DMC’s November Sustainability Series: Sketchbox – Simplified and Free Energy Modeling Tool
What: Destination Medical Center (DMC) Monthly Sustainability Series
When: Wednesday, November 16, 2022, 12-1 p.m.
Where: Viewable by webinar only. Join the presentation here.
Details: Join us for an interactive presentation by Slipstream, a mission-driven nonprofit organization, that recently launched a free version of its simplified energy modeling tool—Sketchbox.
If you’re not familiar with energy modeling, it is a software-based tool that architects, engineers and building operators use to make accurate energy-saving decisions on new and existing buildings. A user creates the initial building using an energy code baseline and then re-simulates the building using various energy conservation measures. Sketchbox can also be used to identify energy savings for existing buildings and retrofits.
OUR PRESENTER Ben Heymer
Slipstream—Director of Engineering, Chicago Ben leads a team of energy engineers focused on decarbonizing the built environment. He is an experienced engineering consultant, designer, researcher, and energy modeler. He leads technical assistance and program design for energy efficiency programs and builds tools to help owners and designers focus on high-impact solutions.
About the DMC Sustainability Series
The DMC Sustainability Series is a monthly seminar sponsored by Destination Medical Center and the City of Rochester. The purpose is to introduce sustainability concepts and best practices for everyone to consider. The series is held virtually the third Wednesday of every month at noon.
At the November 10, 2022 meeting, the Destination Medical Center Corporation (DMCC) Board of Directors commended the process the City of Rochester and Rochester City Park Board have undertaken in working toward an equitable, sustainable, inclusive final design. The Rochester Parks Board adopted the Short-Term Soldiers Field Master Plan at their October 4, 2022 meeting.
There are several key features within the 2022 Soldiers Field Master Plan that align with the DMC Development Plan
Continues to define Soldiers Field Memorial Park as an anchor and signature public space of the Education and Recreation Sub-district.
Equitably designed spaces that are created with the specific needs of users.
Provides a welcoming and inclusive park for a growing and diverse community.
Incorporating sustainable design practices.
“We have a great opportunity with this project, the Riverfront, and key infrastructure, most notably Discovery Walk to differentiate us from our competitors,” said board member R.T. Rybak. “I strongly support putting funds into this project and making sure the City and Destination Medical Center are in alignment on how this incredible redesigned asset connects to Discovery Walk and the Riverfront.”
An update on the Main Street Economic Revitalization grant program was also provided to the board. To date, funding has been awarded to 36 different projects for a total award of $2.01 million with an average award of $56,000. 42% of the awardees are Black, Indigenous, and/or People of Color (BIPOC), woman-owned/led, and or/veteran-owned businesses.
The board also received an update on DMC’s equitable economic development strategies. DMC EDA staff members Kevin Bright and Wafa Elkhalifa were joined by Chao Mwatela, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Director Chao for the City of Rochester, and Dee Sabol, Executive Director of the Diversity Council to highlight this collaborative effort by the Rochester community toward ensuring that everyone in Rochester is included in the economic prosperity associated with the DMC initiative.
“This is what sets DMC apart from many other economic development initiatives; the buy-in from the DMC team and our partners,” said board member Brooke Carlson. “This is a collective community responsibility. It takes engagement and partnership across so many different sectors and representatives and leaders in our community as well as those living and breathing and experiencing the inequities in our community to come together. Thank you for setting the gold standard for how we do our work at the City and DMC through this co-design process and being the catalyst for how this work can be done across the state and across the country.”
The next DMCC Board meeting is set for Thursday, February 2, 2023 at 9:30 a.m.
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About DMC
Destination Medical Center (DMC) is the largest public-private economic initiative in Minnesota’s history. The 20-year plan to transform Rochester into a global destination for health and wellness will attract developers, investors, startups, and entrepreneurs to live, work and play in America’s City for Health. For more information, visit dmc.mn.
The City of Rochester and Destination Medical Center Economic Development Agency are holding two in-person “Meet the Station Artists” events on Wednesday, November 2 and Thursday, November 3. The in-person events will provide basic information on Link Rapid Transit and will introduce the community to plans for integrating public art into the transit stations. The six artists will highlight their respective conceptual designs based on input collected during previously held community stakeholder sessions.
The events will be an opportunity for members of the community to ask questions of the project staff and artists, as well as share their concerns and aspirations for their neighborhood and for how the art will be represented in transit.
The two events are:
Meet the Station Artists – Open House #1 Wednesday, November 2, 6:30 pm-8:30 pm
Riverside Central Elementary School, inside the cafeteria
506 5th Ave. SE, Rochester, MN
Poster boards with project details and artists’ conceptual designs will be available.
Light refreshments will be provided. Parking is available.
Meet the Station Artists – Open House #2 Thursday, November 3, 11 am-1 pm
Café Aquí
1811 2nd St SW Suite B, Rochester, MN 55902
Poster boards with project details and artists’ conceptual designs will be available.
Light refreshments will be provided. Parking is available.
Link Rapid Transit is a generational investment in Rochester’s public transit infrastructure, which promises to deliver an entirely new level of service and rider experience to the Rochester Community. The 2.6-mile bus rapid transit (BRT) line will provide high-capacity transit along 2nd Street and 3rd Avenue SE, and is expected to begin service in 2026.
With the newly unveiled mural Sol Flowers by local artist Jenna Whiting on display, the Rochester community gathered in a most unlikely spot for Destination Medical Center’s 2022 Annual Meeting. At the corner of 1st Avenue and 1st Street Southeast, guests enjoyed music from local duo True North, food from The Duck Truck and Infuzn, and a perfect southeast Minnesota evening. DMC partner organizations lined the tunnel next to the railroad tracks, showcasing the myriad ideas and activities that make downtown Rochester a vibrant, welcoming environment.
The location may have seemed unusual at first – located next to three parking ramps and an undeveloped city block – but, as DMC Executive Director Patrick Seeb described, it’s at the nexus of several potential development sites, as well as a future extension of the Heart of the City, connecting Peace Plaza with the Mayo Civic Center and the Zumbro River. “That is the conversation we want to begin tonight is thinking about the future of this site, thinking about the public realm potential of 1st Street connecting the downtown to Mayo Civic Center,” said Seeb.
Reasons for Optimism
DMC EDA President Dr. Clark Otley spoke about the continued optimism for the future of DMC and Rochester. He pointed to the continued expansion of the Mayo Clinic Downtown campus with the Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Building and Proton Beam facility expansion, as well as the completion of Two Discovery Square as reasons for enthusiasm. “When we think of facilities, we think about building world-class facilities for world-class doctors and researchers and nurses and technicians for patients from across the world who have the toughest diseases in the world,” stated Otley.
Dr. Otley shined a spotlight on another significant project. “Earlier this year, we opened up the Peace Plaza to a renewed, beautiful state,” he noted. “Those of you that made it down through the summer saw little kids stomping in water, families having fun… It’s a really beautiful space.” He also prefaced the excitement of Discovery Walk construction as it will connect Peace Plaza to Soldiers Field Memorial Park.
The Riverfront presents another area for optimism. “It’s going to be an opportunity to be a legacy for our community,” he continued. “DMC has been a very good partner with the City, the County, and lots of other agencies, to do a community discovery process to really get input. What does that mean for us? What can we make that space into really speaks to our vision as a community? A community that is focused on health and equity and diversity and sustainability moving forward.”
Capacity Building
Mayor Kim Norton spoke about the importance of ensuring all members of our community participate in the prosperity of the DMC initiative. “Not only are we designing and building the infrastructure necessary for Rochester’s successful growth,” Mayor Norton said, “we are also designing and building the systems necessary to ensure that how we build is just as important as what we build.”
Mayor Norton spoke about the goals that the City of Rochester and DMC share to make sure that women and minorities have opportunities to participate in publicly funded projects. She also spoke about the community co-design process which is an approach to encourage, compensate, and prioritize the inclusion of diverse populations throughout the design and development process. Community Co-Design has become a valued and effective community-centric approach to developing healthy and equitable projects, policies, and practices in the Rochester region. It has been used for projects like Discovery Walk, LINK Bus Rapid Transit, and Riverfront Small Area Plan development. Norton stated, “We use co-design to ensure that there would be inclusive, accessible, and welcoming spaces that encourage health and cultural belonging.”
Attention was also brought to collaborations with the local business community including the Business Forward strategy that has been employed on several recent construction projects like Heart of the City Phase I and Discovery Walk. Business Forward is meant to mitigate the impact of construction by prioritizing the needs of businesses and other stakeholders in the construction process.
The Main Street Economic Revitalization Grant Program was also highlighted. It is a partnership with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development designed to help our downtown businesses recover from the pandemic, as well as elevate opportunities for BIPOC, veteran, and disabled business and property owners. “To date, 30 organizations have been recommended for funding totaling over $1.6 million,” announced Mayor Norton. “These funds will help to leverage over $48 million in private investment into Rochester’s downtown. Our local businesses are the lifeblood of our community. We are eager to support them in whatever ways we can.”
Vision for the Future
DMC Corporation Chair Pam Wheelock pointed to the “persistence, resilience and spirit that is woven into the very fabric of this community” for an optimistic view of the future. She called attention to the way Rochester’s business community responded to the pandemic by pivoting to find new ways to safely reach their customers and to those that caught the entrepreneurial spirit and brought their ideas to life.
“The persistence, resilience, and community spirit already in evidence in Rochester bodes well for achieving Destination Medical Center’s vision of making Rochester America’s City for Health,” said Wheelock. “We are already attracting new investment from outside the area, including new commercial development and new life science and technology companies.”
She referenced the significant infrastructure improvements in the past and on the horizon, as well as a continued focus on community engagement as reasons why Rochester has a bright future. She also stressed the importance of telling Rochester’s story to the world as not only a destination for the world’s best medical care but also a great place to live, work and raise a family.
“On behalf of the Destination Medical Center Corporation’s board of directors, I want to express profound thanks and gratitude for the myriad partnerships and collaborations that have enabled the progress we have seen through DMC’s first years,” Wheelock avowed. “I firmly believe that what we have accomplished together so far grants us the right to think very boldly and optimistically about Rochester’s future and to fulfill our ambition to be America’s City for Health.”
Final Surprise
Patrick Seeb again took the stage to introduce the evening’s final speaker, one that was not on the agenda when the Annual Meeting was being planned. As part of the “leave behind” to continue bringing attention to the meeting space, a mural was painted on the blank wall of the Civic Center Ramp. There were many amazing artists that submitted ideas but none of them were better than Jenna Whiting. “I would like to give the last words to Jenna Whiting to describe this piece of art that will now be permanently part of our community,” said Seeb. “Perhaps it will be an inspiration for how we can use other blank walls in our community, to start enlivening and connecting.”
Jenna Whiting was born and raised in Rochester, MN. As a self-taught artist, she specializes in mural work, digital design, children’s book illustrations, and acrylic painting. Her designs reflect a sense of whimsy and childlike wonder but are also balanced with simplistic and sophisticated methods.
Here is Jenna Whiting’s description of her piece in her own words. “My inspiration for Sol Flowers literally came out of thin air. As I was reaching for my drawing tools to sketch out some ideas, three sun prints I had recently created fell to my feet in a perfect layout. I’m pretty sure a beacon of light was shining somewhere. I immediately imagined the facade of this building covered in botanical images on a vivid cyan background. The images are inspired by native grasses and flowers growing throughout our city – which are just as captivating to see on the ground as they are five stories up.”
A perfect end to a perfect southeast Minnesota evening.
Destination Medical Center Economic Development Agency and the City of Rochester celebrated the culmination of over two years of work with the publication of the Community Co-Design Toolkit. It is a booklet of tools and tactics for “equitable community engagement and action”.
“This is a celebration of an approach that has been used to help create new places and programs, answer particularly difficult questions, and open up opportunities for many community members to participate in public decision-making processes,” said DMC Executive Director Patrick Seeb.
Ten local community co-design pilots have been completed over the last two years to help guide local projects. One of those pilots led to Rochester winning a $1 million grant as a 2021 Global Mayor’s Challenge Champion City. This project created a set of programs to address the challenges encountered by workplaces and members of the BIPOC community in the construction industry. It combined the experiences of industry, educators, and the experiences of BIPOC women to develop ideas to increase the chance of successful and meaningful employment.
Mayor Kim Norton added, “One of the reasons we were selected for this award was the use of the co-design process and forming solutions in collaboration with the community to increase their likelihood of success.”
Other co-design pilots include:
Discovery Walk
Channel One Food Bank
Greater Rochester Advocates for Universities & Colleges (GRAUC) Healthcare Simulation Center
6th Street Bridge
Riverfront Reimagined
Link BRT Station Design
Senior Housing (with Rochester Area Foundation)
BIPOC Home Ownership (with Rochester Area Foundation)
Rochester Public Schools Students Belonging
What is Community Co-Design
Community Co-Design is an approach to encourage, compensate, and prioritize the inclusion of diverse populations throughout the design and development process. Community Co-Design has become a valued and effective community-centric approach to developing healthy and equitable projects, policies, and practices in the Rochester region.
This process was developed as an alternative to traditional engagement practices that limited participation and focused on short-term relationships. Co-design seeks to focus on challenges and the people impacted by them by prioritizing lived experiences and investing in long-term relationships, trust building, and networking.
The Community Co-Design Toolkit was authored by Jess Roberts (Culture of Health, LLC & University of Minnesota), Kevin Bright (DMC EDA & City of Rochester), and Wafa Elkhalifa (DMC EDA).
For more Co-Design information and resources, please contact DMC Equitable Development Coordinator Wafa Elkhalifa.
The Destination Medical Center Corporation (DMCC) Board of Directors conditionally approved $10 million for improvements at Soldiers Field Memorial Park. This request will help to fund proposed uses north of the golf course, which falls within the DMC District. Soldiers Field Golf Course is outside the district.
“We look forward to partnering with the community to make their vision for Soldiers Field become a reality,” said DMC Board Chair Pamela Wheelock. “It is a critical piece of community infrastructure and a great asset to downtown Rochester.”
The improvements will be based on the Soldiers Field Master plan update that is currently being reviewed by the Rochester City Council.
Additionally, the board approved funding for the continued support of LINK Bus Rapid Transit, the construction of the final two blocks of Discovery Walk, and funding the advancement of the Riverfront Small Area Plan that was approved by the Rochester City Council in July of 2022.
The board also received an update on DMC’s strategies to develop new community housing in the downtown core with the support of the Coalition for Rochester Area Housing, a collaborative community program to create and preserve affordable and workforce-priced housing in the Rochester area. One of the successful strategies has been the introduction of new housing developers to the Rochester market.
“It has been a long road getting everyone to the table,” said DMC Board Secretary Paul Williams. “This is exciting to see. We want to have a community where there is competition to build affordable housing.”
Additionally, the DMCC board approved the DMC Economic Development Agency’s (EDA) 2023 workplan and budgets. Strategic direction from the board as well as DMC goals, guiding principles and priorities helped shape the request. It will be presented in October to Rochester City Council for approval.
See the full video below:
The next DMCC Board meeting is set for Thursday, November 10, 2022 at 9:30 a.m.
Destination Medical Center, City of Rochester, Knutson Construction, and Rochester Mom invite community families to The Big Dig; a hands-on, family-friendly event to learn about the Discovery Walk project in downtown Rochester.
Kids will get a chance to play and dig in a giant pile of sand, explore construction equipment, and meet construction workers. Get to know the businesses in the construction zone and have some fun with activities such as a giant chalk mural, bubbles, music from the D’Sievers, and more.
This family-friendly event provides an opportunity to get up close with Discovery Walk and the people that are a part of the project. Discovery Walk, currently under construction, will be a new linear parkway along 2nd Avenue SW in downtown Rochester that will connect Soldiers Field Park to downtown Rochester and is set to be completed in late 2023.
“The Big Dig is an exciting opportunity for our community to have some hands-on fun while learning more about Discovery Walk,” says Jamie Rothe, Destination Medical Center’s Director of Community Engagement. “Our project team and the area businesses have a fun morning planned for all ages.”
The Big Dig is free and open to the public. Parking is also free and available in various places: the 3rd Street SW Parking ramp, street parking along 1st Avenue SW, and 4th Street SW.
September 8, 2022 – ROCHESTER, MINN. – Destination Medical Center (DMC) Economic Development Agency is pleased to announce the first recipients of grants from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) Main Street Economic Revitalization Program.
“There is an excellent partnership between DEED, DMC, and the City of Rochester, and thanks to that close collaboration these grants are focused on supporting local businesses hit hardest by the pandemic,” said DEED Commissioner Steve Grove. “These grants will help revitalize areas with the greatest economic development and redevelopment needs that have arisen since the pandemic began.”
To date, 30 businesses within the DMC District have been recommended for funding totaling over $1.6 million. These funds will help to leverage over $48 million in private investment into Rochester’s downtown.
“The City of Rochester would like to thank DEED and DMC for their partnership in this important grant program. Our local businesses play such a vital role in the vibrancy and character of our community. I have heard from many businesses how impactful the COVID-19 pandemic has been and I hope that these grant dollars will help with both recovery and their ability to thrive in the future,” shared Mayor Kim Norton.
A community-based team comprised of downtown stakeholders was assembled to review applications and provide feedback on each grant application based on the following criteria:
Revitalization of properties or organizations operating within or contiguous to the DMC district harmed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Elevating opportunities for BIPOC, veteran, disabled business and property owners, and disadvantaged business entities.
Creating and retaining permanent jobs.
Enabling businesses to strengthen and diversify their products and services.
DMC Executive Director Patrick Seeb said, “We are grateful to our team of staff and community co-designers for their assistance in bringing this project to fruition. We wanted to make this process as fair and equitable as possible and to help those organizations in greatest need.”
This community-based team provided their recommendations to the DMC EDA Board for review and approval. Each entity agreed on the following recommendations:
100 1st Ave. Commercial Condo Association: $2,250 Repaving the parking lot with asphalt.
1AF, LP – $1,700 Replace lobby flooring.
BGD5 Development, LLC – $52,900 Demolition of existing blighted structure, with intent of removing for future planning and development
BGD5 Mall DBA: Galleria at University Square – $23,797 Broadway and Peace Plaza facing: Exterior entrance repair & repaint, exterior lighting replacement, exterior door replacement.
Capital Ventures, LLC – $200,000 Restoration of the building for new restaurant concept
Chabad of Southern Minnesota – $59,900 Renovation of hospitality house operator suite into patient/guest quarters.
City Walk, LLC – $200,000 Development and construction of 142 unit apartment building with 142 parking stalls
Everyday 365 Clothing, LLC – $4,500 Renovations to outside of storefront, shelving space to be built into walls, new paint job, new signage, door for back room, new flooring, signage/lighting inside of store.
Guerin Studio, LLC – $22,500 Remodel storefront
Healing Touch Spa, LLC – $35,000 Construct two couples massage rooms and a meditation room and a dispensary for staff.
Interiors by J. Curry, LLC – $1,220 Purchase and installation of a new sign
Ironton, LLC: $85,800 Building out the main floor to accommodate office space.
James Krom Natural Images – $1,750 Replace flooring
Kahler Inn and Suites: $15,000 Improvements to the façade of the east facing wall of the building.
Knight’s Chamber: $9,600 Remodeling the front entry of the business, as well as adding a dressing room, lighting and repainting.
La Michoacana Purepecha 3, LLC – $52,500 Remodeling of the entire site, with dry storage, employee break room, kitchen preparation, sinks, hand-wash stations, and new flooring
The Landing MN – $200,000
Property is being renovated to house a commercial kitchen, day room, restrooms, showers, and laundry as well as offices for leadership, staff, and volunteer medical providers.
Marrow Restaurant – $133,919 Demolition, site preparation, build-out of restaurant and installation of equipment – including engineering, pre-design and design work
Masjed Abubakr A-Seddeig, Inc. – $100,000 Renovating two floors of the building with classroom space to support new job training programs. An elevator will also be installed to support access to the classrooms.
Neighborly Group – $58,700 Remodel of Neighborly Creative and Neighborly Gifts stores
Nordic Shop: $23,400 Expanding their footprint to an adjacent vacant storefront to accommodate growth of in-store and web-based sales.
Rochester Art Center – $5,100 Exterior window bird collision mitigation
Rowan International Grocery Store, LLC – $15,000 Installation of a walk-in cooler and remodeling of the building
Skiathos, LLC – $8,000 Repairing and restriping the parking lot of the Queen City Center Strip Mall
Thesis Beer Project: $9000
Construction of a new 30-40 seat patio on 2nd Street
TRCH Plaza, LLP: $11,000 New roof on the building.
True Queens Boutique: $4,500
New downtown business will use funds to assist with purchasing signage, flooring, furniture, lighting, tables, and shelves.
The Well: $200,000 Renovation of the former Dooley’s Pub site into a new family restaurant.
Well Living Lab, Inc – $10,000 Energy efficiency and technology upgrades
Zumbro Lutheran Church – $6,000 Purchase and installation of an exterior digital sign
All grant awards are subject to final approval from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.
About the Main Street Grant Program The Main Street Grant program provides grants for capital improvement projects that result in improvements to any permanent structure or other asset added to a property that adds to its value. The grant awards can cover up to 30% of the project costs with applicants securing other sources of funding to match any funds granted by this program. Funding for the $3 million grant was awarded on October 14, 2021, from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development’s Main Street Economic Revitalization Program.
For more information on the Main Street Grant program and to apply, visit dmc.mn/ms.
Join us in celebrating Rochester’s continued growth and transformation at the DMC Annual meeting on Thursday, September 15th from 4:00 – 7:00 p.m. on 1st Avenue SE between Center Street and 1st Street SE. This location will showcase a future public realm project connecting the Heart of the City with the Mayo Civic Center and the Downtown Waterfront sub-district, as well as proximity to future development sites.
4:00-6:00 pm – A Vibrant Downtown Our partners will host learning stations where attendees can hear more about the technology and innovation being used to make downtown Rochester vibrant. During this time, attendees can also grab a bite from the Duck Truck and Infuzn Foods.
6:00-6:30 pm – Program A recap of the past year and a glimpse into what is to come for downtown Rochester will be provided by the DMC EDA executive director, City of Rochester Mayor, DMC EDA Board Chair, and DMCC Board Chair.
6:30-7:00 pm – Music & Connection End the evening by connecting with community members and listening to live music by the local band, True North.
*Please Note: Free, outdoor event, open-house style; Restrooms with washing stations provided on site.
If you’re enjoying your time at the end of the evening, we recommend you continue your evening at a nearby restaurant.
The DMC Annual Meeting is free and open to the public. Advanced registration is preferred.
Need help with your application for the Main Street Grant? Not sure if you qualify? Our navigators are dedicated professionals with the knowledge to assist you.
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Meeting. At the corner of 1st Avenue and 1st Street Southeast, guests enjoyed music from local duo True North, food from The Duck Truck and Infuzn, and a perfect southeast Minnesota evening. DMC partner organizations lined the tunnel next to the railroad tracks, showcasing the myriad ideas and activities that make downtown Rochester a vibrant, welcoming environment.
ere better than Jenna Whiting. “I would like to give the last words to Jenna Whiting to describe this piece of art that will now be permanently part of our community,” said Seeb. “Perhaps it will be an inspiration for how we can use other blank walls in our community, to start enlivening and connecting.”
become a valued and effective community-centric approach to developing healthy and equitable projects, policies, and practices in the Rochester region.
