 We begin with big economic news for Northwest Minnesota and Minnesota in general. Digi-Key Electronics today announced its future plans to create over 1,000 new jobs and build a 1 million square foot building expansion to continue to serve its customers globally. The new facility will be located adjacent to its current headquarters in Thief River Falls. Huge cost and competitive hurdles needed to be overcome compared to other location options, but Digi-Key's president and CEO Dave Doherty says the state of Minnesota and local Thief River Falls and Pennington County leaders took decisive action to support Digi-Key's growth. The estimated economic return for the state of Minnesota will be about 184 million dollars in new annual state revenue or almost two billion dollars over 10 years. That's in addition to the 1,000 new jobs that will be created in Thief River Falls. If you've enjoyed this segment of Lakeland news, please consider making a tax-deductible contribution to Lakeland Public Television.