It’s been almost a year since the Northfield Area Fire and Rescue Service made Tom Nelson the organization’s first full-time fire chief. In that time, the NAFRS board has transformed from a working board to more of an advisory group with Nelson serving as the organization’s de facto administrator.
The transitional phase might not yet be over.
Last week the board met for the first time in 2024 to lay out the course of the next year. Two years ago, a consultant’s report to the organization recommended they take advantage of a change made to Minnesota state law, dissolve the joint powers agreement between Northfield, Dundas and the Rural Fire District and assume the role of a taxing authority. The NAFRS funding would then shift away from contributions made by the three municipal entities, to taxes the organization would levy on its own.
Nelson said the NAFRS Taxing District Committee has been studying the idea for about a year and has made a recommendation that the larger board look at the idea from separate angles.
“Here’s a list of some things that have been issues. How would we fix them under the existing Joint Powers Agreement, and how would we fix them as a Taxing District? The whole point is to decide if a taxing district would solve all the problems, or if we can do it with the Joint Powers Agreement.”
One of several reasons the organization is considering taxing authority is economic timing. While the cities of Northfield and Dundas set their budgets and their tax levies just weeks before the beginning of a new year, townships in Minnesota are required to set their levies in March, nearly nine months before the beginning of the next year. The seven townships that make up the Rural Fire District can run into problems if something unforeseen comes up later in the year, and allowing NAFRS the ability to levy taxes would alleviate that problem. Nelson said he has agreed to do some budget forecasting to help the Rural District better see their needs prior to the March Township Meetings.
“So, part of my job is actually half mathematician, half artist. On the mathematician side, I just want to make sure there’s an identity that’s going to function under the rigors of the technical materials that we use in modern communications. But I also want to make a system that can be expanded for the future. So, I feel very strongly about where we’ve landed.”
The NAFRS Board, led this year by Dundas Mayor Glenn Sweitzer as Chair and Northfield City Councilor Jami Reister as Vice-Chair, will vote on the taxing authority option later this year.
Northfield branding designer Johnson looks to create ‘invitation’ to Northfield
Last week during the Northfield City Council Meeting, the Northfield Branding Commission introduced some of the materials that have been developed to give Northfield an updated look in its marketing and the way the city presents itself.
Jeff Johnson and his team with the Replace design firm created the materials. Replace has done extensive work with other Minnesota municipalities including the cities of Columbia Heights, Wilmar and Delano. They have also worked extensively with the Minnesota State Fair, and dozens of companies, including Northfield’s own Johnny Pops.
Johnson said when designing for a city, the idea is to create an invitation. The work should appeal to a broad cross section including individuals and corporations to help them understand that they are welcome in a place like Northfield.
Johnson said Northfield has quite a few attractive assets, so it is incumbent upon him to create material that will reflect the best facets of the city.
“Northfield has an amazing community, so my job is just to align the design work to invite people to the correct experience of that community. Northfield is in competition, obviously, with other cities trying to attract great businesses, great people, tourists. My job is to try to make a great invitation to bring those people inside.”
The materials presented to the City Council last week were roundly praised for their timeless feel, and Johnson said that was exactly what they were trying to accomplish with the design. It was his intent, he said, to make them look like they could have been designed in 1960, the year 2000, or the year 2040 and still look good and convey the right feelings. It is also important that the designs be simple enough to keep their integrity in what he called “small space digital.” Modern use of marketing materials means the designs have to look good on a billboard or as an icon adjacent to a person’s email signature.
“So, part of my job is actually half mathematician, half artist. On the mathematician side, I just want to make sure there’s an identity that’s going to function under the rigors of the technical materials that we use in modern communications. But I also want to make a system that can be expanded for the future. So, I feel very strongly about where we’ve landed.”
A common question being asked by the general public is why the city needs to rebrand itself at all. Johnson said he is sensitive to this question and understands why it comes up. And, he said, the world around Northfield is constantly changing. As Northfield is competing for tourism dollars as well as commercial industrial development, the city must put itself in a forward position to attract such things, and like it or not, maintaining an updated look is important in those situations.
Johnson said the project is in its third phase right now as his team works to create what he called a “Style Guide,” which will offer more ideas for signage and use in social media. The city is expected to adopt the full package of work Replace has created later this spring.
KYMN’s Jeff Johnson’s full conversation with Jeff Johnson of Replace Design can be heard here
Rich Larson is the KYMN News Director. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
