Dundas woman busted with methadone
A Dundas woman was arrested Wednesday after her blood alcohol level registered more than twice the legal limit. Northfield police were called on report of a woman staggering away from the Archer House and into a vehicle in the parking lot behind the building. Officers found 35 year old Miranda Dawn Digiovanni in her running car with her seatbelt on. She admitted drinking, a preliminary breath test registered her level at .204. She was arrested and officers then searched her car. They found multiple pill bottles
in various names with multiple prescriptions including methadone, a schedule 2 drug normally used to wean heroin addicts. Her initial court appearance is July 8th.
Staff will reassess Woodley Street properties and look to changes in calculations
Northfield Council held an assessment hearing for the Woodley Street project. Two properties expressed concern over their assessments. Mayor Graham said one property has a long frontage. Mayor Graham said staff says that property could be subdivided. The other property is Edgewood Townhomes which sits on Woodley AND Winona Streets. They were assessed the full value on Winona last year and are now being assessed full value on the Woodley street side. They want it to be treated like a corner lot where in it would be fully assessed on one street and 10 {b5761be34e80a16b6d0e4dabc1869c131a263f96a745c82bebdd3b8a4330bfa9} on the other. They do have accesses from both streets and the assessments are spread among the 9 units. Council chose to close the public hearing with the exception of the aforementioned properties. Staff will look at those properties more closely and also begin discussions on possible changes to the overall assessment calculations. Graham said they will push to “get it done”.
Martig discusses Ice Arena
There’s no dispute that the Northfield Ice Arena has been in bad shape for years and now, St. Olaf plans to build their own sheet of ice which will take 24{b5761be34e80a16b6d0e4dabc1869c131a263f96a745c82bebdd3b8a4330bfa9} of revenue away from the City. Administrator Ben Martig commented that, in this case, the “do nothing scenario” won’t work. They need to look at renovations or build new. While in Marshall, Martig oversaw the construction of a 2 sheet Arena. Funding came from a variety of sources including legislation of a local option sales tax which the voters approved. Over a 15 year period they drew a half percent general sales and use tax. Martig said there was a draw for amatuer sports and retail sales to Marshall which allowed them to capture from a 40 mile radius giving them more dollars than they anticipated. There were also private donations. The total project cost was about $17 million. In 2020 the refrigerant used to make the ice will be outlawed. Mayor Graham intends on forming a task force to assess the City’s needs.
Schmelzer case continues
The trial of Schmelzer vs the Northfield Chamber of Commerce continues it’s 4th day of testimony. Northfield News reporter, Brad Phenow, has been at the trial each day and is keeping a running timeline. Schmelzer is seeking wage loss damages after being let go as Chamber Executive Director in 2013. Check KYMN’s previous stories. She was on the stand for 2 days. Jurors also heard from Chamber Board member Rick Estenson and former Chair Beth Naumann. Member Dave Neuger took the stand yesterday afternoon, he’s expected back today. Schmelzers attorney, Alf Sivertson, rested his case. The News reports that Chamber attorney, William Celebreze, plans to call more witnesses into next week.
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