Northfield Police are currently searching for an armed male assailant after an incident that took place early yesterday morning.
A statement issued by the NPD said at about 4:30 Sunady morning, June 4th, the department received a 911 call reporting shots fired in a building at the 700 block of Highway 3 North, which is the Northfield Estates apartment complex. The caller reported that a male suspect had entered their residence with a shotgun and had fired the weapon. Northfield Police Officers, along with members from other jurisdictions, arrived on scene a short time later. The building was cleared by law enforcement and the apparent suspect was not located in the area.
Investigators interviewed the victim and gathered additional evidence, along with witness statements.
The statement said no one was injured during this incident.
This continues to be an active investigation. No further information has been received at this time. KYMN News will update the public with new information as we receive it.
Ludescher outlines opinion that bike lane petition is legal and valid
Tomorrow night the Northfield City Council will vote to award the bid for the 2023 mill & overlay street projects, a plan that includes the construction of controversial bicycle lanes.
Local attorney David Ludescher, who advised the petitioners about what would be necessary when writing the petition, has written to the city, outlining an opinion that the rejection of the petition is wrong, and threatening litigation should the city move forward on the plan. He holds that the petition is in conformity with the Northfield City Charter, and the legal basis on which it was rejected is in a Minnesota State Statute regarding elections that is not germane to the situation.
City Administrator Ben Martig has said this argument confuses how state statutes relate to the Charter. Ludescher, meanwhile, said, the Charter is the higher law in this case.
“People have the right in Minnesota, if they want to, [to be a self-governing city], and that’s called a Charter. You make up your own Constitution saying how you want to govern yourselves. Generally speaking, the statutes provide that, as long as it doesn’t conflict with a specific purpose for state statute, the Charter is, let’s say, more important than whatever the statute might be.”
Ludescher, who as a member of the City Council and as a private citizen, has objected to the way the city has financed several projects, said the state requires all debt incurred by the city to be put to a referendum, with certain exceptions, including road construction projects. However, he agrees with the petitioners that the bicycle lanes in this project are not justified, and are an overreach. Northfield Mayor Rhonda Pownell said last week, after the Council met to discuss the petition and the best way to proceed with the project, that she does not believe going to the voters to ask permission to pay for street projects is good governance. Lusdescher said, if the city believes the project is a good one, there should be no harm in letting the voters have a say.
“What’s the harm when people vote? I suppose we could elect a president that no one likes. But you know, that’s the American way. That’s the democratic way. Let the people vote. If you have a good plan, let them vote on it.”
If the petition were found to be legally binding, then the city would have options. One would be to hold the referendum. Another would be to table the entire 2023 street construction project. Either option would essentially cancel any road construction in Northfield this year.
During the work session last week, several members of the council expressed concern over the motivation of the people who signed the petition, saying they believe many who signed did so because they have other complaints, and saw this as an opportunity to voice concerns. Todd Zehnder, one of the petitioners, did not disagree with that opinion.
“[There is an opinion that] the city just is not interested in listening to the input of the constituents, and there’s a lot of frustration out there about this and city spending. Yeah, there’s a lot of unhappy people in Northfield.”
Ludescher said the petitioners only want to discuss the plans with the city further, but they are asking for changes that would require the process to begin all over again. His letter to the city warned the awardee of the bid that he believes the city will not be allowed to pay for the street projects after he files suit in the Minnesota Third Judicial District.
Jeff Johnson’s full conversation with David Ludescher and Todd Zehnder can be heard here
Adopt – and name – a Catch Basin
And the Northfield Public Works department is putting a renewed effort on its Adopt-a-Catch-Basin program in order to help keep the city’s storm drains, and by extension, local ponds and rivers, clean.
Volunteers are being asked to commit to inspecting a storm drain on a regular basis, cleaning away grass clippings, leaves, garbage and other debris.
During and after a rainstorm, the storm water that runs across lawns, driveways and streets collects debris as it goes and then enters a catch basin through the storm drains. It then flows directly into ponds and rivers without being treated. The extra elements collected by the water, along with other nutrients, runs into the ponds and rivers and can cause harmful algae to grow, not to mention the problems it can cause by clogging the pipes.
The program is for individuals, families or small community groups. Volunteers will be able to select a drain convenient to them by using an interactive map on the registration webpage and will even have the opportunity to name their catch basin.
For more information on the Adopt-a-Catch Basin program, click here
Rich Larson is the KYMN News Director. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
