Strong Local Economy : Buzz

Travel + Leisure magazine recently polled readers about their favorite cities across the country.

People ranked 35 cities according to food, people, nightlife, and more.

Survey results show that Minneapolis and St. Paul have the best ratings in public parks and outdoor access, summer, cleanliness, intelligence, and home décor and design stores.    

However,the Cities are among the worst for winter, spring break, and New Year’s Eve, the article states.  

Audit, consulting, and tax services firm Deloitte released its annual ranking of fastest-growing technology companies, and three Minnesota businesses made the list.
 
SPS Commerce, Knowledge Marketing, and Outsell all showed strong revenue growth over the past five years. In creating the list, Deloitte looked at both public and private companies, and considered growth from 2007 to 2011.
 
 The Deloitte Technology Fast 500 is now in its 18th year, and is considered one of the most notable indicators of technology business health. Innovative companies in a range of industries are considered, including hardware, software, life sciences, telecom, and clean technology.

In a Minnesota 2020 blog post titled “A tale of two bike cities,” guest blogger Amber Collett compares biking in Minneapolis to Portland, Ore., where she recently relocated.

She touches on how both cities have made a name for themselves with more and more bike infrastructure and a growing cycle culture.

Bike boulevards differ from place to place, with Minneapolis having roomier lanes, she says.

Portland has more of them, plus protective boxes at traffic signals that keep bicyclists from breathing in exhaust.

She turns to Steve Clark at Bike Walk Twin Cities to find out more about how the two cities compare bike-wise. He’s quoted saying, “Minneapolis has been trying to catch up to Portland in terms of on-street facilities where certainly Portland has led the way with some of the nation’s first and finest bike boulevards and miles upon miles of bike lanes.”

That being said, visitors from Portland “quickly become very envious of our off-street trails--particularly the Midtown Greenway which is basically a freeway for bicyclists and provides separate space for walkers and joggers too.”

A recent Star Tribune story highlights art as a successful development tool in a number of St. Paul building projects.

While in the past, artists may have been viewed as “a mysterious and crazy bunch,” today they’re sought out by the city to help make development plans, the story states.

They’re seen as “innovators who can fill hard-to-adapt historic structures like the long-vacant Schmidt Brewery and turn them into vital and lively corners of the city once again,” the story reads.

Renovation plans for the Schmidt Brewery, for example, include studio, gallery, and performance space. The place is also a part of a developing Midway arts district.  

Mayor Chris Coleman says in the story, “I look at every thriving city in the country and there's a thriving arts community within it,” adding, “It helps shape investment decisions. Things are enhanced.”

Travel + Leisure magazine named 13 U.S. neighborhoods as top examples of ethnic food destinations, and St. Paul's Frogtown got a nod for its Hmong specialties.
 
Minneapolis and St. Paul are home to 30,000 Hmong, the largest community outside of Southeast Asia, and their restaurants are clustered along University Avenue, the article says.

Also in the area is the Hmong Cultural Center, as well as a farmers market where Hmong and other Southeast Asian immigrants shop and eat, Travel + Leisure noted.
 
The article adds that other top neighborhoods include ones in Houston and D.C., cities that are home to large numbers of Indians and Ethiopians, respectively.
 
"[An] open mind and sense of adventure helps when exploring these communities, which can be a little gritty and less accessible than touristy Little Italys," the article's writer notes.
 

Livability.com, which profiles the best places across the country to live and visit, has an entry about Minneapolis.

The site characterizes Minneapolis as “a center for business, arts and professional sports,” with Fortune 500 companies, a strong theater scene, and the Twins, Timberwolves, and Vikings. Forbes has also named it as one of the safest cities nationwide, it adds.

The city’s workforce and parks are also highlighted on the website, while local landmarks are featured in the photo gallery.

“With so much to offer, Minneapolis has received numerous accolades,” the entry reads.

The American Institute for Economic Research (AIER) released its annual College Destination Index, and Minneapolis-St. Paul was ranked No. 6 for major metro areas, coming in behind cities like Boston, New York, and San Francisco.
 
The Index includes the top 75 towns and cities in the U.S., and uses factors culled from numerous governmental agencies, such as the Small Business Administration, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and the Census Bureau. The amalgamation of data provides a snapshot of each community's overall cultural and academic environment as well as employment landscape and quality of life.
 
In a press release about the results, AIER's Steven Cunningham noted, "The characteristics that make up a great college destination often make a location ideal for business, retirement, and tourism. A top AIER College Destinations Index ranking should be just as important to the town or city as it is to the schools located there and the families and students attending or considering them."

The popular St. Paul Farmers Market nabbed third place in a contest sponsored by American Farmland Trust, an organization focused on educating the public about the value and importance of preserving farmland.
 
The group collected votes from across the country, and separated farmers markets into categories by size. St. Paul is in the "large markets" category.
 
In another nod to Minnesota farmers, Hutchinson-based Loon Organics received honorable mention in the organization's Farmers Market Inspiration Award. Farmer Laura Frerichs was recognized for her essay, "My Love Letter to the Mill City Farmers Market." 

Minnesota employers added 5,900 jobs in September, according to the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED).
 
The agency said the unemployment rate dropped 0.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted 5.8 percent. The nation's unemployment rate for September is 7.8 percent.
 
"Minnesota has recovered nearly 90,000 jobs since hitting the low point of the recession three years ago last month,” said Blake Chaffee, DEED director of communications, in a press release about the September numbers. “The labor market has been steadily improving since then, but we still have more work to do.”

,Minnesota's startups had a strong third quarter, according to a recent report from the Minneapolis St. Paul Business Journal. The publication noted that venture capital investment in the state showed a rebound over previous quarters, with med-tech firms leading the surge.
 
Companies that raised large rounds include Segetis Inc., a firm specializing in sustainable chemistry solutions, and Torax Medical Inc., a medical technology company focused on treatments for digestive, incontinence, and obesity disorders.
 
One down note in an otherwise sunny report: $20 million of the third quarter revenue was raised by Mainstay Medical Inc., a device firm that plans to move out of the Twin Cities. Since its funding was provided by an Irish venture capital firm, the company will be relocating to Dublin.

Several local breweries fared well at the recent Great American Beer Festival in Denver, Colo.

The Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal states that the festival is “considered one of the most prestigious worldwide competitions for brewers.”  

St. Paul’s Summit Brewing Co. received a silver medal in the Bohemian-Style Pilsener category for its Summit Pilsener, the Journal reports.

Fitger’s Brewhouse in Duluth, which is planning a Minneapolis location, achieved a bronze medal in the American-Style Sour Ale category, with its Fitger’s Framboise, and the Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery got a bronze medal in the Great American Beer Festival Pro-Am Competition, according to the Journal.  

Active.com includes Minneapolis and St. Paul as number eight in its list of the top 10 running places across the country.

“Aside from ample places to train and races to run, spirited running communities add color and support the local traditions that make certain cities ideal for runners,” the website reads.

The website cites events and infrastructure such as the Twin Cities Marathon, “called the most beautiful urban marathon in the U.S.,” a 50-mile city trail system, and the Grand Rounds National Scenic Byway, and its home to the elite distance running-focused Team USA, coached by Dennis Barker.

New York City was named as the top running destination.

Major restaurant, hotel, and nightclub review source Zagat recently released its annual Fast-Food Survey results, and Minnesota-based Caribou Coffee beat out some stiff competition in the quick refreshment category.
 
Although Starbucks was voted most popular in the category, Caribou came out as the leader in terms of service and decor. It also won the "Top Overall" prize in the category, besting competitors like Peet's Coffee and Culver's.
 
For the survey, Zagat took the opinions of over 10,000 voters and divided them into several categories. For top-rated fast food, for example, In-N-Out Burger won in the "large" category, but Wendy's led the "mega" category.

The local foodie website Heavy Table recently started a taproom directory for Minneapolis and St. Paul, which it plans to update regularly.

Ever since the Minnesota Legislature passed a bill in 2011 that “allows for brewers to operate an on-sale establishment on their brewing premises,” new brewing ventures have emerged all over the place, many of which include taprooms.

Dangerous Man Brewing, Indeed Brewing and 612Brew even make up a Northeast “Brew District,” the directory states.

It also includes listings for taprooms to come.

Monica Nassif Loves Minneapolis is the headline of a recent Huffington Post piece.
 
In a letter format, Nassif, the founder of the Caldrea company, which manufactures cleaning products and sleepwear, tells of her love affair with the city.
 
When she and her husband were stranded on a cold winter day years ago, she was impressed by the level of recreational activity happening around Lake of the Isles.
 
“We were star-struck--standing in front of the most charming lake I had ever seen--in the middle of our new city,” she says, adding that it’s a feeling that continues today.
 
“How can you not love a city--a major metropolitan city--with so much green space and water?” she asks.