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The head of Minnesota’s Department of Natural Resources traveled from St. Paul to Luverne Tuesday night on a mission to promote outstate tourism.
“A lot of people don’t realize how beautiful prairies are,” said DNR Commissioner Tom Landwehr. “They have a very subtle beauty, and you don’t appreciate them until you get out in them and walk through them.”
At last fall’s Pheasant Opener, a Twin Cities media outlet quoted the commissioner as saying, “There’s nothing to do in southwest Minnesota other than pheasant hunting.”
The quote was taken out of context, but Landwehr since then has been defending his stance on tourism in outstate Minnesota.
Among his critics were Luverne and Rock County leaders, in addition to Luverne legislators Sen. Bill Weber and Rep. Joe Schomacker.
The result is the Commissioner’s Prairie Pedal Bicycle Tour of Southwest Minnesota July 29-31 that started in Luverne.
Outdoor recreation benefits regional economies
On the eve of the bike ride, Landwehr and more than a dozen DNR staffers joined local legislators and city and county leaders at a reception in the Brandenburg Gallery Tuesday.
It was a loosely organized “meet and greet” session, but on everybody’s agenda was outdoor recreation as it relates to economic development.
Commissioner Landwehr said he hoped to draw attention to three things with his trip to Luverne — the beauty of the prairie, outstate tourism and biking as an economic development tool.
“This part of the state is prairie,” Landwehr said, “and we have four different state parks and the Casey Jones Trail that bring attention to the prairie as an asset to the communities.”
He said bicycling is the best way to experience the outdoors, and he said communities can capitalize on bike trails as an economic development tool.
“Outdoor recreation is something millennials are looking for,” Landwehr said. “We have an opportunity to show how you can be a biker and show that southwest Minnesota is a great place to live.”
He said too often communities lose their young people to bigger communities because there isn't enough to keep them home, and outdoor recreation is one way to retain young professionals.
The Luverne Chamber and Convention and Visitors Bureau hosted the two-hour event, which included a meal of locally grown and prepared foods served with craft beer from Luverne’s Take 16 brewery.
In addition to Sen. Weber and Rep. Joe Schomacker, the gathering included local media, city and county leaders and local economic development partners.
DNR representatives and these local leaders talked about Luverne’s goals and objectives, including the Luverne LOOP, development of the Creamery Pond, Blue Mounds State Park, canoe/kayak access on the Rock River and several other issues under the supervision of the Minnesota DNR.
Landwehr thanked the local leaders and organizations for "pulling together" the Pedal through the Prairie, recognizing it's not easy to do.
"Biking will be the easy part," he said.
Landwehr himself is an avid biker and 10 years ago was a participant in the Minnesota Border to Border Triathlon that used to start in Luverne.
Lieutenant governor joins DNR commissioner on Prairie Pedal Bicycle Tour
Landwehr and his staff joined Minnesota Lieutenant Governor Tina Smith and more than a dozen others on Wednesday’s Prairie Pedal Bike Tour.
Smith said she had some specific reasons for traveling to Luverne and for joining the pedal tour.
“I’m really focused on economic development and how we can make the economy work for everyone,” Smith said.
“Besides the obvious joy of riding a bike, we’re promoting tourism as an economic value for the state.”
Smith said she’s an avid biker and has made it her personal goal to visit every state park in Minnesota.
The three-day 122-mile ride departed from Luverne Wednesday morning and included the Blue Mounds State Park, Touch the Sky Prairie, Split Rock Creek State Park, Pipestone, Lake Shetek, Camden State Park and Marshall High School.
Smith returned to Luverne after the bike tour Wednesday afternoon to meet with local leaders about economic development. Among the items discussed were broadband, prevailing wage and transportation.
Topics specific to Luverne included projects on the LIFT priority list, such as the LOOP bike trail, a campground and other local initiatives.
Smith heard about LIFT’s accomplishments, which have resulted in $5.5 million of local investment in projects such as the GrandStay Hotel, Sterling’s Café, Take 16 Brewery, the Warehouse and others.
She praised the community for its successes.
“Sometimes partnerships mean we’re happy to sit at the table while others do the work,” Smith said. “It takes heart, effort and money.”
She thanked community leaders for meeting with her. “It gets me thinking about what we can do from St. Paul to make it work better.”
Chamber Director Jane Wildung Lanphere said she was pleased with the two-day events with state leaders.
“It was a great opportunity for our community to meet with people in St. Paul who make decisions about our natural resources,” she said.
“It was a great opportunity to share the story of all the great things in large and small businesses that are happening in Luverne.”