At the 2024 Olympics in Paris, there are a total of 329 events among 32 different sports, all taking place over about two weeks. The United States has a total of 529 athletes representing across nearly every event.

 

One sport in particular is BMX Cycling, which will feature St. Cloud's own Alise (Post) Willoughby. Willoughby, who's home track is St. Cloud's Pineview Park BMX, has competed in three Olympics already, taking home a silver in 2016. She will take to the track for her fourth Olympic appearance on August 1st and 2nd, and you are invited to cheer on this local star! 

• August 1: Quarterfinals
  Heat 1 at 1:20, Heat 2 at 2pm, Heat 3 at 2:40
• August 2: Semifinals and Final
  Heat 1 at 1:15, Heat 2 at 1:45, Heat 3 at 2:15
  FINALS: 2:50

NEXT - Chamber's Young Professionals meets monthly from noon to 1pm, with networking, professional development, business tours and more. Register now to attend Visitor's Day on August 13th!

Business After Hours is on Tuesday, August 13th hosted by Switchboard! Come anytime between 4:30 and 6:30pm, there is no need to register. Expect networking and refreshments while you learn more about Switchboard.

Here are a few more important dates to put on your calendar, but don't forget to check out our full events calendar for even more.

With the goal of keeping you informed and up to date, these news bites feature local, regional and national news items that relate to the business community in Central Minnesota.

 

LOCAL

St. Cloud BID moves forward. After a lengthy public hearing, the plan to create a Business Improvement District for downtown St. Cloud has received initial approval from the St. Cloud City Council. What does that mean?

 

Local road construction project updates: This newsletter from MNDOT highlights the latest news and updates concerning local road construction projects. Check it out here. 

 

St. Cloud Residents Invited to Neighborhood Kickoff Meeting July 31st. Starting with a July 31st kick-off, residents can meet with community stakeholders to discuss strengths, assets and challenges. There will also be a discussion surrounding how everyone can help create positive change. More dates are scheduled in other neighborhoods, learn more.

 

Minnesota's largest employers - how St. Cloud ranks. Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal released a list of MN's largest employers. CentraCare ranked 13th in the state with 11,363 employees, and Coborn's came in 22nd with 6,500 employees. Other organizations with St. Cloud ties on the list include the State of MN, US Postal Service, Xcel Energy, Target, Walmart, MN State Education, US Bank, Wells Fargo, Lunds & Byerlys, and Northern Tool, among many others. View the full list behind a paywall here.

 

STATE & NATIONAL

The State of Minnesota offers a tax credit to eligible taxpayers to encourage investment in affordable housing throughout Minnesota. The credit is equal to 85% of the amount contributed by the taxpayer to the Minnesota Housing tax credit contribution account during the taxable year. You can even choose which project you'd like your contribution to go towards! Learn more

 

MN Labor Law Revisions: Employers and workers should know about updates to labor laws that might affect your workplace, including law changes that go into effect Aug. 1. Learn more

 

Minnesota jobs metrics tick down, but remain high. The state’s unemployment rate ticked up one-tenth of a percentage point to 2.9% from May to June, and the labor force participation rate ticked down two-tenths of a percentage point to 67.8% over the month, according to numbers released today by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development. Learn more

 

Your legislators voted for... The Minnesota Chamber tracks hundreds of bills during each legislative session and scores votes on bills or amendments that illustrate this impact. Check out the votes were cast in the 2023 and 2024 legislative sessions here.

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25 Year Anniversary

• Monticello Area Chamber of Commerce
• Saint Benedict's Monastery 

APEX (Advisory Peer Exchange) Groups are an opportunity for ambitious professionals to cultivate meaningful, trusted relationships with peers at similar stages and paths in their careers.

MEET monthly and develop lasting relationships with your fellow group members. 

GROW your skills as a manager, business owner and professional within your industry. 

ENGAGE in confidential discussions, share business challenges, and questions and get advice.

CONNECT with professionals at similar levels in their careers to address questions and share ideas. 

Groups are created based on professionals job level and industry. For example. there might be a group of HR professionals, business owners, or mid-level managers. Groups will decide when and how often to meet - monthly is recommended. During each meeting, group members will present questions or challenges they are facing and engage in honest, confidential discussion with each other.

 

This is an opportunity to grow your professional network and receive valuable feedback toward the success of your company. Not sure if it's for you? Let's chat!

APEX Groups will officially launch in January, 2025. If you are interested in joining a group, please email Laura and you will be contacted regarding next steps.

All responses are confidential. To maintain confidentiality, please do not include any self-identifying information in any comments. If you get this survey from multiple sources, please respond to the survey only once.

St. Cloud Area Chamber of Commerce

1411 West Saint Germain Street, ste. 101

St. Cloud, Minnesota, 56301

 

320-251-2940

StCloudAreaChamber.com