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Appendix E: Relevant News Articles (cont.) Copyright 2005 Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News Copyright 2005 Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn. Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn. August 10, 2005, Wednesday KR-ACC-NO: SP-BIZ-GROWTH-20050810 LENGTH: 835 words HEADLINE: Businesses spring up near metro BYLINE: By Jennifer Bjorhus and Maryjo Sylw BODY: The outlying Twin Cities areas aren't just having a population boom, they're also adding businesses at a rapid clip, according to a new report. The metro's "collar counties" of Sherburne, Scott, Wright, Carver, Washington and Chisago dominated the top ranks of Minnesota counties that saw the greatest percentage change in business establishments between 1998 and 2003, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2003 County Business Patterns report, which came out Monday. The total number of private businesses in those counties zipped ahead at rates of 17 percent to more than 40 percent during that five-year period, while the state as a whole saw private firms grow byjust 8 percent. That probably doesn't surprise locals who've been stuck in a traffic jam in Elk River in Sherburne County - - aonce-sleepy town that has morphed into a busy suburban hub. "It's phenomenal the growth that we have," said Debra Uristra, chair of the Elk River Area Chamber of Commerce and co-owner of Coldwell Banker Vision. "It's hard for the schools to keep up building. At night, the lights it's like downtown Minneapolis compared to what it used to be." The business patterns report, which the Census Bureau issues annually, differs from other employment reports because it's not based on a survey sample but tracks the actual number of private businesses in each county. The numbers exclude the self-employed, farmers and most government employees. Overall, the census findings support the idea that much of rural Minnesota has lost out on the state's more-recent economic growth, as the size of farms has grown and people moved away to harvest paychecks in the city. These communities have struggled to retain employers as urban areas in the corridor from Rochester to St. Cloud thrive. Marshall County in northwest Minnesota, for instance, lost 17 percent of its businesses between 1998 and 2003. Other outstate counties, such as Mahnomen, Le Sueur and Red Lake, fared poorly as well. "There's just not enough people out there to support these small businesses," said Gatzke resident Delray Larson, a longtime Marshall County Commissioner. Urban Hennepin County, however, popped out No. 19 in the nation for counties with the highest number of companies in 2003 with 39,471 establishments. Hennepin's average annual payroll per employee of $ 45,282 couldn't quite match national leader New York City's figure of $ 73,032, but it was among the highest in the state. Los Angeles County, with 235,085 firms, was No. 1 in terms of business