Category Archives: Land use

A very short history of bike planning in Northfield

I have been spending a lot of time as the unofficial historian of bike, pedestrian and street planning over on Facebook, so I decided to put together a quick history of how we got here. This is the bullet point … Continue reading

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Golden Opportunity paved over at Greenvale Park

The new Greenvale Park Elementary School will improve the inside-the-building issues from no doors to more security to better tech and has been planned with detailed input from teachers and parents. Far less attention was paid to outside the school, … Continue reading

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2018’s Greatest Hits (and misses)

Because it’s New Year’s Eve, it must be time to review 2018, right? What I Read in 2018 Although my favorite novel of the year was Michael Ondaatje’s Warlight, I’m having a huge amount of fun with The Art of … Continue reading

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One block in the network

Marvin Lane is just one-block long, but it is one block in an important location in Northfield. Marvin Lane connects Washington Street and east side neighborhoods to Division Street/MN 246 and schools, downtown, and out of town. Marvin Lane is … Continue reading

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Depot gets things started on the Q Block

Northfield’s 1888 train depot is on the move this week. The Save the Northfield Depot (STND) group has been working for five years to raise funds and navigate the political, environmental and legal obstacles to be able to save the historic … Continue reading

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Who needs a front yard anyway?

While in Amsterdam last month, I walked around looking at doorways and thought: “Who needs a front yard anyway?” Or perhaps: At home, I feel oppressed by most of my yard. My house sits on a 66′ x 150′ Northfield … Continue reading

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Development pattern productivity, continued further

Last week, I anticipated the Northfield City Council’s discussion of amendments to the Land Development Code by comparing the tax revenue from a selection of different development patterns around town (thanks to David Delong for mentioning Community Resource Bank – 3 … Continue reading

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Development pattern productivity, continued

“No additional financial impacts are anticipated,” claims the staff report accompanying proposed revisions to Northfield’s nightmare land development regulations. Yet the proposed changes will change zoning around Northfield’s downtown to make lower density, less compact development the default pattern and … Continue reading

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One small breath of fresh air at the DOT

Strong Towns recently highlighted this video from the Tennessee DOT which is worth 4 minutes for anyone who thinks about land use and transportation issues. In the video, Tennessee DOT Commissioner John Schroer says: “A lot of cities did a … Continue reading

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