Living in Kenyon
A town of 1,900 on the North Fork of the Zumbro, forty miles from Rochester and fifty from St. Paul, with its own electric utility, a K–12 campus, a pool, a library, a clinic, a grocery store and a Main Street of roses. What it is like, with the numbers.
Homes and rentals
Listings, sales, lots, costs, buyer programs.
WorkJobs
46 openings within ten miles.
SchoolsKenyon-Wanamingo
One PreK–12 campus, staff directory, activities.
OutdoorsParks
Depot Park, pool, disc golf, golf, trails.
AugustRose Fest
Parade, tractor pull, street dance, vendors, forms.
CalendarEvents
Farmers Market and the annual round.
VeteransVeterans
VA care, the county officer's hours at the VFW, the VA loan and tax exclusion, VR&E, the posts and the park.
Public safetyFire department
Thirty volunteers covering the city and seven townships, what a call costs, and how to join.
CivicNonprofits
37 organizations with their 990s.
CommerceBusinesses
Shops, farms, churches and services, with hours and contacts.
UtilitiesHooking up
KMU rates, deposits, rebates.
The essentials
- Population
- 1,894 at the 2020 Census, up every decade since 1990. By the numbers
- Age
- Median 40.5; 23 percent under 18, 20 percent 65 and over
- Households
- 732; 82 percent own their home
- Income
- Median household $74,643
- Distances
- Northfield 15 miles, Faribault 18, Rochester 40, Red Wing 40, St. Paul 50
- Highways
- State Highways 56 and 60 meet in town; 246 runs just north
- Schools
- Kenyon-Wanamingo, one PreK–12 campus. Schools
- Clinic
- Northfield Hospital + Clinics, 225 Huseth St, 507-623-0123; Mayo Clinic 40 miles
- Dentist, pharmacy
- Main Street Dental; Bergh Pharmacy; McBroom Chiropractic
- Groceries
- Kenyon Market, 109 Red Wing Ave; Kenyon Meats; Dollar General
- Hardware, fuel
- Ace Hardware; Circle K; River Country Co-op
- Eating out
- Angie's, Cahill Bistro & Bar, Che Che's Lunchera, Lunch Ladies, Tacos Express, the Muni
- Bank
- Security State Bank of Kenyon, 602 2nd St, locally owned since 1970
- Library
- Kenyon Public Library, 709 2nd St; SELCO system, free card
- Utilities
- City-owned electric and water on one bill; electric $0.113 per kWh. Rates and deposits
- Internet
- Fiber and broadband in town and at the industrial park
- Property tax
- Median homestead bill $3,108; city rate 84.68 percent of tax capacity. Estimator
- Housing
- Median home value $221,300. Homes and rentals
- Police
- City police 16 hours a day; Goodhue County sheriff otherwise
- Fire
- 30-member volunteer department with first responders
- Churches
- Ten in the directory; First Evangelical Lutheran and St. Michael's Catholic the largest
- Newspapers
- The Kenyon Leader, weekly since 1885; Kenyon Messenger
- Board openings
- Planning Commission (3), Park & Rec (1–2), Historic Preservation (1). Council and boards
- Civic groups
- Rose Fest committee, Commercial Club, Historical Society, Age-Friendly Kenyon. More
What the town says it wants
The city's 2023–2027 strategic plan lists seven objectives: downtown retention and a succession plan for retiring owners, sewer and sidewalk infrastructure, Depot Park, a monument at a city entrance, marketing the industrial park, facility and trail planning including a river crossing, and annual visits by the mayor and administrator to key businesses. The comprehensive plan names housing supply "to ensure an ample labor force" as an economic goal. The police posting calls Kenyon "a growing community." The census agrees: the town has grown every decade since 1990.
Sources: 2020 Census; ACS 2023 5-year; cityofkenyon.gov; 2023–2027 Strategic Plan; Comprehensive Plan EDA Goals; FDIC; business directory.