After wooing businesses, an effort to fill Scott County jobs

The vast majority of Shakopee residents have jobs, but most have to leave town to get to them. City officials want to change that.

"We really want to keep those jobs in Shakopee and in Scott County," said the city's economic development chief, Samantha DiMaggio.

A jobs fair is coming up on Oct. 23 with a goal of featuring 100 area businesses to 1,000 job seekers, mingling new Shakopee arrivals like Shutterfly and Datacard with others from elsewhere in Scott County, like New Prague's Chart Industries and Savage's Fabcon.

Officials are eager to promote the event after Shakopee controversially awarded millions of dollars in tax incentives to reel in several new businesses. City officials maintained that the short-term investment would yield long-term gain.

"We're really happy with how things are moving forward," said Mayor Brad Tabke.

U.S. Census figures show that about 75 percent of employed people in Scott County work elsewhere. Most flock to Hennepin County, notably Minneapolis and Bloomington. But Eden Prairie and Burnsville are also big draws.

First Stop Shop, through the Scott County Association for Leadership and Efficiency, was created two years ago to attract new businesses countywide.

Tabke said he doesn't expect that congestion to ever clear up completely, but localizing jobs is a way to offer an alternative to Scott County workers who don't want a long commute.

"What we're trying to do is provide options for people to stay here and live and work close to home," he said.

The goal is to establish enough local jobs to employ half the county's workforce by 2030, said First Stop Shop business development manager Stacy Crakes. At this point, she said, that'll mean creating about 2,000 jobs per year.

"To help reduce that number, the alternative is to have more people working in the jobs that we have here," she said.

That's where the job fair comes in. It's not just a way for unemployed people to find work - it's also catering to employed people looking for a change.

Available jobs will cover a range of fields - everything from customer service to engineering - with an emphasis on manufacturing jobs in honor of Minnesota Manufacturing Week. There will also be special attention paid to military veterans, with efforts to connect them to employment services.

Cities are wooing local businesses - so far, about 60 are on board. If there's not enough interest in Scott County, DiMaggio said, they may open the fair up to businesses from other areas.

To entice jobseekers, event organizers are spreading the word via e-mail blasts, social media and advertising in local workforce centers. Businesses are also being tapped to post signs announcing the fair.

Tabke said the idea for the job fair first came about because he was getting daily calls from people across the metro wondering how to get jobs at Shutterfly or other local businesses.

"I believe people are wanting to work here in Shakopee," he said. "We've got a great business climate; we've got a lot of people who need great employees."