Category: Rural Headlines

EXCERPT: “More than $10 million in grants are available to fund infrastructure and other enhancements for Greater Minnesota’s regional parks and trails, including $750,000 to make them more inviting and accessible to underserved communities and people with mobility or other challenges. Two Douglas County parks would be eligible to apply for the funding – Lake ...

EXCERPT: “When the economy takes a turn for the worse, there is a plan in place. Being proactive and not reactive is the motto for Region 9 Development Commission. ‘How are things going right now and what do we see in the future,’ Region 9 Development Commission Executive Director Nicole Griensewic said. Especially with their ...

EXCERPT: “Nearly 75% of Minnesotans rely on groundwater for their water supply, but that supply can become strained as population grows, land-use changes, and climate change affects precipitation and groundwater use and recharge. These factors mean that many in the state could find groundwater in increasingly short supply in the coming decades— an issue some ...

EXCERPT: “The coronavirus relief law signed by President Biden last week pours nearly $50 billion into child care in a bid to keep struggling daycare centers from closing just as the people who rely on them return to work. Child-care providers will get about $40 billion for operating expenses and tuition assistance for the children ...

EXCERPT: “Broadband access remains insufficient for many in rural America. And northern Minnesota cow/calf rancher Miles Kuschel tells Brownfield the COVID-19 pandemic has illuminated the issue. ‘If it’s given us an insight into one thing, it’s the absolute need for high-speed broadband across all of Rural America. Whether it’s distance learning, telemedicine, Zoom conferences or annual ...

EXCERPT: “Following the February arctic blast, the Minnesota Department of Commerce will increase the maximum annual crisis benefit for qualifying households from $600 to $1,200. The Energy Assistance Program crisis benefits can be used for covering past-due utility bills, utility disconnections and emergency fuel deliveries, according to a Department of Commerce news release. The program ...

EXCERPT: “‘We need to educate our communities, our state and our nation on what child care is.’ Sherry Tiegs hammered that message into the minds of those who attended a webinar offered by the Center for Rural Policy and Development Thursday, Feb. 18, to discuss the state of child care in rural Minnesota. Tiegs, who ...

EXCERPT: “Like many Minnesota communities, the southwest Minnesota town of Windom has a shortage of homes for sale at a time when more housing is needed to keep businesses and the local economy humming. Homes for workers are at a premium, but the Cottonwood County city of 4,400 residents needs to expand and preserve its housing ...

EXCERPT: “Paramedic Heidi Rennick describes her first COVID-19 call last spring like ‘walking on to a movie set.’ When she arrived at the hospital, there were COVID-19-only floors, red tape and full beds. The challenges have mounted since those first cases, and emergency medical services across the state have adapted with new protocols, treatment plans and personal ...