From the CEO: November 6, 2024

As I write this article, the Presidential election already has been called in favor of President-Elect Trump. I do think it was best for our country that the presidential race results were clear cut to spare us from protracted litigation and more divisiveness. I was also impressed with how smoothly the election was conducted. Kudos to the election workers across the country that worked so hard to deliver a free and fair election.

Congratulations go out to Rep. Shannon Zimmerman on his re-election to the State Assembly and Reps. Derrick Van Orden and Tom Tiffany on their re-election to the US House. Congratulations to Sen. Rob Stafsholt in his re-election to the State Senate in District 10 which represents the River Falls area. I also want to thank outgoing Sen. Jeff Smith and Rep. Warren Patryk for their service to our region. Both no longer represent the River Falls area due to re-districting. Lastly, congratulations to my colleague Rob Kreibich from the New Richmond Chamber of Commerce who won election to the State Assembly as well. It will be nice to have a voice in state government that understands the value of chambers of commerce.

Elections are a lot of work, but governing is even harder. At the State and Federal level, affordable housing, talent attraction, harnessing the power of AI, immigration and global trade will dominate economic development policy discussions as we move forward. The Chamber of Commerce stands ready to provide timely information to you to keep you informed including participating in St. Croix Valley Legislative Day, scheduling interviews with our elected officials and regularly sending our Government Relations newsletter.

The early results of the recent membership survey are already helping the staff and Board of Directors to consider future programming. 

I will go into more detail in a future edition of this newsletter, but a couple of items already stand out. The number one issue for our members who replied to the survey is attracting and retaining talent. We look forward to rolling out more programing focusing on workforce in the coming weeks.

The Chamber is also receiving strong support for our strategic goal of being the Voice of Business and advocating on behalf of business with our like-minded partners.



Whether you were happy or disappointed about the results of election day, let us all remember real change happens at the local level, a place where we can strengthen our business community by working together regardless of our political leanings. We are ready to roll up our sleeves and we hope you join us