Flaherty & Hood’s government relations team recently led the 2021 Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities (CGMC) Summer Conference, the organization’s first in-person event in nearly 18 months.
More than 100 elected officials, city staff members and other city leaders from across Greater Minnesota convened in Alexandria July 29-30 for the conference which featured informative sessions, networking opportunities, a legislative awards dinner, and the chance to meet with fellow leaders face-to-face instead of over a computer screen!
The conference kicked off Thursday afternoon with a keynote speech from Gov. Tim Walz, who thanked city leaders for their hard work and sacrifices during the COVID-19 pandemic. He also highlighted the bipartisan agreement on the next two-year state budget and discussed concerns about the current drought and dry conditions impacting farms and communities across the state. Following the speech from the Governor, the conference continued with a jam-packed schedule of events including presentations and panel discussions on a variety of topics such as the outcomes of the 2021 legislative session, ways to decrease polarization, parks and trails, and lessons learned from the pandemic. The conference also featured a panel discussion on Local Government Aid and the state budget with chairs of the House and Senate committees on taxes and property taxes: Rep. Paul Marquart, Sen. Bill Weber and Rep. Cheryl Youakim.
A highlight of the conference was Thursday evening’s Legislative Awards Dinner which honored 24 legislators, city leaders and others who helped promote CGMC issues during the past year. You can read about the CGMC award recipients here.
Flaherty & Hood thanks all of the CGMC members who joined us for the CGMC Summer Conference in Alexandria!
