Commissioners voted 4-0 to approve a three-year professional services agreement with Ehlers and Associates for project management and development analysis consulting, focused on the South Loop district. Staff described it as a single-supplier contract capped at $200,000, with set hourly rates that rise slightly each year and terms that let either party terminate at any time. Staff said the agreement closely mirrors the previous contract, and Baker Tilly will remain the authority's municipal advisor.
Decided: The Port Authority approved a 3-year contract, capped at $200,000, with Ehlers and Associates for development consulting, mainly for South Loop projects; either side can end it at any time.
Result: Approved, 4 to 0, by voice vote
The meeting video doesn't make clear how each member voted. The city posts official voting results once the minutes are approved.
In a business retention, expansion and attraction presentation, staff said Bloomington received 13 site-selection requests last year and six so far this year through Greater MSP and the state employment and economic development department, and responded to about half. Most requests were for manufacturing space, but 71% of the city's industrial and flex buildings (179 buildings) were built before 1980, and most fall short of modern ceiling heights. Industrial occupancy stands at about 96%, with roughly 1.9 million square feet available across 41 buildings and nothing over 500,000 square feet. Land requests ranged from 5 to 250 acres; staff noted the Kelly Farm site totals nearly 60 acres but only about half is developable.
Staff reported that Bloomington's 20 largest employers employ about 29,000 workers, nearly a third of the city's workforce, with the Mall of America making retail, transportation and utilities the largest sector among them. Evernorth, Justin's and Cushman & Wakefield joined the list this year. Eight of the top employers grew, eight shrank and three held steady; staff said the declines reflected unfilled positions rather than companies leaving the city. Hotel staff estimates were dropped from this year's list because they are difficult to count.
The mayor urged the Port Authority to consider again strategically buying and consolidating land for redevelopment. The mayor cited the former Interstate Diesel property that became the SICK site as proof of concept and said regional leaders call available land the key to attracting employers. Another commissioner cautioned against being too aggressive, noting that small, older industrial buildings, including those along Pillsbury Avenue, serve start-up, landscaping and automotive businesses. Staff said a survey of city-owned and vacant land is underway, and commissioners also raised burying power lines in TIF areas and placing use restrictions on acquired land as possible tools.
Staff reported that the City Council approved the Port Authority's preliminary levy the night before, along with the city and HRA levies, and the figures will go to Hennepin County. Staff said the amount sets a ceiling, and the authority can lower but not raise it before final adoption later in the cycle. No dollar figure was stated at the meeting.
Decided: Staff reported that the City Council had approved the Port Authority's preliminary tax levy ceiling the night before; the Port Authority took no vote, and the final levy can still be set lower.
Staff said two Port Authority commissioner positions will be open this appointment cycle, and sitting members who want to continue must reapply. Upcoming events include a Bloomington Economic Partnership meeting on local and small-business procurement with speakers from the city, Greater MSP, the Metropolitan Airports Commission and Hennepin County. A business forum for companies of all sizes is set for Oct. 7, and a brokers breakfast is planned for October.
Staff announced that Barb Wolf of the city's economic development team will receive the Karen Evans Immigration Champion Award at the Immigrant Entrepreneur Summit for work supporting immigrant-owned businesses in Bloomington. The award will be presented at a ceremony in November. Staff also noted that the city's placemaking program is marking 10 years.
Sept. 16 · Meeting
The Bloomington Economic Partnership's quarterly meeting was set to cover local and small-business purchasing, with speakers from the city, Greater MSP, the Metropolitan Airports Commission and Hennepin County. We haven't confirmed it was held.
Sept. 21 · Meeting
A gathering for City Council members and volunteer commissioners was set for 6 to 8 p.m. We haven't confirmed it was held.
October 2026 · Meeting
Port Authority staff planned a brokers breakfast for commercial real estate brokers. We haven't confirmed a date or that it was held.
Oct. 7 · Meeting
The 2026 Bloomington Business Forum was scheduled for 8 to 10 a.m. at Civic Plaza, on input for the city's next 20 years of economic development planning. We haven't seen a recap confirming it took place.
Oct. 20 · Meeting
Next regular Port Authority meeting, at 5:15 p.m.
November 2026 · Meeting
Barb Wolf of the city's small-business team is to receive the Karen Evans Immigration Champion Award at a November ceremony for her work with immigrant-owned businesses.
Dec. 31 · Deadline
Terms for Commissioners Rob Lunz and Cecilio Santana end. Staff said two commissioner seats open this cycle and current members must reapply to stay.
No date yet · Follow-up
The City Council approved the Port Authority's preliminary 2027 levy on Sept. 14, and it goes to the county. Staff said the Port Authority will set its final levy later this year and can lower it from the preliminary amount, which works as a ceiling.
No date yet · Follow-up
City staff plan a survey of vacant and city-owned land to see what could be redeveloped.
What was asked, what the room said, and what the public record answers. Times are from the captions and approximate.
Asked by Commissioner Hunt
In the room
Staff said the drops came from positions left unfilled, not relocations. Staff said a company that left Bloomington wouldn't be on the list at all, and that it tracks which employers move, why and how much space they take.
What the record says
The city's 2025 financial report shows the shift but not the reasons. Its top 10 employers have 23,189 workers, 26% of the city's jobs, down from 24,748 and 28% in 2016. Mall of America tenants fell from 13,000 to 11,000, while Evernorth roughly doubled to 1,309.
Asked by A commissioner
In the room
Staff said companies needing tall, modern buildings mostly won't find them here, though the city once worked with an owner willing to tear down a building to land a user. Staff said Bloomington's edge is being near the airport, I-494 and the interstates, and put industrial occupancy at 96%.
What the record says
Still open. The 96% occupancy figure was given only in the room; the city's 2026 Assessing Report doesn't publish a vacancy rate. It does say industrial values fell a net 2.1% this year, across 302 parcels worth $1.33 billion.
Asked by Mayor Tim Busse
In the room
Busse said available land is the key to landing employers and that assembling sites worked for SICK on the old Interstate Diesel land. A commissioner cautioned that small, older buildings are cheap homes for growing businesses. Staff said colleagues will survey city-owned and vacant land, and that staff is also working on a strategy for the city's commercial nodes.
What the record says
Still open. No survey or site list has been published. State law lets the Port Authority buy property from other public bodies and, with City Council approval, issue bonds to pay for it. The SICK campus was built on 14 acres of city-owned land: the Alpha Site parcels plus three Interstate Diesel properties.
Asked by A commissioner
In the room
The idea was to rule out competing uses and remove uncertainty for a buyer. No one answered directly; the room agreed it was worth more discussion.
What the record says
State law already requires it when the Port Authority sells. The sale terms must spell out the buyer's allowed use, and the deed carries it as a covenant that runs with the land. The buyer has a year to put the land to that use, and the sale needs a public hearing with published notice.
Asked by A commissioner
In the room
Another member answered that the city was readying the land for its next use, not for one company, and that SICK came from several things lining up over a long time.
What the record says
The record backs that up. A Port Authority project sheet says the parcels were already city-owned when SICK began a site search in 2018. A 2020 agreement lets SICK build in up to four phases, with more than 500,000 square feet planned by 2035.
