What the DDA does for our Historic Downtown Bemidji

• The DDA organizes and operates a Parking Program with monies from parking permits. We purchase, update, and maintain nine downtown parking lots for business owners and employees to free up on-street parking for our customers.

• The DDA facilitated and encouraged the building of many public projects in the downtown for the last 30 years. These projects include: assisting in the development of the new public library; purchasing numerous lots in the downtown area, developing off-street parking  and returning these lots to the City of Bemidji; and reconstruction of the downtown streetscapes with paved sidewalks, planters and amenities.

• The DDA organizes the Project Pride clean up in May. We organize, fund and promote the Adopt-A-Planter program taking care of 50 gardens downtown. We have recently remodeled all planters. We have participated in the "America in Bloom" program in the past.

• The DDA partners with the Chamber of Commerce and the City of Bemidji for the First City of Lights promotion, parade and events. We help with the fundraising and support the event financially. We fund and maintain holiday banners and pole wraps in the downtown as well as all the building outline lights and pay for the electricity.

• The DDA maintains and repairs the street benches, waste containers, kiosks, flag brackets, bus shelters and speakers throughout the downtown on an on-going basis.

• The DDA organizes and financially supports downtown special events including Crazy Days, Dragon Boat Festival, 1st City of Lights, Lunker Days, Hot Time in the Downtown Thursday Nights, and the holiday Cookie Countdown. We also market our downtown with brochures, newspaper and radio ads year round. 

• The DDA works with the City Council, County Commissioners, Jaycees, and Chamber of Commerce on issues for the betterment of downtown and we volunteer on many committees.

• The DDA has formulated a long-range plan with RDG planning for our downtown include additional parking, events, memberships and revitalization.

• The DDA maintains and services a membership of approximately 100 member businesses. We have monthly board and committee meetings and the board meeting minutes will be uploaded to the website.

• We have developed this website to improve communication of the DDA with the growing number of members.

• The DDA have been working exclusively for our downtown for 30 years.

The Board normally meets on the second Wednesday of each month at 7:45 am to 9:00 am. at the Beltrami County Administration Building in the meeting room.
All members are welcome.

History of the Downtown Development Authority

How did Paul & Babe settle in Bemidji?

The statues of Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox are located on the sourthwestern lakeshore of Lake Bemidji. Built in 1937 by local townspeople, the 18th statue of the mythical lumberjack named Paul Bunyan and his trusty sidekick, Babe the Blue Ox, became Minnesota's first and best known examples of "roadside colossus." Paul and babe are two of the most photographed statues in the US and have been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1988.

Beltrami County was created in 1866 and its county seat, Bemidji, was incorporated in 1896. Chief Bemidji, whose real name was Shay-now-ish-kung (an Ojibwe word meaning "rattler" or one who makes a jingling shound") was born about 1833 near Inger, MN. In 1860 he married a Leech Lake Pillager Indian woman and they had eight children. In 1882, Chief Bemidji's wife died near Cass lake. Saddened by her death, he loaded all his possessions and his children in his birch bark canoe in 1883 and paddled up the Mississippi River. He settled on the south shore of lake Bemidji east of the Mississippi River inlet to become the first permanent settler of Bemidji. He was the first to greet the white people and early settlers when they started to arrive in 1888. On April 20, 1904, Chief Bemidji died and a large public funeral was held for him in Bemidji.

Count Gionomo Beltrami, an Italian explorer for whom this county was named, traveled throught Northern Minnesota in the early 1800s in search of the Mississippi Headwarters. He mistakenly named lake Julia as the source of the Mississippi. Beltrami continued his adventurers all the way to Mexico, and published several books about his experiences. He died in his estate at Filottrano, Italy, in 1855 at the age of 76.

The Waterfront - ca. 1970s

Downtown Bemidji, the Shores of Lake Bemidji and Lake Irving

Markham Hotel

Beltrami Avenue

Beltrami County Historical and Wildlife Museum and Chamber of Commerce

The DDA Board of Directors

Bylaws of the Bemidji Downtown Development Authority

Agreement for Municipal Parking Administrative Management Services