Blooming Prairie, Minn., January 18, 2024 – Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation (SMIF) has awarded eighteen Blooming Prairie businesses and nonprofits to receive $700,000 in funds from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) Main Street Economic Revitalization Program.
The Minnesota Main Street Economic Revitalization Program is an $80 million statewide economic redevelopment program through DEED which awards grants to partner organizations to establish programs within specific communities that will, in turn, fund economic development and redevelopment projects to address needs that have arisen since March 15, 2020. In 2022, SMIF was selected as a partner organization for the southern Minnesota region to disperse funds primarily in the communities of Northfield and Blooming Prairie in the hospitality, retail and child care industries.
After receiving recommendations from an independent committee, SMIF approved the following eighteen awards based on compliance with DEED’s criteria:
- Blooming Prairie Serviceman’s Club
- Blooming Prairie Veterans Memorial
- BP Cue Company
- Brayside Apartments
- Dairy Queen
- Eagle Prairie Insurance
- First Lutheran Church
- J&H Liquor’s
- Koster’s Kar Korner
- Kruckeberg Real Estate Holdings
- Leo Augusta Children’s Academy
- Miner’s Outdoor & Rec
- New York Life Insurance
- Prairie Family & Sports Chiropractic
- Prairie Home Floral, Décor & Gifts
- Salinas Auto Repair
- Stinar
- T&T Motorcycles
The above recipients are expected to invest no less than $2.3M in the community of Blooming Prairie.
Leo Augusta Children’s Academy, which broke ground in 2021, received a grant during an initial round of funding and then became the driving force behind encouraging Blooming Prairie businesses and organizations to apply for the remaining funding.
“The significance of this investment in the community will help maintain an attractive community and support the economic vitality of local businesses and nonprofit organizations”, said Amy Hinzmann, Board Chair of Leo Augusta Children’s Academy. “I’m pleased these businesses found value in the funding and the work done behind the scenes paid off”.
For more information on the DEED Main Street Economic Revitalization Program, visit the program’s website: https://mn.gov/deed/business/financing-business/deed-programs/emergency-programs/economic-revitalization/.
For questions about the Minnesota Main Street Economic Revitalization Program, contact Brian Conzemius, vice president and CFO at SMIF, at brianc@smifoundation.org or 507-214-7043.
Featured image: Staff and children at Leo Augusta Children’s Academy in Blooming Prairie, Minn.
