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 The North Dakota Travel Industry Conference has long been known for its topnotch presenters and this year is no exception. Renowned speakers include Lt. Gov. Brent Sanford, CEO of U.S. Travel Association Roger Dow, Commerce Tourism & Marketing Division Director Sara Otte Coleman, TwoSix Digital’s Senior Director of Strategy & Education Brian Matson, Olympic Gold Medalists Monique Lamoureux-Morando and Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson, and Co-Founder of RoleCall Winona Dimeo-Ediger. Learn more about all of the speakers here.
Come prepared to learn all the ways you can help make your organization, attraction, or event legendary. Educational and inspiring agenda topics include industry updates, common threads of great places, destination development planning, post-pandemic marketing, accessible travel, talent recruitment, tribal tourism, digital marketing trends, social strategies, global tourism, sharing community driven stories and much more. Click here for view the full agenda.
Join in honoring the Governor's Award for Travel and Tourism recipients. These awards are annually given and honor the people, organizations and communities that create valued destinations across North Dakota. The Awards will be presented at the Governor's Luncheon during the Travel Industry Conference on April 27.
This is the must-attend conference for communities looking to develop their tourism infrastructure and for marketers and tourism professionals in North Dakota's travel and tourism industry.
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 Crosby MSI community visit
Representatives of the Main Street Initiative (MSI) team from Commerce and the North Dakota Office of the Governor toured the New Century Ag Noonan Terminal/Fertilizer Plant during a community tour as part of the Crosby/Divide County community visit.
More than 50 people attended the visit which included morning coffee with legislators, a community tour, lunch, a public overview of the Main Street Partners in Planning Grant strategic plan, and a Main Street discussion. Several youth attended the visit and shared what is important for their future in the community, country and state.
 Bitcoin 2022
Commerce Director of Economic Development and Finance Josh Teigen and the Head of Investment and Innovation Shayden Akason are currently at Bitcoin 2022 in Miami Beach.
During the trip, Teigen and Akason will directly connect with industry leaders, pitching North Dakota’s ability to be the top location for producing the “cleanest crypto on the planet”, as Commerce believes North Dakota can double or triple crypto investment in the state.
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Angie Richman Selected as Superintendent of Theodore Roosevelt National Park
National Park Service (NPS) Regional Director Bert Frost recently announced the selection of Angie Richman as superintendent of Theodore Roosevelt National Park. A 23-year veteran of the NPS, Richman has worked in a variety of national parks throughout the Western U.S. She currently serves as the director of interpretation, education, and visitor services for Arches and Canyonlands national parks in Utah. She will assume her new role on May 22, 2022.
“It is truly an honor to be selected as the superintendent of this gem of the National Park Service,” Richman said about her new assignment. “I look forward to working closely with the dedicated park staff, partners, and engaging with the communities and public who celebrate the conservation legacy of Theodore Roosevelt, an iconic figure in the history of America, and enjoying the amazing resources of the park.”
Photo: Angie Richman Contributed / National Park Service
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Pembina Gorge Foundation awarded $2.2M grant for improvements at Frost Fire Park
The Pembina Gorge Foundation has been awarded a nearly $2.2 million grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA). This EDA investment funds the Frost Fire Park Snowmaking Infrastructure Improvement and Expansion Project, to update infrastructure that will improve the quality and longevity of the winter sports activities in the park. The project will support Pembina Gorge Foundation with addressing the local and regional need for expanded and resilient tourism and outdoor recreation activities in the park. Once completed, the project will have a direct economic impact on the park’s operations, particularly its winter sports season and other activities, which will drive and expand its business, increase employment opportunities, save jobs, spur private investment, and advance economic resiliency throughout the region.
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 The Great American West France Sales Mission 2022
Global Marketing Manager Fred Walker recently visited tour operators and travel agents in Toulouse in the Southwest of France. It has been two years since attending the French Sales Mission, and the industry was ready for North Dakota to be back. The visit included 22 meetings with travel trade (including Delta and United Airlines); two evening networking events; and training of over 40 travel trade people. Much of the discussion was focused on North Dakota’s products and what is yet to come. New itinerary locations were well received, and the presentation included top attractions, cities, Native American attractions and events, new accommodations, and sustainability.
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 ND Tourism participates and presents at Midwest Marketplace
The ninth annual Midwest Marketplace Circle Wisconsin regional tourism and trade show was held in Bloomington, MN, March 27-29. Forty tour operators, tour planners and ninety suppliers came from North Dakota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, Illinois, Indiana, and Iowa to meet to create fun, interesting and unique itineraries for their groups and tour markets. Each operator and supplier had pre-scheduled six-minute appointments to ignite the itinerary and tour process. The all-member luncheon included a discussion lead by Peter Pantuso, president and CEO of American Bus Association and a presentation by Group Travel Marketing Manager Deanne Cunningham. For more information on attending the 10th Annual Midwest Marketplace Circle Wisconsin, March 19-21, 2023, contact Deanne at decunningham@nd.gov or call (701) 328-2502.
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North Dakota Development Fund approves $3.34 million for Q1 2022
Commerce announced today that three companies were approved for approximately $3.34 million in loan and venture funds through the North Dakota Development Fund (NDDF) during the first quarter of 2022.
First quarter of 2022 recipients:
- Academy of Kids Child Care Center Inc. a child care center in Grand Forks, was awarded $89,000 to cover the costs of renovations for its center located in the Grand Forks Columbia Mall. The North Dakota Department of Human Services and the Grand Forks Region Economic Development Corporation also supported the project.
- Airtonomy Inc. a drone software company in Grand Forks was approved for an investment of up to $1 million to hire additional staff within North Dakota. The software company is developing a solution to enable anyone to operate commercial drones at any time with push button simplicity.
- Hoefer Group LLC a company that will be located in Dunseith was awarded $2.25 million for a revolving line for inventory financing. Hoefer Group designs and manufactures ultralight luxury recreational vehicles. The company will employ more than 100 people in the Dunseith area.
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2021 Automation Tax Credit Program status
Demand for the Automation Tax Credit Program has been very strong every year,
and this year is no exception with 30 applications being submitted totaling $16 million in equipment purchases. Of these applications, 21 of them qualified resulting in approximately $12.5 million of equipment being approved. After taking the proration into consideration, companies will be receiving a tax credit amounting to roughly 8% for the approved equipment purchases.
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The Main Street Initiative team may be coming to your community soon!
A key portion of the Main Street Initiative's strategic plan focuses on engaging with new and reengaging with existing Main Street communities. To begin this process, the team developed and sent a survey requesting communities to highlight the successes and challenges they’d potentially like to explore and share in a Main Street visit.
The first visit kicked off today in Crosby at the Divide County Courthouse. The visit included tours of the community, an interactive discussion about the county's strategic plan that was funded by the Main Street Partners in Planning Grant, and other community topics. Several youth attended the visit and shared what is important for their future in the community, country and state.
Stay tuned to find out what communities the team will visit next!
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 The North Dakota Regional Workforce Impact Program (RWIP) launched earlier this month to encourage and empower locally led solutions through collaboration and partnership.
To build cohesive strategies, applications should be submitted by region, rather than individual businesses, organizations, etc.
Examples eligible applicants include:
- Economic Development Organizations
- Cities (must be incorporated)
- Chambers of Commerce
- Job Development Authorities
- Regional Councils
- Other organizations addressing local or regional economic development needs
- Projects must take place in North Dakota
- Program participants must reside in North Dakota
Regions are outllined in the map below.
 Organizations and businesses that wish to take part in the program should contact an eligible applicant in their designated region.
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