Granite Falls receives $750,000 DEED grant after power plant closes

The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) on Thursday announced the City of Granite Falls will be receiving three-quarters of a million dollars in grant funding to support economic development after a fossil fuel power plant was closed.

Granite Falls received the $750,000 grant from DEED’s Community Energy Transition Grant program, which helps communities around Minnesota plan for and manage the economic and social impact of a local power plant’s closure.

Granite Falls plans to use grant funding to improve local water main access, a project that will help the town provide a stable water utility to 25 new housing development lots and a new community hospital, and support businesses in the city’s industrial park. DEED’s grant will support the city’s long-term economic development strategy to grow the tax base and create new jobs after a power plant closed there in 2009.

“The Community Energy Transition Grant is critical for helping communities such as ours move forward after energy plant closure impacts,” said Granite Falls City Manager Crystal Johnson. “Specifically with Granite Falls, this funding will assist the city by installing much needed utility infrastructure to help new and existing businesses within our community. The City of Granite Falls values the partnership with DEED and the award from the Community Energy Transition Grant program.”

Lawmakers provided DEED with $10 million for the Energy Transition Grant program over the 2024-25 biennium. DEED will open additional grant rounds in the months ahead.