Source: www.TurfMagazine.com
BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – Toro Co. officially opened the $25 million addition to its Bloomington headquarters Thursday to much fanfare as 2,000 politicians, developers, retirees and employees gathered to celebrate the expansion and the company’s 100th year in business. The three-story wing adds 75,000 square feet to Toro’s existing 400,000 square feet of space. It is the latest of several expansions over the years but was highly praised because Toro chose to grow in Bloomington instead of succumbing to offers to build in other states. To sweeten the deal, the state’s Minnesota Investment Fund gave Toro a $750,000 loan that will be forgiven provided Toro keeps 900 workers in Minnesota and adds at least 50 new corporate jobs to its headquarters. Toro started in 1914 as a tiny company that built tractor engines for the Bull Tractor Co. During World War I it built steam steering engines for merchant ships to support the war effort. It entered the turf management business in 1919, after several workers decided to bolt five reel mowers onto the front of a tractor so they could mow the fairways at the Minikahda Club in Minneapolis. Over the years, Toro set up its headquarters in Minneapolis and built an R&D center in Bloomington. That 22-acre site became the official headquarters in 1962. For the full article, click here.