“Manufacturing has evolved and certainly has helped as a foundation, but there are other parts of our community that have helped, as a whole, to round out the equation,” exclaims Kellie Roth, Head of HR for Polaris’ Roseau Operations. “Along with that have come other opportunities for our community and infrastructure. For example, we’ve got great healthcare provided by a regional hospital and clinic to help support the community.” Roth is referring to LifeCare Medical Center, which employs another 450 people in its main critical access hospital in Roseau and throughout its various other medical and care services throughout Roseau County. ROSEAU’S BUSINESSES EXPAND THEIR ROLES “There’s a sense of civic responsibility in the city that runs strong,” Roth explains. “At Polaris, we step in to support the community, more so, maybe, than a typical manufacturer in a larger metropolitan area might. For example, years ago, it was recognized that we needed help to bridge the down payment assistance gap for someone interested in building or buying a home because we were offering solid-paying jobs in the area and several could afford mortgage payments, but people needed a little help to save up that money for the down payment. So, employers throughout the county, as well as the City of Roseau, came together to pool funds and created the Roseau County Affordable Housing Fund that, to this day, is helping people get into homes with down payment assistance.” Another example of local businesses thinking outside the box in Roseau was their financial support of the Eleven01, a 37-unit apartment building that opened for occupancy in 2022. “Housing is an issue because we don’t have a big population center nearby we can draw from, typically, businesses are recruiting from other areas and you need places for those people to live,” Peterson notes. The problem in Roseau is that the private sector isn’t very interested in developing housing because the payback takes so long. “We were unable to find 45 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 5, ISSUE 03 ROSEAU, MN
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