Workshops and training

Right of way
2025 Right of Way Professionals Workshop
Date: September 17, 2025 – September 19, 2025
Location: Mayo Civic Center, 30 Civic Center Dr SE, Rochester, MN
The Minnesota Department of Transportation’s Office of Land Management invites you to attend the 2025 Right of Way Professionals Workshop. This year marks the Department’s 32nd year of sponsoring this workshop. What began as an information sharing event in 1993 for MnDOT employees has grown into an event that has proven to be of value to both public and private sector right of way professionals throughout the State of Minnesota. There will be topics of interest to practitioners engaged in the acquisition of right of way for transportation improvement projects. The core subjects to be covered at the workshop include appraisal, purchasing, relocation assistance and legal considerations involving right of way activities. Related topics will include environmental topics, negotiating real estate rights, condemnation, case law and legislative updates, and other topics of interest to MnDOT staff as well as our city, county, and private sector partners.
Workshop Schedule (PDF) - Coming mid-July
Workshop check in begins at 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday, September 17, 2025. The workshop program starts at 10:30 a.m. Includes 2.5 days of educational sessions and exhibits. The workshop concludes on Friday, September 19, 2025, at approximately 12:45 p.m.
MnDOT Employee Registration Process
All MnDOT employees who would like to attend the 2025 Right of Way Professionals Workshop should:
- Refer to the 2025 MnDOT Right of Way Professionals Workshop Training Announcement
- Complete the MnDOT Registration Form and obtain supervisory approval for your training request
- Follow your Office/District Training Registration Process; do not follow the process below
- You will receive an enrollment confirmation via email once your registration is processed.
Non-MnDOT Employee Registration Process
- NEW! Registration for the workshop can now be completed online! Please visit the MnDOT Training Course Registration and Payment website and select the 2025 Right of Way Professionals Workshop from the pull-down menu to register. Please keep a copy of your payment receipt as your workshop registration confirmation.
If you are a presenter, please do not use this registration process.
Note: The online registration form asks you to provide Not Public data about yourself. You are not legally required to provide any data, however without your data you cannot register for the conference. The data you provide is subject to the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act and in addition to the conference organizers may be accessible to anyone who requests the data.
- The workshop fee covers the workshop registration fee, includes the meals listed:
- Breakfast: 9/18 & 9/19
- Lunch: 9/17 & 9/18
- Dinner: 9/17
Break and Mayo Civic Parking Ramp fee vouchers (up to 3) will be provided at the workshop upon request. Further information will be available closer to the workshop. The workshop fee is non-negotiable but is transferable.
ONLY COMPLETE THIS WHEN YOU HAVE COMPLETED STEP 1!
This year there are two hotels that we have room blocks for attendees. Each hotel offers free shuttle service to the conference center and free hotel parking:
Hotel Option #1: Hyatt House Rochester/Mayo Clinic Area
110 Civic Center Dr NW, Rochester, MN 55901
- Complete lodging reservations using this link: Hyatt House Rochester - Mayo Clinic Area
- Click "Book"
- Make sure to manually enter the dates in the search bar to match your arrival and departure dates (September 16 or 17/ September 19).
- Make sure "accessible" is NOT clicked
- Only add 1 adult to the reservation (despite their possibly being more than one person in that room)
- Make sure your group code is entered where it says, "corporate or group code" (G-MND1)
- To see all available room types, toggle between (rooms) and (suites)
- If you will be making lodging reservations with a Purchase Order, please email Purchase Orders along with lodging list (Lodging List should include: First Name, Last Name, Email Address, Check In Date, Check Out Date, and contact information) to:
- Hallie Appleby - hallie.appleby@hyatt.com, CC: Sarah Haskell - sarah.haskell@hyatt.com
- Please reference corporate or group code: G-MND1
Cutoff date for making reservations in this block is: Tuesday, September 2nd, 2025
- After your lodging reservation has been processed, you will receive an email confirmation.
- Please note: When you receive your reservation details it may say “COVERED PARKING $15 PER DAY”, but if you're attending the workshop and booked under the room block, your parking is complimentary.
Hotel Option #2: Centerstone Plaza Hotel - Soldiers Field
401 6th Street SW, Rochester, Minnesota 55902
To make a reservation call 507-288-2677 to speak to a front desk agent. Ask for the MN DOT Right of Way rate or Book Online:
- If you will be making lodging reservations with a Purchase Order, please send Purchase Order along with lodging list (Lodging List should include: First Name, Last Name, Email Address, Check In Date, Check Out Date, and contact information) to:
- Taryn Ferguson - Taryn@soldiersfield.com
- Please reference group code: MN DOT Right of Way
Please reserve your room by Thursday, August 28th, 2025, to receive the group rate.
- After your lodging reservation has been processed, you will receive an email confirmation.
Applications will be submitted to the Minnesota Department of Commerce for approval of 14 Appraiser
and 14 Real Estate Continuing Education Credits but at this time credit approval has not been granted. In addition, an application will be submitted to the Minnesota Board of Continuing Legal Education for 14 continuing legal education credits. While it is our goal to secure these credit approvals for attendee’s respective license requirements, please understand that we cannot guarantee that 14 credits will be approved at this time. This website will be updated when credits are approved which will not be until August at the earliest.
Please Note: To earn real estate and appraiser credits, full attendance at the workshop is required. You are required to attend a different session during each hour of the workshop. Attendees will not be able to qualify for a portion of the credits offered. Real Estate and Appraiser credits will be earned on an “all or nothing” basis.
Each attendee will be asked to have their name tag barcodes scanned at the beginning of each session. This is necessary in order for the Minnesota Department of Transportation to be in compliance with the Minnesota Department of Commerce rules and guidelines in qualifying for continuing education credits for this workshop. For real estate and appraiser continuing education purposes, failure to have the barcode scanned will result in a forfeiture of all continuing education credits for this workshop! Please remember, MnDOT is merely offering you an opportunity to earn continuing education credits, but it is ultimately your responsibility to be in compliance with your respective license requirements. MnDOT will assume no responsibility in you earning your continuing education credits.
Participants licensed through the Board of Architecture, Engineering, Land Surveying, Landscape Architecture, Geosciences, and Interior Design should review the program to determine suitability of select sessions for meeting board defined professional development standards. It is the responsibility of the attendee to select training sessions that will meet personal training needs and satisfy defined licensing standards requirements. Training signature sheets will remain on file, should they be required for verification purposes. Workshop participants are responsible, however, for submitting for Professional Development Hours with AELSLAGID.
Certificates:
To receive a certificate of attendance from the Minnesota Department of Transportation, workshop participants are required to have attended the full 2 ½ days of sessions. A certificate of attendance can be request by sending an email to Lorianna Yang at lorianna.yang@state.mn.us after the workshop. After the completion of the workshop, the barcode scans will be reviewed, and Lorianna Yang will send appraisers and real estate licensed attendees an “official” continuing education certificate to retain for your records.
Vendor displays and exhibits can be viewed in the Ballroom 3. Vendor displays can be viewed throughout the workshop. Exhibitors will be happy to answer specific questions regarding their products and services. If you or your company would like to participate in the vendor display area at the 2025 Right of Way Workshop, please contact Lorianna Yang via email at: lorianna.yang@state.mn.us. There is no cost to have a vendor display, but space is limited and will be filled on a first come, first serve basis to the first 18 interested companies. If you would like to attend the workshop sessions, you will need to follow the Workshop Registration and Payment Process in Step 1.
Surveying and mapping
2026 Survey Technical Workshop
Date: TBD
Please check back in December for more information.