Bemidji MN

into the region’s forecast for employment needs. “We have educated and exported Bemidji’s talent for years, and this aims to stop that trend.” COMMERCIAL INVESTOR RECRUITMENT: BECOMING AN AVIATION HUB Understanding what advantages Bemidji offers compared to other municipalities and which industries will recognize the region’s competitive edge is crucial when planning corporate recruitment. The fallout from the COVID pandemic included the mass move to telecommuting and a dire need for broadband or anything data-related. Hengels acknowledges the amazing benefits Paul Bunyan Communications gives Bemidji. “Gary Johnson had the foresight to begin laying fiber a decade ago. That has been a plus for our remote workers and the companies that employ them for a long time.” As the wood basket of the upper Midwest, the district’s forests and sawmills create opportunities in wood product manufacturing, sawdust, bark residuals, and biochar. The thermal treatment of biomass materials like non-salvageable timber, slash, or animal manure produces biochar. Biochar’s diverse applications include water treatment, land reclamation, and carbon sequestration. These natural resources allow the city to not only enter the emerging world of bio-economy but to conquer it. Poor location, labor shortages, mismanagement, and other factors often limit midwestern airstrips’ growth 6 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 5, ISSUE 03