CEDA is encouraging Minnesota’s smallest cities, those with a population of 3,000 or less, to take advantage of a unique opportunity designed to help rural cities build local capacity, support economic growth, and invest in economic development tools.
Through the Rural Capacity Program, cities with populations of 3,000 or fewer can receive:
- up to 135 hours of technical assistance from Community and Economic Development Associates (CEDA) as well as;
- up to $13,500 in grant funding to help implement locally driven economic development initiatives.
The program is supported through a special appropriation from the State of Minnesota and was created specifically to assist rural communities that may have limited staff capacity, smaller budgets, or little formal economic development infrastructure, but still have strong ideas and goals for their future.
The program allows communities to work directly with one of CEDA’s Rural Capacity Program Specialists to develop a customized initiative tailored to local needs. Eligible projects may include revolving loan funds, commercial exterior improvement programs, childcare incentive programs, or business retention and expansion initiatives.
Several communities participating in the current round are already seeing momentum from the program. One participating city used their technical assistance hours to rewrite, streamline and make existing programming more accessible to businesses in their community, one is using funds and technical assistance to ignite interest around available industrial land, one is using funds to develop an in depth Business Retention and Expansion program, each participating city is working with a CEDA RCP Specialist to develop unique programming that benefits their businesses and community! It looks different for everyone!
At CEDA we believe, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to rural economic development. Each community has unique opportunities and challenges, and this program is intended to meet communities where they are.
In addition to technical assistance, participating cities benefit from CEDA’s network of professional staff and partnerships with local organizations, businesses, and state agencies to help maximize project impact and long-term sustainability.
Communities do not need to have an Economic Development Authority (EDA) to apply, and every effort will be made to distribute awards equitably throughout Greater Minnesota.
Rural communities interested in applying are encouraged to contact Amy Schaefer, Rural Capacity Program Manager @ amy.schaefer@cedausa.com for additional information
