Minnesota House of Representatives
District 12A 651-296-4929 – rep.jay.mcnamar@house.mn
431 State Office Building, St. Paul, MN 55155
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
Matt Privratsky – 651-296-6860
June 10, 2013
Local Projects Among $18 million in Small Cities Development Grants
ST. PAUL – Grants totaling $17.97 million were awarded to 32 communities in Greater Minnesota to help pay for rehabilitating housing and commercial structures and improving infrastructure. Over $1.6 million in local projects were included in area communities, including:
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Ortonville - $552,000
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Housing and commercial building rehabilitation
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Wheaton - $471,000
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Cyrus - $600,000
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Water treatment facility and water mains rehabilitation
Local State Representative Jay McNamar (DFL – Elbow Lake) is happy to see investments in local communities.
“These communities are crucial in our area,” said Rep. McNamar. “People that live here deserve just as much support as those in the metro area or any other part of the state. I’m proud to bring these investments to the district to support our businesses and families.”
The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) awarded the funding under its Small Cities Development Program, a federally-funded initiative that seeks to benefit people of low and moderate incomes.
“These grants make it possible for Minnesota’s smaller communities to provide safe, affordable housing options for their residents,” said DEED Commissioner Katie Clark Sieben. “Not only will the projects generate local jobs and stimulate economic development, they will create suitable living environments for workers – something that is vital to the success of our communities.”
The Small Cities Development Program makes grants available to cities and townships with populations under 50,000 and counties with populations under 200,000.
DEED is the state’s principal economic development agency, promoting business recruitment, expansion and retention, workforce development, international trade and community development. Funding for DEED and job creation was tripled this year in the DFL budget.
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