Pg 8 May 10, 2013 Volume 24, Number 5
Mankato area business expands
PEOPLE & PLACES Goodwill prepares to open new store
Goodwill/Easter Seals Minnesota, which provides skills training nonprofit for people with disabilities, will open its first Minneapolis store in November. Retail sales, which help fund Goodwill’s many programs, grew 23 percent to $57.6 million last year. The new store is at 60 th Street and Nicollet
Avenue S. and is designed by DJR Architecture and developed with Wellington Management. The store will be Goodwill’s 34th location in the region and will be its first two-story store. This is Wellington Management’s second partnership with Goodwill/Easter Seals. The St. Paul-based commercial and residential developer was involved with a Goodwill store in Coon Rapids several years ago. Wellington will own the Minneapolis site, which was most recently occupied by a restaurant. The property acquisition and development costs are $2.5 million. Goodwill had hoped to open a new store recently on Lyndale Avenue in South Minneapolis, but dropped those plans in the face of community opposition. A Burnsville store has also been placed on hold due to concerns in that city. ■
Autism Society of Minnesota names new executive director Jonah Weinberg is the new executive director of the Autism Society of Minnesota (AuSM). Weinberg’s appointment took effect April 15. Weinberg brings decades of non-profit and public sector leadership experience with organizations across the United States and internationally. His focus is on education, advocacy, and organizational excellence. He comes to Minneapolis from Cleveland where he worked with a broad range of organizations focused on serving people with physical, cognitive and behavioral challenges He also has served as executive director for two non-profit organizations serving that region’s Latino community. Weinberg looks forward to expanding the visibility and impression of AuSM. “In order to get the attention and research-funding necessary to bring about an impact for the nearly 100,000 people living with autism in Minnesota, it’s vital that we share their stories with friends, neighbors, community leaders and elected officials,” he said. “It’s important for people across the entire state to be aware of the incredible resources this organization has developed over the past 42 years.” AuSM Board of Directors President Todd Schwartzberg said, “Weinberg’s expertise will help not only to continue the great work done by AuSM, but will also expand collaborations and initiatives with those
Jonah Weinberg Photo courtesy of AuSM
with whom AuSM works and serves in the community.” Established in 1971, the Autism Society of Minnesota is committed to education, advocacy and support designed to enhance the lives of those affected by autism from birth through retirement. Visit www.ausm.org for more information. ■
MRCI Workforce, which provides job opportunities for people with disabilities, has announced is moving a $3 million expansion of its Mankato facility. Construction should begin this summer. When the expansion is finished in early 2014 it will initially house 90 clients supported by 40 MRCI staff members. In the future, numbers are expected to more than triple. The new 25,000-square-foot facility will house programs previously on Front Street and in the former Highland Plaza strip mall. MRCI workers do product packaging, light assembly work and other jobs for a wide range of regional companies. The old facilities didn’t have loading docks or easy truck access, which limited opportunities to take on more work. MRCI will continue to operate it 85,000-squarefoot facility The Mankato City Council, operating as the city Economic Development Authority, recently approved the sale of the five-acre parcel for nearly $200,000, according to the Mankato Free Press. Founded in Mankato 60 years ago, MRCI has since expanded to Fairmont, New Ulm and three Twin Cities suburbs. Clients earned more than $3.1 million in wages in 2011, about half through center-based production jobs and half at community-based jobs ranging from restaurants to supermarkets to manufacturing firms to warehouses. The nonprofit organization also provides skills training and leisure activities for clients. MRCI has nearly 1,000 employees in all of its programs. ■
