Taylor Wyum was officially named the new Crookston Housing and Economic Development Authority Executive Director when the Crookston City Council unanimously approved the hire on Monday evening.
“I’m excited to be given the opportunity to fill this role,” said Wyum. “I’m in Crookston, and this is what I’m doing, and it’s really enjoyable. It’s a lot of fun. I learn a lot, get to interact with a lot of different people, and work on a lot of different projects, so it’s been really fantastic that way.”
Wyum grew up in Rutland, North Dakota, went to college at the University of North Dakota and earned an Environmental Science degree, then went to Northern Arizona University and earned a degree in climate studies. Wyum started with CHEDA in July, 2024. Before that, she served an AmeriCorps term, during which she worked with the University of Minnesota Extension. She has worked with the City of Crookston for two and a half years.
Wyum said she was lucky to be able to work with the previous director Karie Kirschbaum. “It’s a little bit different now that I don’t have Carrie right there in the office next door to say, hey, what do I do? But Carrie was a great, great mentor. And she’s only a phone call away. She’s told me many times to just give her a call if I need anything,” said Wyum. “So I’m really fortunate to have been kind of mentored and trained by somebody who knows what they’re doing and has been doing it for so long. So I feel very fortunate and well prepared in that way.”
There are a lot of projects in the works, which has the office staying busy. “It’s a super exciting time in Crookston. There are so many things that we’re working on or are looking into and maybe hoping to get started in the next three to five years,” said Wyum. “Things take time, and Karie really did a lot of the legwork for the stuff going on now. So I’m kind of fortunate to be stepping into the fun part, not the waiting part.”
CROOKSTON CONNECTED
Wyum invites all the residents of Crookston to stop by the Crookston Inn and Convention Center on Thursday, January 29, for the Crookston Connected event that will run from 4:30 to 7:00 p.m. “It’s kind of an informal open house type event. So you can kind of come and go. There are no presentations or formal speeches, but we’ll have all our city department heads and city council members there to kind of introduce everybody,” said Wyum. “The community, you have a chance to ask questions in a setting that’s not quite as formal as a city council meeting, and we’ll have hors d’oeuvres and door prizes, so it should be a really fun evening, family-friendly. Everybody can come on down, so we hope to see a big crowd.“
There will be information on upcoming projects where you can learn more and ask questions. “We’ll have information about the Highway 2 corridor project taking place in 2027. We’ll have information on the Broadway Villas and Industrial Park projects, and on stuff going on with Public Works, and Parks and Rec,” said Wyum. “It’s just going to be a really good event. If you’ve ever had a question or you’re wondering what a certain department is doing for you with your tax dollars, it’s a great opportunity to come on out.”
There will be free hors d’oeuvres, and the Tractor Beams will be performing.
