by Rich Larson
On Tuesday night during their regular meeting, the Northfield City Council unanimously approved the preliminary property tax 
levy for 2022 with a 15% increase over 2021. This means that taxes will increase by no more than 15%, but it does not mean that the amount of the increase will stay that high. However, setting an amount that high leaves little doubt that taxes will increase much more than the 3% levy the city saw a year ago.
City administrator Ben Martig said there are several factors driving the increase. The city has done a comparative wage and benefits analysis of how city employees are compensated versus communities of similar size to Northfield. Martig said the study showed Northfield lagging in compensation. And while the city is not trying to lead in this area, increases are necessary in order to attract and retain quality city employees. He said the city revenue has been flat this year, and even modest expenditures will create a need for more revenue. The debt service is increasing due to public works projects like the new roundabout at Jefferson Parkway and Trunk Highway 246, which is also contributing to the increase. And there are necessary staffing additions that work into the situation as well.
Once the increase was approved, several members of the council spoke to the amount. Many pointed out that the number is set high to give the council and city staff flexibility and options as the budget takes shape. Almost every member of the council spoke about the need to bring the amount of the increase down. Mayor Rhonda Pownell echoed those thoughts and added specific reasons why she wants a smaller increase.
“We heard clearly from individuals on the council last night that we really want to look at how do we bring that down to see that it’s more manageable. Double digit increases really hit our low income [citizens] and people that are on fixed incomes the hardest. And we want to take that into account.”
The city does have options on how to accomplish this. There are ae funds available through the American Rescue Plan that can be used on certain areas of the budget. The city also put a percentage of the 2020 budget into reserve when the pandemic began, anticipating an economic downturn that as of yet has not materialized, and some of that money will be available as well. Regardless, there will be some requests made by each department for the next budget that will not be approved.
Archer House demolition delayed until HPC can sign off
Ten months after a fire destroyed the interior of the historic Archer House, and four months after the remaining shell was declared a total loss, the building still stands on Division Street surrounded by chain link fence and concrete barriers, at best an ugly reminder of what was once a Northfield icon, and at worst a crumbling public hazard.
Rebound Partners, the company that owns the property, has a demolition company lined up to take the building down, however they have hit a snag in the process. Because the building is on the Historic Register and sits in a historic district, the Heritage Preservation Commission must issue a Certificate of Appropriateness in order for Rebound to obtain the proper permits to proceed with the demolition.
Brett Reese, the managing partner of Rebound said earlier this summer that they hoped to have it taken down by the beginning of September. The demolition will be a slow process, as the Archer House sits in between two buildings, one another historic site itself. With public safety a major concern, Reese said the demolition, once begun, will be a four-to-five-week process.
When it happens, it will be a difficult thing for many people in Northfeld, including Reese, to see.
“It’s a very sad story. One hundred and forty-four years of history. It’s just really painful to see it and it’s painful to take it down. But, it’s sort of a black hole here, and it has been since the fire on November 12th. It’s a very sad situation, but we have to go through with it.”
He said certain pieces of the building will be salvaged and donated to the Northfield Historical Society and the Northfield Downtown Development Corporation. After the building is demolished the process of building something new on the site will begin. Rebound will interview five separate architecture firms and will put together a task force of people from the community to, as he put it, help the company make good decisions.
The issue will go before the Heritage Preservation Commission at their next meeting on October 14th.
Open Houses for new and renovated district buildings set for tonight
And tonight, residents of the Northfield School District are invited to a series of open houses that will showcase all the buildings
that benefitted from the 2018 bond referendum. That referendum authorized the construction of one new elementary school, and the renovation of four other buildings, and the district is now giving the taxpayers an opportunity to see how the district used the funds.
Visitors will be welcome to visit the new Greenvale Park Elementary School, the Area Learning Center and District Offices, which is the former Longfellow School, Spring Creek Elementary School, Bridgewater Elementary School, and the Northfield Community Education Center, which is the former Greenvale Park Elementary School.
Northfield Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Matt Hillmann, said there will be guided and self-guided tours at Greenvale Park, along with a ceremonial ribbon cutting at 6:30. Tours of the Community Education Center will be limited as the childcare center is in operation until 6pm. And he said visitors will also have to use some imagination when touring the building.
“There are a few things that we’re waiting for in what was the media center. We have a partnership with the Minnesota Children’s Museum, that, of course, because of all the Covid delays is not done yet. But it’s going to be a very exciting, interactive, hands-on play center. People will get to see that space, but they’ll have to imagine the cool tools that will be in there once they are installed, hopefully yet this year.”
The Open Houses begin at 4:00 and will run until 7:00.
Rich Larson is the KYMN News Director. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
