by Rich Larson
The Northfield City Council last night voted against accepting a petition asking for an Environmental Assessment Worksheet to be done on the Paulson Tree Farm property in advance of the proposed Kraewood housing development. 
The proposed development, a 100-unit apartment building and 24-28 housing units has been a lightning rod for controversy among residents in the area. The citizen’s advocacy group, Northfield SHED, made an extensive presentation which was bolstered by comments from an environmental attorney and followed that with a large contingent of concerned citizens making public comments.
The developers of the property, Rebound Partners, Schmidt Homes, and the Stencil group rebutted with a team of engineers and consultants who presented a very different assessment of the area than the members of Northfield SHED did.
The main issues raised revolved around the presence of the endangered Rusty Patched Bumble Bee, the potential for the area as a bee habitat, and whether the development would cause significant environmental damage. Diane Angell, a St. Olaf biology professor, spoke on what would constitute a Rusty Patched Bumble Bee habitat, and said the property showed ideal potential for such a thing. Annie Weeks, a senior ecologist with Midwest Natural Resources, presented the results of a habitat assessment her organization performed last week and said, while the potential does exist for a bee habitat in specific areas of the property, by and large the necessary resources were not found.
Questions were also asked about the potential of a wetland on the property, and the effects of traffic in the area. The question of whether an Environmental Assessment Worksheet would be the appropriate form of environmental assessment was raised as well.
The council questioned both sides rigorously, heard all opinions, and sked questions of city staff and assistant city attorney Robert Scott. The meeting, which had been scheduled to end at 9:00 was extended indefinitely and indeed stretched for an extra two hours. In the end, with questions on the veracity of some of the claims made by SHED, and whether an EAW is the proper type of assessment, the council voted unanimously to deny the petition.
This was far from an approval of the development, as there is much more to the process. The next step is for the City Council to approve the preliminary plat. That vote is expected at the council’s next regular meeting on October 19.
Studio ARTour to showcase regional talent in context
The 17th Annual South Central Minnesota Studio ARTour will take place Saturday and Sunday with some studios opening early on Friday. Patrons and fans of the visual arts are invited to visit area artist in their studios, where they will be able to talk with the artists and see how their work is done.
This year the tour will feature 36 artists in 17 locations ranging from Farmington to Faribault. The work done by the participating artists includes pottery, painting, weaving, jewelry, woodworking and more.
Tami Resler, one of the organizers of the tour, who herself is a potter and will be participating, said each location will feature the home artist and many will feature guest artists as well. Not all the participating artists have the studio space that would be appropriate for an event such as this, so they have been invited to show their work in one of the larger, more accommodating studios. And, Resler said, not only will the artists be showing their work, but many will be demonstrating how they go about creating it as well.
Many, but not all, of the studios will be open on Friday evening. Resler said that is a benefit because getting to all 17 locations in one, or even two days, can be a challenge. Not only are the studios spread out over three cities, and many points in between, but it is not difficult to find oneself in conversation with one artist that can become much more than five minutes of small talk. These artists are excited to show their work, which is of course available for purchase, and after coming through a pandemic where many spent their time evolving and expanding what they do, those conversations can become rather in-depth.
Resler, who attends many other studio tours, said that purchasing a piece at an event like this from the artist can have real benefits beyond the satisfaction of supporting a talented artist.
“Art brings joy and it brightens up everything you do, from having a cup of coffee in the morning in a special mug, to sitting down in the afternoon and reading the paper, and you can look around and see paintings on the walls. It makes life worth living.”
The Studio ARTour of South-Central Minnesota will run Saturday from 10am-6pm and Sunday from 10am-5pm, with some studios open Friday from 4-8pm. Maps and brochures are available at many local retailers, as well as the KYMN Studios. All the information can be found online, as well, at studioartour.com
Rich Larson is the KYMN News Director. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
