This coming Saturday the Northfield Area Chamber of Commerce will present the Community Market Fair at the Dundas Dome.
The event, which was once known as the Northfield Home and Garden Show at the Northfield Ice Arena, has grown and evolved over the years. Two years ago, the name was changed to the Home, Garden & Lifestyle Show, but Chamber of Commerce President Jane Bartho said that didn’t reflect everything the show offered. After regular vendors at the Riverwalk Market Fair expressed interest in participating, the Chamber settled on calling it the Community Market Fair.
Bartho said the event will feature more than 100 exhibitors this year. Along with the stalwarts like presenting sponsor Professional Pride Realty, exhibitors will include Merchants Bank, Service Master by Ayotte, Laura Baker Services Association, Just Food Coop, and the Northfield Retirement Community.
Bartho said they have also opened the door this year for younger people who have started their own businesses with “Youth Booths.”
“These are youth booths for young entrepreneurs. One kid and his friend started a car detailing business. We’ve got a couple of kids painting interiors. Another guy I’m anxious to see welds garden ornaments. He’s got a creative bone and business sense as well.”
Once again, this year the Chamber has arranged for attendees to park outside of Slumberland which is two blocks away from the Dundas Dome, and they will offer a golf cart shuttle service provided by Mor Golf and Utility. Bartho said they will be using the Dome parking lot for food trucks and some special exhibits.
Bartho also said the Chamber will once again be assisted by the Northfield High School members of the National Honor Society.
“We’ve got a couple of awesome kids who are willing to dress up in our inflatable T Rex costumes, so watch out for those photo opportunities. We’ve got a couple of girls doing face painting for the kids. They also come in on Friday night and help us set up as well. They’ll be greeting people. We couldn’t put this together without them.”
As always, KYMN Radio will be broadcasting live from the show beginning at 9am. The Community Market Fair will run on Saturday at the Dundas Dome from 9am until 3pm.
Book Fair will begin taking donations next week
Preparations are underway for the 2024 edition of the Northfield Hospital Auxiliary Book Fair, and the organizers are getting ready to accept donations.
The annual event has been a Northfield tradition for more than sixty years. Northfielders have been known to line up outside of the ice arena, which is home to the book fair, hours before opening day.
The Book Fair is so well appreciated for several reasons, not the least of which is the cause it supports. Relying completely on donated books, the fair is the major fundraiser for the Northfield Hospital Auxiliary, which is a volunteer organization that offers help in creating a better experience for people at the Northfield Hospital. Over its long history, the Auxiliary Book Fair has raised more than $1.2 million to support hospital projects, community programs, and scholarships for students in the greater Northfield community. Mark Heiman, who chairs the Book Fair, said the money is always put to very good use.
Another reason the book fair is so popular is the ease it offers to shoppers. Generally offering more than 70,000 items, including books, DVDs, CDs, vinyl records, games and puzzles, everything is carefully sorted by the dozens of volunteers who put the event together. A statement issued by the auxiliary, in fact, calls it the biggest, best-sorted book sale in the region. Heiman said that would not be possible without the vast number of people who show up to help.
“We have more than 300 volunteers every year, so we have an organizational structure. There are section leaders who oversee the different parts of the sale. They’re Currently in the process of getting their volunteers who are going to be working under them organized, so that everybody knows where to be and what to do for those first two weeks as we’re getting everything set.”
The book fair will begin taking donations on Wednesday, April 10th. Over the course of nine days, they will accept donations from 9am until 5pm. They can only accept items in good or excellent condition, and the list of things that will not be taken in includes textbooks published before 2019, English-language dictionaries, encyclopedias, Readers’ Digest Condensed Books, Magazines, VHS tapes, cassette tapes, and 78 RPM records.
Donations will be accepted until 5pm on Friday, April 19th. The Book Fair will run from April 23rd-April 27th. For more information, visit northfieldbookfair.org
Council will discuss ‘New Leaf’ housing proposal.
And the Northfield City Council will meet tonight in the Council Chambers in City Hall.
Among the items on the agenda this evening will be a presentation made by the city liaison to the Arts & Culture Commission, Natalie Draper, regarding the 1% for the Arts program. The council will consider accepting the master plan for Riverside Lions Park, and then they will take up a discussion regarding the proposed “New Leaf” coop neighborhood, modular housing development in the southeast section of the city.
As always, the city and the council are asking to hear opinions and comments from the public. Anyone who wishes to do so is invited to come to the meeting and address the council on any topic they see fit. Those wishing to voice their opinions without addressing the council should email their councilors directly or post a comment through the eComment button on the “Agendas” section of the City Council website.
Tonight’s meeting will begin at 6:00.
KYMN News
Rich Larson is the KYMN News Director. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
