Last week, the City of Northfield held an Open House for the public to comment on 2018 road construction projects. Division St. between 6th and 8th and 7th St. between Water and Washington will be reconstruction projects. Washington St between 2nd st. and Woodley will be a mill and Overlay. There were 3 concepts per project using a variety of Complete Street enhancements. Complete Streets is, very basically, a policy that ensures streets are user-friendly for pedestrians, bicyclists, and all. I have links to more information on the policy and the presentation given on kymn.net. Public Works Director David Bennett encouraged
attendees to look over the plans that included permeable pavers, raised intersections, bumpouts, green space and more. The 
concepts and public info will be before council at their Sept. 12th work session. On September 19th, staff will ask for direction from Council as to what concept they want. Staff will then put together a feasibility report with costs. The more amenities and such, the higher the cost. Toole Design Group, traffic engineer, Hannah Pritchard touched on parking commenting that it’s important for small businesses with high turnover and can provide a buffer between sidewalks and traffic. The cons are that vehicles take up a lot of space that could be used for modes. With some of the concepts, there’s only so much space. Pritchard said they, “really want to make that walking environment more comfortable, we want to try and add some green space”. All the designs take away parking spaces. Part of her presentation included making Washington St. a so-called bike boulevard, a sort-of thoroughfare for bicyclers. There were less than 20 community members at the Open House. Some were local business owners, some were from the bicycling groups. If you have thoughts on the 2018 projects, then contact the Mayor, your Council person, and/or staff, David Bennett or Sean Simonson at City Hall.
Express Clinic gets the okay
The City of Northfield will see an express clinic downtown. The council unanimously approved the opportunity for Northfield Hospital & Clinics to enter into a lease agreement with Sterling Pharmacy at 700 Division St. Chief Operating Officer Jerry Ehn said the no-appointment necessary express clinic will be open weekends and evenings with a “limited scope of practice, with no imaging” and a “point of care” ability. The plan is for a 5 year lease with subleasing to HealthFinders. They’ll share a waiting room and nurses stations. A remodel is planned which would take 90 to 120 days. CEO Steve Underdahl said the community has been asking for something like this. They expect to see about anywhere from about 15 to 25 patients a day. Underdahl will be in studio next week with more on the Express Clinic. Mayor Pownell and Administrator Martig were in studio this morning with a recap of last night’s meeting. That is now posted on kymn.net under Morning Show.
Rash of thefts from vehicles
Lock ‘em up, your vehicles that is. Eight vehicles in a 3 block area of Spring St. South in Northfield reported having items stolen from their vehicles on Sunday morning. Three other residences reported thefts from vehicles as well. The thieves were also taking garage door openers and getting into homes. With the DJJD celebrations getting fully underway, it’s even more critical to lock up your vehicles, your garages, sheds and homes. Close your windows too. If you see anything suspicious, call Northfield Police. Either at 911 or their non-emergency number at 507-645-4475
