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to both welcome and integrate these individuals as members of the community will pay off for years to come. Communities in the study area can use the results in this report related to communication preferences and demographics to learn about and integrate seasonal residents into community life. BACKGROUND Second homeowners are an integral part of the social and economic fabric of communities in the Central and West Central lakes districts of Minnesota. Seasonal, occasional, and recreational residents have traditionally provided a strong customer base for local businesses and organizations, and may become increasingly important to -- communities as these part-time residents transition to become permanant residents. These homeowners impact local a communities through their spending and - - -- involvement. ______ ; j''R, Although many in Minnesota's lakes district " s would describe second homeowners as -` / important to the region, little research exists to profile seasonal residents in Minnesota `I I _- and their relationship to their second home .. `�, communities. Our research attempts to �{ address this need, as well as to identify basic ,, information about seasonal residents, their , `._} >: use of second homes, and their plans for the future. ' The eight counties in the study area(see `-" Figure 1)host a large number of second i ;`- homes-31 percent of all housing units 1 I lac across all eight counties are vacant, at least _; L part of the year, due to seasonal, occasional, and recreational use. In the counties of Figure 1:Study Area(shaded in pink) Aitkin and Cass, this category of housing units exceeds 45 percent. The Economic Development Administration(EDA) Center at University of Minnesota Crookston sponsored this study to meet their mission of engaging"university faculty, staff, and students with local, county, and regional economic development agencies in support of our rural economy." Ryan Pesch and Merritt Busssiere of the University's Community Economics team in Extension collaborated with Ann Ziebarth, Department of Housing Studies, together with PhD candidates Hae Young Yun and Youngeun Choi, to develop the survey instrument and then conducted secondary research using property tax records to identify second homeowners. The authors also consulted public officials, local community development advocates, and community and economic development professionals in the study area to guide their research. METHODOLOGY Working with University collaborators, Community Economics educators based in Central and West Central Minnesota approached local, county, and regional partners for input about the content of the planned survey.This approach yielded ideas relevant to communities in the lakes district. Our research partners(listed at the beginning of the report)identified key issues to explore such as - Second Homeowners of Central and West Central MN 5