On Tuesday night, during their regular meeting, the Northfield City Council voted to accept a review of the city’s Administrative Department.
City Administrator Ben Martig said, as part of the city’s Strategic plan, each city department has been undergoing a review over the course of the last few years, and the Administrative Department, which includes Communications, Human Resources, Finance, IT and the City Clerk’s Office, as well as Martig’s position, is the most recently evaluated.
Last month, the consulting firm of Baker Tilly presented the results of their review to the Council and offered their recommendations. Based on the impending retirement of Communications and Human Resources Director Michelle Mahowald in the spring of 2026, the recommendation is to evaluate, restructure and increase the capacity of the department. Martig said those recommendations are intended to be viewed in a perfect world.
“The idea was to look at the organizational structure of the Administration Department and to see – with the changes coming – what maybe should be done organizationally or to think about compared to other cities as well as Northfield’s own needs and interests in those areas. And then decide what our optimum staffing levels are in an ideal world.”
The ideal situation, he said, would include adding an Assistant City Administrator, a Human Resources Manager, another IT Specialist, a Sustainability Coordinator, a Budget Analyst, and a part-time Administrative Assistant.
The department would be restructured to split the responsibilities of Mahowald’s current position into one focused on Communications and another focused on Human Resources. Many of the department directors would report to the Assistant City Administrator rather than Martig himself, with just a few people, including the Finance Director, reporting directly to Martig.
Northfield Mayor Rhonda Pownell said she believes reviews like this are very important, which is why they were worked into the city’s strategic plan. As the city’s priorities shift over time, she said, so must the city’s staff and focus shift as well. When something like the retirement of a person in a position as important as Mahowald’s comes up, it’s a good time to evaluate where things stand.
“This is a good time for us to ensure that not only do we have the right head count, but also, we have the right people doing the right work for our community. Cities are constantly changing and evolving and so taking a pause at this moment to ensure that we have the people doing the right work that we need right now is absolutely essential.”
Martig emphasized that Mahowald’s retirement is still two years off, and the implementation of these recommendations will come over time with planning and budgeting. The city will not add five new full-time positions and one new part-time position all at once. It is just important, he said, for an expert, outside perspective to look at the situation and offer advice.
The City Council accepted the report unanimously.
‘Out and About’ concert brings Artmakers back into the community
Next week, Imminent Brewing will host a comeback concert, of sorts, when Artmakers, an organization dedicated to bringing artists with and without disabilities together, presents Out and About, a concert celebrating revival and renewal.
Artmakers is a non-profit, 501 (c) (3) organization founded by Andrew Rossow and his parents Jim Rossow and Betsy Spethmann. The organization brings artists with disabilities together with artists who do not have disabilities to make art and create community.
Artmakers began ten years ago, working out of a studio at the Hotspot artist’s incubator on Division Street. From there, the organization presented several plays and musicals, and nurtured several emerging artists. However, when the Covid-19 pandemic began, Artmakers was forced to begin working online, as many of the artists with disabilities are more susceptible to health complications.
With the pandemic well behind us, the organization has been working very hard to present this event to both celebrate the ability to perform in front of people again, and to reintroduce themselves to the community.
Spethmann said the lineup of musicians will be a mix of familiar faces and talent that is new to Northfield.
“So the concert is a collaboration of seven or eight musicians who will be playing in different combinations. There’ll be local favorite musicians, including Helen Forsythe and Rafi Dworsky, to an Arizona singer that we’ve been working with via Zoom. He’s flying in. So, it’s going to be a really fun lineup of lots of different eclectic music and musicians.”
The performers will play some familiar songs, but much of the evening will feature original music created by the Artmakers members. Spethmann said the key to Artmakers is in the journey. Working together, the disabled and non-disabled artists create a bond that comes out of collaboration and creativity, which she said is where community is built. The collaborative nature of the organization means finding the strengths and talents of those who want to participate and working from there. The journey of creating is so important, she said, that the performance itself is more of a bonus than anything else.
“We know how we can bring people to the table together, whatever it is that you enjoy are capable of, or want to do, that’s where the project starts. So, we bring together the group that wants to participate, whomever is at the table in whatever way they would like to and can participate. The project comes from there.”
Artmakers’ Out and About concert is scheduled for 7 pm on May 30th, one week from tonight at Imminent Brewing. This is a benefit concert for Artmakers, so they will be accepting free will donations at the door, and there will be other opportunities to donate as well. For more information, visit artmakersmn.org.
KYMN Daily News 5-23-24
Rich Larson is the KYMN News Director. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
