Walz Bonding Proposal: $1M For Lake Superior College’s Manufacturing Program Expansion Plans

DULUTH, Minn. – Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has put aside $1 million in his bonding proposal to help Lake Superior College develop plans to expand its Integrated Manufacturing program.

LSC officials said demand has outgrown the current facility in downtown Duluth.  So in the coming years, the program will be moved and expanded back onto the main campus on Trinity Road to better meet the needs of students, the manufacturing business community and help showcase the program when prospective students visit campus.

“There are so many people who are hiring right now — from Altec to Moline to Cirrus,” said Daniel Fanning, LSC’s vice president of Institutional Advancement and External Relations. “So many people who are looking for manufacturing workforce right now. So, the more we can do to continue to train people, recruit people, get them up to Duluth, keep them in Duluth, and get them out to those employers that are hiring, the better it is for all of us. So this will be a really great project for our community.”

LSC plans to ask for additional bonding money two years from now to help with the actual cost of the expansion worth $12 to $16 million.

Fanning said it’s also about growing the campus experience for manufacturing students so they feel better connected on the main campus, which will also soon be home to a new multi-million dollar student housing development that’s expected to break ground this spring.

Meanwhile, the Duluth Armory did not make Walz’s bonding list this time. For reaction, click here.