Northfield Superintendent of Schools Dr. Matt Hillmann said the process is underway to create a new facility maintenance plan for
Northfield High School.
The school, which was built in 1966, with additions made to it in 1993 and 1997, has been showing its age, and so requires further maintenance and renovation.
In an effort to do it properly and thoughtfully, Hillmann said the district has convened a task force, similar to the group assembled to advise on the budget prioritization project, made up of community stakeholders including people with and without kids attending Northfield schools, district staff and students as well.
The task force will work with Wold Architects and Knutson Construction to create a plan that looks at the inefficiencies and the educational inadequacies in the building. For example, he said, the H Wing in the high school is under insulated and can get very cold. Finding a way to fix that using Operational Capital would take pressure off of the money that has come out of the general fund to alleviate the issue.
Hillmann said the task force has been instructed to look for solutions for the existing building only, and not offer suggestions of a new high school. A 2018 referendum to build a new high school failed, and Hillmann said the district is not thinking in those terms at the moment. But, he added, they are not completely ruling out the idea.
“This does not mean that the school board down the line couldn’t say ‘You know what? It’s too much money to put into that old building, and at this point we might want to look at something different.’ We can do a calculation to know figure those costs. We’re asking the task force to look at the existing facility. Because that’s going to force creativity. It’s going to force thoughtfulness about how we use the existing facility we have.”
Hillmann said the district is asking for a plan that would encompass the next twenty years. The task force has met once. The plan is for them to meet three more times before making their recommendations to the school board.
Northfield Police Department looks to increase diversity
The Northfield Police Department is fully staffed for the first time in years. After a series of retirements, a thorough review of the department itself, the addition of another patrol position, and a global pandemic accompanied with social upheaval, the NPD has a full complement officers, supervisory personnel, and support staff.
But there is still more to accomplish.
One of Police Chief Mark Elliott’s stated goals is to increase the diversity in the ranks of the department. That means hiring more women and more people of color. As the community they serve becomes more diverse, so must the police department itself.
Officer Jesse Cordova, a twenty-five-year veteran of the Northfield Police, said he was the lone Hispanic officer when he was hired in 1996. He said it is extremely important for the police department to be able to connect with the members of the Latinx Community in ways that will build trust.
“Being able to communicate with the community. they’re able to express their concerns more easily with some who speaks the same language as them.”
Officer Champagne Eiklenborg, who has been with the department for two-and-a-half years and is herself a member of the Northfield Latinx Community echoed Cordova’s thoughts.
“I don’t speak Spanish fluently, but I can get by. And being able to get by means a lot to the Latino Community.”
Having officers who are able to easily communicate with every member of the community is an important part of policing in Northfield. Elliott has said being a police officer here is not for everyone. Those who want to investigate homicides and working in a fast-paced environment might not do as well here. The NPD tends to do more community-oriented policing. The officers get to know the business owners and their employees. They walk the sidewalks and engage with the community on a regular basis.
Mayor Rhonda Pownell said regarding the department, that is one of the things she is most proud of.
“It’s such a pleasure to have such a quality police department with so many people working on behalf of our community. One of the things that I love most about our police department is the way that they are out there building relationships – in the schools, on the streets, I see them out there walking around. Really [it exemplifies] just their dedication and their commitment to the community policing model.”
In an effort to encourage more Northfielders to look at a career in law enforcement, the NPD has assisted the Northfield Community College Collaborative to offer an associate degree in law enforcement through Riverland Community College. Classes are offered in Northfield and are offered in the evenings at the Northfield Community Resource Center to be convenient for people who have to work while they are going to school. For more information on the program, visit northfieldccc.org.
Annual paper shredding event returns in April
And with the arrival of spring, so comes the arrival of spring cleaning. To assist the community in that endeavor, the City of Northfield will
once again host its annual paper shredding event in April. Northfield residents will be able to get rid of old documents and clutter in an environmentally friendly way, at no cost, on Saturday, April 16 from 9 a.m. to noon at the City Maintenance Facility. Residents should bring old bank documents, contracts, or any other paper that need shredding in paper bags or boxes that can be removed from the car by event staff.
Shredded paper is not recyclable in curbside pickup, but residents can bring paper to be shredded to this event where it will be recycled.
A statement released by the city said that his event is part of the City of Northfield’s strategic goal to reduce climate change impact and to make the community more resilient and sustainable.
Paper shredding is for private residents only; documents from businesses will not be accepted.
The City Maintenance Facility is located at 1710 Riverview Drive. Vehicles must be in line by noon to be served.
Rich Larson is the KYMN News Director. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
[recent_post_carousel slides_to_show=”1″ limit=”5″ slides_to_scroll=”1″ category=”10″ media_size=”medium” dots=”false” show_read_more=”false”]
