Last week the Northfield Council discussed the 2018 street projects which includes a mill and overlay on Washington St. between 2nd and Woodley, 7th street from Water to Washington and Division St. from 6th to 8th. There are several options that include greenspace, bumpouts, raised intersections and more that are a part of the complete streets concepts. Mayor Pownell says the idea is for safety of pedestrians and bicyclists. The Toole Design Group who are working with the City, had a slide that compared driver speed and the survival rate of a person hit by a vehicle. At 40 mph, the survival rate
is 15{b5761be34e80a16b6d0e4dabc1869c131a263f96a745c82bebdd3b8a4330bfa9}, at 20 mph it jumps to 95{b5761be34e80a16b6d0e4dabc1869c131a263f96a745c82bebdd3b8a4330bfa9}. Administrator Martig said, “we hear a lot of concerns around town about traffic speeds, not only in these areas. But it’s not just enforcement by our police department. A lot of it, we’re learning over time and getting better at it, is really the design of the roadway that can help control driver behavior”. Curb extensions, which also take away some parking, and more trees are known to be traffic calming. Go to the City’s website, look under Public Works, on the left side is a menu that starts with Current Projects, click there and you’ll find documents related to the 2018 street projects.
Community presentation on Northfield School District referendum
Northfield Schools Superintendent Dr. Matt Hillmann continues to prepare residents to vote on the School referendum in November. There will be 2 questions. One for an Operating levy of nearly $2 million and a bond referendum for a new high school and a new elementary school at a cost of $109 million. The levy guide, which will be mailed to Northfield school district taxpayers this week, is a multi page document that gives lots of information including tax impact information and polling locations. Tonight he will be giving a Community presentation at 7 o’clock in the Northfield High School auditorium. In the meantime, he’s been giving presentations at multiple organizations. There’s also a tremendous amount of information on the school’s website at northfieldschools.org.
Cannon Valley Indivisible organized rally in defense of DACA and Municipal ID’s
Cannon Valley Indivisible organized a march and rally yesterday afternoon in Northfield from St. Dominic’s Church to Bridge Square. Speakers included Representative David Bly and Ben Casper, a Northfield resident and a University of MN Law Professor with nearly 2 decades of of experience litigating cases before immigration courts. Trump’s repeal of DACA was one of the key issues, as well as Northfield’s look into Municipal ID’s. northfieldunitedinlove.org
Day of Peace celebration will feature a variety of musicians, poetry and an open mic
The 15th Northfield Community Celebration of the International Day of Peace takes place Thursday evening. All Northfield students are invited to Bridge Square at 5:30 for a student rally. At 6 o’clock they’ll march to the Weitz Center, and join other residents of the community to kick off the festivities. A reception begins at 6:30 with a welcome, commemoration, Veterans for Peace and Arts Peace Award and then a global celebration featuring Taiko drumming, aztec dancers, nordic musicians, poetry and an open mic.
