Welcome to Albany, MN

About Albany, Minnesota:

Small town living and friendly folks welcome you to central Minnesota's Albany.

Just 20 minutes west of St. Cloud and with direct access to I-94, it is convenient to city shopping, commerce and entertainment while preserving the advantages of rural living. Albany is proud of its outdoor recreation opportunities, including the 46 mile Woebegon Trail, its small shops and eateries. It also boasts of many historic homes.

Points of Interest:

Albany Public Golf Course
The Woebegon Trail
Annual Heritage Day
Annual Pioneer Days

Albany includes the communities of Country Estates, Stonebrooke, The Highlands, Countryside Cottages (Patio Homes), Whispering Oaks, Redwood Ridge, Shay Addition, Trails Edge, Sterling Heights, Golfview Estates and Blattner 's Golfview Estates.

Albany, Minnesota

History of Albany, MN
The City of Albany was incorporated in 1890, but not without a struggle. The first petition to incorporate, signed by 33 male residents of the proposed area of incorporation, was presented to the Stearns county Board of Commissioners on November 30, 1888. The County Board issued a notice calling for an election on the issue at the District 59 schoolhouse the following January. The Great Northern and Soo Line Railroads once bounded the city, but have since been removed and the right of way now is utilized for pedestrian (hiking/biking) travel. One of the lines running from Avon through Albany to Sauk Centre is now a paved bike, hike, and snowmobile trail called The Lake Wobegon® Trail. The water plant was installed in 1902 and electricity in 1909. Beautiful Pine and Pelican Lakes are about 1 1/2 and 4 miles northeast of Albany. People wonder why commercial development on Railroad Avenue (Mainstreet) was almost confined to one side of the street, as you can see in these photos. That was no accident. The railroad designed it that way, the objective always being to receive revenue from people who used the rails. The land within the 300 foot railroad right of way was not for sale, only for lease. Businesses allowed to lease the land from the railroad were those who shipped by rail - livestock, grain, general merchandise, farm implements, automobiles, and so on. Retail merchants and service business hesitated to build on the railroad right of way with only a 30 day lease, so they built on the north side of Mainstreet. The City celebrated it's 100th year centennial in 1990!

Wells Concrete to build plant in Albany, MN
ALBANY, Minn. (AP) Wells Concrete Products plans to build a new 120,000 square-foot plant to Albany, bringing the potential of 200 new jobs to the central Minnesota town. Company President John Rivisto said Albany was picked because of its location. The town is halfway between the company's two other plants in Wells and in Grand Forks, N.D., and it's along Interstate 94. The company makes pre-cast panels for buildings and parking ramps. Groundbreaking in Albany is planned for next spring, and the plant should be operating by the fall of 2009. Reprinted from the Associated Press. Information from: Jim Maurice/WJON-AM, http://www.wjon.com

About Albany, MN
Small town living and friendly folks welcome you to central Minnesota's Albany. Just 20 minutes west of St. Cloud and with direct access to I-94, it is convenient to city shopping, commerce and entertainment while preserving the advantages of rural living. Albany is proud of its outdoor recreation opportunities, including the 46 mile Woebegon Trail, its small shops and eateries. It also boasts of many historic homes. Points of Interest: Albany Public Golf, Course, The Woebegon Trail, Annual Heritage Day, and the Annual Pioneer Days. Albany, MN includes the communities of Country Estates, Stonebrooke, The Highlands, Countryside Cottages (Patio Homes), Whispering Oaks, Redwood Ridge, Shay Addition, Trails Edge, Sterling Heights, Golfview Estates and Blattner's Golfview Estates.