Tag Archives: Northfield News

Connect with the NDDC and Create Community in Downtown Northfield

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I grew up in a small town where life centered around main street. We celebrated annual events and festivals, drawing generations of townsfolk to find connection in the center of our community. After living in five states and one foreign country I realized that places like my hometown are rare and special treasures. Then in 2009, my husband’s job interview at Malt-O-Meal (now Post Consumer Brands) brought us to Northfield as the sidewalk sales of Crazy Daze were in full swing. I watched friendly people shopping in a charming, lively downtown, chatting and eating giant donuts together—and I knew this was the town for us.

Downtown Northfield is where we come together. Cyclists gather here before and after their rides:

Bikers on Bridge Square

Families enjoy a breakfast pastry as they stroll through the Riverwalk Market Fair:

Riverwalk Market Fair

Visitors learn about Northfield’s courageous history as the townspeople chase the James Gang out of town:

Bank raid: Defeat of Jesse James Days

And shoppers discover one-of-a-kind treasures in our quaint storefronts:

Shopping in downtown Northfield

The NDDC works alongside our community partners to bring people together downtown. We create connections between downtown business owners, building owners, local organizations and city staff as we fulfill our mission of sustaining a vibrant downtown.

Since I began as the NDDC Executive Director in January, I’ve been meeting with many of the people who help make our downtown the thriving heart of our community. I have heard fond memories of Downtown Northfield from people like Dennis Thomas. He watched his uncle run the local market as a child in the 1940’s and later ran the business himself.

We’ll be sharing the latest stories, news and upcoming events from Downtown Northfield here on our blog and via our social media posts: our Downtown Northfield Facebook page, our Downtown Northfield Twitter feed @downtownnfdmn, and our Downtown Northfield Instagram feed @downtownnlfdmn.

You’ll hear from me, Board President Dan Bergeson and Social Media Consultant Griff Wigley. Griff is well-versed in all things downtown—in fact you might spot him as he bikes to his “office” at a table inside Tandem Bagels:

Mountain biker and social media consultant Griff Wigley

It’s an exciting time in Downtown Northfield! Connect with us as we celebrate our unique history, enjoy our vibrant present and look forward to a hopeful future together.

NDDC Relaunches Its Downtown Northfield Blog

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Welcome back! We here at Downtown Northfield are rebooting the blog that was published on this site for many years. For a number of reasons, the blog has recently been dormant, but 2017 seems to be a good year to make it come alive again.

The site will publicize upcoming events and issues of relevance to the Downtown Northfield community, and will also go behind the scenes and discover the fascinating stories of the people who own and work in the buildings and businesses in the district.

NDDC Executive Director Jenni Roney
Jenni Roney

The first person we want to introduce is Jenni Roney, the new Executive Director of the Northfield Downtown Development Corporation (NDDC).

Jenni operates Wordsmith Marketing & Design, a graphic design and strategic marketing company located in Northfield.  Previously, she was the Marketing Coordinator for the Northfield Area Family YMCA during the inaugural year in its newly opened facility. Prior to that she was an advertising consultant for Huckle Media, a multi-media company based in Michigan and former owner of the Northfield News.

Jenni began work in her new role on January 1, 2017. She has spent the first few days of her tenure getting to know business owners, Northfield city staff and elected officials, and the other economic development partners in Northfield: the Northfield Chamber of Commerce and Tourism, the Northfield Economic Development Authority, and  the Northfield Enterprise Center.

Jenni will be a contributor to the Downtown Northfield blog along with Griff Wigley, NDDC social media consultant. I’ve been involved with the NDDC for more than a decade and am currently on the Board of Directors so I plan on writing a post now and then myself. Stay tuned for more NDDC news!