Brad Gustafson Named St. Louis County Economic and Community Development Director

Iron Range native Brad Gustafson now controls St. Louis County's most consequential economic tools: broadband grants for unserved rural stretches of the county, a film production incentive that reimburses qualifying projects up to 25% of costs, tax abatement financing for job-creating businesses, and executive directorship of the Housing and Redevelopment Authority. St. Louis County named Gustafson director of the Economic and Community Development Department, putting him in charge of a 15-person team whose decisions this year will shape broadband access across still-unconnected areas of the county and determine which businesses qualify for the financing tools the county uses to attract and retain employers.

Gustafson joined the county in 2019 and most recently served as Planning Manager for the Community Development Division. In that role he led the HRA and HUD Community Development Block Grant programs, expanded broadband access, and coordinated the film incentive program that today reimburses qualifying productions up to 25% of production and post-production expenditures inside the county.

County Administrator Kevin Gray cited Gustafson's command of federal and state financing as central to the selection. "Brad has tremendous enthusiasm and passion for economic and community development, and I am excited to see all that he will accomplish in this new role," Gray said. "He is a proven leader with tremendous technical and communication skills, along with strong institutional knowledge of federal and state processes and public financing."

The broadband portfolio carries the most immediate timeline pressure. The department administers grants for unserved and underserved areas, and Minnesota submitted its federal BEAD broadband proposal in September 2025 targeting more than 75,000 serviceable locations statewide, with rural St. Louis County among the priority areas. Gustafson will coordinate the county's role in that funding pipeline from day one.

His promotion also completes a nearly three-year administrative restructuring that divided the former Planning and Community Development Department into two stand-alone agencies: the Planning and Zoning Department and the Economic and Community Development Department he now leads.

Under county policy, the Economic and Community Development director automatically holds the position of HRA Executive Director. The St. Louis County HRA has operated since 1988 as the housing authority for communities across the county that lack their own agencies, giving Gustafson direct oversight of affordable housing programs alongside his economic development duties.

Gustafson described his motivation for taking the role in terms of direct community impact: "I love what I do and enjoy having an impact on people's lives and helping them succeed. We have an amazing team in Economic and Community Development and I look forward to working together to continue to make St. Louis County a place where everybody thrives."

He holds a bachelor's degree in business management from St. John's University and serves on the Mt. Iron City Council. The department's full portfolio also includes Property Assessed Clean Energy financing and enterprise Geographic Information System business services. Gustafson can be reached at 218-742-9563 or gustafsonb@stlouiscountymn.gov.