Yesterday, I-35 was shut down just south of Northfield for several hours due to a standoff between law enforcement and one man with a handgun
According to a statement issued by the Rice County Sheriff’s Office, the 41-year-old man stopped his vehicle on northbound Interstate 35 just outside of the Faribault city limits. The suspect exited the vehicle, produced a handgun, and made his way into the southbound traffic lanes.
The incident necessitated a shutdown of the interstate, and area residents were told to shelter in place. For the next several hours, the armed man paced around this area of I-35.
Officers repeatedly commanded the suspect to drop the gun and presented options for a peaceful resolution. The man did not comply with officers’ commands and fired multiple rounds from his handgun. No members of the public or law enforcement were injured.
The South Metro SWAT and Minnesota State Patrol Special Response Team used non-lethal tactics to take the suspect into custody shortly after 7pm.
The suspect’s name has not been released and will not be until he is formally charged.
First responders will have emergency vehicles on display
The second annual Northfield Area First Responders Community Picnic will be held tonight at the soccer field complex in Spring Creek Park.
Working in conjunction with Hosanna Church, the celebration will bring first responders together with the community in order to honor them and to give community members a chance to get to know them on a personal level and better understand the very important work they do.
Northfield Chief of Police Mark Elliott said the event last year was an enormous success that was attended by nearly 800 people. With the help of Hosanna Church of Dundas and their affiliated partners and organizations, he is hopeful that even more people will turn out this year.
The family friendly event will feature a DJ and food for all who attend. Hosanna Church Pastor Dean Swenson said they have more than 40 raffle prizes to give away, which includes many, many bicycles.
“There’ll be tons of giveaways I think we have over 40 raffle prize giveaways, including more than 20 bikes that we’ll be giving out to people through our raffle process. I think last year we had about 800 people in attendance for that give or take and so we’re hoping we might hit 1000 people that might come hang out with us.”
Emergency equipment will be on display, including squad cars, ambulances, a fire truck and he is hopeful helicopters from both the State Patrol and the Air Ambulance service will be on hand as well.
Elliott said one of the reasons an event like this is so important is the chance it gives the community to interact with first responders and emergency personnel when there is not a crisis happening, and conversations have a much different tone.
“When our ambulance staff or the emergency room staff, the firefighters, the police – when we’re interacting with people a lot of times it’s moments of crisis for them or not their best day. This is a fun community environment where we get to dance a little, we have some raffle prizes, we get to share a meal and just interact and talk about what’s going on and the parts of our lives that are great.”
Swenson said Hosanna does this for no other reason than to honor those who give selflessly to ensure the people of the community are safe and protected.
The Community Picnic honoring Northfield Area First Responders will be held this evening from 5-8pm at the soccer field complex at Spring Creek Park in Northfield.
Ordinance requires second reading to pass
Correcting a story that ran last week, during their regular meeting on July 9th, the Northfield City Council passed the first reading of an interim ordinance that will allow for better planning by the city for development of the Northwest Area.
KYMN News had originally reported that the ordinance had been passed, however all city ordinances require two readings in order to become official.
The ordinance comes from recommendations made by the Northfield Planning Commission and the Economic Development Authority to create better standards and detailed expectations of the City of Northfield with regards to any commercial industrial development on that land.
The Northwest Area is 800 acres located to the west of Northfield Hospital that has been earmarked for commercial/industrial development for several years. Many members of the city staff and Northfield elected officials see it as vital to Northfield’s future economic growth and health.
Members of both the Planning Commission and the Economic Development Authority have shared concerns with the City Council and city staff about how the land will be developed. A plan for selective and/or orderly development has never been put in place. When the area has been discussed for development by the council, the discussion has only centered around vague ideas of an industrial park or a data center, without much detail. As written, the ordinance asks that the EDA and the Planning Commission make detailed suggestions on how to proceed within the area.
As local property taxes have risen over the last few years, and as projections show they will continue to rise, city officials have pointed to the growth of Northfield’s commercial/industrial tax base as a necessary mitigating factor. City Administrator Ben Martig pointed out that Northfield has very little space available for that type of growth. Therefore, knowing exactly how the Northwest Area would be best developed is incredibly important.
The City Council will vote on the second reading of the ordinance at their next council meeting one week from tonight on August 5th. Should it pass, the recommendations from the Planning Commission and the EDA are expected to come before the Council in November.
KYMN Radio apologizes for any confusion our earlier story may have caused.
KYMN Radio Daily News
Rich Larson is the KYMN News Director. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
