes over $50,000 and she only has three lookers total for homes valued under $50,000.

There are many people who want to buy a nicer/newer home but none are able to because they can't sell their existing home. If I take a drive down just a few streets of our small town (pop. 1903) I can see over a dozen homes for sale. Many of these homes have been on the market for a year or better.

I'm just glad I don't have a home for sale right now.

A recent analysis by the Minnesota State Demographic Center bears out some of what Frank's seeing.

Comparing changes in median home sale prices during the first nine months of 2007 and 2008, the report found a very mixed bag, with declines in most Minnesota counties where more than 50 houses were sold in the first nine months of last year.

In Yellow Medicine, the median sales price fell 7.2 percent over that year.

Things do seem to be bottoming out in the state's housing market but as we noted in late July it's estimated that about 1 of 83 Minnesota homes is in the foreclosure process, a reminder that there are still lots of problems in the pipeline.

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Below are stories people in our Public Insight Network are telling us about the housing market where they live. Check it out then add a story we can map.

Will construction projects boost Duluth?

Posted at 9:18 PM on September 8, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Jobs & unemployment

As we map the economic stories of Minnesotans in this recession, it's not often we get one labeled "good news." So it caught our attention when Bill Punyko emailed recently to say, "Duluth/Superior doing OK."

Punyko, a source in MPR's Public Insight Network, lives in Duluth and is assistant principal at Superior High School across the border in Wisconsin. He wrote to tell us his family was putting off a car purchase because of the economy. But then added:

Locally Duluth/Superior is going to do OK. With the Duluth school district's construction plan and Enbridge Enterprises's pipeline expansion, we'll be looking at a few thousand jobs being our own local stimulus package.

The Enbridge expansion is a controversial project that would bring tar-sands oil from Canada into the U.S. Some environmental and American Indian groups are suing to stop it, though the U.S. State Department backed a permit a few weeks ago.

The Duluth schools plan is also controversial, though a recently published study commissioned by the Duluth Chamber of Commerce says the plan will create more than 1,600 jobs and offset the recession in Duluth.

I'd love to hear from folks in the Duluth/Superior area about their economy and the prospects for a mini-stimulus from the Enbridge and Duluth schools projects.

While Duluth's shipping traffic's taken a hit this year, the region's economy has weathered the recession decently. Its unemployment rates have stayed below the state average.

Could Duluth end up leading the way out of recession? Please post below or use this form to tell us what you're seeing.

9/16 UPDATE: My MPR colleague Tom Robertson reports on the pipeline's positive economic impact in northern Minnesota.

Bright spots in an iffy Minnesota tourism season

Posted at 8:59 PM on September 17, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Greater Minnesota, Saving & spending

Minnesota's summer tourism season was mixed at best. But if your business was in outfitting, resorts or camping, the data we're seeing and stories we're hearing indicate you had a solid year.

The best news seems to be coming near the Canadian border. Recent reports from sources in MPR's Public Insight Network jibe with what folks were telling us in August: lower cost family vacations would do well while big resorts, Twin Cities hotels and facilities relying on conventions or big groups would have it tougher.

Jennifer Gelo and her husband Gordon own Sandy Point Lodge and Resort in Kabetogama, MN, on the edge of Voyaguer's National Park. She wrote us recently about a banner season:

Our Kabetogama resort saw record business this year with increases in lodging and our restaurant use. The last three years have been our best in the 15 years we have owned Sandy Point Lodge. This year was our best ever.

While she doesn't have an absolute answer why, Gelo notes that their repeat business rate is going very well and that the location is a great draw for walleye fishing. They're also reinvesting profits back into the resort, "which is a source of positive guest feedback."

Gelo's observations match up with what we heard a few weeks ago from Steve Piragis, another Network source who runs an outfitting business in Ely. He wrote:

Ely has been busting at the seams in July and August...This season represents the largest percentage of growth in outfitting we have ever experienced in 30 years. It's families, fishermen, young and old all finding some reason to experience or re experience the virtues of wilderness canoeing this season.

The state's tourism group, Explore Minnesota, says half the 300 business responding to its end-of-the-summer survey reported occupancy and revenue were down this summer. One in four reported business was up.

Campgrounds fared well as did fishing, hiking, festivals and other low-cost activities and state parks saw an increase in visitors, the agency said, adding that large resorts saw a downturn in bookings by corporate groups and conferences and occupancy and revenue fell at most hotels, especially in the Twin Cities.

Overall, the state's leisure and hospitality business is still struggling in the recession. Unemployment data released today showed the sector down 5,300 jobs over the past year.

Gelo writes:

While our business seems to be going well, we do not plan to rest and expect this good fortune to continue on its own.

We have decided this year to take a percentage of our proceeds and give back to some non-profits in our community. We hope this will help spread our good fortune to others and strengthen the community.

Meanwhile, she adds, "there's that bathroom remodel job, the roofing plans, the garden expansion, and new rental boat and motor -- you get the idea!"

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Have a view on Minnesota's tourism business? Please post below or click here and tell us what you're seeing.

Also, check out the map below to read what others in our Network are telling us about spending and saving in this economy.

Making budget in a recession. Ideas from small town Minnesota

Posted at 8:36 PM on September 25, 2009 by Paul Tosto
Filed under: Economic stimulus, Greater Minnesota

We've focused a lot at MinnEcon on the struggles of individual Minnesotans. But how are small towns coping? In this and future posts, we'll look at some novel ways town halls are making budget.

First to Baudette, population about 1,000, on the Canadian border, just south of Lake of the Woods. Like many cities, it's dealing with cuts to its state aid for 2009 and 2010. But town officials are finding a new campground is generating some revenue and keeping tourist dollars in town.

The campground is the newest piece of Timber Mill Park, a project begun a few years ago in better economic times. It includes RV hookups, space for primitive camping and a new shower/bathroom building.

We noted in a recent post on Minnesota's summer tourism season that campgrounds did well this season compared to big resorts and hotels. That was Baudette's experience this summer.

"We've had a pretty good response to it," said Baudette administrator Tina Rennemo. In Lake of the Woods County, you'd think there'd be campgrounds all over. But no."

Opened this summer in time for the Fouth of July, the campground's brought in about $4,500 from the sites currently open. Baudette hopes for another boost with its Oktoberfest celebration this weekend.

"The fact that it's gone over so well...it's going to help fill some of the (budget) cracks," said Rennemo. "The campground revenue, she says, will go back into the city's park system and "allows us to keep up that service without raising taxes..."

The town spent about $140,00 on the shower/bathroom facility ("We didn't skimp," Rennemo noted) and the county helped rough in the roads, she added. While those plans were laid in better economic times, the town sees the campground as a long-term economic development tool.

"if we can keep people in town," versus out at the lake, Rennemo said, "all that revenue stays in town."

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Know a small town doing something novel to raise revenues and make budget? Drop me a line or post below.

NOTE: These won't be posts debating taxes. I'm interested in hearing and writing about stuff small town governments are doing to raise money in non-traditional ways.