Recently, Becker, Big Lake, and Sherburne County all welcomed new economic developers to their staff teams. Renee Regel joined the city of Becker, Therese Haffner joined Big Lake, and Jessica Barthel joined with Sherburne County. 

The three new EDs sat down to talk about the future of economic growth in the county, and what some of their goals were in the coming years, as well as their backgrounds and reasons for seeking their new jobs.

Becker

Renee Regel is the new economic developer for Becker. She grew up in Blaine and graduated college at St. Cloud State University. She later settled down in Becker, where she and her family have lived for many years. Regel had a long career in banking, but decided to use her skills and connections she gained in that field to serve her community. She said she genuinely has a passion for people. She also was driven to help her own home community, rather than commuting to another.

Big Lake 

Therese Haffner started as the new economic developer for Big Lake only three weeks ago. She grew up in Albany and also graduated from St. Cloud State University with a degree in Public Administration. During her 16 years of experience, she has worked with several cities, including Becker, Sartell, and, most recently, St. Joseph, where she was the city administrator. Haffner’s goal as economic developer is to guide new businesses coming to the city and to continue to work and maintain good relationships with the existing businesses. 

Sherburne County

Jessica Barthel joined Sherburne County as the economic developer in June. Barthel grew up in Elk River and graduated from Big Lake High School. For many years, she worked as a nursing assistant for Guardian Angels, then as a stay-at-home mom. She earned her degree in Business Administration from Metropolitan State University (with a minor in human resource management.) She used the skills learned in pursuing her degree at Guardian Angels once again, as the manager of Pullman Place Cooperative, before deciding to make the shift to be the economic developer for the county. Barthel was attracted to the position as an opportunity to grow her career while staying close to home and serving her community. She believes that the skills and ties she has made working in the community for so many years will make her very effective in her new position. 

Upcoming Projects

All three economic developers are looking forward to taking on new projects in the near future. Haffner noted that she will bring back Business Retention and Expansion visits, where she and the Big Lake EDA will be visiting local businesses to find out what they need and how the city can best serve them. She also hopes to find opportunity for growth and continue to value the businesses of Big Lake. 

Regel said that while there’s a lot of attention directed at Xcel Energy and the Sherco plant in Becker right now, she will be making an effort to concentrate on the other businesses of Becker as well. She will be seeking feedback from businesses around the city on what their needs are. 

Barthel plans to work closely with the economic development authority, and rely on the diverse backgrounds of that county group to find how she can best use her skills to accomplish the county’s goals.

Haffner noted that all areas of the county, cities and rural areas, will have different needs. The goal of the three EDs is to listen to the needs of the residents and businesses to guide growth moving forward.

Engagement

The new EDs will be relying on feedback from local citizens to guide their work. There are a few different ways residents can interact with economic growth.

Barthel said the county is currently looking for feedback on their region 7W strategy, which is a growth plan encompassing several counties. Anyone is welcome to read the plan and mail comments to Barthel. More information can be found at Co.Sherburne.mn.us/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=380.

Haffner noted that there are EDA board meetings regularly, and these meetings are open to the public for those interested in having an impact on economic growth. Residents can also watch out for openings on the boards for their opportunity to serve, or can choose to run for office. And, of course, residents are always welcome to speak at public hearings to voice their opinions.

Regel said that she, and the other EDs, are always open to conversations with the public as well. She also noted that the best way to make an impact on economic growth is to make opinions heard during the planning stage, as it’s much easier to modify a plan at that time.