EDA Meeting Date: March 24, 2025
To: Members of the Economic Development Authority
From: Emery John, Community Development Program Associate
Nate Carlson, Economic Development Coordinator
Jake Reilly, Community Development Director
Title
Connecting Business and Community Update
Body
Action Requested:
No action requested at this time.
Summary Report:
City staff and volunteers from the Chamber of Commerce, Friends of Downtown Northfield, and elected officials completed Step 1 of the Connecting Business and Community Program, consisting of designing a Northfield specific interview guide, organizing volunteers, and conducting business interviews. We interviewed 53 different Northfield organizations, including all three of the largest employers in the city, and submitted all interviews to Extension. Extension staff are now working to tabulate the data.
Step 2 begins with a research review meeting, where a group of staff will meet with experts at U of M Extension to discuss the analysis, reports, and potential strategies. We will then host a retreat in Northfield with our partners to identify priorities based on the completed analysis and reports. From there, we can identify strategic initiatives. That then launches Step 3, which will be an iterative process of implementing a series of strategic initiatives. The EDA and partners will be learning about that process in the coming months. Staff anticipates that the process will naturally align with the in-process strategic plan efforts led by City Council and Administration and the in-process comprehensive plan.
The University of MN Extension noted that we are the first city in five years to complete more than 25 interviews and are one of the highest performing in terms of interview completion in the past decade. We met the original goal to complete between 50 and 60 interviews. The number of interviews conducted speaks to the interest in the business community to share their concerns and triumphs with others...
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