Billionaire Glen Taylor announces a new charitable mission for 2024

Mankato businessman and billionaire Glen Taylor is setting up a new foundation that will donate to charity the proceeds from thousands of acres of agricultural land he rents to farmers.

Taylor's farmland in southern Minnesota and northern Iowa, valued at $172 million, could generate several million dollars a year in lease payments. The proceeds will go in perpetuity toward childhood education, rural initiatives and other philanthropic priorities set by the new Taylor Family Farms Foundation.

His farmland has "been a really good investment," said Taylor, who also owns the Star Tribune. "This is the right thing to do. We're fortunate as a family to have resources and how can we help."

Taylor, 82, who with a net worth of about $3 billion is the richest Minnesotan, according to Forbes, announced the news Tuesday in Mankato. He said he wants his philanthropy in southern Minnesota to be as much a part of his legacy as his business success.

"I wouldn't mind having my kids and grandkids say, that was part of my Grandpa's legacy," he said.

Jeremy Wells, senior vice president of philanthropic services at the St. Paul & Minnesota Foundation and a member of the Taylor Family Farms Foundation board, said this method of giving is unique compared to other wealthy donors writing checks or donating stock.

"It's really an entrepreneurship approach to giving," he said. "It could set a model for a lot of people."

While the amount going to nonprofits each year will be much smaller, Wells said the total $172 million in non-cash assets will "probably be one of the largest charitable donations in Minnesota history."

Taylor launched Taylor Corp., a printing company, in 1975, and bought the Star Tribune in 2014. He became majority owner of the Minnesota Timberwolves in 1994 and the Minnesota Lynx in 1999, and is now selling the teams for $1.5 billion, which he has said will help him boost his foundation's work. He also owns nearly 18,000 acres of farmland in Minnesota and Iowa, some of which will be rented as part of this new charitable mission, he said Tuesday.

Taylor has long funded his own North Mankato-based foundation. In 2022, the Glen Taylor Foundation gave about $500,000 mostly to Mankato-area organizations, reporting about $1.5 million in revenue and about $4 million in assets, according to tax filings.

In 2020, Taylor became one of 30 NBA team owners to commit $1 million a year over the next 10 years to a newly created NBA Foundation. Taylor, who was a Republican leader in the Minnesota Senate in the 1980s, has contributed thousands of dollars over the years to GOP candidates and the state Republican Party, according to public disclosures.

He said Tuesday he has also quietly given millions of dollars personally throughout his career to charity, gifts that haven't been announced publicly — which is why he may be better known in the community for his pro basketball teams than his philanthropy.

"I'm not that type of person," he said about announcing his previous donations.

"Why now? It's because of my age," he said. "I always thought if I really work hard and make a lot of money, when I die, I'll have a whole bunch of money to give to places. Then somebody said to me, 'Why are you waiting until you die? If you've got the money, do it while you're alive so you can see who you're benefiting.' "

He's not the only billionaire octogenarian boosting his giving. Richard Schulze, 82, the founder of Best Buy, is increasing his philanthropy this year. The former Best Buy CEO, whose net worth is about $3.9 billion, now lives in Florida and is on track to distribute $50 million this year to Minnesota and Florida nonprofits.

In Mankato, Taylor's proceeds from the rented farmland will be disbursed to the Mankato Area Foundation, Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation and the St. Paul & Minnesota Foundation to give to charitable causes, starting at the end of 2024.

The rental revenue model keeps farmers working those properties while Taylor uses the proceeds for charity into perpetuity, Wells said. Since the Taylor Family Farms Foundation will be set up legally as a "supporting organization" granting money to the three foundations, rather than as its own private foundation, it won't have to disburse at least 5% of its assets a year like private foundations do.

Taylor said he thinks of both of his foundations as 100-year organizations that can continue to give back for generations, changing priorities over time to meet changing demands.

"I've made a lot of money off land," he said. "I'm trying to figure out how do you give back."