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Business North - The Daily Briefing - Business Newspaper Online
DEED awards FIRST Grants for improving regional economic competitiveness
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1/12/2008 |
ST. PAUL - Five groups will each receive $50,000 grants from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) to help them develop plans for economic growth in their areas.
The grants were awarded under a new program called Framework for Integrated Regional Strategies or FIRST.
The goal of FIRST is to bring together regional leaders in economic development, workforce growth and education as part of an all-inclusive strategy to increase the economic competitiveness of each area.
Local companies, workers, researchers, entrepreneurs and educators will work as partners to develop a long-term strategic plan for their region.
DEED Commissioner Dan McElroy said FIRST was created after a series of Minnesota Competes Forums last summer and fall.
“We found that most areas of the state do not have an integrated strategy for creating regional prosperity and community success,” he said. “Forum participants said they wanted the ability to develop their own regional plans rather than having the state provide a one-size-fits-all model.”
Grant funds will be used for staff support, consulting help, meeting expenses, materials and related costs. The funding will be available for work completed through calendar year 2008.
Grants were awarded to the following entities:
Range Readiness Initiative, representing Koochiching, Itasca, Aitkin, St. Louis, Carlton, Lake and Cook counties in Minnesota and Douglas County in Wisconsin.
Northwest Minnesota Foundation, representing Kittson, Roseau, Lake of the Woods, Marshall, Beltrami, Pennington, Red Lake, Polk, Norman, Mahnomen, Clearwater and Hubbard counties, plus western Itasca County, northern Cass County, the Leech Lake Indian Reservation, and the cities of Cass Lake and Walker.
Southeast Minnesota Consortium, including Rice, Goodhue, Wabasha, Steele, Todd, Olmsted, Winona, Freeborn, Mower, Fillmore and Houston counties.
South Central Regional Economic Collaboration, representing Sibley, Brown, Nicollet, Le Sueur, Watonwan, Blue Earth, Waseca, Martin and Faribault counties.
Northern Technology Initiative, representing Chisago, Isanti, Kanabec and Pine counties.
DEED officials said the five grant recipients were selected from 22 proposals. Three other proposals will be considered for 2008 funding.
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