Questions have been raised recently about the EDA's hiring of TIP Strategies from Austin, TX to produce an economic development plan for the City of Northfield.

Like other things happening in Northfield, this thing seemed to have flown under the radar, but not for any particular reason that I can see; it's a matter of public record. But as Griff Wigley has pointed out, EDA meeting minutes often aren't readily available for reference (since they need to be transcribed, then officially approved, before posting on the City/EDA website). The only solution to the delay that I can suggest is to attend the meetings... or read my blog. :-)

The economic development plan is in its first phase, in which the consultants gather background data about Northfield and its current position vis-a-vis history, demographic, land resources, SWOT, etc. etc. The plan is on schedule to be completed (with concrete recommendations and implementation steps) by January 2006.

Theoretically, an economic development plan COULD have been done in-house; both Brian O'Connell, Community Development Director, and Deanna Kuennen, Economic Development Specialist, have backgrounds in planning. However, a plan of this scope would have resulted in not enough staff to go around in handling day-to-day responsibilities. So someone was going to be hired to do something - either another employee to take part of the workload, if staff worked on the plan and process, or a consultant/contractor to produce the plan or parts of it.

I was the biggest lobbyist for finding not just a regional but a national firm for the plan. As I saw it, there were two very significant results which needed to come out of the plan:

1) A detailed implementation strategy so it doesn't just sit on the shelf, and
2) Sufficient vision and persuasiveness to get citizen buy-in on the level it needs in order for the plan to be implemented.

(Contrary to conventional wisdom, our problem in Northfield isn't studying things to death; it's a lack of the combination of time/talent/vision/chutzpah needed to shape conclusions and recommendations into something upon which we can act, and then finding the political will to do so.)

By going with a national firm, and stressing the need for the implementation strategy to be a large component of the plan, we have a good chance to achieve the results above. Plus, given Northfield's starry-eyed worship of "experts", a firm with a national reputation may give the plan more credibility, thus helping to achieve result #2. More importantly, a firm which brings in broader experience of what has worked, and what hasn't, in a variety of communities, has a frame of reference which will be invaluable.

I was on the subcommittee that reviewed the dozen responses to our RFP and interviewed the finalists. We narrowed it down to two and eventually chose TIP Strategies. If you're familiar with Richard Florida's premise about the "creative class" economy, you have some idea about the way TIP views economic development. They understand that Northfield's sense of place is a huge asset; that academia and the arts are products that can be marketed, without reducing them to commodities; and that growth of one sort or another is inevitable, and it's better to direct and control than to react and complain. They're well-positioned to help Northfield articulate and achieve its goals for remaining a sustainable, non-suburban, independent community--perhaps even a model--in the 21st century.

If we can do this, it'll be worth the $80k.

Posted by the Webmaster on 06:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

The EDA held its regularly scheduled meeting this morning. Agenda items included some administrative housekeeping items, an update on the City website (details below) discussion of the Q-Block master plan (ditto), discussion of the status of EDA funding (more on that in future posts), and of most immediate interest, a presentation by the New Division Development Company of their plans for infill redevelopment on the parcel occupied by Lansing Hardware.

New Division Development Company purchased the building and lot from Lee Lansing some months ago, and they have come up with a beautiful, context-sensitive plan for the site. Lansing Hardware will continue to occupy the original building as the anchor on the first floor, and the two residential units on the second floor will be restored and sold as condominiums. The adjacent building, to be built on what is now the parking lot, will consist of first-floor retail and second-floor office space, and will take its architectural cues from the hardware store building and the Northfield Armory. Randy Lutz of New Division Development Co. was careful to state that these drawings are preliminary and are being modified because he thinks the rendering of the fa�ades may look too uniform and static (my words, not his). Nevertheless, this project appears to be just the type of development the City needs. See the formal announcement, with larger images, on the EDA website under the heading "Downtown Redevelopment".

City Website: In the latest episode in a long, agonizing series, the Council authorized a transfer of $35,000 from the cable fund to the EDA to pay for the cost of redesigning the City website from the ground up. The consultant chosen for the project, Livefront, Inc., has made progress updates available online via their weblog for anyone who is interested.  It looks like we may actually have a decent city website up and running by the end of 2005. Not bad for a issue which has been lamented, discussed, and prodded along by yours truly for the past FIVE YEARS, then finally abandoned in frustration. Thanks to all who are continuing to carry the torch.

Q-Block: At the May 9th joint work session between the EDA and the City Council, the Council directed the EDA to develop a master plan for the area referred to as the �Q-Block.� Upon direction from the EDA, City staff has been working with Dahlgren, Shardlow, and Uban, Inc. (DSU) to develop a scope for the Q-Block master plan project. The draft scope was received by staff last month, but needs to be revised in scope to eliminate unnecessary tasks (e.g., existing conditions information, market research) which can be obtained from already existing sources. Staff will present the revised scope of the master plan and define the timelines at the next EDA meeting on August 25.

Posted by the Webmaster on 11:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Hello, and welcome to my blog. Thanks for reading.

I've been a Northfield resident for the past fifteen years, and a member of the City's Economic Development Authority for five. My service on the EDA is part of my commitment to the Northfield community....call it a labor of love. Two sets of my great-great- grandparents emigrated from Denmark to rural Dakota County (Greenvale and Eureka Townships) in the early 1860s, and both my grandmother and my father were graduates of Northfield High School. My children are fifth-generation area residents. I love this place.

Originally, the EDA's mission of economic development was defined as

growth of our commercial tax base and the creation of new jobs. Obviously these things are important, but they are not (or should not be) the sole definition of economic development. Economic development does not occur in a vacuum, nor is there a one-size-fits-all approach to economic development that suits all geographies and communities. We don't need to reinvent the proverbial wheel, but neither should we take outdated or failed development models designed for Levittown, or 1970s suburbs, or the gated communities of the 80s and 90s, and transplant them here. I think we can do better.

I believe that we are stewards of our built environment every bit as much as we are of our physical environment. Our built environment and the human ecosystem it supports requires awareness and diligent care if we are to maintain our quality of life while fostering constructive growth and progress. Civic dialog over the past decade has been fractured by division into camps whose polar extremes might fairly be categorized as "Sprawlmongers" vs. "No Growth Anywhere Ever". Personally, I prefer smart growth with proactive economic development and urban planning, and those topics, plus regular updates on EDA initiatives, will be the focus of this blog. Along with the occasional rant just to keep myself in heart.

Posted by the Webmaster on 10:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)