By Logan Wells, News Director | Logan@kymnradio.net
The renovation and remake of Bridge Square has been placed indefinitely on hold by the Northfield City Council. At their work session on Tuesday, the council was asked to review and provide input on the city’s Capital Improvement Plan. One of the questions posed was whether the council wanted to continue with the Bridge Square project.
Discussions about renovating Bridge Square started several years ago. The plan called for permanently closing Water Street between Bridge Square and 4th Street, adding additional paths, and transforming the space into a plaza area. The project’s estimated price was $8 million. The project had been planned for 2027.
Learn more about the project here
“I would hate to just add in projects, but maybe it has to do with the dam or something that is along aligned with our strategic plans. So I’m definitely in favor of potentially pausing and moving it back, especially in favor of having alternate funding for Bridge Square.” – Kathleen Holmes, Northfield City Councilor at the 6/10/2025 Work Session Meeting
Mayor Erica Zweifel asked that tax base growth be the top priority, and not Bridge Square.
“So I think we should pause Bridge Square Indefinitely, until such time that we have increased the tax base to a point where it’s something that makes sense for the community.” – Erica Zweifel, Northfield Mayor at the 6/10/2025 Work Session Meeting
The morning after the meeting on KYMN, City Administrator Ben Martig stated that this instruction had been given to pause the project:
“Pretty much universally, I think we heard from the Council, they want to push that project back. I would say to explore if there are other funding opportunities, like federal or state grants, potentially to help out.” – Ben Martig, Northfield City Administrator on KYMN In The Morning
Councilors Peter Dahlen, Chad Beumer, and Davin Sokup also expressed interest in pausing. Councilor Jessica Peterson-White was not in attendance at the meeting.
Will be covering the other projects the City Council is considering in future newscasts.
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