2015 AAEDC Annual Report

ANNUAL REPORT //2015 WWW.ALEXMN.ORG AAEDC@ALEXMN.ORG 320.763.4545

AAEDC

Director Letter It is with great pride that we present the annual report for the Alexandria Area Economic Development Commission.

Inside this report, we provide you a glimpse of our area successes in 2015 – including company investments that total over $47 million.

Without a doubt, 2015 was a very impactful year for the Commission, and we are extremely proud of those accomplishments. As we enter 2016, we must continue our efforts to entice and encourage investment in our community by our manufacturers and support industries. We can achieve this through the use of our economic development tools, marketing this vibrant region, and strengthening our workforce by supporting the work of the Alexandria Technical and Community College. We will also continue to encourage entrepreneurship through our business planning resources in collaboration with all the resources that exist throughout the region.

As we celebrate our 25th anniversary, we thank our businesses for their continued support for this organization, along with the financial contributions of our local units of government. Our success represents the work of many people throughout our area. The interest, participation and support from our business leaders and elected officials were essential to the growth of our business community. We look forward to continuing our work; partnering with businesses throughout the region in creating and retaining jobs and investments in our communities.

On behalf of the AAEDC Board of Directors and Staff, we appreciate all of you who make our work meaningful.

Warm Regards, Nicole Fernholz AAEDC Executive Director 1 | www.alexmn.org

Board of Directors & Staff

Mark Grandgenett

Brent Smith

Lake Mary Township

City of Alexandria

Deena Steffl

Kevin Gorghuber

LaGrand Township

Mark Watkins

Carlos Township

Mary New

Alexandria Township

Hudson Township

Nicole Fernholz

Samantha Graf

Executive Director

Marketing Coordinator

Jeff Patience

City of Alexandria

Tom Wacholz

City of Alexandria • Al Crowser | ALP Utilities • Mayor Sara Carlson | City of Alexandria • Commissioner Charlie Meyer | Douglas County • Bruce McKirdy | Alexandria Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce • Joel Dahlheimer | Alexandria Township • Dave Wolf | Gardonville Cooperative Telephone Association

Abby Peterson

Community & Workforce Development Coordinator

The mission of the AAEDC is to provide regional leadership in a collaborative effort to facilitate job growth.

Core Values

• Stewardship | Provide leadership

for an action-orientated coalition to support economic & community growth in our area.

• Trust | Earn and sustain the trust of our businesses, communities & the elected leaders we serve.

• Regional Collaboration |

Recognize and leverage the interrelatedness of people, businesses & communities in the area and support development efforts that benefit the region.

• Teamwork | Engage the public, private and nonprofit sectors and work cooperatively to build and maintain effective working relationships.

• Respect | Recognize the area’s history, natural resources and people and embrace the opportunities they provide.

• Financial Accountability |

Provide responsible stewardship of public and private assets and resources.

• Innovation | Innovate to complete and win.

Economic Development 3 | www.alexmn.org

Workforce Development

The vision of the AAEDC is to see the area as a regional center sustaining a vibrant, growing economy that is attractive to businesses and to a capable, productive workforce.

Community Development

Lakes Area Development Authority The AAEDC works in partnership with the Lakes Area Development Authority to meet their overall goals. The LAEDA was organized in 2004 through special state legislation with approval of the State of MN and the organization’s founding members to formalize and stabilize the funding process of economic development efforts in Douglas County, MN. Because of the long-term nature of many initiatives and investments needed to continue to grow our community, stable funding is crucial to the success of economic development efforts.

Business Strategic

The mission of the LAEDA is to support the mission of the AAEDC by providing fair and equitable resources.

The LAEDA model is the first of its kind in Minnesota to bring together communities and townships under a formal structure with designated EDA powers.

Partnerships

A formal partnership between the City of Alexandria and Garfield, and the Townships of Alexandria and LaGrand that is considered to be an innovative model in addressing local, long-term economic development issues across geographical boundaries.

Board of Directors

Board of Directors for the LAEDA include: Mayor Sara Carlson (City of Alexandria), Joel Dahlheimer (Alexandria Township), Gerhard Thoennes (LaGrand Township) and John Nienaber (City of Garfield).

Powers of EDAs • • • • • •

Tax abatement Ability to enter into contracts Sale of bonds Economic Development Districts Levying of taxes Creation of Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Districts • Acquisition and sale of real estate and person property • Participation in limited partnerships www.alexmn.org | 4

Economic Development | 2015 Projects Dust Busters is a family owned professional furnace and duct cleaning company located in Alexandria Minnesota. They outgrew their current rented space and were looking for land to own their own facility.

The company built a 6000 square foot facility valued at approximately $300,000 in Forada, MN. Revolving Loan Funds were approved to assist with the project.

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Knute Nelson, a non-profit organization based in Alexandria, is in the process of constructing the second phase of Grand Arbor, a senior living facility.

The organization received assistance from the AAEDC in applying for and securing Industrial Development Bonds through the City of Alexandria to finance a portion of this project, which has an estimated construction cost of nearly $25 million and will result in the construction of 106 senior living units and the creation of 30 new FTE and 35 new PTE positions.

This facility is located on Pioneer Road in Alexandria and has an anticipated completion timeline of Spring 2016. The Industrial Development Bond program is a financing program for commercial, industrial, recreational, and health care projects and does not create any additional burden on the City’s taxpayers.

Owners of the Stonemanor of Alexandria multi-family apartment complex have completed the second phase of this facility’s construction, resulting in an additional 67 multi-family housing units being available in the Alexandria marketplace. The entire project had an estimated cost of $11 million and resulted in 140,000 sq. ft. of new construction. The AAEDC assisted the developer with applying for and securing Housing Tax Increment Financing (TIF) from the City of Alexandria to assist with offsetting the costs of infrastructure for this project. In return for this assistance, the developer has committed 20% of the units to individuals and/or families whose income is 50% or less than the area’s median gross income.

The Tom and Deb Collins Family owned and operated Collins Cabinets since 1974 with the goal of providing fine woodwork focused on high quality custom cabinetry. Chris Marsden purchased the business and real estate from the family in 2015.

Through the AAEDC, in partnership with West Central Initiative, the company was approved for a Developer’s Revolving Loan to assist with the acquisition of the company and assets.

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Economic Development Beverage Wholesalers, Inc. is engaged in wholesale distribution of beer and wine in west central Minnesota and southeastern North Dakota and represents approximately 34 breweries, wineries or importers. R & R Investments will construct a new 60,900 square foot warehouse, refrigerated warehouse, office and enclosed loading docks on property recently purchased. The property is located on Evergreen Lane.

The project will consist of the new facility construction, but also extending Evergreen Lane to a 10 ton road with services. Improvements include the extension and widening of the road, water, sanitary sewer, and storm sewer. Project is valued at approximately $5 million.

The AAEDC helped with tax increment financing from the City of Alexandria to assist with site preparation and infrastructure improvement.

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Alexandria Industries broke ground on a 35,000 square foot expansion valued at approximately $5 million dollars. They are a multi-location manufacturing company that extrudes aluminum and offers innovative solutions for your component needs. The company’s expansion will allow for future growth and expansion of the company and its product lines. The AAEDC assisted with the project through the extension of an active tax increment financing district the company has with the City of Alexandria.

Little Learners Academy, LLC is a new child care center located in Alexandria that offers a solid curriculum and extended care hours for families.

Through the AAEDC, the company was approved for a Developer’s Revolving Loan to purchase equipment and assist with the startup of the company.

Northstar Bottled Water Company constructed a 6,000 square foot facility located in the Osakis Industrial Park. The new facility consisted of warehouse, a loading dock, overhead doors and office. The operating entity is Northstar Bottled Water Solutions, which is a family owner, locally run water bottling and distribution company.

They service all of central Minnesota, including Alexandria, Morris and St Cloud. Total project cost is estimated at $242,000. The AAEDC assisted with the project through property negotiations with the Osakis EDA and tax increment financing.

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Workforce Development

Alexandria Area Job Fair The 11th Annual Alexandria Area Job Fair took place on February 4, 2015 at the Alexandria Technical & Community College Law Enforcement Gymnasium. The event was a tremendous success with 52 companies participating and over 450 job seekers attending. Participating companies were from a variety of different industries such as healthcare, manufacturing, retail and direct sales. The job fair is organized by West Central MN SHRM- the AAEDC is an active member of this organization and has a major impact on the job fair with business recruitment, event marketing and event organization activities.

Entrepreneur and Small Business Trainings In 2015, the AAEDC continued their partnership with Alexandria Technical & Community College’s Customized Training Center to offer regional small business trainings for entrepreneurs and small businesses in the greater Alexandria region. 5 trainings were coordinated through the year, the total training impact included 84 unique attendees representing more than 26 businesses that employ a total of more than 2,000 individuals. The ripple effect from training information that was relayed to co-workers by attendees is not accurately measurable beyond these numbers, but could be very large. Partial funding is provided by West Central Initiative.

Training offerings included: • • • • •

Using Google Analytics to Make Business Decisions What’s Up? Hiring Activity in Alexandria Time Management and Productivity Training Basic Accounting 101 Work Ethics and Personal Responsibility

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Academies of Alexandria The partnership the AAEDC has formed with the Alexandria Area High School benefits our organization, the school district and the Alexandria community, by building a pipeline for future workforce in the area. The Academy model that AAHS has implemented prepares students for their future, whether they continue their education or step directly out into the workforce.

The Academies of Alexandria began their second year in the Fall of 2015 with the community continuing to play a big role in the success of the school and the students. 49 community members volunteered their time as FAN Coaches (Freshman Academy Network) helping freshman build character and life skills by facilitating small group discussions. These visits were a highlight to the students throughout their Freshman Seminar class.

The Citizen’s Academy class is offered in the Health Sciences & Human Services Academy, that requires a lot of business community partnerships. The students get the opportunity to connect with a number of different human service workers throughout the community and are offered field experiences at Alexandria Technical & Community College and the courthouse. Representatives from City Hall, the West Central Minnesota Drug Task Force and the Alexandria Police Department were some of the guest that spoke to Citizen’s Academy. Students in Citizen’s Academy participate in a Mock Trail with the help of community members such as lawyers, media outlets, court reporters and Someplace Safe, combined they volunteered 55 hours.

These partnerships give students new experiences to find a career they are passionate about while reaching beyond the walls of the high school to access the resources necessary to provide students with academic opportunities.

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Community Involvement Spring SBA Luncheon The 2015 Spring SBA Luncheon was held on May 19th in celebration of Small Business Week. The AAEDC in partnership with the Alexandria Technical and Community College invited area leaders to learn more about the FIRST Robotics program giving area young people opportunities to STEM careers.

Employment Law Update The 12th Annual West Central MN Employment Law Update was held on June 11th providing employment law breakout sessions by lawyers from around the state, and a presentation from award-winning author and international speaker Andy Masters on “HR Leadership in the New Economy”.

Manufacturers & Support Industries Breakfast This event was held during Minnesota’s Manufacturing Week as an update and thank you to our area manufacturing and support industries for their crucial role & continued success and growth. This year’s speaker was Dr. Chris Kuehl, Managing Director of Armada Corporate Intelligence on “2015-The Year of the Dangerous Economy”.

Business & Industrial Appreciation Day Trumm Drug was selected as the 2015 Business & Industrial Appreciation Day recipient awarded by the Board of Directors of the AAEDC and ALA Chamber of Commerce. The BIAD luncheon took place on October 21st at the Arrowwood Resort & Conference Center. The event was a celebration of the success, growth and impact of Trumm Drug on our local area as well as statewide.

Additional 2015 Events & Partnership

SBDC Board Member

LFDC & TSMA Active Memberships

Wages & Benefits Survey

Public Presentations & Groundbreakings

Community Growth Area Projects

Project Type

Wosmek Properties, LLC

New Construction | Townhomes 1

$175,770

Wosmek Properties, LLC

New Construction | Townhomes 2

$175,770

DOT Properties

New Construction

$184,500

Wilkins Enterprises, LLC

Estimated Project Cost

Addition

$234,000

SG, LLC

New Construction | Commercial Shed 1

$270,000

SG, LLC

New Construction | Commercial Shed 2

$270,000

Addition

$279,450

Wilkins Enterprises, LLC Carlos Creek Winery, LLC

New Construction

$291,600

Roland & Clara Jayne Walsh

New Construction | Commercial Shed

$563,040

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The Alexandria Area continues to be a vibrant regional center.

These projects represent a sampling of area commercial development projects.

Each project has an estimated project valuation/cost minimum of $100,000.

Area Projects CUB Foods

Project Type

Project Valuation

Interior/Exterior Alterations

$575,000

Ellingson Plumbing & Heating

18,000 Square-Foot Warehouse

$700,000

Edgewater Vista Assisted Living Center

7,045 Square-Foot Addition

$800,000

MN Mining & Manufacturing Co.

Chiller Addition

$1,265,000

Voyager Elementary School

Facility Upgrade Alterations

$1,325,030

Lakewood Terrace Apartment Building

25,259 Square-Foot New Construction

$2,100,000

Alexandria Industries

38,027 Square-Foot Facility Expansion

$2,315,564

Henry’s Foods

38,660 Square-Foot Freezer Addition

$4,450,000

Beverage Wholesalers, Inc.

61,350 Square-Foot Warehouse

$5,665,224

Grand Arbor Expansion

$13,000,000

Knute Nelson

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AAEDC

Web

www.AlexMN.org aaedc@alexmn.org

Telephone 320.763.4545

Location

324 Broadway, Suite 101