Ryno Repair, owned by Ryne and Morgan Meyers, was recognized as the Faribault County Business Spotlight Award winner for September. Pictured above, left to right, are Myers’ son Mavrik, Morgan, EDA specialist Celia Simpson, Ryne, daughters Devyn and Ravyn holding the certificate, EDA specialist Kendra Reineking, EDA specialist Amber Patten, EDA board member John Herman.

ound the corner, the Faribault County EDA (Economic Development Authority) has been busy finalizing the details for their Tour of Manufacturing event which is taking place on Oct. 16, in Faribault and Martin Counties.

To that end, the EDA board took action at their meeting on Sept. 17 to reserve two buses for the Faribault County portion of the tour.

“The cost of having these two buses provide transportation is $5,525,” EDA specialist Amber Patten said. “However, we have received a $2,000 grant from Compeer Financial to cover part of the expense and there are also other businesses that are making monetary donations to help pay for the cost of the transportation.”

The tour is designed to give participants insights into the manufacturing world along with the opportunity to meet industry professionals while exploring potential career opportunities in Faribault and Martin counties.

Companies located in Faribault County which are on the tour include Tafco in Blue Earth and Everidge in Winnebago. In Wells, the tour will include Herman Manufacturing, Ron’s Plumbing, HVAC and Electrical and Wells Concrete.

Businesses in Martin County which are on the tour are Avery Weigh-Tronix, Kevko Race and Manufacturing, 3M, Kahler Automation and Zierke Manufacturing.

For more information on the Manufacturing Tour, visit the EDA website at fceda.net

The board also received an update on the Miller’s Corner property in Bricelyn.

“The party that has shown an interest in purchasing the property has decided to hold off on making an offer at this time,” EDA specialist Celia Simpson reported. “His reason is because of planned construction on Bricelyn’s Main Street and the possible costs associated with the removal of the underground fuel tanks located on the property.”

Patten shared she has been in contact with the MPCA (Minnesota Pollution Control Agency) about funds which may be available to help clean up the site.

“They (MPCA) need to come down and perform an inspection first,” Patten said. “We have to find out if we can get on the property to do that while it is in foreclosure.”

The Faribault County Business Spotlight Award for September was presented to Ryno Repair of Blue Earth.

The owners of Ryno Repair, Ryne and Morgan Meyers, were at the meeting to accept the award and shared how they came to open their business.

“I have been an auto mechanic for 14 years and previously worked for Lager’s in St. Peter and then Jay’s Shop in Blue Earth,” Ryne said. “We kind of knew we always wanted to own our own business.”

“We looked at building a new shop and that was going to be expensive,” Morgan continued. “Then we learned that Terry Hanson, who owned Hanson Auto Repair, had decided to sell his facility.”

The couple wasn’t even going to look at Hanson’s but finally decided they would be crazy not to explore the option of purchasing it.

“We ended up purchasing the site from Hanson along with much of the equipment that was in the building,” Ryne says. “The support of the community has been great.”

While Ryne does the mechanic work, Morgan does the marketing.

“Currently, we are booked out two weeks and I am considering hiring another mechanic,” Ryne commented.

In other business:

• Kendra Reineking was introduced as a new EDA specialist. She will be working for Faribault County two days a week.

• Discussion was held on the possibility of hosting a series of workshops to inform businesses of the Minnesota Paid Leave program which will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2026. The State is providing grant opportunities next summer for agencies who are providing outreach to businesses prior to the program launch.

• Scheduled the next meeting for Oct. 15, in Elmore.