On Tuesday night, the Northfield City Council ordered a feasibility study for a major reconstruction of Spring Creek Road in 2026, that will include a major section of the Mill Towns Trail.
Mayor Rhonda Pownell said planning this far out is a function of having the city’s strategic and capital improvement plans in place to give both the council and city staff a clearly defined vision of how things should progress. Having those plans in place, she said, makes for more efficient and economical city operations.
“It is better for us as a city to start early because if you start early and you stay on schedule then you can go out for bid in January and get better bids back and keep taxpayer dollars down. For these projects, it is financially prudent and best for us as a community to start early. We know that all of these projects are coming up. There’s no reason why we shouldn’t start early.”
Both Mayor Pownell and City Administrator Ben Martig said how pleased they are to have the segment of the Mill Towns Trail running through Northfield finally in the construction phase.
The trail, which when complete, will be part of a greater bicycle trail running from Mankato to Red Wing, has been discussed and planned for 30-35 years. More than 20 years ago a stretch of the trail was built connecting Northfield to Dundas, but there has been no further progress in putting the rest of the project together until now.
Movement on the project came when Jefferson Parkway was marked for reconstruction offering a perfect opportunity to build the stretch that runs parallel to the road. A bonding request was made to the state in 2023, and the legislature awarded the city $8 million to help build the six miles of trail that will run from the Dundas segment to the Waterford Bridge.
This summer, the Riverside Lions Park/Jefferson Parkway stretch will be constructed. Next year the stretch from the Division Street/Highway 246 roundabout to Spring Creek Road will be built, and the final segment is set for construction in 2026, as will be outlined in the feasibility study the Council ordered on Tuesday night.
Pownell and Martig are both strong supporters of the project, and Martig said he thinks the economic benefits of having a trail like that running through Northfield will be very strong.
“If we get the segment to Faribault connected, there’s already an existing trail all the way to Mankato. It really has vision for an economic driver to bring people to our communities as well as being really a community asset. Having this trail through our city as a primary trail route for people to use is great, but it’s also just a quality-of-life benefit for Northfield. This really is a positive project.”
The Jefferson Parkway project is set to begin on Monday and will be finished in early August.
Ambassador Experience informational meeting set for next week
The Defeat of Jesse James Days committee is currently accepting applications for Ambassador and Junior Ambassadors to participate in its Candidate Experience.
The program runs for approximately 10 weeks, culminating on the last day of the DJJD festival with the coronation of three equal Ambassadors and two Junior Ambassadors. The group of five will be a team throughout the following year, visiting many other communities and meeting hundreds of people through parades, coronations and volunteering at other special events.
A statement released by the organizing committee said the program is a non-competitive environment that helps the candidates’ development of self-confidence and leadership skills, while providing a rewarding social experience. The statement said this should not be thought of as a beauty pageant.
Ambassador candidates must be 16 years of age by July 1st through age 21, live, work, frequently volunteer or worship in Northfield and have never been married or have children. If selected a $2,500 Scholarship will be awarded at completion of their year.
Junior ambassador candidates must be 6-8 years of age by September 10th and attend Northfield Schools, live in Northfield School District, or have parents that live, work, frequently volunteer or worship in Northfield. If selected, $250 will be awarded at completion of their year.
An Informational Meeting has been scheduled for next Wednesday, June 12th, at 6pm at the Northfield United Methodist Church. Additionally, more information can be found on the Ambassador pages of the Defeat of Jesse James Days website at djjd.org. Those with Ambassador questions should contact Allie Harmer at (507) 581-9408. For Junior Ambassador questions, call Mandy Malecha at (507) 301-4068.
Competitive grants available to rehab upper floors of old buildings
The City of Northfield is promoting yet another Downtown Revitalization grant program, this time for interior work on upper floors of older buildings that have fallen into disrepair.
A statement issued by the City of Northfield said property owners or tenants of commercial properties located within Northfield’s historic district may apply to the Paul Bruhn Looking Up Downtown Historic Revitalization grant program to rehabilitate their upper floor interiors.
The purpose of the grant is to fund rehabilitation activities for vacant or underutilized upper floors of historic structures in order to make their use possible and productive. Improvements can include exposing, restoring, or replicating original interior architectural features, installing or repairing a fire suppression system, accessibility and energy efficiency updates, paint, millwork, or flooring rehabilitation or updates, and repairing restorable interior wood windows and doors.
Minnesota’s Main Street communities have had limited opportunity to seek financial assistance for interior second story renovations, often leading to disrepair and the need for significant updates. There is a need in greater Minnesota to support people who want to update their historic buildings but lack the capital to fully fund the work. Making upper floors habitable, accessible and safe is crucial to successful downtown districts.
A statement on the Main Street America website, mainstreet.org, said another reason the grants have been established is the need for more housing in all Historic Downtown Areas across the country. This program hopes to act as a catalyst in solving that problem.
Grant awards will be between $20,000 and $50,000 and require a 10% match. The deadline to apply is July 15th. A second application round will be announced in the fall. For more information visit northfieldmn.gov.
KYMN Daily News 6/6/24
Rich Larson is the KYMN News Director. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
