2016 Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. Annual Report

GREATER MANKATO GROWTH, INC.

Annual Report 2016

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Dear Business Colleagues: Our approach to business and community development is built upon a unique organizational model. A model representing the collaboration, energetic, forward thinking and results orientated nature of our regional marketplace. When we think of Greater Mankato Growth, Inc., its members, partners and professional staff; all strive to reflect the very same.

The evidence can be seen on the pages of this Annual Report. Each of our three business units – Greater Mankato Growth, Visit Mankato and the City Center Partnership – have both tangible and intangible impacts on our region’s vitality. The Executive Summary and At a Glance on pages 6 – 7 provide a quick summary of our work. However, take some time and digest the information contained in the remainder of the report, you might be surprised to learn of the many facets of work in which GMG, Inc. is a part, and its collective impact.

Contents Letter to the Members

3

Our Mission, Our Values

4

Purpose & Structure

5

Executive Summary

6

The Economic Landscape

8

Financial Strength

10

Membership

11

Why Membership Matters

12

Events The organization is only one of a multitude of actors working side by side for the betterment of our region.

Not a single one of us – individuals, businesses, or institutions – can do it alone, that…is why it is called community.

Thank you to the Greater Mankato business community.

With gratitude,

Todd Loosbrock Chair, Board of Directors

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13

Business Growth, Retention & Attraction

18

GreenSeam

20

Talent Growth, Retention & Attraction

22

Regional Livability

24

Advocacy of the Marketplace

26

Members & Investors

30

Boards & Staff

35

Volunteers

36

Jonathan G. Zierdt President & CEO

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Our Mission. Our Values.

Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. exists to support and promote the economic growth and vitality of our members and the regional marketplace.

CORE VALUES The needs of the members are best met by growing the regional marketplace. We accomplish this by being: Catalysts - initiating action for economic growth beneficial to our members and congruent with our regional desire and culture.

Stewards - using our resources efficiently and effectively and wisely leveraging our strengths.

Collaborative & Inclusive cultivating and sustaining relationships, while encouraging the mobilization of our marketplace assets to enhance growth.

Approachable - being visible and accessible and creating a friendly, vibrant and respectful environment.

Innovative - embracing change and promoting progressive solutions.

Ethical - communicating openly and honestly and taking responsibility for our actions in all our business practices.

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Purpose. Focus. Direction. Structure.

Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. exists to intentionally develop the regional center by promoting, supporting and serving as a catalyst for economic development through: business growth, retention and attraction; talent growth, retention and attraction; regional livability and advocacy of the marketplace.

Business Growth, Retention and Attraction (of all economies and business sectors)

To identify & implement strategies and tactics to sustain as well as further enhance the Greater Mankato region’s economic diversity and vitality.

Areas of Impact: 1. Provide critical business “intelligence” 2. Initiate business development opportunities 3. Enhance our “doing business” experiences and interactions

Talent Growth, Retention and Attraction (of all economies and business sectors)

To support the growth, retention and attraction of a skilled/talented workforce to meet the workforce needs of an ever changing and growing economy.

Areas of Impact: 1. Create a unique and compelling message and tools to sell the “why Greater Mankato” story 2. Invest more heavily in promotion and marketing of quality of life, place and work 3. Facilitate connections across educational institutions, workforce training systems and the business sectors to foster/develop collaborations and partnerships to meet workforce needs

Regional Livability To work in concert to advocate for and promote the livability features of the region.

Areas of Impact: 1. Advocate for the development of assets and amenities that could contribute to our region’s livability (e.g. recreational facilities, arts, regional transportation, agritourism, etc) 2. Support and promote the assets that contribute significantly to our region’s livability 3. Enhance our “doing business” experiences and interactions

Advocacy of the Marketplace (both internal and external)

To cohesively advocate for the businesses and residents of Greater Mankato.

Areas of Impact: 1. Advocate for policies and programs that create an atmosphere in which businesses thrive and residents flourish 2. Create compelling media that “sells” Greater Mankato’s attraction to those within and outside the community 3. Engage businesses and residents in planning and communications processes

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Executive Summary It was another memorable year in 2016. Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. family units launched and fueled many programs that helped drive our regional economy.

Advancing BUSINESS for a stronger COMMUNITY.

By Jonathan G. Zierdt, President & CEO

V

itality and success in the Greater Mankato regional marketplace is enhanced when we are intentional about investing in our community and working toward a tomorrow which we envision but are yet to realize. Greater Mankato Growth Inc.’s purpose is to support and promote the economic growth and vitality of our regional marketplace.

We focus on the four strategic business development facets you see on the adjacent page.

We’ve been deliberate about engaging in endeavors with a high prospect of enhancing our economy, with the formal launch of GreenSeam and continued focus on the vitality of our urban core (City Center) through visionary planning, such as Old Town or a consumer event like Shop Small. Visit Mankato was involved with conferences and events having more than a $10 million dollar economic impact.

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Greater Mankato businesses have invested nearly $500 million dollars in establishing or expanding their facilities, resulting in a #1 GDP growth rate in the state and #3 in the upper midwest and continued creation of even more jobs, achieving a new record average high of more than 56,000. The MSA has the #1 per capita personal income growth rate in Minnesota from 2010 – 2015.

We have been intentional about elevating our livability, with a burgeoning art experience and creative economy concentrated in the City Center. The greatermankatoevents.com website was relaunched with our partners and has seen its page views increase by 80%. A successful education campaign resulted in overwhelming support to extend our local option sales tax, in part to support regional recreation facilities. Our interest in livability was expressed through the collective generosity of businesses and

individuals giving more than $80,000 in cash and even more in-kind to Madelia Strong through the GMG, Inc. Foundation.

We are purposeful about advocating for the marketplace and are “on the radar.” Our public affairs efforts resulted in a parade of high ranking public officials engaging with our community through forums and other efforts. Our marketplace positioning yielded a feature article in Delta SKY magazine as well as the Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal. News articles featuring the work of all GMG, Inc. business units garnered media coverage on average almost every other day. Our four different websites experienced an average of 1,896 page views per day, that’s more than 80 views per hour.

Finally, between having more than 1,000 members (45% of all businesses) and the data in our “Membership Matters” report, it’s clear GMG members simply do better.

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2016 At a Glance BUSINESS GROWTH, RETENTION AND ATTRACTION Led the state in Business Retention & Expansion with 78 Grow Minnesota! visits

Fulfilled 68 (5+ per month) requests for critical business information

57 conventions and sporting events assisted or confirmed by Visit Mankato

CCP partnered with the City of Mankato for the Old Town Master Plan

104 commercial and industrial building projects totalling $429 million in 2016

Generated 40 (3+ per month) new business development requests for proposals and submitted 33 proposals

An estimated total of 24,267 hotel rooms booked

41 City Center businesses participated in Shop Small in the City Center on Small Business Saturday

Project ABE was officially renamed and branded as GreenSeam with a well-attended launch event held in June

Hosted and presented information to more than 3,800+ site selectors across the marketplace

$10.9 million estimated economic impact from conventions and sporting events with which Visit Mankato assisted

Alive After 5 added an artisan pop-up market offering members of the creative economy an opportunity to reach consumers

TALENT GROWTH, RETENTION AND ATTRACTION Leadership Institute graduated its 33rd class, and now boasts more than 830 alumni Held 34 Greater Mankato Young Professionals events

Young Professionals program increased its return on value with 2 cohorts of the Mentor program that included participation from 64 YPs and 8 local business mentors

245 Young Professionals, representing 86 different businesses were enrolled in the Greater Mankato Young Professionals program

43 students participated in the 2015-2016 Greater Mankato Leadership Institute and 43 are enrolled in the 2016-17 program

Mankato Sports Commission and GMG staff launched an initiative to provide support for regional recreation facilities and the extension of the local option sales tax as a “last dollar in” funding mechanism to support the expansion of existing and development of new facilities

In 6 years, CityArt’s Walking Sculpture Tour has accounted for the display of $1.7 million in public art and the permanent installation of 17 new pieces

19 traffic signal cabinets have been decorated as a result of CityArt’s On the Go initiative

REGIONAL LIVABILITY Songs on the Lawn and Alive After 5 continued to see record crowds, drawing a total of 5,500+. New in 2016 was the addition of the artisan pop-up market at Alive After 5 Mankato Marathon celebrated it’s 7 th anniversary

Hockey Night in the City Center rallied fans to celebrate Maverick hockey

Pageviews of greatermankatoevents.com were 307,724 The Mni Mural brought new public art and a new visitor destination to the City Center

ADVOCACY OF THE MARKETPLACE PUBLIC AFFAIRS Hosted 8 key public leader forum series events

Advocated on behalf of Highway 14 resulting in expanded construction

Hosted 125 business and civic leaders for Greater Mankato at the Capitol

COMMUNITY MARKETING Cost of Living Index, accessed more than 1,123 times

Held the second annual Journeys of Leadership event featuring The Davis Family

Successfully ran a public education campaign in support of the .5% sales tax extension referendum

Online candidate profiles received 5,000 page views

328 news articles mentioning Greater Mankato Growth ran in local and state media

Anna Thill was appointed to the Explore Minnesota Tourism Council

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Held 5 candidate forums for key regional races

Jonathan Zierdt, President & CEO of Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. attended the State of the Union Address as the guest of Congressman Walz

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The Economic Landscape In 2016, our region continued to experience steady growth that is at the forefront of leading state and national economic indicators. The Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) gained visibility not just from record setting economic growth, but also from multiple high rankings and ratings from national organizations.

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27%

491+

$

284

Per Capita Personal Income Growth Rate - from 2010-2015

# 1 IN MINNE SOTA

million in total project investments

New Building & Renovation Projects

56,354

+596

jobs

new jobs in the MSA from 2015-2016

LOW COST OF DOING BUSINESS

#

15% below the national average

GDP growth rate in the state of Minnesota and #3 in the upper midwest

Job numbers surpassed all records for the MSA and outpaced both the state of MN and U.S. growth rates

LEVEL 1 Primary Retail Trade Center

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1

Highest annual average job figure ever for the marketplace (697 more than 2015)

Most Affordable College Town in Minnesota

Cost of Doing th Lowest Business in the upper midwest

*For source information, please visit greatermankato.com.

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Financial Strength

A SSETS/LIABILITIES

Greater Mankato Growth’s funding comes from business members (80%) and community partners (20%). Visit Mankato is funded primarily through lodging taxes levied by the City of Mankato. The City Center Partnership receives funding from Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. and the cities of Mankato and North Mankato. Each organization may receive additional funding through sponsorships and advertising. All three of our organizations take seriously their responsibility to serve as stewards of the funds in which we are entrusted.

RE VENUE SOURCES

Events & Programs Lodging Tax Municipal Service Agreements Other (Professional Services, CCP, Grants)

2015

2016*

Greater Mankato Growth Assets

$ 1,550,986

$ 1,529,699

$ 1,450,426

Liabilities

$

$ 439,595

$ 448,864 $ 567,079

407,984

$ 1,434,920

Visit Mankato, LLC Assets

$ 403,349

$ 345,189

$ 356,349

$ 325,999

Liabilities

$

$

25,783

$

19,227

$

36,964

118,936

City Center Partnership, LLC Assets

$ 117,349

$ 127,036

$

86,565

$

90,381

Liabilities

$

$

$

16,938

$

11,473

62,784

79,943

*Unaudited

Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. total revenue, which includes all three business units was $2,080,550 in 2016 and sources included:

Membership

2014

2013

E XPENSES

33% 26% 24% 17% <1%

Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. total expenses, which includes all three business units was $2,318,383 in 2016. Expenses were greater than revenue due to strategic commitments paid for by board designated reserve funds.

Programs/Services

89%

General Management

9%

Fundraising

2% As submitted per IRS form 990.

STR ATEGIC RESERVE FUND INVESTMENTS According to the current utilization of the Strategic Program Investments budgeted, by the end of 2017 we will have underspent that aggregate budget by $139,136.

$1,207,111 - Opening Balance 1,200,000

75,065 - Public Affairs 178,842 - City Center Partnership

1,000,000

259,116 - GreenSeam 50,000 - Marketplace Positioning

800,000

65,009 - Staff Capacity

600,000 434,099 Balance* *430,461 (3-month “reserve” threshold)

400,000

200,000

No additional strategic reserve fund investments are planned for 2018-2020.

0 2012

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2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

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990.

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Membership For the fifth year in a row, Greater Mankato Growth saw the highest membership numbers ever. With

1,015 MEMBERS YE AR END 2016

1,015 members at year end 2016, GMG experienced an increase of 55 members.

TOTAL MEMBERS 2016........................................ 1,015 2015........................................... 960 2014............................................917 2013........................................... 868 2012............................................834 2011............................................790 2010............................................791 2009...........................................729 2008........................................... 759 2007...........................................734

C AVALIER VISITS M ADE TO NE W GMG MEMBER S

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MEMBERSHIP GROWTH RATE

5.0% TIERED DUES MODEL Average annual membership growth rate since the implementation of the tiered dues model (2012).

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vs

1.8% PRE-TIERED DUES MODEL Average annual membership growth rate prior to the tiered dues model.

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Why Membership Matters Each member of Greater Mankato Growth knows their investment in the organization means positive things for the marketplace and their business. We have identified a set of interesting data points to convey how membership impacts your bottom line. In summary, those who choose to belong to Greater Mankato Growth are generally more successful.

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The businesses GMG interacts with have a survival rate nearly 2 times the national standard.

In 2016, our Ambassadors visited 66 businesses and of those ALL are still in business today. Looking back over the last four years, of the 190 businesses the Ambassadors visited, 182 (96%) are still in operation today.

GMG members are recognized and experience greater success.

Out of the more than 318 Mankato Magazineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Readerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Choice Best of Awards given out over the past four years, 64% of the award winners were GMG members. While 45% of Greater Mankato businesses are members of GMG, our members took home 2/3 of the awards!

GMG members tend to expand and invest in their businesses at a rate 4 times that of non-members.

Of the nearly $491 million in capital investment projects in the marketplace over the last three years, 64% of these business improvements and expansions came from GMG member businesses.

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EVENTS

All Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. events contribute to one or more of our four areas of focus. From networking to golf, to business education and marketing opportunities. We strive to offer opportunities that enhance the region’s professionals, businesses and the livability of the marketplace.

ANNUAL MEETING

Mar 10

Successes of 2015 and goals for 2016 for Greater Mankato Growth, Visit Mankato and City Center Partnership were shared at the Annual Meeting.

The event was held at Minnesota State University, Mankato - Centennial Student Union and had 399 members in attendance. The theme was “Making Headlines”.

GREATER MANKATO AT THE CAPITOL

Mar 30

More than 125 business and civic leaders promoted our region with key state leaders and legislators during the 2016 Greater Mankato at the Capitol event.

BUSINESS SHOWCASE

Apr 26

A total of 100 member businesses had booths and more than 600 business professionals attended the event. The event was held in the Verizon Center’s Arena.

TOURISM WEEK

May 1-7

Visit Mankato celebrated National Travel & Tourism Week by recognizing community members who have gone above and beyond for visitors. Category winners included, Hotel: Bud Lawrence, AmericInn Hotel & Conference Center; Attraction: Tania Cordes, Kato Ballroom; Retail: Paul Wilke, River Hills Mall; Restaurant: Jim & Jan Downs, Pagliai’s Pizza.

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EVENTS May 14

Jun 2, 9, 16, 23, 30

Jul 11

CITYART INSTALLATION On May 14, City Center Partnership and Twin Rivers Council for the Arts staff and CityArt volunteers installed 27 sculptures in the core blocks of City Center Mankato and North Mankato for the tour’s sixth installation of rotating public art. The unveiling was followed by a special “Meet and Greet on the Street” with the artists.

SONGS ON THE LAWN More than 3,500 individuals gathered at Civic Center Plaza to enjoy Songs on the Lawn. This popular free annual event is held over lunch every Thursday in June.

GREATER MANKATO ON THE GREEN A total of 156 golfers participated in the annual golf tournament, Greater Mankato on the Green which was held at the Mankato Golf Club. The 2016 Closest to the Target winner was Mike Pingalone.

Jul 29

VIKINGS TASTING Visit Mankato collaborated with Radio Mankato, Front Street Businesses and the Minnesota Vikings to shut down Front Street for the second annual Vikings Tasting event. The event hosted eight vendors, eight Vikings Alumni and 150 attendees on Front Street.

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BUSINESS RECEPTION WITH THE MN VIKINGS

Aug 5

More than 250 member businesses attended this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s business reception in comfort of the VIP tent.

The event is designed to welcome the Minnesota Vikings to Greater Mankato while giving members a chance to network in a unique setting. This event sells out every year.

ALIVE AFTER 5 More than 2,000 people attended this free annual event hosted by the City Center Partnership that is held Thursdays in August and September at Civic Center Plaza. An artisan pop-up market was added to the event in 2016.

REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ALLIANCE

Aug 11, 18, 25, Sep 1, 8

Oct 5

ANNUAL MEETING

The innaugural annual meeting was held for the Regional Economic Development Alliance at Gustavus Adolphus College in Saint Peter. Shawntera Hardy, the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development Commissioner, was the keynote speaker.

TOUR OF MANUFACTURING

Oct 6

The sixth annual tour was coordinated by the South Central Tour of Manufacturing Partnership. A record number of manufacturers (16) and one community college provided tours and information about their industry and career opportunities to business leaders, students and the general public. << Photo courtesy of Jones Metal

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EVENTS Oct 8

HOCKEY NIGHT IN THE CITY CENTER City Center Partnership and Minnesota State University, Mankato - Intercollegiate Athletics hosted a pre-game celebration to kick off Maverick hockey season. This event brings more than 2,500 fans to the City Center each year.

Oct 16

MANKATO MARATHON Visit Mankato hosted the seventh Mankato Marathon in partnership with Final Stretch. 4,507 runners participated between all of the races including the Diaper Dash, Toddler Trot, Kids K, My Bold Walk, 5K, 10K, Half Marathon, Relay Marathon and Full Marathon.

Nov 8

1,000 MEMBER MILESTONE

Membership reached an all-time high in November.

A highly anticipated event was held to celebrate reaching the 1,000 member goal. Many community and business members were in attendance, as well as media. The attendees enjoyed entertainment provided by the Maverick Machine, plenty of bacon and also Boomchickapop popcorn.

Nov 15

BUSINESS AWARDS & HALL OF FAME Businesses and individuals were honored at the annual Greater Mankato Business Awards & Hall of Fame. Dotson Iron Castings was this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Business Hall of Fame inductee. Our guest emcees, Stacy Steinhagen and Dion Cheney (KEYC News Anchors), made the evening extra special.

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JOURNEYS OF LEADERSHIP

Dec 5

The Davis Family, one of Minnesotaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most successful business families, were the featured guest speakers at the second annual Journeys of Leadership. More than 100 individuals attended the dinner, which spotlights leading business executives on the national and international stage.

FORUM SERIES

SEE PAGE 26

RECURRING BUSINESS AFTER HOURS Business After Hours gives professionals an opportunity to discuss and share ideas in a relaxed, social setting while learning about other member businesses. Events are held monthly in the evening at various member businesses. The series was attended by approximately 1,375 professionals in 2016.

BUSINESS BEFORE HOURS A complimentary event to Business After Hours, this event also gives members an opportunity to gather with one another to exchange ideas and promote their business in the morning hours. Events are held monthly at various member businesses. The series was attended by approximately 1,079 professionals in 2016.

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BUSINESS Growth, Retention & Attraction Greater Mankato Growth, Visit Mankato and City Center Partnership all work as catalysts to encourage business growth, retention and attraction within the regional marketplace.

Regional business development work is conducted under the organizational structure of the Regional Economic Development Alliance (REDA). REDA works to sell, promote and raise awareness across thet global marketplace of the strategic business advantages available here. Partners included the cities of: Eagle Lake, Lake Crystal, Le Sueur, Mankato, North Mankato, Saint Peter, Blue Earth County and Nicollet County.

• First in the state for number of Grow Minnesota! visits. There were 78 business retention and expansion visits made to area businesses as part of the state-wide Grow Minnesota! program.

• 109 commercial and industrial existing business construction projects totaling $429 million (new build, remodel or expansion) were started or completed in the Greater Mankato marketplace.

• 19 new business building projects were started or completed in the Greater Mankato regional marketplace totaling $12.8 million.

• Online resources continually enhanced to provide information to site selectors and businesses looking at site options for building or expanding across the region.

• Realtors and Developers Meeting was held January 14. All commercial realtors and developers were invited to Country Inn and Suites for an informational meeting which highlighted Greater Mankato Growth’s new property listing feed from MnCAR. More than 40 representatives attended the meeting.

• The Pipeline Report was updated monthly to benchmark and track business expansion activity in the regional marketplace.

The webpage containing the report had 803 visits.

• Hosted and presented information to nine site selectors including a member of the National Site Selectors Guild. MSA tours and information were also provided to 3,800+ Twin Cities based site selectors.

• Elected and appointed representatives from all jurisdictions of the Regional Economic Development Alliance attended the inaugural annual meeting held at Gustavus Adophus College in Saint Peter.

• GMG represented the area on the Minnesota Medical Manufacturing Partnership which allows greater access to federal grants and awards targeted at medical manufacturing and supply chain business growth.

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KEY PERFORMANCE METRIC S

68

• 77 conventions and sporting events confirmed for conferences held in 2016 or future years.

requests for critical business information compiled requiring research and summation. Information compiled on: GDP, labor shed, per capita income, cost of doing business, retail potential and demographic projections.

3,800

• 25 conventions held in Mankato in 2016 received assistance from Visit Mankato, bringing in an estimated 4,850 hotel rooms booked, representing $1.7 million in economic impact.

• 32 sporting events received assistance from Visit Mankato, with 19,417 booked hotel rooms, representing $9.2 million in economic impact.

+

Hosted and presented information to 3,800+ site selectors across the marketplace.

40

new business development prospects/ RFPs were generated through Top of Mind Awareness (T.O.M.A.) with information about our marketplace by Greater Mankato Growth.

33

submitted proposals providing information about our marketplace.

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$10.9

million

in estimated economic impact seen through conventions and sporting events Visit Mankato assisted with in 2016.

• The second City Center Guide was published in August, providing a resource for visitors and residents to learn about hospitality, shopping and businesses in the City Center.

• 41 City Center businesses participated in Shop Small in the City Center, with a unique passport and thousands of dollars in raffle prizes drawing hundreds of shoppers to City Center businesses for Small Business Saturday.

• CCP partnered with the City of Mankato to develop the Old Town Master Plan.

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The official name, brand and website for GreenSeam (formerly known as Project ABE - Ag Business Epicenter) was launched in June of 2016.

VISION & MISSION Our vision is to build on existing ag business prominence across the Southern Minnesota â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Northern Iowa Agricultural Region maximizing a growing economic marketplace in order to be the premier ag business epicenter in the United States â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the most diverse, balanced and sustainable.

GreenSeam organizes and aligns the collective work of its stakeholders to promote investment in ag business and contribute to the shared vision.

15,309 Page Views

295 Likes

122

Followers

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greenseam.org

facebook.com/GreenSeam @greenseamregion #iamag

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There were 131 flags flying on the steps of Vetter Stone Ampitheatre at the Greenseam Launch Event on June 20th.

GREENSEAM • GreenSeam brand and mark unveiled at the well attended launch event on June 20 at Riverfront Park, Vetter Stone Amphitheater.

• Website (greenseam.org) and social media campaign released.

• Together with our associates at Lime Valley Advertising, Inc. the website, greenseam.org, won a National SIAA Design Award!

• Collaborated with the Minnesota Trade Office on two RFPs from Brazil.

• Education Action Team generated recommendations on curricula and degree types to support the agribusiness industry; led to a partnership with Ag Careers. A final report was generated and shared.

• Education Action Team was instrumental in increasing the agribusienss talent pipeline. Mankato Area Public Schools added Agriculture to their career pathways, along with Minnesota State University, Mankato which listed Agriculture as an area of distinction in their Master Plan which they will work on implementing in the next three years.

BILLION dollars in sales

FOOD PROCESSING METAL MANUFACTURING BANKING ACCOUNTING RETAIL HIGHER EDUCATION CROP PRODUCTION LIVESTOCK OPERATIONS

• Partnered with Minnesota State University, Mankato College of Business to host the ‘Opportunities in Food Entrepreneurship - Driven to Deliver’ event.

• Business Development Action Team engaged in building an agribusiness listing of all ag-related businesses in the GreenSeam region, which spans 28 counties. The list includes 800 companies.

• Identified experts in the agribusiness field and asked them to share their knowledge. This led to the launch of the ‘Ask the Expert’ series on greenseam.org, which is also shared via social media.

• Promotions Action Team continued to permeate the GreenSeam brand through numerous radio spots, magazines and print articles around the region. KEYC TV generously produced two 30-second commercials that were aired, in-kind, more than 500 times between June and November.

• Helped in retainment of two agribuinsesses in the GreenSeam region that considered moving.

• Four agribusiness projects reached nearly $500 million in development within the GreenSeam region.

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TALENT Growth, Retention & Attraction

43

We are deeply committed to working to retain and attract a talented workforce to the region. From talent development programs such as the Greater Mankato Young Professionals and the long running Greater Mankato Leadership Institute, to online, web-based information and marketing and recruitment, we strive to give employees the opportunities they need to feel comfortable and be successful while being proud of the community in which they live, work and play.

Professionals participated in the 2015-16 session of the and 43 are participating in the 2016-2017 session.

Greater Mankato Leadership Institute

33

The Greater Mankato Leadership Institute graduated its 32nd class this year, bringing the alumni total to more than 830.

2015-16 Leadership Class

857

A talent task force was convened to develop a plan for community mobilization and engagement

Page views of the

Cost of Living Calculator web

regarding talent recruitment.

page. Site users can utilize the calculator to compare the cost of living to several other areas in the United States to that of Greater Mankato.

Find out more at: greatermankato.com/talent Powered by:

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245 INDIVIDUAL S

participated in the program from 86 different member businesses up from 220 YPs in 2015

GREATER MANKATO YOUNG PROFESSIONALS

BY

32

MENTOR LUNCHES WERE HELD, WHERE:

64

YOUNG PROFESSIONAL S MET WITH:

THE NUMBERS

531

FACEBOOK LIKES

SCHEDULED E VENTS HELD

34

12 Professional development 12 social 10 YP Wednesdays *number doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t include Mentor Lunch sessions

3

Volunteer Committees: Professional Development Social Membership

8

LOC AL BUSINESS MENTORS

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REGIONAL Livability We strive to engage businesses in community visioning and implementation activities by serving in various capacities from coordinating efforts and events to disseminating information to the business community.

GREATER MANKATO GROWTH • Convened the Talent Task Force in an effort to engage and mobilize the broader community in workforce shortage discussions and initiatives.

• GMG staff served on more than 50 community boards, committees and civic groups.

VISIT M ANK ATO • Mankato Marathon celebrated its 7 th Anniversary and was named “Best Half Marathon in Minnesota”.

• The Mankato Sports Commission and GMG, Inc. staff continued to support the extension of the local option sales tax which passed locally in November. This initiative strategically and competitively positions the region to increase its attractiveness to individuals, families or businesses looking to locate or remain here. The funding mechanism would support the expansion of existing and development of new recreational facilities.

CITY CENTER PARTNERSHIP • $1.7 million in public art was displayed and 17 new public sculptures have been retained after just six years of CityArt’s Walking Sculpture Tour.

• 19 traffic signal cabinets decorated through CityArt’s On the Go initiative beautifying the downtown area, increasing pedestrian traffic and extending public art to more areas of the City Center.

• The Mni Mural added new interest and a connection to the Minnesota River to a 500’ section of the flood wall.

• The Aesthetics and Livability Committee led community conversations for the Arts & Historic District Dialogue.

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Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. FOUNDATION

E VENTS Many events were held to help support the vibrancy of the region by all business units.

For a list of all events and details refer to the events section of this report on pages 13-17.

From Articles of Incorporation:

“For these purposes, the corporation shall also operate to promote growth, betterment and vitality of the Greater Mankato, MN area.”

From Form 1023 IRS:

“Some of the activities the foundation will support include (1) the arts and cultural appreciation; (2) infrastructure that encourages and supports healthy lifestyles (e.g., bike racks or public bikes); and (3) youth sports and infrastructure supporting the same.”

Contributions to City Center: CCP Arts & Historic District Dialogue. (MAF Grant) .............................................................................................. $10,000.00 Flood Wall Mural (MAF Grant).....................$6,000.00

Contributions to Madelia Strong: Madelia............................................................. $82,493.25 In-kind ads (Approximately)....................... $36,000.00 ISG.......................................................................$10,000.00 Wells Concrete (prefab walls)................... $50,000.00

Best wishes from the 80+ individuals and the 45+ businesses in the Greater Mankato Community who supported the 2016 Madelia fire through the Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. Foundation.

A plaque was presented to the City of Madelia after a tragic fire destroyed an important portion of the downtown business district.

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ADVOCACY of the Marketplace The business units of Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. work tirelessly to advocate for the marketplace and raise the visibility of the region at all levels, including national and international. Efforts in advocacy focus on public affairs as well community marketing.

• Continued to establish GMG as a serious player and trusted resource for policy makers at local, state and national levels through numerous interactions with leading public officials. Key examples of this work include hosting a transportation round-table with Lt. Governor Tina Smith and MN Department of Transportation Commissioner Charlie Zelle, hosting House Minority Leader Paul Thissen in Mankato for a briefing on GreenSeam and Jonathan Zierdt’s invitation to attend the State of the Union Address as the guest of Congressman Walz.

• Played a leading role in supporting the extension of the local .5% sales tax by running a public education campaign in support of a successful referendum that saw 70% + community support in both Mankato and North Mankato as well as supporting efforts at the Legislature.

• Advocated on behalf of Highway 14 completion by developing new data that shows Highway 14 is the most densely populated highway corridor in Minnesota without a continuous four-lane connection, by hosting the MN Department of Transportation Commissioner in Mankato on two occasions, testifying at the Legislature, and by hosting the Hwy 14 Partnership press conference in Mankato where the results of a public survey that GMG helped craft and host on our website was released.

• Led the way in ensuring that our members and the general public had the information they needed to cast an informed ballot during the election by publishing online candidate profiles and questionnaires from candidates running in key regional races that received over 5,000 page views as well as hosting five candidate forums, including for the U.S. House of Representatives.

• Played a leading role in supporting businesses targeted by abusive ADA lawsuits by providing information to members to ensure they are compliant with the law as well as partnering with local legislators and the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce to support legislation to prevent the lawsuits.

• Established the GMG blog as the place to go for members to get informed on key public affairs issues and become their own best advocate with public affairs posts being viewed nearly 5,000 times.

• Todd Reimann, CEO of MTU Onsite Energy, was appointed to the Governor’s Workforce Development Board, the state board that determines policy for all of the state’s workforce programs.

• Anna Thill, President of Visit Mankato, was appointed to represent convention and visitor bureaus on the Explore Minnesota Tourism Council. Anna also served on the Minnesota Association of Convention & Visitor Bureaus Board of Directors, Super Bowl 52 Advisory Board and Super Bowl 52 Tourism Marketing Committee.

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E VENTS Hosted eight events providing opportunities for members to learn about issues impacting their business and engage with key public leaders including forums with:

MINNESOTA SECRETARY OF STATE STE VE SIMON DIREC TOR OF THE L ABOR M ARKET INFORM ATION OFFICE AT DEED STE VE HINE MINNESOTA DEPARTMENT OF EDUC ATION CHIEF OF STAFF CHARLENE BRINER

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Second Annual

JOURNEYS OF LEADERSHIP event featuring the Davis Family was held on December 5th with 100 in attendance.

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125+

More than 125 business and civic leaders promoted our region with key state leaders and legislators during the 2016 Greater Mankato at the Capitol event.

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CIT Y CENTER PARTNER SHIP WEBSITE PAGE VIE WS UP

+142% over 2015 page views, 91,784 vs 64,771.

Also, thousands of City Center guides, flyers, advertisements, and other collateral were used to enhance the visibility of City Center Mankato.

GRE ATER M ANK ATO GROW TH WEB STATS:

306,702 PAGE VIEWS (840+ PER DAY)

141,405

SESSIONS (387+ PER DAY)

83,904

USERS (229+ PER DAY)

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Community Marketing Our region has a great story to tell and Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. is committed to continually positioning it as a place people want to live, visit, work and businesses want to locate.

4,087 TOTAL VIE WS

Number of views the Greater Mankato Growth YouTube channel received this year.

VISIT M ANK ATO WEBSITE PAGE VIEWS

282,049 UP 9% OVER 2015

GRE ATER M ANK ATOE VENTS.COM PAGE VIE WS

307,724

An online community events calendar, greatermankatoevents.com is a collaboration between Greater Mankato Growth, Visit Mankato, Twin Rivers Council for the Arts, The Free Press and VoyageurWeb. The website was redesigned and launched at the end of June. Some of the upgrades were: mobile-friendly, easier event entry, better search capability and coordinating seamlessly with social media.

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Up-to-date and current information for businesses provided through 52 editions of eNews, 12 issues of Minnesota Valley Business and greatermankato.com.

328 news articles mentioning information/ interviews from Greater Mankato Growth ran in local and state media.

Multiple print and digital marketing pieces, which help promote our regional assets, were published or updated in the past year.

The Greater Mankato Growth Blog received 16,898 views in 2016 and had 11,845 visitors to our 86 published posts.

Social media activity increased, with 5,389 total “likes” for all GMG’s Facebook pages, which include Greater Mankato Growth, Greater Mankato Young Professionals, GreenSeam, Local Sales Tax Extension and Greater Mankato Events. Up from 3,948 in 2015.

Combined number of followers on Twitter for both the Greater Mankato Growth and Jonathan Zierdt accounts totalling 2,707; up just slightly from 2015.

The Guide to Visiting & Living in Greater Mankato was printed, with approximately 25,000 distributed throughout the region.

The Way to Grow, a business, economic and livability piece was updated and released at Greater Mankato at the Capitol in March.

Resident and relocation information provided in the community area of our website and in a relocation packet that included the “2016 Guide to Visiting & Living in Greater Mankato” produced by Visit Mankato with content from GMG. The online Cost of Living Index, a tool on greatermankato.com which lets those thinking of moving to the area know about Greater Mankato’s affordability, received a total of 742 page visits this year.

The Business Beat video series was launched in April 2016 and replaced JZTV. The new format features GMG member guests and each episode airs for one month on KTV. The series has been viewed more than 880 times since launch.

Print advertisements promoting Greater Mankato were placed in the September issue of SKY Delta magazine and the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal.

SKY Delta has a reach averaging more than five million readers on Delta’s worldwide airlines. MPLS/St. Paul Business Journal circulates more than 12,700 copies to paid subscribers and was also promoted in their email newsletter to more than 42,000 subscribers.

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Published the second Regional Economic Development Alliance Annual Review in October.

Greater Mankato Growth launched The Business Beat video series in April. This new format replaced the series previously known as JZTV. Each episode of The Business Beat airs for one month on KTV. The City Center Guide was printed and distributed to 20,000 establishments throughout the region.

A Minnesota Regional Urban Center

CityArt Walking Sculpture Tour

MANKATO ESCAPE

THE EVERYDAY Welcome to the youngest, fastest-growing Regional Urban Center in Minnesota.

Entrepreneur Eric Else of Kato Cable and E.I. Microcircuits

Located in South Central Minnesota, our five higher education institutions provide a talented labor pool of 26,000+ students.

Mankato Marathon, October 15 & 16, 2016

Our diversified economy and quality of life makes us a destination center for multi-state business.

Agriculture, manufacturing, retail and services all thrive here. This diversity provides a solid and stable climate for business.

MINNESOTA

greatermankato.com/bizjournal

The SKY Delta and Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal advertisement.

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2016 Greater Mankato Growth Members & Investors

Collectively our member businesses accomplish what no one business could do alone...by creating a powerful pool of intellectual and financial resources. By working together to advance business we strive to create a stronger community. When the community is stronger, business thrives creating the synergy needed for success. Members of Greater Mankato Growth are vital participants in our business economy. As a member, the knowledge you gain, relationships you build and opportunities you have, pay dividends today and in the future.

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DIAMOND INVESTORS

Crystal Mayo Clinic Health System Le Sueur Mayo Clinic Health System Madison East Mayo Clinic Health System Mankato Health Care Foundation Mayo Clinic Health System Mankato, Eastridge Mayo Clinic Health System Mankato, Northridge Mayo Clinic Health System Mankato

Speciality Clinic Mayo Clinic Health System Montgomery Mayo Clinic Health System New Prague Mayo Clinic Health System Sherburn Clinic Mayo Clinic Health System Springfield Mayo Clinic Health System Springfield, Lamberton Clinic

Mayo Clinic Health System St. James Mayo Clinic Health System St. James, Trimont Clinic Mayo Clinic Health System St. Peter Mayo Clinic Health System Truman Clinic Mayo Clinic Health System Waseca Mayo Clinic Health System Waseca, Janesville Clinic Mayo Clinic Health System Waseca, Waterville Clinic

PLATINUM INVESTORS

Center for Sleep Medicine Mankato Clinic @ Lake Crystal Family Practice Mankato Clinic @ Madison East Dept of Psychiatry and Psychology Mankato Clinic @ Madison East Dermatology Mankato Clinic @ Main Street Mankato Clinic @ Mapleton Family Practice

Mankato Clinic @ North Mankato Family Practice Mankato Clinic @ Wickersham Health Campus Mankato Clinic Administration Office Mankato Clinic Endoscopy Center Mankato Clinic Eye Care Center Mankato Clinic Urgent Care and Occupational Medicine National Recognition Products

Navitor Midwest Stationery Navitor Specialty Products Pear Tree Greetings Precision Press Skin Essentials @ Mankato Clinic Taylor Corporation Thayer Publishing, Inc. The Occasions Group

GOLD INVESTORS

Roseville Consolidated Communications Third Avenue EI Microcircuits - Pohl Road EI Microcircuits - Power Drive EI Microcircuits - Saint Peter EI Sales Holmgren Associates ISG ISG - Algona ISG - Des Moines ISG - Faribault ISG - Green Bay ISG - La Crosse ISG - Minneapolis/St. Paul ISG - Storm Lake Kato Cable Kato Engineering Inc. KMSU

Minnesota State University, Mankato - Academic Affairs/ Extended Learning Minnesota State University, Mankato - Alumni Foundation Center Minnesota State University, Mankato - Career Development Center Minnesota State University, Mankato - Centennial Student Union Minnesota State University, Mankato - College of Business Minnesota State University, Mankato - Finance & Administration Minnesota State University, Mankato - Intercollegiate Athletics Minnesota State University, Mankato - Strategic Partnerships Minnesota State University, Mankato - Theatre & Dance

MTU Onsite Energy Ninja Circuits Small Business Development Center South Central College South Central College - Faribault Campus South Central College Foundation Southern Minnesota Center of Agriculture U.S. Bank - City Center U.S. Bank - Commercial Banking U.S. Bank - Fairmont U.S. Bank - Owatonna U.S. Bank - Private Client Group U.S. Bank - Raintree Walmart Distribution Center DC7079

SILVER INVESTORS

Davis Family Dairies Frandsen Bank & Trust - Madison Avenue Frandsen Bank & Trust - North Mankato Frandsen Bank & Trust - Northridge

Jaguar Communications MinnStar Bank - Mankato MinnStar Bank - Lake Crystal OFC Express Orthopaedic Urgent Care Clinic Sun Country Airlines

The Orthopaedic & Fracture Clinic, P.A. Wells Concrete Wells Concrete - Corporate Office Wells Concrete - Grand Forks Wells Concrete - Rosemount

BRONZE INVESTORS

CliftonLarsonAllen LLP - New Ulm CliftonLarsonAllen LLP - Owatonna CliftonLarsonAllen LLP - Rochester College Town Community Bank - Amboy Community Bank - Madison Ave. Community Bank - Vernon Center Community Bank Mankato Community Insurance - Mankato Coughlan Companies Crystal Seasons Living Community Edge Eide Bailly Eide Bailly - Dubuque Eide Bailly - Fargo Eide Bailly - Minneapolis Eide Bailly - Sioux Falls First National Bank Minnesota Gaylord First National Bank Minnesota Mankato First National Bank Minnesota Saint Peter Free Press

Fun.com Gustavus Adolphus College Hillcrest Health Care Center Hy-Vee - Downtown Hy-Vee - Hilltop Hy-Vee Gas Hy-Vee Pharmacy Downtown Hy-Vee Pharmacy Hilltop Hy-Vee Wine & Spirits Johnson Outdoors - Marine Electronics Inc. Johnson Outdoors Inc. Jordan Sands, LLC Kroubetz Lakeside Campers & Motors KTV Laurels Edge Assisted Living Laurels Peak Rehabilitation Center Lime Valley Advertising, Inc. Lofts @ 1633 Minnesota Valley Federal Credit Union Minnesota Valley Federal Credit Union - Uptown Office

Monarch Healthcare Management New Ulm Quartzite Quarries New Ulm Wholesale Oaklawn Health Care Center OMG Midwest Inc. Pioneer Bank - Lewisville Pioneer Bank - Madelia Pioneer Bank - Mankato Pioneer Bank - Mapleton Pioneer Bank - North Mankato Pioneer Bank - St. James Quarters of Mankato Rasmussen College Rasmussen College Career Center Rasmussen College School of Business Rasmussen College School of Nursing Rasmussen College Student Life RentMSU, Inc. Sam’s Club Schwickert’s Tecta America - Kansas City Metro Schwickert’s Tecta America -

Fountain Centers Mayo Clinic Health System Mayo Clinic Health System Belle Plaine Mayo Clinic Health System Blue Earth Mayo Clinic Health System Express Care Clinic Mayo Clinic Health System Fairmont Mayo Clinic Health System Lake Carlson Craft Corporate Graphics Commercial Corporate Graphics International Fine Impressions FolderWorks, Powered by Navitor Labelworks Mankato Clinic @ Daniels Health Center Mankato Clinic @ J. Scott Sanders Center for Business and Industry, A Division of South Central College Consolidated Communications Consolidated Communications Conroe Consolidated Communications Duluth/Hermantown Consolidated Communications Edina Consolidated Communications Fargo Consolidated Communications Mattoon Consolidated Communications Plymouth Consolidated Communications Rochester Consolidated Communications -

Atwood Property Management Inc. Cambria Cambria - Mankato Cambria Gallery - River Hills Mall Cambria Mortgage and Title CENTURY 21 Atwood Realty, Inc. A. H. Hermel Foodservice Abdo, Eick & Meyers, LLP Abdo, Eick & Meyers, LLP - Edina AEM Workforce Solutions AgStar Financial Services, ACA Alabama Stone Company - A Division of Vetter Stone American Concrete Anchor Bank BENCO Electric Cooperative Bethany Lutheran College Bethany Lutheran College-Bookstore Blethen, Gage & Krause, PLLP Bolton & Menk, Inc. Bolton & Menk, Inc. - Burnsville Bolton & Menk, Inc. - Chaska Bolton & Menk, Inc. - Fairmont Bolton & Menk, Inc. - Rochester Bolton & Menk, Inc. - Sleepy Eye Capstone CliftonLarsonAllen LLP CliftonLarsonAllen LLP - Austin

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Mankato Schwickert’s Tecta America Minneapolis Metro Schwickert’s Tecta America Rochester Metro Snell Auto Wash Snell Motors Snell Powersports & Equipment Snell Tire & Lube Southern Minnesota Construction

Southern Power Stone Path Studios Tailwind Group Tailwind Group Accounting Department Tecta America - Customer Solutions Center The Land Unimin Corporation United Prairie Bank

United Prairie Bank - City Center United Prairie Bank - New Ulm United Prairie Bank - Waseca United Prairie Financial Network United Prairie Insurance Agency Mankato Verizon Verizon - Madison Avenue Verizon - River Hills Mall Vetter Stone

Walmart Walmart Vision Center Wells Fargo Advisors Wells Fargo Bank - Mankato East Wells Fargo Bank - MSU Wells Fargo Bank - North Mankato Wells Fargo Bank- Mankato Main & Business Banking Wells Fargo Home Mortgage Xcel Energy

PREMIER MEMBERS

Drummers Garden Center & Floral Ecumen Pathstone Living Emergent Networks LLC - Edina Emergent Networks LLC - Mankato Exclusively Diamonds Express Employment Professionals Farrish Johnson Law Office, CHTD. Heartland Homes Hilton Garden Inn Holiday Inn Express & Suites HotelsMankato.com Jack Link’s Beef Jerky Jack Link’s Beef Jerky - Minneapolis Jones and Magnus, Attorneys at Law Jones Metal, Inc. KEYC News 12 and FOX 12 Mankato Kibble Equipment Lake Crystal Mortuary Lindsay Windows Lloyd Commercial Services Lloyd Management Inc. Mankato City Center Hotel Mankato Mortuary Massad’s Mediterranean Grille -

Campus Massad’s McDonald’s Restaurant - Adams St. McDonald’s Restaurant - Madison Ave. McDonald’s Restaurant - W. Lind Ct. Minnesota Valley Federal Credit Union Minnesota Valley Federal Credit Union - Uptown Office MRCI - East Park MRCI Thrift Shop MRCI WorkSource Najwa’s, Inc. Neighbor’s Italian Bistro Northview Funeral & Cremation Service Number 4 American Bar & Kitchen Olives Pathstone Adult Day Program Pathstone at Home Pathstone Cafe & Catering People Driven Performance Pepsi-Cola of Mankato Inc.

Profinium, Inc. - Fairmont Profinium, Inc. - Mankato Profinium, Inc. - Owatonna Profinium, Inc. - Truman Quality Products Ridley Inc. RSM US LLP Scheels All Sports Stifel Tavern on the Avenue TownePlace Suites by Marriott - Mall of America University Square Mall & Village Apartments Volk Investment CO, LLC Volk Transfer, Inc. Wells Federal Bank - Mankato Wells Federal Bank - Owatonna Wells Federal Bank - St. Peter Wells Federal Bank - Wells Wis-Pak of Mankato, Inc.

ENGAGED MEMBERS

Bank of America BankVista Bennett Coaching and Consulting Bent River Outfitter BEST WESTERN Hotel & Restaurant Better Business Bureau of MN & ND Between the Bridges Healing Center BioLife Plasma Services BK DJ Blinds & More BLK Electric Inc. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of MN - Eagan Blue Cross and Blue Shield of MN Mankato Blue Sky Business Coaching BluEarth Agribusiness Strategies BMO Harris Bank Body Concepts Bonfire Boulder Tap House Bounce Town, LLC Bradley’s on Stadium Braun Intertec Corporation Braun Intertec Corporation Bloomington Brett’s Building Brock White Company Brock White Company - Rochester Brown & Brown of MN Brunton Architects & Engineers Brunton Architects & Engineers Minnetonka Buffalo Wild Wings- Hilltop CAB Construction Co. Calling All Paws Pet Grooming Caribou Gun Club/ Caribou Banquet Hall Carlson-Tillisch Eye Clinic

CCF Bank CCF Bank - Faribault Chankaska Creek Ranch & Winery Cherry Creek, Inc. Chesley Skate Park Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota City Center Partnership Coldwell Banker Welcome Home Realty - Karla Malone Coldwell Banker Welcome Home Realty - Mary Weller Coloplast Manufacturing US, LLC Commerce Drive Dental Group Concept & Design Inc. Condux International Inc Connect Business Magazine Connect Real Estate Group Country Inn & Suites by Carlson Mankato Hotel and Conference Center Covered Bridge Furniture Crown Beverage Packaging Crystal Valley Cooperative Janesville Crystal Valley Cooperative - Lake Crystal Dairy Queen West Deichman Construction Devin Krienke Agency, American Family Insurance Diana Gabriel Certified Professional Coach Dickey’s Barbecue Pit Discipline Advisors, Inc. Discover Chiropractic Discover Chiropractic - Nicollet Diversified Financial Services, Inc. Doherty Staffing Solutions -

Mankato Doherty Staffing Solutions Owatonna Door Engineering Drs. Kanyusik, Wiemers, Swanson, & Vaubel Earl Johnson Furniture ECS - Your Wiring Pros Edward Jones Edward Jones - Chris Hoffman Elder Care Services, Inc. Emerald Travel and Cruises Envision Lab Erbert & Gerbert’s Sandwich - North Mankato Erbert & Gerbert’s Sandwich Shop Madison Ave Evolve Consulting, LLC Flexion Inc. Freedom Home Care, LLC Friesen’s Family Bakery and Bistro G & K Rental - Mankato G & K Rental - New Prague Garlick’s Water Conditioning / Kinetico - Blue Earth Garlick’s Water Conditioning/ Kinetico - Faribault Gemstone Homes, Inc. Gillette Children’s Specialty Healthcare Gold Cross Ambulance Good Counsel Wealth Management Gosewisch Construction, Inc. Granite Equity Partners Gravie Graybar Electric Greater Mankato Area United Way Greater Mankato Diversity Council Greater Mankato Growth, Inc.

AmericInn Hotel & Conference Center AmeriStar Manufacturing Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Baxter’s Hair Shop BEST WESTERN Hotel & Restaurant Blue Earth County Employment Services Bremer Bank Buffalo Wild Wings- Hilltop CenterPoint Energy CHS Oilseed Processing Computer Technology Solutions, Inc. Courtyard by Marriott Hotel & Event Center Crown Beverage Packaging Culver’s Frozen Custard - North Mankato Culver’s Frozen Custard- Mankato Dino’s Gourmet Pizzeria Dotson Iron Castings Drummer Companies

226 Network 504 Corporation A&E Construction Supply A. B. Systems, Inc. AAA Membership Travel Insurance Abacus Engineering Advanced Pain Management AEP Industries Inc. Affinity Plus Federal Credit Union Aflac - Megan Lange Again Thrift & More Agri-Business Insurance Services AHI Property Services, Inc. All American Foods, Inc. Alliance Contracting, Inc. Alliance Insurance Agency Allstate Insurance Alpha Media Mankato Alter Metal Recycling - Mankato Amber Pietan Travel Agency, LLC American Campus Community - The Summit and Jacob He American Engineering Testing American Way Realty Andrews Family Chiropractic Angie’s Popcorn Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar Archer Daniels Midland Company Ardent Mills, LLC Arizona Olive Oil Co. Associated Finishing, Inc. Associates in Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery AT&T August Schell Brewing Aurora Chiropractic, LLC B & B Krohn Farms

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Greater Mankato Rotary Grizzly’s Woodfire Grill & Steaks Guaranteed Electric Service, Inc. Guentzel Family Farms Habitat For Humanity South Central - ReStore Habitat For Humanity South Central MN Happy Chef Restaurant Hardee’s Hardee’s - Hilltop Harry Meyering Center Inc. Hatanpa Insurance Agency - State Farm Heintz Collision Center Heintz Toyota Scion of Mankato Herdstar LLC Here We Grow Early Childhood Center, LLC Hilltop Florist & Greenhouse Hire Image Holiday Inn Express & Suites Holiday Station Store- Adams Street Holiday Station Store- North Riverfront Home Depot Home Magazine Homestead Realty LLC - Mankato Homestead Realty LLC - Mapleton House of Hope Hydro-Klean - Mankato Hydro-Klean - Sioux Falls Ideal Weigh to B Health and Weight Loss Clinic, Inc. - Blue Earth Ideal Weigh to B Health and Weight Loss Clinic, Inc. - Mankato Insperity Investment Management & Associates iSpace Furniture J. Longs for Men Jake’s Stadium Pizza - Mankato Jake’s Stadium Pizza - Saint Peter Javens Electric, Inc. J-C Press Jerry’s Tile Service Inc. Jersey Mike’s Subs - Riverfront Jersey Mike’s Subs - Hilltop JP Fitness Junior Achievement of Greater Mankato Kato Insurance Agency Kato Public Charter School Kato Roofing, Inc. - Burnsville Kato Roofing, Inc. - Mankato Kaye Corporation Keepers RV Center Ltd Key City Ventures Kia of Mankato Kitchenmaster, Klooster & Begalka, CPAs Knutson+Casey - Madelia Knutson+Casey, PLLP Land to Air Express, Inc. LEEP Lidstrom Commercial Realtors LifePlan Financial, LLC Lil Bee’s Learning Center Lime Valley Chiropractic LIV Aveda Salon & Spa LivingLinks LJP Enterprises Waste & Recycling Lowe’s Home Improvement Loyola Catholic School Ludwig Coaching LLC Lumiere Real Estate Group

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Luther Mankato Honda M & M Signs M2 Lofts MadAve Nutrition Mankato Brewery Mankato City Center Hotel Mankato Crank & Chrome Auto Repair Mankato Fairfield Inn Mankato Family YMCA Mankato Ford Mankato Golf Club Mankato Harley Davidson Mankato MoonDogs Mankato Motor Co. Mankato Packaging Mankato Place Mankato WorkForce Center Manpower, Inc. Marco MAS Communications Maschka, Riedy & Ries Law Firm Master Electric Masterson Staffing Solutions Mankato Masterson Staffing Solutions Owatonna Mathiowetz Construction Company McGowan Water Conditioning MD CPA’s & Advisors MD Payroll Advisors MedExpress Urgent Care MEI MET-CON Construction, Inc. Faribault MET-CON Construction, Inc. Mankato Meyer & Norland Financial Group MFS Farms, LLC Midwest Dental Midwest Realty & Mortgage Mills Fleet Farm Mills Fleet Farm Gas Station & Wash Minn. Dept. of Employment and Economic Development Minneopa Golf Club Minnesota Assistance Council for Veterans Minnesota Chamber of Commerce Minnesota Council of Churches, Refugee Services Minnesota Pork Producers Association Minnesota Soybean Growers Association Minnesota Valley Action Council Minnesota Vikings Minnesota Waste Processing Company Modern Woodmen Fraternal Financial Morken Eckberg Steiner LLC Mount Kato Ski Area Murphy Business of Minnesota Net Medix, Inc. Neubau Holdings Neutral Path Communications New Perspective Senior Living New York Life Insurance Company Judy Ringler Mountain NextFire Technology Consulting, LLC Nifty Home Products Nortech Systems Inc. North Central International, Inc. North Star Aviation, Inc. Northern Comfort, Inc.

Northwestern Mutual Oak Terrace Senior Communities Office Space Design Old Main Village Old Town Escape Oleson + Hobbie Architects LLC Open Door Health Center Paape Distributing Co. & Energy Services Pagliai’s Pizza Pantheon Computers - Mankato Pantheon Computers - Waseca Paragon Printing, Mailing & Specialties Partners for Affordable Housing Partners Funding, Inc. Pawn America Pediatric Therapy Services, Inc. PEM Corporation Pier Pleasure & Wilson Trailer Sales of MN Pioneer Hi-Bred Pita Pit Prange’s Heating & Air Conditioning Inc Pratt, Kutzke & Associates, LLP Premiere Restoration PresenceMaker, Inc. Primrose Retirement Community Profile by Sanford ProGrowth Bank ProGrowth Bank - Nicollet Prosthetic Laboratories - Hanger Clinic Q InfoTek Inc. Quality 1 HR. Foto Quality Asphalt Services, LLC Quest Marketing Quick Lane Tire & Auto Radio Mankato Raydiance Salon RE/MAX Dynamic Agents RE/MAX Dynamic Agents - St. Peter REALTOR Association of Southern Minnesota Realty Executives Associates - Real Estate Team Angie Jenkins & Emily Swalve Regus RENT Mankato Rignell Family Chiropractic River Bend Business Products River Hills Hotel River Hills Mall River Valley Aquascapes River Valley Woman Robert W. Carlstrom Co., Inc. Rosengren Kohlmeyer & Hagen Law Office Chtd.

Safe Ship Schmidt Siding & Window Co. School Sisters of Notre Dame Central Pacific Province SeeMe Productions LLC ServiceMaster of Mankato/Waseca Short Elliott Hendrickson, Inc. (SEH) Short Elliott Hendrickson, Inc. (SEH) - St. Paul Sign Pro Skistad Consulting SmartSearch SmartSearch - Mankato SMILES Center for Independent Living Sodexo/University Dining Services South Central WorkForce Council Southern Minn Digital

Southern Minn Digital / St. Peter Herald Southern Minnesota Orthodontics PA Southern MN Area HR Assoc.

(SMAHRA) SouthPoint Financial Credit Union St. Peter Southwest Minnesota Housing Partnership Spherion Staffing & Recruiting Mankato Spherion Staffing & Recruiting Owatonna Spinners Bar & Grill Sport Pix St. Croix Hospice Stadium Centre Lofts Stages of Change Center, LLC State Farm - Mayberry Insurance Agency Stifel Stinson Leonard Street - Minneapolis Stinson Leonard Street LLP Strom Engineering Subway Restaurant - Sibley Parkway Subway Restaurants Super 8 Hotel Supercuts - Mankato Supercuts - Owatonna Swanson Hinsch & Co. CPA’s Tandem Bagels TBEI Terry Guentzel Farms The Loose Moose Saloon & Conference Center The Music Mart Think! Toner & Ink/ T - Mobile Thomas Tree & Landscape Thrivent Financial - Broad Street Thrivent Financial - St. Andrews Thriveon Tidy Clean Tire Associates Tire Associates - Alexandria Toppers Plus Town and Country Interiors True Facade Pictures True Real Estate Twin Rivers Council for the Arts Twin Valley Council - Boy Scouts Ummies Bar & Grill Unique Speciality & Classics Vanderberg Clean Verizon Center Viking Electric Vintage Fine Homes, Inc. Visit Mankato Visiting Angels Vista Prairie at Monarch Meadows VoyageurWeb V-TEK, Inc. Water’s Edge Wealth Enhancement Group Weichert Realtors, Community Group Weilage Advisory Group Widseth Smith Nolting Wilcon Construction Services Willard & Williams Insurance Agency Wow! Zone WYSIWYG Juice Co. YWCA Mankato

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BASIC MEMBERS

10K Lettering 49 Power Drive Owners Association A Plus Systems Group/A Plus Security, Inc. A to Z Rental Center Acme Alternate Fuel Systems, Inc. Acorn Custom Cabinetry Affordable Towing of Mankato Inc. Alerus Retirement Solutions All American Towing AllOver Media AMDS/Glowing Hearth & Home American Cancer Society American Heart Association American Red Cross Serving Southwest Minnesota Americare Mobility Van AmeriPride Linen and Apparel Services Arnold Storage Artisans Autumn Grace Avery Outdoor B. Stark & Co. Back to Wellness Clinic Becky’s Floral & Gift Shoppe Bemis Healthcare Packaging, Inc. Bid Kato Big Dog Sports Cafe Blue Earth County Historical Society Bobcat of Mankato Border States Electric Brookdale Mankato Brovold & Company, LLC Budget Host Inn Bud’s Nuisance Wildlife Removal, LLC C & N Sales C & S Supply Campus Village Apartments Casey’s General Store - Lookout Drive Center for Energy and Environment Central Farm Service Charley’s Restaurant Charlie’s Appliance Chesley, Harvey & Carpenter Classic Coach, Inc. Cold Stone Creamery Cole Papers, Inc. Colonial Square Apartments Committee Against Domestic Abuse Inc. Complete Basement Systems Complete Nutrition Cottage Glenn Association Cottagewood Senior Community Creative Ad Solutions, Inc. Creekside Boutique Cricket Wireless - Mobilelink D&K Powder Coating Dairy Queen Davis Comfort Systems DCI of MN, Inc. DeGroods Electronics & Appliances

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DenCo Lighting Diamond Vogel Paint Center Dirt Merchant, Inc. Discount Tire Co. Drive a Tank Employee Benefits & Insurance Services Agency, Inc. Endres Window Cleaning, Inc. Express Care Auto Center Fairway Outdoor Advertising Farmamerica Flowers by Jeanie Flying Buttress Media Forsythe Appraisals, LLC Frentz & Frentz Law Offices Freyberg Petroleum Sales G C Distributing Gag’s Camper Way Gardner Financial Services Shannon Sinning Gene’s Repair Genuine Amish Furniture Goodrich Construction, Inc. Goodwill - Mankato GPH Subdivision Homeowner’s Association Graif Clothing Great River Insurance Greater Minnesota Gas, Inc. Green Care Greg’s Champion Auto H&R Block Healthy by Nature, LLC Heather Lane Townhome Association Hertz Rental Hillside Church Hiniker Company Hiniker Homes/Realty Hope Interfaith Center Huntington Hills, LLC Imperial Plastics Incorporated India Palace INdiGO Organic, LLC James D. Connors, DDS - Total Dental Concepts Javens Mechanical Contracting Jerry’s Body Shop Inc. JM Promotions Jonny B’s Jonny B’s on the Plaza Kato Ballroom Kato Cab, LLC Kato Glass Kato Moving & Storage, Mayflower KingPins Kuch Chiropractic Kwik Trip - Madison Ave Kwik Trip - Mankato La Terraza Mexican Grill and Bar Lacina Siding & Window Inc. Lager’s Chrysler World Lake Crystal Coaches Landing on Madison LawnPro Lawn & Landscape

Like Nu Cleaners Inc. Limb Lab Lloyd Lumber - Just Ask Rental Loffler Companies Lutheran Social Service of MN Madison East Center Main Street Dental Clinic of Mankato Mainstream Boutique Malachi Estates Association Malterer Mechanical Inc. Mankato Acupuncture Clinic, LLC Mankato Area 77 Lancers Marching Band Mankato Area Council for Quality Mankato Area Foundation Mankato Chiropractic Center Mankato Computer Repair Mankato Downtown Kiwanis Mankato Networks Mankato Symphony Orchestra Mantronics Mailing Systems MDC Real Estate Services Mechanical Resources, Inc. Medifast Merely Players Community Theatre, Inc. Meyer & Sons - TV & Appliance MGM Wine & Spirits - Mankato Microtel Inn & Suites by Wyndham Minnesota Business Center of the Principal Financial Group - St. Peter Minnesota Financial Services Minnesota Wedding Shop Minuteman Press MSU Army ROTC NAPA Auto Parts of Mankato Nesbit Agency New Ulm Furniture Company Nick’s Car Care & Muffler Center LLC Nimbus Studios North Links Golf Course and Banquet Facility Once Upon a Child One Bright Star Ophthalmology Associates of Mankato Orthodontic Specialists of Southern Minnesota Panera Bread Pappageorge Restaurant & Bar Parties & Weddings Plus Patterson’s Diamond Center Pearle Vision Pet Expo Distributors Peters Striping Picker-Uppers LLC Piepho Moving & Storage Pietsch Construction Pizza Ranch - Mankato Planned Parenthood POET Biorefining Lake Crystal Prairie River Home Care Inc. Premier Veterinary Center Presidential Estates - Wegner Inc. PRIMP Boutique

PRO TRAIN Aviation Promotions Powerhouse, LLC Quality Overhead Door of Mankato, Inc. R. Henry Construction Realife Cooperative of Mankato Regional Center for Entrepreneurial Facilitation Rehnelt Excavating LLC Reichel Insulation Rickway Carpet Ringheim Family Limited Partnership River Hills Pet Care Hospital River Valley Dental Riverfront Technology LLC RiverRidge Chiropractic Robinson Appraisal & Associates Ron’s Auto Repair of Mankato, LLC Rooms and Rest Rounders Sports Bar & Grill SCR - Southern Division SFM SharkTooth Networks Sherwin Group Sherwin Williams Company Shogun Sushi and Hibachi Shred Right Skogen Mechanical LLC Slumberland Furniture Snap Fitness - North Mankato South Central Minnesota SCORE South Central Service Cooperative Southern Minnesota Endodontics Southern Minnesota Inspection Squirrels Nest Resort Association St. Peter Food Co-op & Deli Starr Cycle Steffen Electric of Le Center & Mankato, Inc. Sun Tan City Supreme & Lincoln Outdoor Survey Services, Inc. Sylvan Benefit Consultants Taco John’s - Madison Avenue TCF Bank Cub East Team Personnel Staffing Teneca Terri Prange - Independent Sales Director The Coffee Hag The Lighthouse The Paw - Mankato’s Pet Resort The Salvation Army The Service Rack Inc. The Travel Center The Underground Theuninck Construction LLP Thin Film Technology Timber Lake Sod Tow Distributing Townhomes at Parkside Homeowners’ Association, Inc. United Team Elite Valley News Company Valuation Specialists

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Video Services Inc. Viking JR. Motel VINE Faith in Action Vision 4 Less Vivian Rose Boutique W W Blacktopping, Inc. Wasko/Liberty Heating, Cooling & Plumbing WEB Construction Company, Inc. Weggy’s on Campus West Central Sanitation WholeLifeLeadership Williams Diamond Center Willow Brook Senior Cooperative Woodside Apartments 1, LLC Y Barbers / Onatah On Belgrade Young Life Ziegler Farms

GOVERNMENT MEMBERS

Blue Earth County Blue Earth County Attorney’s Office Blue Earth County Library System Blue Earth County License Center Blue Earth County Sheriff’s Dept.

City of Eagle Lake City of Eagle Lake Fire Department City of Eagle Lake Police Department City of Lake Crystal City of Lake Crystal Fire Department City of Lake Crystal Police Department City of Le Sueur City of Le Sueur Fire Department City of Le Sueur Police Department City of Madison Lake City of Madison Lake Fire Department City of Madison Lake Police Department City of Mankato City of North Mankato City of North Mankato Fire Department City of Saint Peter EduCare Mankato Area Public Schools - District 77 Mankato Department of Public Safety Mankato Fire Department Nicollet County Nicollet County Attorney’s Office Nicollet County License Center Nicollet County Sheriff’s Office North Mankato Police Department North Mankato Taylor Library Prairie Winds Middle School Region Nine Development Commission Saint Peter Fire Department Saint Peter Police Department St. Peter Public Library

ASSOSIATE MEMBERS Randy Berkland Jerry Crest Trudie Gustafson Douglas W. Johnson Fred Lutz Tami Paulsen Tom Riley Kenneth Saffert

Boards & Staff GREATER MANKATO GROWTH BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Todd Loosbrock, U.S. Bank - Chair Julia Ketcham Corbett, Blethen, Gage & Krause PLLP - Past Chair Jim Marzolf, CliftonLarsonAllen - Vice Chair Chad Surprenant, ISG - Secretary/Treasurer Jim Beal, Chair of Regional Economic Development Alliance - Executive Committee Member Rob Else, EI Microcircuits - Executive Committee Member Ron Vetter, Vetter Stone - Executive Committee Member JO Guck Bailey, Chair of Visit Mankato Dr. Sheri Allen, Mankato Area Public Schools Stephanie Bottner, Taylor Corporation/Taylor Digital Dr. Richard Davenport, Minnesota State University, Mankato Dr. Mark Dehen, City of North Mankato Mike Drummer, Drummers Garden Center & Floral Joe Duncan, Bolton & Menk, Inc. Brian Fowler, Quality 1 HR Foto/Sports Pix James Hebl, MD., Mayo Clinic Health System Pat Hentges, City of Mankato Pam Jagdfeld, Nifty Home Products Najwa Massad, Massad Group Dr. Annette Parker, South Central College Tami Paulsen, Chair of City Center Partnership Marvin Rhodes, KEYC News 12 - Fox 12 Mankato Jennifer Spaude, Consolidated Communications Jay Weir, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Resigned from Board Mid-term Greg Kutcher, MD., Mayo Clinic Health System - Past Chair Robert Bruender, City of LeSueur

VISIT MANKATO BOARD OF GOVERNORS

JO Guck Bailey, Radio Mankato – Chair Alissa Brekke, Pioneer Bank – Secretary/Treasurer Kevin Buisman, Minnesota State University, Mankato – At-large Mike Drummer, Drummer Companies/Microtel – At-large Jennifer Epper, Buffalo Wild Wings – At-large Burt Byman, Verizon Center Dain Fisher, Bent River Outfitter Pat Hentges, City of Mankato Dr. Cuong Huynh, Discover Chiropractic Jennifer Heimer, Profinium Inc. Randy Knutson, Knutson + Casey, PLLP Boe Lindvall, Courtyard Mankato Hotel & Event Center Jessica Potter, Blue Earth County Historical Society Jay Reasner, Pub 500 Steve Tacheny, Hilton Garden Inn Gwenn Wolters, Rasmussen College Resigned from Board Mid-term Tanya Ange Sandra Oachs Peter Olson

CITY CENTER PARTNERSHIP BOARD OF GOVERNORS

Tom Frederick, Jr., Pub 500 - Past Chair Steve Olson, MinnStar Bank - Secretary/Treasurer* Stephanie Bottner, Taylor Corporation/Taylor Digital Barbara Dorn, YWCA Tony Friesen, Friesen’s Family Bakery John Harrenstein, City of North Mankato David Jones, Minnesota State University, Mankato Larry Krmpotich, Stifel* Sandra Oachs, Spinners Bar & Grill Christopher Person, Mankato Independent Originals Kyle Smith, Tailwind Group Stacey Straka, PresenceMaker Kevin Velasquez, Blethen, Gage & Krause, PLLP Paul Vogel, City of Mankato Jim Whitlock, Brickhouse Graphics/Business on Belgrade* Andy Willaert, Gislason & Hunter Randy Zellmer, Stinson Leonard Street LLP *Retiring

GREATER MANKATO GROWTH, INC. STAFF

Trudie Gustafson, Executive Vice President* Jonathan G. Zierdt, President & CEO *Retired

GREATER MANKATO GROWTH STAFF

Rosi Back, Marketing & Communications Coordinator Patrick Baker, Director of Government & Institutional Affairs John F. Considine III, Director of Regional Business Intelligence Shannon Gullickson, Talent Programs Director Kaitlyn Henderson, Member Relations Assistant Brittany Junck, Marketing & Communications Assistant* Amy Linde, Director of Marketing & Communications* Bridget Norland, Director of Marketing & Communications Rebecca Rosier, Finance & Benefits Manager Jim Santori, New Business Development Director Liz Sharp, Business Events & Sales Director Karen Toft, Member Relations Director Sharlene Vrtacnik, Administrative Assistant Sam Ziegler, Director of GreenSeam *On staff for part of 2016

VISIT MANKATO STAFF

Katie Adelman, Marketing & Communications Coordinator Joelle Baumann, Special Events Manager Danielle Duffey, Convention Sales Director Carrie Kijenski, Marketing & Communications Director Nichole Rojas, Visitor Services Specialist Anna Thill, President Chris Willaert, Sports Commission Director

CITY CENTER PARTNERSHIP STAFF Megan Flanagan, Director Nichole Rojas, Assistant

Tami Paulsen - Chair

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Volunteers and Committees GREATER MANKATO GROWTH CAVALIERS

GREATER MANKATO GROWTH AMBASSADORS

JO Guck Bailey, Radio Mankato/Sign Pro Rachel Carpenter, Water’s Edge Alan Cole, University Square & Village Apartments Marsha Danielson, South Central College Kathy Depuydt, Bradley’s on Stadium Jennifer Faass, Kato Engineering Beth Fasnacht, Blinds & More Laurie Folsom, Spectrum Reach Tom Frederick Jr., Pub 500 Christina Froehlich, BankVista Kathy Gerber, BENCO Electric Amber Goblirsch, Taylor Corporation Bruce Gratz, First National Bank Minnesota Erik Hagedorn, Bremer Bank Karla Haley Malone, Coldwell Banker Welcome Home Realty Chris Harstad, Wells Fargo Home Mortgage Amy Ites, Rasmussen College Douglas Johnson, Retired Devin Krienke, Devin Krienke Agency - American Family Insurance Fred Lutz, Retired Vicky Meyer, U.S. Bank Mark Mitzel, Profinium Victoria Moorhouse, Hilton Garden Inn Claire Patterson, Mankato Clinic Ramon Pinero, Mankato State University, Mankato Leah Pockrandt, American Red Cross Tami Reuter, South Central College Foundation Tamera Saar, Anchor Bank William Simonette, Diversified Financial Services Ryan Spaude, Eide Bailly Financial Services Stephanie Stack, Mayo Clinic Health System Billy Steiner, Radio Mankato Tricia Stenberg, Greater Mankato Area United Way Leslie Stoltenberg, MRCI WorkSource Benjamin Suker, Minnesota Valley Federal Credit Union Jon Teeslink, Snell Motors Chastity Valvick, Consolidated Communications Jen Wanderscheid, Regus Tom Warrant, Tire Associates Greg Weis, Mankato MoonDogs Christi Wilking, Mayo Clinic Health System

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Dan Baker, CENTURY 21 Atwood Realty, Inc. Russell Blaschko, First National Bank Minnesota Rick Chandler, R-U Wireless/THINK Toner & Ink Lisa Cownie, KEYC News 12 & Fox 12 Mankato Sheila Daggett, Mayo Clinic Health System Cate DeBates, Minnesota State University, Mankato Jenn Faust, Eide Bailly Carrie Flanagan, Hilton Garden Inn Tessa Flies, Courtyard by Marriott Connie Hanek, Paragon Printing, Mailing & Specialties Rick Harbarth, Agstar Financial Services Briana Hinz, Profile by Sanford Todd Joyal, Buffalo Wild Wings Mike Kennedy, Alliance Insurace Mike Kunkel, Pioneer Bank - North Mankato Joy Kelley, ECS - Your Wiring Pros Megan Lange, Aflac Jake Krier, Bethany Lutheran College Julie Leiferman, Schwickert’s Tecta America Kate Loging, Eide Bailly Judy Ringler Mountain, New York Life Insurance Sandra Oachs, Spinners Bar & Grill Brandon Olson, Lil Bee’s Learning Center Brooke Olson, BridgeWater Amber Pietan, Amber Pietan Travel Agency Brandon Rignell, Rignell Family Chiropractic Lorri Rieff, CENTURY 21 Atwood Realty, Inc. Kayla Rossiter, Blue Sky Business Coaching Kathy Sanger, Rasmussen College Kris Simpson, MRCI Worksource Jamie Sorensen, Cambria Liz Thiesse, Subway Restaurants Ryan Vesey, Doherty Staffing Lisa Hoffman Wojcik, Open Door Health Center Christa Wolner, Drummer Companies/Weichert Group

Jodie Hermer, AgStar Financial Services Steve Kibble, Kibble Equipment Gary Koch, Gislason & Hunter LLP Brian Martensen, Minnesota State University, Mankato Jim Marzolf, CliftonLarsonAllen LLP - Chair Sheryl Meshke, AMPI Brad Schloesser, South Central College/Southern Minnesota Center for Agriculture Tom Seigfreid, Rembrandt Enterprises, Inc. Chad Surprenant, ISG Pat Yockey, BluEarth Agribusiness Strategies BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT Shane Bowyer, Minnesota State University, Mankato Dennis Dotson, Dotson Iron Castings Mark Greenwood, AgStar Financial Services Mike Humpel, City of Fairmont Jerry Kopel, Profinium Inc. Michael Nolan, SBDC Dave Priesler, Minnesota Pork Producers Association Michael Sparby, AURI Duane Thompson, Eide Bailly Pat Yockey, BluEarth Agribusiness Strategies PROMOTIONS Jodie Hermer, AgStar Financial Services Jim Marzolff, CliftonLarsonAllen LLP Sheryl Meschke, AMPI Kent Thiesse, MinnStar Bank EDUCATION Emily Combs, DuPont Pioneer Mark Jaeger, HerdStar LLC Val Johnson, Christensen Farms Brian Martensen, Minnesota State University, Mankato Paul Peterson, Saint Peter Schools Brad Schloesser, South Central College/Southern Minnesota Center for Agriculture Mark Spence, Davisco Foods Wally Thomas, Bremer Bank

REDA ADVISORY COMMITTEE GREENSEAM STEERING COMMITTEE

Jim Beal, JBeal Real Estate Group/ City of Eagle Lake Travis Brovold, RSM US LLP Mitch Davis, Davis Family Holdings/ Davis Family Dairies Brad & Meg Freking, New Fashion Pork, LLP

Brad Ahrenstorff, City of Lake Crystal Eric Anderson, City of Mankato Jim Beal, City of Eagle Lake Bruce Beatty, Nicollet County Bob Broeder, City of Le Sueur Dr. Mark Dehen, City of North Mankato Mike Fischer, City of North Mankato Nicole Griensewic Michelson, Region

Nine Development Commission Taylor Gronau, City of Lake Crystal John Harrenstein, City of North Mankato Pat Hentges, City of Mankato Carolyn Hiniker, City of Madison Lake Ari Klugman, City of Madison Lake Ryan Krosch, Nicollet County John Kvamme, City of Saint Peter Bob Meyer, Blue Earth County Mark Piepho, Blue Earth County Brad Potter, City of Eagle Lake Todd Prafke, City of Saint Peter Kristin Prososki, City of Mankato Janelle Teppen, City of Le Sueur Ed Tschida, Le Sueur Development Paul Vogel, City of Mankato Russ Wille, City of Saint Peter

TALENT TASK FORCE

Krista Ahlers, MTU Onsite Energy Marcia Bahr, Mankato Clinic Diane Halvorson, South Central WorkForce Council John Hemstock, AgStar Financial Services Prachi Hoffmeister, Walmart DC7079 Lucas Howk, Minnesota State University, Mankato Heather Mueller, Mankato Area Public Schools Dawn Pearson, South Central College Abdi Sabri, African Family and Education Center Phil Siebel, The Free Press Bridgette Toufar, The Occasions Group/Taylor Chastity Valvick, Consolidated Communications Nancy Zallek, Mankato Area Foundation

GREATER MANKATO YOUNG PROFESSIONALS COMMITTEES

Jaci Sprague, Junior Achievement of Greater Mankato - Chair PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE Alec Pfeffer, U.S. Bank - Co-Chair Kelli Poppitz, ISG - Co-Chair Angela Guentzel, Guentzel Family Farms Elizabeth Harstad, Greater Mankato Area United Way Nathan Hermer, ISG Colleen Holicky, Jack Link’s Beef Jerky Cuong Huynh, Discover Chiropractic Laura Jans, Abdo, Eick & Meyers, LLP Chris Lienemann, NextFire Technology Consulting, LLC Cody Meschke, ISG Jacob Ouradnik, Abdo, Eick & Meyers, LLP Erik Pingel, ISG Kelly Sonnek, Jack Link’s Beef

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Jerky Sam Steiger, Minnesota State University, Mankato Jessica Wolfe, Cambria SOCIAL COMMITTEE Lindsey Worden, Jack Link’s Beef Jerky - Chair Abby Frantsen, MRCI WorkSource Jeremiah Frein, JBeal Real Estate Group David Freitag, Wilcon Construction Services Stacey Gore, MRCI WorkSource Brian Gosewisch, Gosewisch Construction, Inc. Jeff Lang, Radio Mankato Chelsea Mann, KEYC News 12 and FOX 12 Mankato Megan Miller, Atwood Property Management, LLC Cami Place, Alpha Media Chris Schindele, Jack Link’s Beef Jerky Kelsey Splinter, Jack Link’s Beef Jerky MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE Dianna Lyngholm, Carlson Craft Chair Nick Burger, Community Insurance Chris Harstad, Wells Fargo Home Mortgage Jess Hatanpa, Hatanpa Insurance Agency - State Farm Tom Johnson, Lloyd Management Inc. Carolyn Nelson, Minnesota State University, Mankato Darci Pratt, Pratt, Kutzke & Associates, LLP Sam Steiger, Minnesota State University, Mankato

GREATER MANKATO LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE STEERING COMMITTEE (2015-16) Chastity Valvick, Consolidated Communications - Chair John Bulcock, Minnesota State University, Mankato Jennifer Ceminsky, ProTrain Aviation Adam Fries, Johnson Outdoors Patti Kramlinger, Minnesota State University, Mankato Ben McAninch, Blethen, Gage & Krause PLLP Jennifer Rorick, Mayo Clinic Health System Jaci Sprague, Junior Achievement of Greater Mankato

GREATER MANKATO LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE STEERING COMMITTEE (2015-16) John Bulcock, Minnesota State University, Mankato – Chair Vickie Bushman, ProGrowth Bank Jennifer Ceminsky, ProTrain Aviation

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Adam Fries, Johnson Outdoors Jennifer Rorick, Mayo Clinic Health System Jaci Sprague, Junior Achievement of Greater Mankato Dan Tomhave, Bethany Lutheran College

SOUTH CENTRAL TOUR OF MANUFACTURING PARTNERSHIP

Pat Baker, Eide Bailly Jason Bruns, Minnesota State University, Mankato Jennifer Faust, Eide Bailly Heather Gleason, South Central Workforce Council Jennifer Graves, VTEK, Inc. Victoria Haley, Cambria Diane Halvorson, South Central Workforce Council Connie Hines, Department of Employment and Economic Development, Mankato WorkForce Center Randy Long, Department of Employment and Economic Development, Mankato WorkForce Center Linsey Preuss, City of Fairmont Audra Shaneman, New Ulm Chamber of Commerce Phil Siebel, The Free Press Nancy Ulrich, Corporate Graphics International Kelcey Woods-Nord, South Central College

PUBLIC AFFAIRS STEERING COMMITTEE

Jay Weir, Arthur J. Gallagher - Chair Chad Surprenant, ISG - Vice Chair Dr. Sheri Allen, Mankato Area Public Schools Brian Benshoof, MRCI WorkSource Randy Berkland, Retired Mark Carlson, Walmart DC7079 Dr. Richard Davenport, Minnesota State University, Mankato Randy Farrow, Mankato Clinic John Harrenstein, City of North Mankato Pat Hentges, City of Mankato Joe Meidl, The Music Mart Tami Paulsen, Retired Geoff Roise, Lindsay Windows David Richards, Jones Metal Ryan Spaude, Eide Bailly Dave Sunderman, BENCO Electric Cooperative Tyson Twait, Ridley USA Inc. Andy Wilke, River Hills Mall Andy Willaert, Gislason & Hunter David Wittenberg, Stifel

SPORTS COMMISSION

David Wittenberg, Stifel - Chair Brett Skilbred, Jordan Sands - Vice Chair Kevin Buisman, Minnesota State Univeristy, Mankato Athletics Larissa Egli, MANTAS Swim Club Paul Gasper, Pioneer HiBred, Soccer Association Steve Hatkin, Mankato Clinic Bukata Hayes, Greater Mankato Diversity Council/Basketball Seth Hoscheit, Community Education & Recreation Randy Knutson, Knutson+Casey PLLP Ryan Kragh, Bethany College Athletics Jeff Lang, Radio Mankato Stephanie Loeffler, Mayo Clinic Health System Sandra Oachs, Spinners Bar & Grill Beth Fowler Rohrich, SPX Sports Chad Suprenant, ISG Phil Tostenson, City of North Mankato/Caswell Park/Mankato Peppers Troy Volk, Volk Transfer Greg Weiss, Mankato MoonDogs

Mankato Pat Hentges, City of Mankato Ryan Krosch, Nicollet County John Kind, Mankato Family YMCA Jared Larson, All Seasons Arena Bob Meyer, Blue Earth County Paul Vogel, City of Mankato Don Westphal, Bethany Lutheran College

CONVENTION SALES COMMITTEE

Carrie Flanagan, Hilton Garden Inn Tessa Flies, Courtyard by Marriott Kaaren Grabianowski, Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota Jennifer Heimer, Profinium Erin Herding, Mankato City Center Hotel Lucas Newbauer, Mankato City Center Hotel Sandra Oachs, Spinners Bar & Grill Brian Sather, Verizon Wireless Center

CITY CENTER COMMITTEE

Tanya Ange, City of Mankato Carrie Flanagan, Hilton Garden Inn Erin Herding, Mankato City Center Hotel Eric Jones, Verizon Center Rick Lecy, Mankato City Center Hotel Burt Lyman, Verizon Center Sandra Oachs, Spinners Bar & Grill Brian Sather, Verizon Center Steve Tacheny, Hilton Garden Inn

iKNOW MANKATO TASK FORCE REGIONAL RECREATION FACILITIES STEERING COMMITTEE

Julia Corbett, Blethen, Gage & Krause, PLLP Dr. Mark Dehen, City of North Mankato Denny Dotson, Dotson Iron Castings Larissa Egli, MANTAS Swim Club Chris Frederick, City of Mankato Jack Kolars, Nicollet County Commissioner Stephanie Loeffler, Mayo Clinic Health System Mark Piepho, Blue Earth County Commissioner Beth Fowler Rohrich, SPX Sports Brett Skilbred, Jordan Sands Chad Suprenant, ISG David Wittenberg, Stifel Facilitator: Mark Erickson, MNAmatuer Sports Commission

REGIONAL RECREATION FACILITIES TECHNICAL ADVISORY TEAM

Audra Boyer, Mankato Area Public Schools Kevin Buisman, Minnesota State Univeristy, Mankato Athletics Marsha Danielson, South Central College Jon Harrenstein, City of North

Jennifer Epper, Buffalo Wild Wings Pam Kirby, Country Inn & Suites Hotel & Conference Center Jessica Potter, Blue Earth County Historical Society Jay Reasner, Pub 500

AESTHETICS & LIVABILITY COMMITTEE

Stacey Straka, PresenceMaker - Chair Peg Ganey, Atwood Property Management Mark Konz, City of Mankato Courtney Kramlinger, City of Mankato Noelle Lawton, Twin Rivers Council for the Arts Matthias Leyrer, Taylor Corporation Stacey Lienemann Antje Meisner, Antje Meisner Concepts Tami Paulsen, Retired Jessica Potter, Blue Earth County Historical Society Kayla Rossiter, Blue Sky Business Coaching Kevin Velasquez, Blethen, Gage & Krause PLLP

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...Volunteers & Committees Continued BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT & RETENTION COMMITTEE Jim Whitlock, Brickhouse Graphics - Chair Gregg Anderson, Gallery 19 Mike Fischer, City of North Mankato Tony Friesen, Friesenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Family Bakery & Bistro Wes Gilbert, Mankato Computer Repair Bryan Paulsen, ISG Jerry Pietz, Kato Moving & Storage, Mayflower Kristin Prososki, City of Mankato Dan Robinson, Lidstrom Commercial Realtors Gary Schott, SCORE Stacey Straka, PresenceMaker Andy Willaert, Gislason & Hunter, LLP

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CITYART COMMITTEE Dawn Ulrich-Spitzer, Mankato Mental Health Associates - Chair Andrew Breck, Office Space Design JO Guck Bailey, Radio Mankato Cyndi Christenson, Cambria Michael Cimino, Artist Sandy Crest Barb Dorn, YWCA Michael Fischer, City of North Mankato Jeanne Gallaway Noelle Lawton, Twin Rivers Council for the Arts Liz Miller, Artist Steve Mork Betty Ouren, MinnStar Bank Sandy Sawatzsky, Sawatzsky Pool Amy Sinning, Artist Stephanie Stoffel, Twin Rivers Council for the Arts Kevin Velasquez, Blethen, Gage & Krause, PLLP Paul Vogel, City of Mankato

MARKETING & PROMOTIONS COMMITTEE Randy Zellmer, Stinson Leonard Street LLP - Chair JO Guck Bailey, Radio Mankato Danelle Erickson, Blue Earth County Historical Society Heather Fisher, Salvage Sisters Eric Jones, Verizon Wireless Center Kurt Kromroy, Chopps Bar & Grill Noelle Lawton, Twin Rivers Council for the Arts Chelsea Mann, KEYC News 12 & Fox 12 Mankato Sandra Oachs, Spinners Bar & Grill Betty Ouren, MinnStar Bank Stacey Straka, PresenceMaker Courtney Werpy, Verizon Center Jim Whitlock, Brickhouse Graphics

Mary Hinicker, The Jewelry Bench

by Mary Noelle Lawton, Twin Rivers Council for the Arts Nicole Soley, Twin Rivers Council for the Arts Brooke Stenzel, White Orchid Boutique Stacey Straka, PresenceMaker Randy Zellmer, Stinson Leonard Street LLP FINANCE COMMITTEE Steve Olson, MinnStar Bank - Chair David Jones, Minnesota State University, Mankato

SHOP SMALL IN THE CITY CENTER COMMITTEE JO Guck Bailey, Radio Mankato Danelle Erickson, Blue Earth County Historical Society Heather Fisher, Salvage Sisters Tom Frederick, Jr., Pub 500

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We are ever grateful for our volunteers.

Without their endless time, talent, devotion and multitude of contributions our organizationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s achievements would not be possible.

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Thank you.

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Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. 1961 Premier Drive, Suite 100 Mankato, MN 56001 507.385.6640 greatermankato.com

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