Top 10 | November 2023 | Grand Forks EDC

1. Altru Indoor Sports Complex Gets Green Light

On Tuesday, November 7th, Altru Health System committed $10 million to support the indoor sports complex planned near the Alerus Center. On Tuesday, November 14th, the majority of voters approved extending the 0.75% sales tax and allowing its revenue to construct the facility. The Altru Indoor Sports Complex will increase economic activity from regional sports and activities that draw major increases in the hospitality sector as users flock to restaurants, hotels, and retail stores. The facility will also aid in attracting workforce to the region, offering more amenities along with the plentiful job openings and safe, family-friendly environment that Grand Forks offers. Looking forward, the goal is to have the new facility operational between 2026 and 2027.

2. UND Appoints Snyder as VP For Research & Econ Dev

We’re excited to share Dr. Scott Snyder’s appointment as UND’s new Vice President for Research & Economic Development! With 20+ years in higher education, Snyder strongly advocates connecting regional industry and the university. Snyder comes to UND from Idaho State University, where he served for five years as the dean of the College of Science and Engineering. Prior to ISU, Snyder served in various roles at the University of Nebraska-Omaha. We look forward to working together to grow and expand economic opportunities for the Grand Forks region!

3. Epitome Energy Awarded $500,000

Congratulations to Epitome Energy for the award of $500,000 from the Agricultural Diversification and Development Fund (ADD)! Dennis Egan, Founder & CEO, presented to the committee on Wednesday, November 15th in Devils Lake, ND. The awarded funds will be used for site development planning and engineering.

4. UND Awarded Cybersecurity Grant

Congratulations to the UND College of Engineering and Mines for the award of $517,000 by the US Department of Energy to develop algorithms for a cybersecurity software tool! The software tool will aid in distributed energy resources (DER) securely participating in wholesale energy markets. Many new energy devices or even vehicle chargers are connected to the internet and require additional cybersecurity processes as they are added to power grids across the country.

5. Grand Forks Region To Host EDND 2024 Spring Conference

The Grand Forks region has been selected to host the 2024 EDND Spring Conference! The theme of ‘Elevate, Innovate, Celebrate’ provides an opportunity to showcase the many successes the region has achieved over the last several years, including the development of Grand Sky, the HIVE, Olive Ann Hotel, Franklin on Fourth, and the Beacon. The date has been set for April 30th – May 2nd and will take place at Cloud 9 with The Olive Ann as the host hotel. Stay tuned for more details!

6. Lund Attends Pentagon Meetings

President & CEO, Keith Lund, joined Mayor Bochenski and other Grand Forks region leaders who traveled to Washington DC November 12-14th for Pentagon meetings with the United States Airforce, Test Resource Management Center, and Space Development Agency leadership. The Grand Forks Air Force Base shared their strategic location and robust infrastructure for base retention and mission expansion purposes through these meetings with DoD leadership. The trip strengthened critical relationships that have served Grand Forks Air Force Base and Grand Sky well over the last several years. While in DC, the Grand Forks delegation joined community leaders from Minot and Fargo at the North Dakota National Guard reception at the National Guard Headquarters.

7. Hatcher Attends Midwest Site Selector Conference

Business Development Officer Kevin Hatcher traveled to Indianapolis from November 29th to December 1st for the Mid-America Economic Development Council’s (MAEDC) 2023 Fall Competitiveness Conference. The conference aims to provide resources and topics for Midwest regional economic development professionals and opportunities to learn and engage further on utilities, redevelopment, and site selection.

8. InternGF Funds Awarded

The InternGF Spring 2024 semester applications underwent review and approval in early November. A total of $26,949 was allocated to support 11 internships. Company awardees and their funded internships include:

322 Hospitality Group: Development Intern
Aethero: Flight Operations Intern
Alerus Center: Administrative and Events Intern
Ardent Datacenters: Datacenter Operator
Bifrost Manufacturing: Engineering Intern
Cirrus Aircraft: Manufacturing Intern
Construction Engineers Inc.: IT Intern
Fenworks: Software Development Intern
Grand Forks Growth and Support Center: Service Expansion Coordinator
Muskox, LLC: Accounting Intern
The Olive Ann Hotel: Hotel Operations Intern

Applications for Summer 2024 funding will open on January 1, 2024.

9. Inaugural Work Based Learning Committee Meeting

Grand Forks Public Schools was awarded funding to add a work-based learning coordinator position to its employment roster and hired Paul Zettler. GFPS established a work-based learning steering committee to increase apprenticeships, job shadowing, and high school internship opportunities for regional students. Director of Workforce Development Becca Cruger was asked to join the steering committee and attended the inaugural meeting on November 15th.

10. EDC Staff Lead in the Community

Cruger Appointed Chair for Recruitment & Retention Subcommittee of the Workforce Development Council

Director of Workforce Development Becca Cruger has been appointed as the Chair of the Recruitment & Retention Subcommittee for the Workforce Development Council.

West Named President of Evolve

Operations Specialist Bridget West was named the Board President of Evolve Grand Forks! As the President, West will lead and provide vision to the organization and its initiatives like The 701 Coworking Space, Grand Forks Entrepreneurial Ecosystem (GFEE), UpNext, and more.

Maliskey Appointed Social Events Chair of GGFYP

Marketing & Communications Manager Mark Maliskey has been appointed the Social Events Chair on the Board of Directors for Greater Grand Forks Young Professionals. As the chair, Maliskey will lead a committee that plans and executes social events on a monthly basis.