$1,720,000 in NEW Loan Funds Available for Businesses
The UMVRDC received notification on July 27, 2020 that the agency’s CARES Act Recovery Assistance Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) application was awarded. The U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) invited existing EDA-funded RLF awards to apply for supplemental funds to help respond to the unusual and compelling urgency of the coronavirus pandemic. The EDA determined that these RLF partners, by virtue of their longstanding and substantial investment in making credit available to small businesses, possessed unique abilities to support the CARES Act Recovery Assistance initiative. As a result, the UMVRDC has an additional $1,720,000 in new revolving loan funds to alleviate sudden and severe economic dislocation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The UMVRDC will be able to offer regional businesses 0% interest for the first two years of their loan, which can be a game-changer for new or existing businesses. The availability of these funds will be limited and they need to be lent out within two years.
For more information about the UMVRDC’s RLF, please visit our website or contact Laura
Ostlie at 320-289-1981, ext 102 or laura@umvrdc.org.
Congratulations Mark, New UMVRDC Board Chair
Mark Bourne who has represented the Lac qui Parle County Township for the past eight years on the UMVRDC board took over as board Chair at the July 2020 annual meeting. Mark and his wife reside in the Dawson area where he is enjoying retirement and spending time with his grandchildren.
We look forward to having Mark serve as the UMVRDC’s new board chair!
UMVRDC Welcomes New Board Member
Scott Marquardt was recently appointed to the UMVRDC board in July at the annual meeting. Scott brings a wealth of knowledge and experience with him which will benefit our agency. Scott is the Senior Vice President of the Southwest Initiative Foundation (SWIF), a rural community foundation serving a 19-county region in southwest Minnesota. He leads the foundation’s business finance, entrepreneurship, child care, and regional economic development efforts, in addition to serving as lead staff to the Investment Committee. Previously, he was the Economic Development Director for the City of Montevideo.
He is currently the Board Chair for the Southwest Minnesota Housing Partnership; a member of the Blandin Foundation Broadband Strategy Board; a member of the IEDC Education and Certification Advisory Committee; a member of the board and loan committee for Propel Nonprofits; and treasurer and board member of the Greater Minnesota Partnership. He was also appointed to the Minnesota Family Child Care Task Force, created by the Minnesota Legislature in 2019.
Scott is a past president of the Economic Development Association of Minnesota (EDAM) and currently serves on its Conference Committee. His is also a member of the Local Economy Foundation Circle.
He has a Master of Public Administration degree and an undergraduate degree from the University of South Dakota. Scott is a Certified Economic Developer through IEDC, and a certified Economic Development Finance Professional through the National Development Council. Locally, he is a member of the Montevideo Planning Commission and the Montevideo Police Civil Service Commission.
Scott and his family live in Montevideo. Welcome Scott!
UMVRDC Loan Advisory Board
We would like to welcome our new board members:
Austin Hoehne with MinnWest Bank represents Chippewa County, Austin splits his time between the Montevideo and Ortonville branch.
Lucas Strand with United Prairie Bank of Madison represents Lac qui Parle County.
Rusty Dimberg, of rural Ortonville has replaced Warren Rau representing the UMVRDC Board of Commissioners
Operational Plan for Prairie Five Regional Transportation Coordinating Council Completed
Prairie Five Community Action Council hired the UMVRDC to assist with setting up a Regional Transportation Coordinating Council (RTCC) in our region. The process, funded by MnDOT, utilizes public input from a broad set of stakeholders to determine if an RTCC is a good fit for our region and how best to set it up. The ultimate goal of having an RTCC is to fill a transportation gap by providing more rides using the same or fewer resources and make transportation easier to use by the customers. Some of the deliverables of this planning project included:
- Establish an RTCC that works for the Prairie Five Region.
- Define and establish a formal entity dedicated to coordinating transportation services in the Prairie Five Region.
- Define the geographic area of the RTCC.
- Plan and implement strategies that meet the regional transit coordination needs and goals identified in the Region 6W Local Human Transit Coordination Plan.
- Develop an operation implementation plan for the RTCC.
- Plan and develop the RTCC and a public participation plan.
The project was completed in September 2020. The operational plan was approved by the planning committee and now the RTCC can be formalized and an implementation grant can be written to start to carry out the duties of the Prairie Five RTCC. Some of these duties will likely include working with all transit providers in a direct way, research possible transit resources and work to find ways to better serve transportation needs in our region.
View PlanMeander Goes Online in 2020
The 2020 Meander is just around the corner! However, this year’s event will look a little different due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Meander will be take the shape of an online art auction, instead of an in person art crawl, to provide a contactless shopping experience!
The auction opens on Friday, October 2 at noon and ends Sunday, October 4 at 4 pm. Buyers around the country now have the ability to check out a number of items from 31 local artists and can have their items delivered right to their doors. Artists will be donating up to twenty percent of their Auction sales to local food shelves. Items are now available to view here: www.auctria.com/auction/meander.
Meander WebsiteMeander BrochureBiome: Madison’s New Public Art Project
Madison installed their first public art project this summer: Biome. The UMVRDC provided grant writing and project coordination services to the Madison Arts Council to help them towards their goal of adding public art to their community. The UMVRDC wrote a successful grant to the Southwest Minnesota Arts Council for $25,000 that funded 80% of this piece created for Madison by Tim Adams of Webster City, Iowa. The goal of the project was to have a lighted public art sculpture that will help celebrate rural life. Come take a look, day or night!
New Minnesota River Valley Scenic Byway Tear Map
Over the past 12 months, the Byway has been working on a new tear map for the central part of the byway. A grant from the Minnesota Historical Society funded the $10,000 project to hire the UMVRDC and a consultant from mapformation. The map also provides historical information in the valley, such as the Dakota villages that were once there, Dakota place names and all of the Byway’s discovery sites for that section of the byway.
View Tear MapSafe Routes to School Opportunities
Every year, funds are available for districts to develop Safe Routes to School Plans. The planning assistance grant period will be opening soon, so start thinking about how a plan could help your community. This is a competitive program with limited funds requiring a detailed application. Completing this planning process will help set a direction for the school for the near future and increase the odds that the district and communities will be awarded grant funds for programming and infrastructure.
Planning Assistance Grant InfoIf you have a bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure project in mind that you would like to test, there is a relatively new opportunity to help you. Read about the SRTS Demonstration Project Technical Assistance Opportunity.
Greater Minnesota Transportation Alternative Solicitation
Transportation Alternatives can fund projects identified in Safe Routes to School plans. This is an extremely competitive program that supports the development of projects every year. This program requires a 20% local match.
The UMVRDC provides grant writing assistance to help you with the applications for any of these opportunities. Contact Chad Kingstrom at chad@umvrdc.org for more information and visit the UMVRDC website for examples of local Safe Routes to School plans.
Maynard Conditions Assessment
The UMVRDC has been assisting the City of Maynard with their historic Maynard State Bank building. This past year has been focused on completing a conditions assessment to help identify the best first steps in preserving this historic building. Staff wrote a successful grant to the Minnesota Historical Society for a Historical and Cultural Grant for $10,000 to help fund this project. The conditions assessment was completed in July 2020, and recommends working on the roof, HVAC system and masonry as the top priorities.
UMVRDC goes to Madison for Annual Meeting Tour
Although on a smaller scale due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the 2020 UMVRDC annual tour was still a success. This year, the UMVRDC staff and board heard from Madison community members and did a walking tour of the town to see various projects staff has worked on throughout the years and other highlights from the Madison community.
The day included viewing the Madison arts project: Biome; touring a property that was included in the UMVRDC developable property inventory; visiting the movie theater; and heard about local projects such as Little Eagles Child Care, Safe Routes to School projects with the Lac qui Parle Valley school district, and much more.
The day concluded with the UMVRDC business meeting and dinner catered by the After Five Supper Club, a UMVRDC Revolving Loan Fund client. The UMVRDC is grateful for the opportunity to work with the people of Madison and look forward to continuing to help their community and the region thrive!
UMVRDC Offices Closed to the Public
UMVRDC offices remain closed to the public due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The UMVRDC team is working remotely, and we are still here to assist you in any way and continue to work normal business hours. Visit our contact page and reach out to us with any questions or concerns.
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