December 1st, 2004

NORTHFIELD — Northfield’s Economic Development Association held their first open house Monday to gather public input on the Riverfront Redevelopment process.

Monday’s meeting was one of three meetings hosted by the EDA and included a presentation by John Shardlow, consultant planner with Dahlgreen, Shardlow and Uban.

With 7.26 acres available, the site is located on Highway 3, north of the downtown. The area is bordered by St. Olaf Avenue, the Cannon River and Second Street.

One company has stepped forward with interest in developing the property.

Mendota Homes, a Roseville-based developer specializing in the construction of condominiums and townhomes has an option to buy about one-third, or 1.7 acres of the site.

Although the developer has completed preliminary drawings of the site, Shardlow and the city have opted to hear public input before viewing the plans, Shardlow said.

Comments and questions from the public Monday dealt more with challenges presented at the site instead of concrete suggestions on what should go there.

Concerns ranged from identifying the challenges of ingress and egress within the site, to whether the expectation of underground parking is realistic.

Parking questions were brought up by local resident Victor Summa.

Given the site’s proximity to the Cannon River, along with the bedrock underneath the site, “is subterranean parking practical in that site?” he asked.

Shardlow admitted he did not know the answer. However, he was “confident that we’ll have cars under the residential buildings” whether parking is above grade or not.

Another concern brought up by citizens was how much of the redevelopment site is located in the flood plain.

About 35 percent of the property is located in the floodway and the floodway fringe, according to Deanna Kuennen, the city’s housing and economic development specialist.

Although property in the floodway cannot be developed, the floodway fringe can be developed if the site is elevated one foot above the base flood elevation or is waterproofed, she said.

Despite the challenges identified at the meeting, Kuennen stressed developers are interested in the site.

“We get calls on a weekly basis from developers all around the state,” she said.

With its border along the river and its close proximity to the downtown, developers see the area as a “gem of a site.

“There are challenges … in many cases it will be up to the developer to figure out how to address them … but the message we get from the development community is that people can figure out how to make this site happen,” she said.

Following recommendations from the public, Dahlgreen, Shardlow and Uban will “synthesize and graphically illustrate the community’s objectives for redevelopment,” Shardlow said.

These recommendations will be brought to the EDA and the city council for consideration.

In his presentation, Shardlow presented the preliminary expectations and goals the Northfield City Council has developed for the site.

Those include achieving a mixed-use development for the site, including residential and commercial uses.

Redevelopment goals for the site also include developing more parking opportunities and incorporating architectural elements of the downtown into designs for the site.

Other meetings are scheduled for public input.

• 7:30 to 9:30 a.m., Wednesday, Dec. 8 — Grand Event Center, 316 Washington St. Program will begin at 8 a.m.

• 7 to 9 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 9 — Emmaus Church, 712 North Linden. Program to begin at 7:30 p.m.

For more information, contact the city Community Development Department at (507) 645-3069.

– Michelle Kubitz

Reprinted with permission from the Northfield News.