The Status of St. Cloud

Some observers believe that it’s only a matter of time before the St. Cloud and Twin Cities metropolitan areas merge, as the proposed Northstar commuter rail line fuels development along the I-94 corridor. In the future, St. Cloud may see more of its companies set up operations closer to the Twin Cities and more of its residents commute to higher-paying, more plentiful jobs in the larger metropolitan area.

But that vision overlooks a new reality—namely, the renewed vitality and resilience of St. Cloud’s own economy. The city’s robust business climate, availability of tax incentives, and other assets continue to draw interest from businesses and investors around the country—including many in the Twin Cities—and have helped spur the growth of the city’s companies. With five area higher-education institutions providing a large supply of knowledge workers, an abundant and affordable supply of industrial and commercial land, attractive leasing options in newly-constructed office and retail space downtown, a growing population, and an expanded regional airport, St. Cloud seems in no immediate danger of losing its independent economic identity.

Mixing it Up

The strength of St. Cloud’s economy can be attributed in part to its mix of traditional businesses and a burgeoning group of small professional and business services, technology, and manufacturing companies. The area’s major employers include the likes of Cold Spring Granite, Inc., St. Cloud Hospital, Sweden-based appliance company Electrolux, Gold’n Plump Poultry, Minnesota state government, and St. Cloud State University. But the region also has proven fertile ground for start-ups, leading Entrepreneur magazine in the past to name St. Cloud one of the nation’s top 10 mid-sized cities for small business, owing largely to its diversity of small manufacturers—companies spawned to support larger area businesses—and track record of entrepreneurial success.

It’s that business diversity that helped St. Cloud withstand the haymaker delivered by Fingerhut Company when its operations were closed there in 2002, resulting in the loss of an estimated 4,500 area jobs. Many of the losses were indirect as other local companies saw their business trail off with Fingerhut’s closure. Local economists and businesspeople say the region has bounced back nicely in the intervening four years.

“St. Cloud has been largely recession proof, primarily because we are no longer dependent on just one or two large industries but a lot of mid-size or smaller business, those employing anywhere from 25 to 1,000 people,” says Allen Bright, a broker for Meyer Commercial, a full-service commercial real estate firm in St. Cloud.