Nov. 6 -- BEMIDJI -- The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development is offering $4.68 million through its final round of the Main Street Economic Revitalization Program.

Organizations eligible to submit proposals for the grant funding, as partner organizations, include foundations engaged in economic development, community development financial institutions and nonprofit organizations engaged in housing and commercial development, a release said.

Elected partner organizations will use the awarded grant funds to establish funding programs that provide assistance for eligible recipients and projects that support community and economic development within one or more defined commercial corridors or main street districts.

Once approved, community businesses and organizations eligible to receive funding from these partner organizations can use those awards for property repair or renovation, building construction, landscaping and street scaping, demolition and site preparation, predesign and design, engineering, non-publicly owned infrastructure and related site amenities, explained the release.

"Our main streets are key local and regional economic growth drivers," DEED Commissioner Matt Varilek said in the release. "Grants and loans from previous Main Street Economic Revitalization Program grant rounds helped create jobs and spark investment in key commercial corridors across Minnesota."

According to the release, more than 600 individual projects have been approved with $696 million in matching funds through previous rounds of the program.

from the program to distribute to area businesses in 2022.

The application deadline is 4 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 22. DEED will select and announce the partner organizations in January 2025.

To apply, visit