Get to know Faribault

Faribault is situated at the junction of the Cannon and Straight rivers. Located along Interstate 35, it’s just 25 minutes south of the Twin Cities metropolitan area.

Faribault is the county seat of Rice County. Other cities in the county include Northfield, Dundas, Lonsdale, Morristown and Nerstrand. A portion of the city of Dennison lies in Rice County.

In Faribault, the summers are long, warm and wet; the winters are freezing, snowy and windy and it is partly cloudy year round. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 8 degrees Fahrenheit to 83 degrees Fahrenheit and is rarely below negative 13 degrees Fahrenheit or above 91 degrees Fahrenheit

GENERAL INFORMATION:

Founded in 1852, Faribault is named after its founder, Alexander Faribault, a trading post operator and territorial legislator. Population - 23,353 (2010 census)

The county encompasses an area of 516 square miles and contains seven cities and 14 townships. According to the 2010 Census, the two largest cities in Rice County are Faribault with a population of 23,352, and Northfield with a population of 20,007.

Rice County has a total population of 64,142 making it the state’s 13th most populous.

Rice County was organized on March 5, 1853, and is governed by the general laws of the state of Minnesota. The cities of Faribault and Northfield comprise slightly less than half of the county’s total taxable value.

Form of government - Council/ Administrator

Faribault City Council

Tim Murray, city administrator tmurray@ci.faribault.mn.us 507-333-0355

Mayor Kevin Voracek

kvoracek@ci.faribault.mn.us 507-384-0567

Sara Caron

scaron@ci.faribault.mn.us 320-333-4607

Royal Ross

rross@ci.faribault.mn.us 507-456-2932

Tom Spooner

tspooner@ci.faribault.mn.us 507-323-4903

Peter van Sluis

pvansluis@ci.faribault.mn.us 507-412-9168

Janna Viscomi

jviscomi@ci.faribault.mn.us 507-210-8129

Jonathan Wood

jwood@ci.faribault.mn.us 612-597-9159 Land area - 12.86 square miles Elevation - 1,015.55 feet above mean sea level (at City Hall) Regional attractions - Downtown Minneapolis and St. Paul, Mall of America, Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, Rochester and the Mayo Clinic, eight state parks and more than 100 recreational lakes.

DEMOGRAPHICS

Median age 37.7. Poverty rate 15.6%. Median household income $53,125. Median property value, $148,400, number of employees 10,724

As of 2018, 13.6% of Faribault residents were born outside of the country (3,400 people). In 2018 there were 5.76 times more white (nonHispanic) residents (16.9K people) than any other race or ethnicity. There were 2.93K black or African American (non-Hispanic) and 1.34K white (hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups

The three largest ethnic groups, White (non-Hispanic); Black or African American (non-Hispanic) and white (Hispanic)

As of 2018, 13.6% of Faribaultresidents were born outside of the United States. That’s lower than the national average of 13.7%. In 2017, the percentage of foreignborn citizens in Faribault was 13%.. The most common service period for residents who served in the military is Vietnam, Gulf War and Korea. Faribault has a large population of military personnel who served in Vietnam, 2.29 times greater than any other conflict

ECONOMY

The median household income is $53,125.

The largest industries are manufacturing,; health care ,social assistance and retail. High paying industries are finance and insurance,

Home to Faribault Foods, Faribault Woolen Mills, Jennie-O Turkey Store plant, Minnesota Correctional Facility-Faribault, Minnesota State Academy for the Blind, Minnesota State Academy for the Deaf, Shattuck-St. Mary’s School, South Central College, Daikin Applied, SageGlass, Trystar and Faribault Energy Park

U.S. and state elected officials:

U.S. Sens. Amy Klobuchar, DFL, and Tina Smith, DFL 1st District Rep. Jim Hagedorn, Republican

State Sen. John Jasinski, R-Faribault and Sen. Rich Draheim, R-Madison Lake

State Rep. Brian Daniels, R-Faribault, and Todd Lippert, D-Northfield