>> ERIC: EARLIER THIS WEEK, ST.

CLOUD'S LONGEST-SERVING MAYOR DELIVERED HIS 19TH STATE OF THE CITY ADDRESS, HIGHLIGHTING A STRONG FINANCIAL BASE AND DECREASING CRIME BUT ALSO A NEED FOR MORE AFFORDABLE HOUSING AND INVESTMENT IN DOWNTOWN.

HE ALSO MENTIONED THE POSSIBILITY THAT A SPACE SHUTTLE COULD BE COMING TO THE CITY'S NEW CHILDREN'S MUSEUM.

DAVE KLEIS HAS BEEN ST.

CLOUD'S MAYOR SINCE 2006, AFTER A TEN-YEAR STINT AS A STATE SENATOR.

WELCOME BACK, MAYOR.

>> THANKS FOR HAVING ME.

>> Eric: YOU BET.

AS A FORMER STATE SENATOR HOW DID ALL THAT SPENDING THAT WAS DONE LAST YEAR, DID ANY OF THAT MATRICULATE TO St.

CLOUD?

>> YOU KNOW, IN SOME AREAS, IN TRANSPORTATION, ROADS, THAT'S THE PIECE, OF COURSE, WE'VE GOT A BIG BONDING REQUEST THIS YEAR.

>> Eric: $100 MILLION.

>> $100 MILLION, 100 MILLION REASONS TO HELP OUR DOWNTOWN.

>> Eric: YEAH.

>> BUT, YEAH, THAT'S PART OF THE HOUSING WE TALKED ABOUT, I MEAN, WE HAVE -- I MEAN, HOUSING, WORKFORCE HOUSING, ATTAINABLE HOUSING IS NEEDED ALL OVER THE STATE.

I MEAN, I DON'T KNOW OF ANY EMPLOYER WHO DOESN'T NEED HOUSING.

YOU KNOW, IT USED TO BE, YOU'D ALWAYS TRY TO GET JOBS IN YOUR COMMUNITY.

NOW YOU TRY TO GET EMPLOYEES IN YOUR COMMUNITY BUT YOU CAN'T UNLESS YOU HAVE HOUSING.

SO OUR DOWNTOWN, REALLY, I SET A GOAL LAST YEAR TO PUT 1,000 NEW HOUSING UNITS DOWNTOWN.

AND, YOU KNOW, LOOK AT CENTRAL MINNESOTA, RIGHT NOW ALL THE SURVEYS I'VE SEEN, MILLENNIALS, THE LARGEST WORKFORCE, OVER 70%, WANT TO LIVE IN A WALKABLE URBAN AREA.

AND CENTRAL MINNESOTA, St.

CLOUD AREA, HOW MUCH IS WALKABLE URBAN?

LESS THAN 1%.

>> Cathy: PROBABLY NOT MUCH.

>> LESS THAN 1%.

YOU'VE REALLY GOT TO FOCUS ON THAT DOWNTOWN.

COVID HAS SHOWN US THAT DOWNTOWNS THAT HAVE DONE WELL SINCE COVID HAVE BEEN ONES THAT HAD HOUSING COMPONENTS, NOT JUST OFFICE.

LOOK AT ALL THE DOWNTOWNS AROUND THE COUNTRY WHERE IT WAS JUST FOCUSED ON OFFICE SPACE, WHERE NOW THEY'RE CONVERTING TO HOUSING, PLACES THAT DID WELL THAT HAD HOUSING, NORTH LOOP IN MINNEAPOLIS, HOUSING IS REALLY THE KEY.

THAT'S WHAT WE WANT TO DO IN St.

CLOUD, ADD THE HOUSING COMPONENT.

>> Cathy: WOULD YOU HAVE CONDOS, APARTMENT BUILDINGS DOWNTOWN?

>> ALL LEVELS.

YOU WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU HAVE A MIXED USE.

YOU'VE GOT TO HAVE A VIBRANT DOWNTOWN WITH A GOOD VIBE.

YOU'VE GOT TO HAVE ALL INDS OF HOUSING, WORKFORCE HOUSING, YOU NEED HOUSING AT ALL EVELS TO DO THAT.

SO YOU REALLY START WITH THE PART OF RENTAL FIRST, EVENTUALLY PEOPLE GET TO OWNERSHIP.

>> Cathy: AND SPEAKING OF WORKFORCE, IT LOOKS LIKE THE MEDICAL SCHOOL IS KIND OF AN INTERESTING MARRIAGE BETWEEN CENTRACARE BASED IN St.

CLOUD AND THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA.

WILL THAT MEDICAL SCHOOL MAYBE PUMP SOME -- >> OH, ABSOLUTELY.

>> Cathy: -- FOLKS INTO YOUR AREA?

>> CENTRACARE IS OUR LARGEST EMPLOYER, HEALTHCARE IS THE LARGEST EMPLOYER FOR MINNESOTA, IN OUR AREA IT'S THE LARGEST EMPLOYER, TOO.

5,000 EMPLOYEES ADJACENT TO DOWNTOWN.

MEDICAL SCHOOL IS A BIG PART OF IT.

THE ISSUE, YOU KNOW, HOUSING THE DOWNTOWN, YOU KNOW, THOSE ARE THE TYPES OF THINGS THAT, YOU KNOW, YOU REALLY DRAW TO A COMMUNITY.

YOU'VE GOT TO GET PEOPLE TO HAVE PLACES TO LIVE.

BUT YOU ALSO NEED THE BOOK ENDS.

St.

CLOUD STATE UNIVERSITY IS A UNIVERSITY, IT'S ONE OF THOSE BOOK ENDS.

THE HOSPITAL IS THE OTHER SIDE, DOWNTOWN REALLY NEEDS TO BE A VIBRANT PLACE THAT PEOPLE WANT TO LIVE.

>> Eric: YOU KNOW THIS BETTER THAN I DO, BUT IF YOU -- IN THE NEIGHBORHOODS, IN ANY CITY, THERE'S A LITTLE BIT OF RESENTMENT ABOUT DOWNTOWN.

SO YOU'VE GOT TO KEEP THE NEIGHBORHOODS HAPPY AS WELL.

SO THEY DON'T FEEL JUST LEFT OUT THAT IT'S ALL ABOUT DOWNTOWN.

WHAT HAVE YOU GOT THERE?

>> WELL, YOU KNOW, IT'S IMPORTANT TO HAVE, YOU KNOW, THE DOWNTOWN, YOU'VE GOT TO HAVE A CORE.

IN ANY CITY YOU'VE GOT TO HAVE A STRONG CORE BECAUSE IF YOU DON'T HAVE A STRONG CORE, YOUR CITY -- AND St.

CLOUD IS A CORE CITY OF A EGION.

SO NOT ONLY IS St.

CLOUD NEEDS TO BE HEALTHY, IT NEEDS TO BE HEALTHY FOR SARTELL AND WAITE PARK AND SAUK RAPIDS AND ALL THE OTHER CITIES THAT ARE IN OUR AREA.

AND WE SIT IN THREE COUNTIES, THAT'S ALSO IMPORTANT TO THREE COUNTIES.

>> Eric: THE CITY IS IN THREE COUNTIES.

>> WE'RE IN THREE, AND WE'RE ON THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER.

I MEAN, YOU'VE GOT, WHAT, YOU KNOW, YOU'VE GOT WATER FRONT AND IT GOES, YOU'VE GOT EAST AND WEST SIDE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE IN AN AREA THAT THAT CORE NEEDS TO BE IMPORTANT BUT YOU NEED THE ENTERTAINMENT DISTRICT.

I MEAN, YOU NEED ATTRACTIONS.

SO IT'S NOT AS MUCH THAT, DOWNTOWN DOES REALLY WELL, ALL STUDIES SHOW IN ALMOST ANY CITY IN THE COUNTRY, ADJACENT DOWNTOWN DOES VERY WELL.

IN FACT, YOU'VE INCREASED THE VALUE.

SO IT IS REALLY A KEY.

>> Eric: CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITY WITH THE IMMIGRANT POPULATION, REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT AND SO FORTH?

>> WELL, YOU KNOW, YOU'VE GOT TO HAVE A VIBRANT COMMUNITY, YOU'VE GOT TO HAVE A VIBRANT THAT'S DIVERSE.

PEOPLE WANT TO LIVE IN AN URBAN, WALKABLE COMMUNITY.

AS I MENTIONED WITH MILLENNIALS, YOU HAVE TO HAVE A WORKFORCE, YOU NEED TO HAVE A PLACE WHERE PEOPLE WANT TO LIVE.

AGAIN, IT'S NOT ATTRACTING -- PEOPLE CAN WORK ANYWHERE BECAUSE THEY CAN WORK FROM HOME.

THAT'S WHY YOU WANT PEOPLE LIVING DOWNTOWN BECAUSE YOU WANT THEM TO BE ABLE TO WORK FROM HOME, MAYBE THEY'RE WORKING FOR OMEPLACE, SOMEWHERE ELSE IN THE COUNTRY, THE STATE, THE WORLD.

YOU WANT TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT.

SO, YES, WE EMBRACE, WE'RE A WELCOMING COMMUNITY.

WE'VE GOT A LOT OF GREAT ENTREPRENEURS.

JUST IN THE LAST 15 MONTHS, WHEN WE STARTED FOCUSING ON DOWNTOWN, THERE ARE 27 NEW BUSINESSES DOWNTOWN THAT HAVE EITHER CREATED OR EXPANDED.

THAT'S MORE THAN I'VE SEEN IN THE 19 YEARS I'VE BEEN MAYOR.

>> Eric: WOW.

>> SO THERE'S A FOCUS ON DOWNTOWN.

AND THERE'S A LOT OF DIFFERENT -- IN FACT, TALK ABOUT THAT -- EMBRACING THE IMMIGRANT POPULATION, I JUST CUT A RIBBON TWO DAYS AGO TO TEQUILA TOWN, A FAMILY, YOU KNOW, SOME MEXICAN AMERICANS THAT HAVE COME AND SET UP A RESTAURANT AND RIGHT IN THE HEART OF DOWNTOWN, TOOK 100-YEAR-OLD BUILDING AND IS GIVING IT A NEW USE.

SO THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS HAPPENING THAT WE'RE ABLE TO DO THAT REALLY IS FOCUSING, A LOT OF PEOPLE LIKE SUSTAINABILITY, TOO, COME BACK FOR A WHOLE 'NOTHER SHOW, WHAT WE'RE DOING WITH OUR NUTRIENT RECOVERY PLANT, USED TO BE CALLED A SEWAGE PLANT.

WE'RE GOING TO BE THE FIRST CITY IN THE WORLD THAT'S CREATING HYDROGEN IN St.

CLOUD.

IN THE WORLD.

>> Eric: FOOD WASTE -- >> COOKING OIL, FOOD WASTE.

>> Cathy: GOT TO ASK YOU THIS, THOUGH.

YOU SAID YOU'VE BEEN MAYOR FOR 19 YEARS.

I KNOW YOU HAVE THE TOWN HALLS, YOU DO SOME CREATIVE THINGS, SHALL WE SAY, WITH YOUR TOWN HALLS OVER THE YEARS.

DID YOU HONESTLY IT IN CITY HALL FOR 24 HOURS?

>> I SAT IN CITY HALL.

>> Cathy: GET OUT.

>> I STARTED AT MIDNIGHT, I THOUGHT, YOU KNOW, I BROUGHT A BUNCH OF THINGS TO DO, I THOUGHT I'D BE GETTING A LOT OF STUFF DONE.

I HAD 85 PEOPLE THERE THROUGHOUT THE DAY.

I ACTUALLY HAD SOMEONE COME AT MIDNIGHT, AND I HAD A STEADY STREAM.

85 PEOPLE THROUGHOUT THE NIGHT.

I HAD ONE GENTLEMAN COME ABOUT 2:15 IN THE MORNING, HE STAYED FOR ABOUT FOUR HOURS.

AND OTHER PEOPLE CAME TOO.

SO I LEARNED ABOUT HIS WHOLE LIFE.

BUT E -- IT REALLY -- IN ORDER TO REALLY REPRESENTINGS, YOU'VE GOT TO ENGAGE.

AND I'VE ALWAYS BEEN TOLD, I'D LOVE TO COME TO YOUR TOWN HALL MEETINGS BUT I WORK SHIFTS, I WORK NIGHTS, WE'LL DO A 24-HOUR ONE, SO THAT'S WHERE PEOPLE CAME.

I'VE DONE 980 OF THEM.

SO THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY.

>> Cathy: THERE YOU