• Mon. Aug 31 @ 10:00 a.m. | Entrepreneurship and Innovation
• Mon. Aug 31 @ 3:00 p.m. | Industry and Infrastructure 
• Tues. Sept 1 @ 10:00 a.m. | Placekeeping: Corridors and Culture
• Tues. Sept 1 @ 3:00 p.m. | Affordable Housing Development

• MNUFC and Allianz Field hosted the DJs 4 Just-Us Fundraiser on August 16. It was a big success! Funds raised during the performance were donated to the West Broadway Business and Area Coalition, We Love Lake Street, and We ❤ St. Paul/Midway fund. In addition, MNUFC is working on a separate fundraiser for We ❤ St. Paul/Midway fund based on the idea that Minnesota is, indeed, UNITED. Stand by for links to buy the patch the team will be wearing on their jerseys!

• Are you ready for some football? Vikings trying to get fans into the seats at U.S. Bank Stadium this season - probably not for opener From the Minneapolis Star Tribune, August 21: Vikings Vice President Lester Bagley said the team is in talks with Gov. Tim Walz and the state Department of Health to see if they can safely get fans into the enclosed stadium that hosted the 2018 Super Bowl and can seat more than 66,000.

• Median age remains 36.0 years old
• 7-day average positivity rate is 4.9%, stable from last week. As a reminder, state targets keeping this number under 15%, with an “immediate warning” risk level of over 5%. Our lowest was 3% in mid-June, highest was over 15% in late April.
• Growth rate in total testing volume is 7.8%, continues to outpace growth of new cases which is now at 6.8% week to week.
• Testing volume and hospitalization numbers remain stable.
• The State Fair: as part of their regular inspection process, MDH Environmental Health team recently conducted regular inspections at State Fairgrounds. Shout-out to fair operators: all went well for food safety and compliance with Gov EO. All had COVID preparedness plans, employees had masks, and all were screening employees.
• Sturgis: tests from Sturgis attendees identified 27 Minnesota cases, 1 requiring short term hospitalization and then release.
• Tomorrow is 1 month since mask mandate took effect. MDH originally had indicated we would know something within a month. Question from the press: what metrics are you using and have you seen any improvement? Malcolm: always challenging to attribute specific impacts. We know that social gatherings have continued to grow despite presence of mask mandate… we have seen a relative stabilization of the situation. Still seeing high volume of cases, but has been relatively stable. Some are due to increased testing, of course, which is one of our metrics, but that ratio has remained stable. Where we had been concerned a month ago, we are seeing a more stable situation than what we had been fearing.

• Mask distribution: still need masks? Contact a chamber near you; most of us have a limited number still available. Coordination for on-site pick-up at SPACC is through staci@saintpaulchamber.com.

• Hired to spur Minnesota’s economy, state jobs czar Steve Grove now striving to get it back on track From the St. Paul Pioneer Press, August 23: When Steve Grove became Minnesota’s state economic czar early last year, he inherited an economy with near-record-low unemployment and a bustling business scene. He envisioned leading a state mission to become a national leader in economic innovation… Then in March, the coronavirus pandemic hit. It has infected more than 65,000 Minnesotans, killing nearly 1,700 of them. The fallout closed thousands of businesses and threw hundreds of thousands of workers out of jobs… “What’s happening to our economy is nothing short of stunning,” Grove said in a recent interview. His focus quickly shifted to providing benefits to unemployed workers and “staving off disaster” for disrupted businesses.

• US SBA is offering a Small Business Management Series From the SBA:  The Minnesota District Office is continuing to hold virtual trainings to help small businesses and entrepreneurs understand the basics using the Money Smart series that was developed in partnership with the FDIC. September = Start Up Sessions. October = Building Business Skills Sessions. November = Business Management Sessions. Click on the links below for more information and join us in the months ahead to better understand the basics of business ownership.

• Minnesota among states with highest construction job losses From the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, August 21: Minnesota has lost 9,900 construction jobs due in large part to Covid-19, ranking as one of the states harder hit by the pandemic. With a decline of 7.7% in construction jobs over the past year, Minnesota ranks 12th out of 50 states and Washington, D.C., on job losses, according to data compiled by the Associated General Contractors of America. Minnesota had 128,800 construction workers a year ago and 118,900 at the end of July.

• Mayo Clinic turned profit in Q2 as many health providers lost big money From the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, August 21: The Mayo Clinic on Thursday reported second-quarter operating income of $154 million, only half the operating income the health provider had in the same period last year. But most health systems lost money during the same period as pandemic lockdowns forced clinics to close and hospitals to delay non-essential procedures and tests. Minneapolis-based Allina Health this week reported an operating loss of $85 million in the second quarter, while Minneapolis-based Fairview Health Services lost about $66 million; HealthPartners hasn't yet reported its second quarter financials.

• Delta says it will keep middle seats blocked for the rest of the year From the Minneapolis Star Tribune, August 20: Delta, the dominant carrier at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, said Thursday it will open up additional aisle and window seats and will allow families to book seats next to each other beginning Oct. 1.

• New coronavirus cases low enough that all MN schools can reopen, state report suggests From the St. Paul Pioneer Press, August 20: Schools in every part of Minnesota may be able to safely reopen at least 50 percent capacity, according to new county-level data on the coronavirus pandemic. State guidelines recommend school leaders first look at county-level case data when deciding whether to bring students back to school for in-person instruction.

• Minnesota's job growth slows in July as unemployment rate falls to 7.7% From the Minneapolis Star Tribune, August 20: The state added 32,500 jobs in July, a 1.2% increase, after a bigger rebound the month before, according to data released Thursday by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED).

• Minnesota’s unemployment rate drops; remains much higher for minority groups than whites From the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, August 20: Minnesota's unemployment rate continues to fall after peaking at 9.9% in May. The state added 32,500 jobs in July, bringing the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate to 7.7%, according to the Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED). The surge in jobs reflected the reopening of many businesses after a statewide stay-at-home order during the spring, but it's also a slowdown in growth from June. (Also, June's job-gain figure was revised downward, from about 84,000 to 74,700.)  Prior to the pandemic, Minnesota's unemployment rate was 3.1 percent. But DEED also noted that the unemployment pain hasn't been felt equally around the state. The jobless rate for Black Minnesotans was 15.3% in July, up from 6.3% in July 2019. The unemployment rate for Hispanic Minnesotans was 8.6% in July, up from 4.3% last year. White Minnesotans have an unemployment rate of 6.3%, up from 3.1% last year.

• What pandemic? Twin Cities home sales beating last year From the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, August 20: After a pandemic-induced slowdown this spring, the Twin Cities homes market has roared back to life over the summer, posting a a 10.3% spike in July in signed purchase agreements in July compared with the same month a year ago.

• See available SBA COVID-19 training here.
• For more on SBA programs for the coronavirus, please visit www.sba.gov/coronavirus.
• Minnesota Chamber’s COVID-19 Business Toolkit has a dedicated section for employment guidance that can help.