Dakota County is located south of Minneapolis and St. Paul and includes first, second and third ring suburbs and is one of the fastest growing counties in Minnesota. There are 21 cities and 13 rural townships in the county. Fourteen of the cities are suburban, the rest are rural.
2006 Population (Estimate): 391,613
2030 Population (Estimate): 520,010
Recovery Zone Facility Bonds
As part of the federal stimulus bill (the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, “ARRA”), the U.S. Treasury Department recently allocated $20,949,000 of Recovery Zone Facility Bond authority to Dakota County. The county is able to reallocate this authority to local units of government that can then use it to issue Recovery Zone Facility Bonds (“RZFBs”).
RZFBs are a new kind of tax-exempt bond, similar in some respects to an industrial development bond. RZFBs are issued by a local unit of government on behalf of a development and permit the project to use tax-exempt financing instead of taxable financing. In general, Recovery Zone Facility Bonds may be used to finance certain property in a designated Recovery Zone to which the accelerated cost recovery system would apply, (basically property that is depreciable). By offering a lower interest rate than a normal business loan, RZFBs are intended to encourage private business development that otherwise wouldn’t occur. Interested local governments need to identify a qualified project, establish a recovery zone by resolution of their governing body and submit an application form with related materials to the Dakota County Community Development Agency.
The first round of applications closed January 29, 2010. Additional applications will be accepted after this date only if remaining RZFB bonding authority is available at that time.
In 2007, the Dakota County Board adopted six Strategic Initiatives for Economic Development in order to help enhance and coordinate economic conditions at a regional level.
Commercial & Industrial Space Market Study Maxfield Research Inc. completed the Commercial & Industrial Space Market Study in April 2008. It provides demand estimates for commercial/retail, office and industrial space in Dakota County from 2008-2030, as well as for the amount of land needed to accomodate the new space.
The study found that projected household and job growth, among other factors, will create demand for an additional:
10 to 12 million square feet of commercial/retail space
5 to 6 million square feet of office space
6.5 to 7.5 million square feet of industrial space
About 2,200 acres would be needed to accomodate this future need
If you have questions about the Commercial & Industrial Space Market Study, call Dan Rogness at (651) 675-4464.
Property Locator
The 11-county Minneapolis/Saint Paul region consistently ranks among the best places to do business in the United States. To learn more, visit www.MetroMSP.org. This powerful website enables you to locate buildings or land, pull up site-specific demographic data, and generate valuable reports.
Next Generation Broadband
With U.S. internet traffic growth anticipated to increase at least fourteen times over what it is now by 2015, eleven Dakota County cities and the Dakota County CDA have launched an educational campaign about why residents and businesses need to insist on next generation broadband to meet the needs of citizens.
A short video has been created featuring business executives, an emergency manager, a city leader, an educator, a health care expert, and even an Eagan grandmother talking about the benefits that would come from significantly higher broadband than we have today. If more people are able to video conference from home in real time, for instance, that opens up possibilities for consulting medical experts, conducting business meetings from home, accessing online educational classes, and more.
The video points out other societal benefits too. A significant factor in economic development, business location decisions and employment growth is the availability of world class broadband. Next generation broadband could enable so-called smart homes and applicances that monitor their own energy consumption and allow homeowners to cost-effectively make their own decisions about energy use, not to mention have less wear and tear on roadways and lower auto emissions if people telecommute more.
The cities of Apple Valley, Burnsville, Eagan, Farmington, Hastings, Inver Grove Heights, Lakeville, Northfield, Rosemount, South St. Paul, West St. Paul and the Dakota County CDA joined togheter to produce this educational video. It will be shown on local government or public access channels, used for presentations to civic groups and at city council meetings all in an effort to prompt citizens to learn more about the importance of next generation broadband to their future.
Financial Resources
Through the Twin Cities Community Capital Fund (TCCCF), businesses looking to expand or relocate to the cities of Apple Valley, Eagan, Hastings or Rosemount in Dakota County can access loans that can help finance land and building purchases, building construction, leasehold improvements and building renovations, and machinery and equipment purchases.
For more information about how to apply for a TCCCF loan, please call (952) 546-9049 and ask to speak with a loan officer. Loan applications, including detailed financing policies and credit criteria, are also available at www.tcccf.org.
