Leaders to Lobby Lawmakers for Downtown Investment During St. Cloud Day at the Capitol

(KNSI) – Local leaders will lobby lawmakers in St. Paul on Tuesday for the annual St. Cloud Day at the Capitol.

Around 75 members of central Minnesota’s business, education, government, health, industry and nonprofit community will attend the event. The St. Cloud Area Chamber of Commerce is the sponsor. President Julie Lunning was a guest of KNSI’s Dan “The Ox” Ochsner and told him there’d be a focus on gaining support for a $100 million bonding request to invest downtown. “[We need to] make sure that we’re talking about what that project entails and what our plans are for downtown. I think that’s a really big price tag. And it’s been a little hard, I think, for everybody to kind of wrap their heads around exactly what this means. But that’ll be a big topic of discussion.”

Lunning would also like legislators to hear how mandates from the Minnesota Paid Family and Medical Leave Act are hurting Main Street stores. The law will require a payroll tax of 0.7% on employee earnings. The bill takes effect on January 1st, 2026. Combined with the Minnesota Earned Sick and Safe Leave Act, workers could take up to 24 weeks a year off to care for a family member or take care of mental health issues. Chamber members say the usual suspects, such as childcare, finding workers, and housing, will also be hot topics.

The contingent of chamber members from St. Cloud will meet with them from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at the Radisson in St. Paul. Lunning hopes many lawmakers can make it. “We really hope that all committee leadership in the House and Senate join us, and they’re really good at hearing our voices and coming by. We really encourage those that are in control in the House and Senate to come and see us.”

She says they usually get around 30 legislators to stop by. This week is the committee deadline. All bills need to be heard in committee by the end of this week to be eligible to advance in 2024.

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