Economic Development Contacts

Welcome to Long Prairie’s Economic Development Contact Hub. This page connects you with the people leading growth and opportunity in our community. Whether you are a business, developer, or resident, you can find the right contacts here to help move your ideas forward. Contact Us Here

Back Row:  Dustin Wagner (Commissioner)  & Lilah Gripne (City Council liaison to EDA)
Front Row:  Dallas Nelson (Vice-Chair),  Terri Jo Peery (Chair), Mary Schmidt (Secretary) & Kevin Berrios (Commissioner)

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Luan Thomas-Brunkhorst

Luan Thomas-Brunkhorst

Economic Development Authority 

320.533.3112 • Email Luan

Luan Thomas-Brunkhorst has been the part-time Long Prairie Economic Development Authority director since 2019 and the Long Prairie Area Chamber of Commerce director for almost 11 years. She has lived in Long Prairie since 1999, but she is originally from Lancaster, Pennsylvania. When she first came to Long Prairie, she taught German. She lived for more than 7 years in Germany and Austria. She also spent a year bicycling through Mexico and learned Spanish. Due to her job as a teacher, she got to know many community members through her students and the staff at LPGE schools. That fact has helped her connect with Long Prairie residents, businesses and non-profits. The EDA's mission is to attract, retain and grow businesses in our City. The Chamber's mission is to promote Chamber members (businesses, non-profits, other organizations and individuals) while enhancing the livability of our community. She loves talking about the positives of living in Long Prairie. She sees Long Prairie as her home and wants it to reach its full potential. When she is not in her office in the library building, she is bicycling, canoeing, taking photos, reading, writing letters, traveling and spending time with her two sons and husband. She can be seen at almost every event in town taking photos, socializing and networking. Her sons play soccer, hockey, basketball and baseball, so she also watches almost all of their games, home and away. Long Prairie has been a safe, peaceful and diverse city where her children have grown up and thrived. Her goals are to continue welcoming newcomers, helping businesses and other organizations to flourish and grow, and she hopes that she can see the rehabilitation/revitalization of the downtown area.