EDA Votes to Support Northfield Transportation Initiatives

At this morning’s meeting, the Economic Development Authority passed a resolution supporting local transportation initiatives and encouraged the Northfield City Council to request that MNDOT conduct the Minnesota Trunk Highway #19 Interregional Corridor Study for I-35 into the City of Northfield and that the Governor and Legislators budget for Highway #19 Upgrades.

The vote was due at least in part to the Chamber of Commerce’s annual letter to the City requesting that such action be taken in regards to Highway #19. In addition to Chamber staff, members of the board of directors of the Chamber, members of the board of the NDDC and representatives of some of Northfield’s major employers, including McLane, Malt-O-Meal and College City Beverages were present in Council Chambers to show their support for the initiative.

Vice President and acting Chair Mark Moors summarized my feelings perfectly. “Thank you for raising this important issue”, he acknowledged, adding “it will take more than passing a resolution to achieve real progress”. You got that right, Mark; this is only the beginning of an on-going effort that must be vigorously and continuously supported.

The proposed resolution puts a December 2007 completion date on the Study, paralleling the schedule for the City of Northfield’s Transportation Study Update. If anyone would like to help move this effort along, I would encourage them to jump right in. I’m sure that the Chamber, the EDA and the major employers in Northfield will appreciate the help.