Over $34.6 Million Awarded in Small Cities Coronavirus Funding

St. Paul – The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) today announced $34,656,956 in grants to 15 Minnesota cities and counties across the state from the Small Cities Coronavirus Community Development Block Grant Program (CDBG-CV).

As part of the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), Minnesota received a special allocation to address community needs to prevent, prepare for and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Most of the funding – nearly $32.2 million – will be used for broadband improvement projects. Projects under CDBG-CV are not associated with the Border-to-Border Broadband Development Grant Program managed by the Minnesota Office of Broadband Development.

Other uses of this funding will include housing assistance, food shelf assistance, retrofitting buildings and commercial rehabilitation projects. These uses were determined through an open community input process and approved by the Housing and Urban Development Agency (HUD).

“The pandemic has made clear how vital broadband is to the lives of Minnesotans and to the economic vitality of our state,” said DEED Commissioner Steve Grove. “These grants will help communities fund broadband and other important projects as we write the next chapter of our economy.”

Applications were rated according to need, impact, and cost effectiveness. Funds are intended for projects that are focused on the locality and that will be used primarily for low-and-moderate income residents. You can find out more about CDBG grants on the DEED website.

The following 15 cities and counties received CDBG grants:

Aitkin County, $4,823,654

Broadband improvement

City of Appleton, $3,699,000

Broadband improvement and commercial rehabilitation

City of Benson, $678,000

Retrofitting buildings

City of Bemidji, $600,000

Retrofitting buildings

City of Bloomington, $154,430

Housing assistance and food shelf assistance

City of Ceylon, $983,105

Broadband improvement

Crow Wing County, $4,495,340

Broadband improvement

City of Dodge Center, $3,142,747

Broadband improvement

Faribault County, $2,886,206

Broadband improvement

City of Harmony, $2,245,849

Broadband improvement

City of Madison, $2,560,000

Broadband improvement

City of Slayton/Murray County, $2,822,278

Broadband improvement

Pine County, $3,743,390

Broadband improvement and retrofitting buildings

Redwood County, $1,715,607

Broadband improvement

City of Wabasha, $107,350

Commercial rehabilitation

DEED is the state's principal economic development agency, promoting business recruitment, expansion and retention, workforce development, international trade and community development. For more details about the agency and its services, visit the DEED website or follow us on Twitter.