Austin is a city in, and the county seat of, Mower County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 24,718 at the 2010 census. The town was originally settled along the Cedar River and has two artificial lakes, East Side Lake and Mill Pond. It was named for Austin R. Nichols, the area's first European settler.Hormel Foods Corporation is Austin's largest employer, and the town is sometimes called "SPAM Town USA". Austin is home to Hormel's corporate headquarters, a factory that makes most of North America's SPAM tinned meat, and the Spam Museum. Austin is also home to the Hormel Institute, a leading cancer research institution operated by the University of Minnesota with significant support from the Mayo Clinic.In 2015 Austin was named one of the "Top 10 Affordable Small Towns Where You'd Actually Want to Live" and one of the "Best Small Cities in America".

Waseca () is a city in Waseca County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 9,410 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat.

Owatonna () is a city in Steele County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 25,599 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Steele County. Owatonna is home to the Steele County Fairgrounds, which hosts the Steele County Free Fair in August. Interstate 35 and U.S. Highways 14, and 218 are three of the main routes in the city.

Mason City is a city and the county seat of Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, United States. The population was 27,338 in the 2020 census, a decline from 29,172 in the 2000 census. The Mason City Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Cerro Gordo and Worth counties. It is commonly referred to as the "River City", as the city grew up centered on the Winnebago River.