Department of Public Transformation (DoPT) has officially completed a 5-year Capital Campaign raising over $1M to transform a historic main street building into a creative community gathering place called The YES! House in Granite Falls, MN. The programming and design of the space emerged through a year-long (and ongoing) community engagement process in which local community members collaborated with local and national artists and architects to dream and plan. It’s a creative economic design concept, a celebration of vibrant small-town communities, and an investment in rural futures!
Thank you to all the donors, artists, volunteers, contractors, mentors, program officers, local businesses, and event attendees who have made this big dream possible. This is only the beginning.
The Say YES! Creative Capital Campaign is 100% funded!
Thanks to generous support from individuals, businesses, and foundations across the country, the Capital Campaign has crossed the finish line!
We’re not just building a building; we’re building a movement.
The YES! House is a prototype of imagination; an experiment of transformation that can be adapted and implemented in small towns throughout the nation. As we continue to fundraise and build, we are documenting every step of the way to share what we learn with other communities in the future.
We initially intended to publicly launch this campaign in the spring of 2020—on the cusp of the emerging COVID-19 pandemic—and made the difficult decision to postpone amidst uncertainty. We continued moving forward with building infrastructure work and construction projects made possible by restricted grants. In August 2021, we planned to re-launch the campaign both online and in-person; however, with the rise in COVID-19 cases in Minnesota and the valuable feedback of local residents and partners, we again made the decision to postpone until February 2022.
In the meantime, we worked diligently to clarify our financial projections and reports with updated information, respond to community feedback by realigning our overall Capital Campaign budget, and identify strategies for increased community engagement, keeping COVID-19 safety protocols in mind.
On February 4, 2022, we publicly launched the Say YES! Creative Capital Campaign with the support of many of our partners, friends, families, and funders.
In 2024, our final goal for The Say YES! Creative Capital Campaign was increased to $1,020,000 to account for inflation and additional repair costs since the original budget was set in early 2020. James Arentson from Southwest Minnesota Housing Partnership commented, “As the architect working with DoPT, I have been so impressed by their dedication to The YES! House. They work hard to balance complex event and construction schedules and have maintained a visionary yet practical approach to the work.”
We are honored to announce that as of December 2024, the Say YES! Capital Campaign is complete!
Together, we are building it.
Over half of the contributions (54%) came from or were directed by Southwest Minnesota, and the remainder came from farther afield, a balance that accurately aligns with DoPT’s mission and their commitment to urban-rural solidarity and being good stewards and neighbors near and far. DoPT acknowledges that there are many, many contributors to the completion of the Say YES! Capital Campaign, and would like to give a special thanks to all the donors, artists, volunteers, contractors, mentors, program officers, local businesses, and event attendees who have made this big dream possible. This is only the beginning.
