“We saw the corporations leave, and with that a lot of businesses begin to leave, and with that crime began to increase … and the maintenance on the building that we were in started to deteriorate,” said Julian Scadden, Nexstar president and CEO. “So not only was that not good for the people visiting us, but for our employees as well … But we still know how important it is to have a headquarters where we can gather, where we can rally, where we can welcome people.”

Now, the new modern, spacious, and light-filled headquarters offers free-covered parking, onsite security, and sits just minutes from the MSP airport, Mall of America, and a number of acclaimed restaurants and high-end shopping centers.

OPEN HQ: Nexstar Network hosted an Open House celebration to welcome members, strategic partners, current and former employees, industry VIPs, community leaders, and neighbors to their new headquarters and training location in Bloomington, Minn. on Monday, April 29, 2024. (Courtesy of Nexstar Network)

But what might be the most exciting part of the new headquarters is that it is also home to the Frank J. Blau Jr. Training Center. It’s a dual-purpose space — not only does it offer a productive, flexible, and collaborative workspace to its employees, it will also bring in contractors from around the globe to receive a state-of-the-art trades education.

As far as what sort of actual training will be done at the headquarters, it’s more of the soft skills.

“Its interactions with the homeowner, and some of it is leadership and management development,” Scadden said. “So the Technical Training currently is still all online or in other locations, but here at home, it is the personal development and those professional skills.”

If Nexstar’s old training center was any indication of how many trade professionals would be trained at the Frank J. Blau Jr. Training Center, they can expect around 5,000 a year.

WELCOME HOME: Julian Scadden, Nexstar Network President and CEO, joins with Nexstar members, leadership and VIPs during the ribbon cutting celebration at Nexstar Network’s Open House event on Monday, April 29th, 2024 in Bloomington, Minn. (Courtesy of Nexstar Network)

“The training center is really a place of collaboration, learning, and sharing,” Scadden said. “We learn from our members, and then we bring our members together to share those leading practices with each other. So really, this is a place to gather. This is a safe place to learn, to explore, and to create while we take great care of you in a great space full of beautiful amenities.”

And that’s really, at the core, what this whole new headquarters and its celebration is all about: Nexstar celebrating those within it.

“It’s really not about Nexstar, it's about the founders who created the vision, the employees year-over-year that made Nexstar a beautiful place to serve our members, and most importantly our members that create growing businesses for new opportunities for their employees, and that serve their communities,” Scadden said.