by David Hill
Editor

Compared to 10 peer cities in Minnesota, Thief River Falls ranked high in many key livability indicators, according to a new study released by Advance Thief River.
Last year, Michelle Landsverk, economic development consultant for Advance Thief River, said she wanted to develop a list of regional indicators that tracks Thief River Falls’ position in relation to similar Minnesota cities. She called the indicators an economic dashboard, which would look at important community, economic and social characteristics.

The importance of the dashboard cannot be understated. Landsverk said that with this data, community leaders can see how well the community is doing, and see what needs work. As the data is collected over the years, such information could also indicate trends.
Landsverk and others see this information as vital toward directing public policy decisions at the local government level.

In the study, Thief River Falls was compared to the cities of Crookston, Detroit Lakes, East Grand Forks, Fairmont, Fergus Falls, Grand Rapids, International Falls, Little Falls, Stewartville and Worthington. These cities have similar demographic and economic characteristics, locations, and demonstrate evidence of competition with Thief River Falls for business or talent and positive economic trajectory.
How does Thief River Falls rate?

According to the study, its households are least cost burdened. It ranks high in public safety (third overall). Its employees have to travel the fewest miles to work, and it has the highest number of households with high-speed broadband.

Some of the other key livability features include it has the second fewest obese citizens, it has the highest high school graduation rate, the highest number of students participating in enrichment activities, its eighth grade students rank fifth in math proficiency, and its monthly cost of childcare ranks sixth (two in full-time care at $638).

When it comes to income and cost of living, the median household income of $43,946 in Thief River Falls ranks seventh in the grouping. It ranks third among communities with workers earning $40,000 or more per year, ranks fifth with its median rent paid of $622, and fourth best when looking at the number of people who live below poverty.

When looking at its labor force and diversity, the community ranks ninth in the percent of workers with some college education, second in labor force participation, and fifth in diversity (people of color – 10.2%).

When asked about the low number of workers with some college education (52%), Landsverk said they believe the community has a lot of good paying jobs that do not require a lot of education. This conclusion seems supported by data regarding labor force participation (84%), poverty rate (12.1% living below poverty level) and number of workers earning $40,000 or more per year (38.6%).

Landsverk said they didn’t include the rankings of the other communities in the report because they would rather local leaders focus on the community of Thief River Falls and its citizens.

Yes, the community ranks high on many key livability features, but there is room for improvement.

Data for the report came from Minnesota Compass, and its data was sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau, Decennial Census, American Community Survey; Minnesota Demographic Center; Minnesota Departments of Education, Health, Human Services and Public Safety; Minnesota Center for Health Statistics; Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment; Minnesota Student Survey; U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Minnesota Department of Public Safety; and the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.

Landsverk said the study was put together by a task force that included Mike Barry, Antonio Franklin, Nathan Haase, Michelle Landsverk, Beth Nelson and Diedre Nordin, and was funded by Advance Thief River.

j\In addition to the findings of the study, the report released recently reminds area residents of a few other top rankings:
• Thief River Falls ranked 31st on “America’s 50 Best Cities to Live In” (USA Today).
• Northland Commun-ity and Technical College ranked #5 on “Best Community Colleges in the U.S. (WalletHub.com)
• Thief River Falls School District ranked #3 on “Safest School Districts in Minnesota (Niche.com)
• Thief River Falls Regional Airport is third busiest cargo shipping airport in Minnesota (FAA).