[ST. PAUL, MN] – Governor Tim Walz today visited Hibbing and Chisholm to highlight state investments on the Iron Range. Governor Walz first visited Detroit Diesel Remanufacturing, a Hibbing company expanding and investing in the electric vehicle industry. Governor Walz also visited the construction site of the new Chisholm Public Safety Center, a project funded through the infrastructure package signed into law last session.

“This year we’ve invested millions in the safety and economic vitality of communities like the Range,” said Governor Walz. “By supporting business expansion projects and funding local public safety departments, we’re creating good-paying, family-sustaining jobs and building strong communities across the state.”

Detroit Diesel Remanufacturingcontinues to grow and thrive on the Iron Range. Theyrecently constructed a 60,000-square-foot addition to its Range Regional Airport campus in Hibbing. The added space will be used to remanufacture electric vehicle batteries, repair and upgrade microchips, and manufacture other hybrid-electric products. The expansion is expected to create 18 new good-paying jobs. The state supported this project with a $500,000 infrastructure grant and $10 million loan through the Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation (IRRR).

Governor Walz also invested $20 million over the next two years in a program that will prepare Minnesotans to enter five of the most critical occupational categories in the state with high-growth jobs and family-sustaining wages: technology, caring professions, education, manufacturing, and trades.

This spring, Governor Walz signed the state’s largest-ever infrastructure bill into law, which will create good-paying jobs, invest in the state’s roads and bridges, and bring long-term benefits to communities across the state. The infrastructure package included $3 million for a new Chisholm Public Safety Center, which will house Chisholm’s police, fire, and ambulance services. The new building is expected to be complete in 2024.