John Hinzman, Community Developer Director, City of Hastings

John Hinzman, community development director of the city of Hastings, spoke with Invest: about some key projects fueling the city’s growth, and how it uses small-town charm and proximity to the Twin Cities to attract developers.

What have been the main highlights and key milestones for the city of Hastings in the last 12 months? 

In the last 12 months, we’ve seen steady growth of new constructions, and had our highest year of single-family permits for new construction in the past 20 years. We finished some apartment projects that were under construction from the years before, and continue to see interest from other developers in developments at the edge of our city. We grow through annexation, which is less typical for the Twin Cities, which normally have more defined boundaries. From an economic development standpoint, the Hastings Economic Development and Redevelopment Authority (HEDRA), purchased a large chunk of a redevelopment project called the Gateway Project, along Highway 61 near our downtown. We have 90% of that block and will be redeveloping it into a commercial-residential development, which will be one of the first things you see when you cross the Mississippi River into our town. It’s an important project from a visual and presentation standpoint. From a utility standpoint, we are putting together land for a new water treatment plant to begin construction in 2025. 

From a community development perspective, what are your immediate and medium term goals and priorities for the city?

We focus on redevelopment of existing neighborhoods and new development on the edges of the city. Our goal is to continue with steady growth on the edges of the city, and we have a list of priorities on redevelopment sites including the Gateway Site. We will have a major reconstruction project in 2027 on Highway 61, which is our main thoroughfare north-south through town.

What is your overview of the current business climate and economic environment in Hastings, and what are the primary sectors and industries driving growth forward? 

We’re a small town in the midst of the Twin Cities area and we don’t have a predominant industry that drives our growth. We have many small, main street businesses downtown, and our industrial park employers are relatively small. We have companies that manufacture windows, countertops, cabinets, and other building materials, which are tied to new construction development. The success of those industries depend upon what happens with the greater economy and new housing growth, and they’ve been steady. 

What are the primary challenges facing the city of Hastings at the moment, and how is your office working to address these challenges?

The obstacles we face are somewhat out of our control. Interest rates have gone up and even though the costs of housing and material shortages after the pandemic have waned, it’s still more expensive to buy a house. We don’t have the housing inventory, which has brought up prices. Our position within the greater metropolitan area is more challenging. We’re a little distanced from some of the areas that are growing. We’re only a half hour from the airport, but there’s a perception that this area is further out than it actually is.

Would you describe the housing market in Hastings as a buyers or a sellers market, and who benefits the most at the current market conditions?

When I was looking at some of the real estate trends from last year, the thing that caught my eye was days on the market for existing homes on sale. It was substantially higher than we’ve seen in the last year, due in part to a low inventory of homes on the market. Existing home sales are similar to the county we’re in, and the Twin Cities as a whole.

To what extent does Hasting’s strategic location help to increase the city’s growth from a development perspective?

People seek out and choose to live in Hastings. It’s a beautiful setting with river bluffs, the Mississippi River running through downtown, and other rivers running through our city. Within our downtown area and riverfront parks, we try to market ourselves from a tourism standpoint as a downtown experience to the greater Twin Cities area. We don’t have a lot of traditional tourism in the form of overnight stays, but more people from the Twin Cities coming to Hastings for things like our tremendous bike trail system and programming at our Riverfront Park, with multiple events a week. 

How is the city supporting local residents and small businesses in the region while at the same time embracing modernization and growth?

Within our downtown area, we had two big projects open. One was The Confluence, a redevelopment we’d been working on for 14 years. We took an old factory building along the river and did a historic renovation of it into a hotel and conference center, which opened in 2024. The other is residential growth. We saw a large residential apartment building constructed in the downtown area, adding another 100 homes. Going into 2025, we have a Thursday night concert series and makers market within our downtown riverfront park pavilion.

How is Hastings working to enhance its appeal as a destination for new residents, especially in terms of amenities, services, and quality of life?

We have facade improvement grant programs for older businesses to improve their storefronts. Last year we had about $127,000 worth of improvements off of $26,000 of grants we gave out. We work with other cities in the county in an Open To Business program, in which we have a shared business consultant that works with individuals looking to start or grow their business and answer any questions they may have about licensing or developing business plans. They also have capital available for gap loans. That’s been a big value for us and some of the other cities within the county. 

What is your overview of the city of Hastings, what will be your top goals and priorities moving forward in the next two to three years?

I’d love the Gateway Project to be completed. I’d like to see more residential growth in the downtown areas to support the businesses and activities there. In the state of Minnesota, there was an action a couple years ago to provide portions of the sales tax revenue to cities for housing, and we got our first payment of that last year. We’re working with our county community development agency through some of their existing home ownership programs to divert funds to help first-time homebuyers. 

How does the city work with county and state officials in order to promote economic growth and attract investment to the region?

We work with other cities in our county and have a strong group that cooperates on joint projects together. We host a real estate event highlighting this portion of the Twin Cities area, looking at the growth opportunities and projects here. The commercial and residential real estate markets understand this is an area they should be looking at.