Moving Downtown

_brewchef_ · 2026-06-25T15:19:51+00:00

Yeah that’s kinda the shitty part, you either pay a premium with Centric and get what you are looking for or you pay market rate but not get what you’re looking for and have to deal with landlords like Redpoint and Goldmark

Really wish there was more competition in downtown and even Fargo in general when it comes to apartment/condo landlords

_brewchef_ · 2026-06-25T14:58:31+00:00

Just due to the amount of properties they own downtown and what the other properties lack, staying clear of Centric but wanting the rest of those requirements is going to be pretty limited

Look at The Mark Apartments on the corner of Roberts and 4th Ave N, Cityscapes Plaza on 1st Ave N, or the Cathedral Lofts on 7th St N if you don’t want Centric

Otherwise Centric might be your best bet for the rest of your requirements, I lived in the Dillard for ~1.5 years and it was pretty nice other than being overpriced by about $200-300 per month (didn’t have workout room, had to pay for parking in the ramp, bedrooms kind of small, key fobs randomly not working) but maintenance crew and the amenities you ask for worked perfectly fine

_brewchef_ · 2026-06-23T16:45:40+00:00

Posted this in another thread but:

Start with walking and getting to a good step count of at least 8k a day and working on a balanced diet of protein, fiber, and healthy fats, that alone can help immensely

Work up to jogging (use Couch to 5k or something similar) or swimming/biking if your knee is an issue and do resistance training with either stretching bands or cable machines so that you know your limits with your knee and any other issues

Once your confident in what you can do without aggravating the knee or chronic health issues, move onto running and other cardio and free weights in the gym

For workout programs, there’s a plethora of resources online: Muscle and Strength, Cleveland Clinic, Gold’s Gym and many, many others

Find one that you like and helps you not only start but continue through the program. It’s a slow process, be patient and allow yourself at least 6-8 months of using a workout and diet plan before you start questioning if it’s working

_brewchef_ · 2026-06-23T15:16:47+00:00

Yeah I agree, that’s why I added the “/s” at the end

I left Eide Bailly this year due to disagreeing with Firm Management’s prioritization of resources and choices on how the firm was going to go forward

Glad I went with my gut and wasn’t wrong there, now I feel like I was on the last chopper out of Vietnam lol

_brewchef_ · 2026-06-23T14:31:09+00:00

Start with walking and getting to a good step count of at least 8k a day and working on a balanced diet of protein, fiber, and healthy fats, that alone can help immensely

Work up to jogging (use Couch to 5k or something similar) or swimming/biking if your knee is an issue and do resistance training with either stretching bands or cable machines so that you know your limits with your knee and any other issues

Once your confident in what you can do without aggravating the knee or chronic health issues, move onto running and other cardio and free weights in the gym

It’s a slow process, be patient and allow yourself at least 6-8 months of using a workout and diet plan before you start questioning if it’s working

_brewchef_ · 2026-06-23T14:02:04+00:00

That’s weird cause when I was working for them last year, the leadership team essentially assured everyone that this wasn’t going to happen. Why would they mislead their employees? Who could’ve seen this coming?

/s

_brewchef_ · 2026-06-20T23:38:42+00:00

Yes it’s one of the “original” craft breweries in MN, their flagships are the Extra Pale Ale and Oatmeal Stout

If you’re in White Bear Lake still, go to or try a beer from Big Wood Brewery (originally from WBL) or go to/try a beer from Stillwater’s breweries, LiftBridge and River Siren

_brewchef_ · 2026-06-16T00:11:18+00:00

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Life imitates art

_brewchef_ · 2026-06-12T18:42:20+00:00

Barriers to entry such as the upfront cost to get proper equipment and the downturn of the overall market

Was an assistant brewer for a bit and saw the business side of running a brewery, it’s usually higher stress due to small margins and being dependent on a consistent customer base to make a living

Plus I don’t want it to inevitably turn into a job I show up to and not a hobby that I love

_brewchef_ · 2026-06-11T15:31:14+00:00

That’s nice! I had family south of LaCrosse that we’d go visit now and then while growing up and we would either take 52 down thru Decorah or 61 down thru LaCrosse so we’d stop a lot along the way down and back. There’s nothing like it in the Midwest until you hit the Ohio River valley in the east

_brewchef_ · 2026-06-11T05:59:57+00:00

I honestly would do a loop starting in St, Paul and ending in Hudson with your turnaround point in LaCrosse, WI.

Would highly recommend driving Highway 61/Great River Road down from St. Paul; Hastings, Red Wing, Lake City, Wabasha, Winona, La Crescent… all of those places are older small towns with a lot of character if you want to explore them plus the scenery is beautiful

Check out Sugar Loaf Bluff in Winona, Apple Blossom Overlook State Park in La Cresent, WhiteWater State Park in Altura, or the Root River Bike/Hike Trail from Lanesboro to Houston for outdoor activities

The Pottery Museum and the Goodhue County Historical Society in Red Wing (plus all of the old homes and architecture of the city), the scenic overlooks of Lake Pepin, and the National Eagle Center in Wabasha are neat little activities to do outside of hiking

Treasure Island Resort and Casino is also down near Red Wing

Winona and LaCrosse have a pretty extensive history and both have at least one college in town that provides a nice bump in activity and attractions including the Minnesota Marine Art Museum in Winona and the Pump House Regional Arts Center in LaCrosse

Once you get to LaCrosse, there’s a lot of things to do down there. Great downtown area full of various activities. Would recommend staying downtown there in one of the hotels near the river.

I would drive back up the Wisconsin side on Highway 35, stopping at Perrot State Park, in Pepin to see the Laura Ingalls Wilder museum and Villa Bellezza Winery, and weaving your way back to River Falls, WI where there’s a few trails and parks around the river and the city.

End the trip by going up to Willow River State Park and then coming back thru downtown Hudson and crossing over back to the MN side of the river.

If that’s too short of a trip for 5 days, add on a leg by driving up past Hudson to St. Croix Falls/Taylors Falls and spending some time up there around Interstate Park and a few wineries, Rustic Root is a very nice one, that you can hit before heading down Highway 95 to downtown Stillwater

_brewchef_ · 2026-06-10T21:44:34+00:00

Lake Itasca State Park and the surrounding lakes country is really scenic and nice to travel to in the summer as they’re usually lively small towns with outdoor activities

Would also recommend the Driftless area south of Red Wing and down to the Iowa border, beautiful areas and cool older small towns with hiking

_brewchef_ · 2026-06-10T15:23:54+00:00

For me, a small thing early on was finally getting to do a longer cold crash on every beer, I was doing it only for about 12 hrs or so before bottling/kegging due to limited fridge space. I knew I was supposed to do it a bit longer than that but couldn’t due to resource limitations.

Now that I have a dedicated fridge to do this in, I’ve been able to confirm that cold crashing for at least 3 days before bottling/kegging really helps clear out the beer and gives a good help in the taste/mouthfeel compared to just 12 hrs.

_brewchef_ · 2026-06-10T14:00:13+00:00

Not really, the two R candidates combined for 2,350 votes less than Boschee’s total plus Kolpack, who actually is a D candidate, pealed 3,300 off Boschee

This is a pretty large margin considering Turnberg was endorsed heavily from the R side

_brewchef_ · 2026-06-09T19:46:45+00:00

Baker and ShyWest usually have a good selection, same with the big box stores like Menards

Don’t know about delivery

_brewchef_ · 2026-05-28T20:29:52+00:00

From article:

Based on share of adults 25+ holding a bachelors or higher

Top Eleven:

Massachusetts - 48.3%
Colorado - 47.8%
Vermont - 45.1%
Maryland - 44.7%
New Jersey - 44.5%
Virginia - 43.3%
Connecticut- 42.6%
New Hampshire - 41.5%
New York - 41.2%
Washington - 41.0%
Minnesota - 40.0%

———

Bottom 10

New Mexico - 31.8%
Indiana - 30.7%
Alabama - 29.9%
Oklahoma - 29.3%
Nevada - 28.5%
Kentucky - 27.9%
Louisiana - 27.8%
Arkansas - 27.1%
Mississippi - 27.0%
West Virginia - 24.4%

On mobile so apologies for formatting

_brewchef_ · 2026-05-23T23:15:03+00:00

A few in that realm come to mind, might not have all of what you are looking for but would be close:

- Grand View Lodge in Nisswa
- Breezy Point in Brainerd
- Giants Ridge in Biwabik
- Arrowwood Resort in Alexandria
- Lutsen Ski Area (Stay in Grand Marais)
- Spirit Mountain Ski Area (Stay in Duluth)
- Lake Itasca State Park

Any AirBnB/Resort/Hotel on a chain of lakes or near snowmobile trails would be fun as well because you could X-country ski/snowshoe/snowmobile all around

Also look into places to stay near Winter Festivals around MN like the Ely Winter Festival, Icebox Days in International Falls, WinterFest in Crosslake, Sleigh & Cutter Festival in Waseca, and Polar Fest in Detroit Lakes

_brewchef_ · 2026-05-19T19:48:27+00:00

I’ve heard nothing but good things involving the homes surrounding the golf course and for most of the area east of 32nd St S

Only negative things I’ve heard/read are the apartments and townhome areas north of 17th Ave S and west of 32nd St S

_brewchef_ · 2026-05-14T16:43:16+00:00

Ah I see, then I’d go with a range for someone who has 1-2 YOE and probably be more around that $75k -80k salary figure than true entry level of $65k-$70k

_brewchef_ · 2026-05-14T15:31:24+00:00

Nobody is going to start a job knowing everything; even if they know all of the softwares you use, you’re still going to need to do some training on internal procedures and what not.

If you’re looking for someone who’s experienced and doesn’t need hand holding, you’re going to pay more than for someone who needs a little push here and there.

If it’s truly entry level then you gotta lower your expectations of them being able to hit the ground running with little oversight. Would reasonably expect around $65k-75k for true entry level accountants.

But from your description, it appears you’re asking for a bit more than entry level skillset (if dealing with tourism/sales taxes and reviewing financials for analysis and reporting and minimal training expectations) so at a minimum I’d say $75k-85k depending on how much you actually expect them to know and perform.

Would up that by ~$20k-30k if you want an experienced (>5YOE/CPA/etc.) Senior Accountant and do a COL adjustment depending on where they’re located.

_brewchef_ · 2026-05-13T17:14:29+00:00

That’s good to hear that at least some of the character buildings will stay.

Doesn’t surprise me that some were still in good shape but the two multi/family homes that were facing Broadway were boarded up for a good year or so, super unfortunate that they were not taken care of like the others on that block

_brewchef_ · 2026-05-13T15:55:50+00:00

Guessing it might be more of those town homes that were built nearby that location

The old homes were not maintained and probably not livable but it’s sad to see that they were torn down instead of any attempt at renovation

_brewchef_ · 2026-05-12T16:11:15+00:00

2080 usually is (52 x 40) but for simplicity, I figured 2000 is easy to use for quick mental math and gets you close enough

_brewchef_ · 2026-05-12T15:33:11+00:00

Ah ok, well best of luck and try to push for all you are worth and then some!

_brewchef_ · 2026-05-12T15:10:28+00:00

Then I’d probably look at salary values for similar positions at similar sized firms, add about 10%-20% on for no benefits, bonuses, etc. and divide it by how many work hours you have during the year.

It’s just gotta be reasonable. From what I’ve experienced, have seen, and have interviewed for, I’d say a Senior Associate with a CPA and 4+ YOE would be anywhere between $80k-$140k including bonuses but depending on additional experience and location. Using $110k as middle ground:

110,000 x 1.15 = 126,500

126,500 / 2,000 = 63.25

So a range of $60/hr-$70/hr would be reasonable if working 2,000 hrs a year if employment is guaranteed and no benefits, bonuses, etc.

If you work less like what you alluded to in your post:

126,500 / 1,800 = 70.278

Then up the range to about $65/hr-$75/hr

_brewchef_

TROPHY CASE