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Judge sets minimum giving for foundation
by Toni Randolph, Minnesota Public Radio
December 18, 2003

A Ramsey County judge has approved an order resolving the complaint about how much money the Grand Rapids-based Blandin Foundation should give to its home community.

St. Paul, Minn. — The Blandin Foundation must now set aside at least 55 percent of its grants for the Grand Rapids area. The agreement, approved by District Judge Margaret Marrinan Wednesday, ends a long-running dispute over how the foundation should distribute its money.

The chairman of the Blandin Foundation's board of trustees, Kenneth Lundgren, says board members are pleased with the agreement.

"Our primary focus is on the Grand Rapids area and also rural Minnesota. We've -- the board and the foundation -- has felt that we've addressed that challenge every single time, everything we do. We look at this more as a reaffirmation from the court to approve exactly what we've been doing," he said.

"We look at this more as a reaffirmation from the court to approve exactly what we've been doing." - Kenneth Lundgren

With more than $300 million in assets, the Blandin Foundation is one of the largest rural-based foundations in the state. The foundation provides money for hospitals, scholarships and community development. It's also a financial supporter of Minnesota Public Radio.

Blandin's giving has been challenged by attorneys representing a group of Grand Rapids-area residents who say the foundation hasn't been abiding by a previous agreement to dedicate its primary giving to the Grand Rapids area.

Attorney Keith Libbey, one of the attorneys representing the citizens, says they're pleased with the court order.

"We think the foundation is going to do a very good job for those folks in Grand Rapids in the future as they have been doing. But this will be even more of an empahsis and more money flowing to the Grand Rapids area as a result of this order," he said.

With the designation of 55 percent of grants for Grand Rapids, both sides agree the foundation will satisfy its "perpetual and primary responsibility" to meet the area's needs. The 55 percent must be granted over six-year time spans. The most recent time period began last January.

In order to ensure the foundation abides by the order, a special master will be appointed to monitor compliance.

"And we agreed that that issue would be addressed in the supplemental order appointing the master after January 5th," said Attorney Libbey.

The Blandin foundation was set up in 1941 by paper magnate Charles Blandin. The foundation began designating money for the Grand Rapids area after his death in 1958 in accordance with his will. In accordance with probate guidelines, the court reviews the foundation every three years. But Kenneth Lundgren, the chairman of Blandin's board, encourages those with concerns about how Blandin is distributing its money to speak up.

"Our purpose is to dialog with our community and if there are people that have any concerns, we tell them, please contact us. We have six local trustees. We have our foundation headquarters in Grand Rapids. And if somebody has any questions or objections, don't wait for three years. Come in and talk to us when you feel it's necessary," he said.

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