Fuse Blog

A Holiday Bonus Desktop Design

 Happy Holidays!  Martin Sawinski of 3FIVE Designs has donated a Fuse Duluth desktop design as a gift to Fusers.  Click on the link below, download and put it on your desktop today.

Read the full blog to download files

New and Final Fuse Duluth Desktop Design

Check out the new Fuse Duluth desktop now available for download. See attached for the new design. Add this to your computer to show your Fuse pride.  Another great idea… use it as your background on your Blackberry or iPhone.  This is the fourth and final design in a 4 part series for the Fuse Duluth branding and website launch.  FYI: This and other Fuse Duluth desktop designs were created by Martin Sawinski of 3FIVE Designs, Inc.

Do you have all the desktop designs?  Get the rest of them by clicking the links below and Fuse your space now!

1st Quarter

2nd Quarter

3rd Quarter

4th Quarter -check out the attachment below.

Read the full blog to download files

Dinkytown in D-Town Recap

What an event!  Last night, over 50 people gathered in the Murphy Room of Dubh Linn downtown to hear from three panelists about the proposed student zoning areas and how they could potentially lead to a Dinkytown in D-Town.  The panelists were Alex Brown (UMD Student), Tony Cuneo (City Councilor) and Cindy Petkac (Land Use Supervisor for the City of Duluth).  The event was sponsored by ShipRock Management.  Dave Orman of Raven & Associates moderated the event and boy did he have his work cut out for him!!

Immediately an audience member asked for the panelists to explain the population shift of UMD students, the percentage growth in population, the move and growth of the physical buildings from East End to Woodland/Kenwood area.  None of the panelists were from UMD, or had the exact numbers.  The panelists did however, explain that the growth of UMD students has become stagnant and that the shift from East End to Woodland/Kenwood has caused a great increase in housing needs in the new neighborhoods.

One audience member brought up the question of whether students have been involved in this planning/zoning process over the past few years.  The answer to this question was that there have been opportunities, but no students serving on the committees thus far.  Alex Brown was a panelist and provided a voice for the student perspective.  "I just want a place that's cheap, not too bad to live in."  He went on to say, "I want a one stop shop place where I can get everything and where other young people or students will be.  If the housing isn't near the shops and services, then the transportation has to be there -buses, bikes or within walking distance."

Students were confused about what has happened so far and what the plans are.  The City of Duluth is not planning to create a Dinkytown.  What the city is working on is creating the rules for developers and businesses within certain zones in our community to incentivize them to build housing and open businesses that students would be interested in.  Currently, our zoning codes are more than 50 years old.

There is a proposal right now for 7 student districts.  Are they the right size?  Are they in the right spots?  Is this too many -scattered?  Cindy Petkac stated that interested individuals can go to www.duluthmn.gov/planning and sign up for e-mail notifications of meetings and updates on this project.  If you have input and questions on this topic, I encourage you to get involved.  Go to the city website, attend future meetings and voice your opinions -in other words "Get Fused!"

Music to My Ears

Audiences for things like theatre, art galleries and the symphony are becoming more and more gray.  Why are students and young professionals staying away from these arts?

Kate E.H. Prescott, a Pittsburgh-based marketing consultant who works with corporate and nonprofit arts clients nationally did a study for the American Symphony Orchestra League in 2001 found the average orchestra attendee nationwide was age 57; fewer than 10 percent of the audience was under 35. The numbers simply reflected the fact that older attendees had more time, more spending money and had "reached a stage in life when self-improvement, continuing education, and enjoying new experiences are very important," her study found.
Read more:http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08032/853984-42.stm#ixzz0TqGdYQNo 

The good news?  Many of these organizations are learning what attracts young professionals to their venues and concerts.  In Duluth, the Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra (DSSO) realizes that one of the biggest reasons young people do not attend the symphony is because they don't know what to expect.  So, on November 12th at 6:30pm the DSSO and the DECC are partnering to put on a unique event; Fuse Duluth Underground Happy Hour -Symphony Style!

Get a free drink, network with other young professionals and then attend a free dress rehearsal of the Symphony.  Now that's music to my ears!  For more details on this event, click here.

A Great Rule for Hiring

Recently my coworkers and I were talking about hiring.  I mentioned that usually with the first 10 minutes of an interview you get a gut feeling that is 90% right about whether the candidate will work out or not.

One of my coworkers shared with me that her husband went by one rule.  He never hired someone without sharing a meal with them first.  What a great idea!  Think about all the things you can learn from someone during a 50min-1hr meal at a restaurant.  Are they courteous?  Do they have good table manners?  How do they treat the host and/or server?  Do they talk with food in their mouth?  Can they carry on a conversation?

The answers to these questions are a great indicators on that person's personality.  If the position you are filling requires a certain personality, your lunch meal interview will reveal whether you have found a great candidate or not.