Northfield residents fret about footing the bill for infrastructure projects

NORTHFIELD – First, there was the furor over the bike lanes. Then, City Council members discussed a plan to revamp a town square. And big projects like a roughly $60 million water treatment plant and a new ice rink set to cost about $21 million remain on the table.

The flurry of those expensive endeavors has recently raised eyebrows in Northfield, a close-knit city, home to 21,000 people, two private colleges and a distinctive arts scene.

Adding to the anxiety is a preliminary tax levy increase of 17.2%. The City Council approved that amount in September, though officials say they hope to bring it down before voting on the final figure in December.

“It seems like a lot to me,” said Clayton Landsteiner, a manager at VFW Post 4393 in downtown Northfield. “I hear quite a bit of complaining about the taxes in this town and how high they are.”

It’s a sentiment shared among some residents, from business owners to health workers to some city politicians. Many people said in interviews that successive tax increases have burdened families in Northfield, where the median household income hovers around $83,000.

While opinions about the projects vary, many residents have taken note of their sheer number.

“Everyone, of course, has got sticker shock, said Rob Schanilec, the owner of By All Means Graphics and Printing. “It’s not just one project necessarily, but it’s [several] all on top of each other.”

City Administrator Ben Martig acknowledged that many of the projects are “coming to a head at the same time,” adding the city is sensitive to residents who are struggling financially.

But he said many of the endeavors, such as the water treatment plant, have been discussed for years and are badly needed. The problem, Martig explained, is that Northfield’s relatively small stock of big, tax-paying businesses forces homeowners to foot large shares of the bill for projects. Officials are attempting to attract companies and prime land for development to expand the city’s tax base, he added.

Tasked with leading Northfield through this is Mayor-elect Erica Zweifel. In January, the former three-term council member will replace current Mayor Rhonda Pownell, who didn’t earn enough votes in the primary to advance to the general election.

Much of the campaign centered around spending, though candidates and voters voiced different ideas about the city’s fiscal future.

If you ask Northfield residents what they think about recent projects, many will chime in with criticism of the bike lanes.

In 2023, the City Council approved a street improvement project that included several cyclist thoroughfares. The approval followed months of protest over the cost, safety and functionality of lanes that would place a curb between cyclists and drivers.

Today, mixed feelings about the lanes remain. Landsteiner said it’s difficult to negotiate his pick-up truck through newly narrowed streets. Tom Bisel, the owner of Downtown Bicycles, said he’s “always supportive of bike infrastructure” yet questioned whether Northfield “needs bike infrastructure like a big city.”

As for the recent project, he contended officials sought community feedback too late, giving residents the impression plans were proceeding without their input.

Martig, the city administrator, defended the effort to improve cyclist safety and said installing curbs cost less than a “full-blown reconstruction.” Yet he acknowledged the project’s “compressed” timeline and said the city now intends to host an end-of-the-year meeting to inform residents of long-term plans.

Some critics of the lanes contend they only serve a subset of Northfield’s population. That argument has animated opponents of another project: the new ice rink.

The plan calls for a new hockey arena, with proponents pointing to the existing building’s age and deterioration, plus its lack of showers and accessible entrances. The City Council voted Nov. 12 to consider approval of a construction manager contract for the new rink.

But some residents have criticized its funding scheme. The approach calls for four entities — the cities of Dundas and Northfield, plus the latter city’s school district and Hockey Association — to pitch in for the roughly $21 million endeavor.

That could raise taxes for Northfield residents in coming years, KYMN reported in June.

Council Member Davin Sokup, who has voted to move the new arena forward, said he’s still concerned about the debt and tax increases the project may cause.

“I really am so split on that project,” said Sokup, adding he believes the Northfield Hockey Association should foot more of the bill.

Less fraught for Sokup is the proposed water treatment plant.

The City Council recently approved plans for a sprawling facility that would eliminate the need for in-home softeners, protect city water from forever chemical contamination and lower levels of manganese in drinking water. The mineral is present in Northfield’s tap water at levels that are unsafe for infants, tests show.

Almost $4 million in federal funds will defray the costs of the roughly $60 million project. State loans and water rates will cover much of the rest, with bills expected to jump about 28% each year over the next four years, Martig said. The projected increases in Northfield are similar to rates in other municipalities that soften water, he noted.

Council Member Kathleen Holmes said that while she supports efforts to create safer streets and provide clean water, officials should pursue ways to lighten the load on taxpayers — from expanding the industrial tax base to scoring grants.

Northfield “has really big ambitions for creating a thriving, healthy community,” Holmes said. “A lot of those things tend to come with higher price tags.”

Discussions about the ice rink and water treatment plant dovetailed with another hot topic: a proposal to revamp Bridge Square. For years, officials have discussed improving the grassy gathering place, which hosts a seasonal farmer’s market and the Vintage Band Festival.

Recent plans show a proposal for wide paths, trees and greenspace. To finance some of that, the city sought about $8.2 million from the state, KYMN reported, but the Legislature didn’t pass a bonding bill in 2024.

Martig said Northfield officials have put the Bridge Square improvement on pause as officials figure out a plan to defray costs.

Schanilec, whose printing shop overlooks Bridge Square, supports efforts to elevate the space to a more “polished” stage. But he doesn’t want plans to erode the area’s commercial feel, or disrupt traffic that sustain businesses like his.

“We don’t want to change the flavor of the community,” he said.

Issues like the bike lane backlash show city officials aren’t listening to residents, said Zweifel, an Oregon native who has lived in her Northfield neighborhood for more than 30 years. She served on the City Council for more than a decade until 2020, but frustrations with recent issues prompted her to launch a bid for mayor this year.

Zweifel, who works at Carleton College’s Center for Community and Civic Engagement, said she wants to improve communication about plans to residents. She also wants to cut spending — one idea is to curtail costs for the State of the City event — and expand the city’s tax base by intentionally attracting businesses in sectors that do well in Northfield like education, manufacturing and health care.

She said she supports efforts that expand the city’s tax base, like a proposed redevelopment of a parking lot at 5th and Washington streets. Her backing of the water treatment plant “depends on [its] price tag.” She also supported a recently approved bond referendum to revamp Northfield High School, which will increase property taxes, projections show.

“I would love to see the city be able to” tell residents taxes will be lower next year, she said. “But it’s going to be a huge challenge, because … there are projects already underway.”