Last night I attended an informational meeting for the Just Foods Coop at the First UCC Church.

(See the blog posting and photo gallery of the event on the Northfield.org site.)

I've been supportive of and assisting Just Foods Coop get organized and opened. I wanted to attend the meeting to learn about the selected store location.

The store will be located in the former Dollar store builiding on Water Street....or, depending upon how old you are, the former Petricka's Red Owl. This will be a great place for the store. It has good parking, is in a fine convenient location and seems to be large enough to opperate efficiently.

I'm excited about having a cooperative food store again in Northfield. Just Foods is really doing a good job preparing a business plan, researching products and equipment, and making sure everything is in place when they open the doors---just as any successful business would do. Ellen and I look forward to having another food shopping option available this year.

Posted by Ray Cox at 9:23 AM | Link

 
Wednesday evening Ellen and I attended the Northfield Chamber of Commerce annual dinner at The Grand. This event also recognizes the Business of the Year and the Business Person of the Year. The 2004 selections are Bierman's Home Furnishings and Flooring for the Business of the Year and Brett Reese as the Business Person of the Year.

Robert Bierman and Brett Reese gave fun presentations of the evolution of their businesses. It is remarkable that Bierman's is currently operated by third generation family members and has been in business nearly 100 years.

Northfield Construction Company was selected as the 2002 Business of the Year, so we offered our congratulations to the 2004 business selections. We sponsored a table along with several other businesses and enjoyed getting products and information on other businesses.

It was great to visit with so many local business and community leaders. Over 220 people attended the event including city council members, city staff, Mayor Covey, Senator Neuville, Chamber board members, and representatives from area businesses. I met several folks that are new to the Northfield area. A fun gathering like this allows business people to network and learn things about each others services.

The Northfield Chamber did a great job putting on the annual dinner. The tables were festive, the food excellent, and the evening was filled with good conversation---all from a great bunch of people working at creating business opportunities and employing Minnesotans.

Posted by Ray Cox at 9:02 AM | Link

 
Yesterday I took enough of a lunch break to have lunch with Don Arnosti in St. Paul. Don and I got to know each other last year through Don’s work as a lobbyist with the Minnesota Environmental Partnership. We worked on phosphorus and other water quality issues in the Legislature. Northfield folks may remember seeing Don at the Cannon River Watershed Partnership water forum on Bridge Square last summer.

Don is now working for the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP). I enjoyed learning about this organization. IATP is concerned with a wide variety of issues including water quality of the Mississippi River, energy use, reducing antibiotics in agriculture, and global agriculture trade.

The area that interested me the most was IATP’s work promoting responsible forest products. As a building contractor I have become involved with trying to find sustainable and certified wood products. Certified, or responsible, forest products are approved by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). FSC is an independent, non-profit organization that promotes a balance of economic, ecological and social values in the forest products industry.

While I have been aware of certified forest products for some time, it has been difficult for me to find them. Don gave me a copy of “The Good Wood Bulletin” that outlines manufacturers of and sources for all types of certified wood products. I was really encouraged to see that Home Depot is starting to carry some of these certified materials.

With the increasing timber harvesting going on in Central and South America, it is important for all builders to start questioning where many building products come from. Much of the basic spruce, pine and fir we use comes from tree farms in the United States and Canada. But many southern hardwoods come from areas where timber harvesting is causing real environmental and social problems. If we can choose certified wood products and avoid creating a market for “problem” wood, we should do that.

Posted by Ray Cox at 6:04 PM | Link

 
Over the weekend I was reading some construction trade journals. There were two articles that caught my attention. The first describes how two companies....Xantres Technology, and Alantis Energy Systems, have collaborated to develop Sun Tie XR, a residential photovoltaic panel.


Sun Tie XR is a roofing panel that creates electricity from sunlight. The nice thing about this product is that it sits about 3" above the roof deck, keeping the house attic cooler. It also is a roofing product---not a product that installs over a roof. This feature makes it very "builder friendly" and easy to install. Virtually all other photovoltic products I have seen must be installed over some type of roof for weather protection. The Catch-22 is that those products also void the roofing materials warranty due to the penetrations through the roof that must be made. Sun Tie XR has solved this problem by making the Sunslate photovoltic panels in a roofing format.

Product data says 500 square feel of Sunslates can produce about 1,300 kilowatts of power per hour in much of the United States. On a repurchase of power through Minnesota's small generation regulations, that could translate into $300 to $400 of sales. Something to think about during new home construction.

The second article I noted was one dealing with the design of the Freedom Tower in New York. The Freedom Tower is the first building to be constructed on the 16-acre site of the World Trade Center. This new building will incorporate a wind energy system into the structure.

The 1,776 foot tower will be the world's tallest building. The Freedom Tower will incorporate a 60 story base of office and retail space with an open-air system of tension cables above that. The tension cable area will house the wind energy system. The wind energy system is designed to produce 2.6 million kilovolts of electricity annually. This much power is enough to meet the needs of roughly 1,000 homes.

These two items, photovoltaic roofing panels and wind energy systems, have great potential for future energy production. The photovoltic panels are small enough that they can be tucked into many residentail roofs, creating thousands and thousands of small energy producers. Large wind energy systems, such as the Freedom Tower, can produce huge volumes of electricity for consumption and transmission. Both these power production methods use natural energy....sunlight and wind.....to create electricity. It seems to me these systems, along with hydrogen, biomass and other renewable systems, need to be enhanced and developed as quickly as possible to assist in meeting our energy needs.

Posted by Ray Cox at 4:30 AM | Link

 
Yesterday afternoon we had a short House floor session, so I was able to arrive back in Northfield in time to attend the Community Action Center (CAC) open house at Marilyn's Place. Another great community project.

Marilyn's Place is permanent supportive housing in Northfield. Jim Blaha, CAC Director, and the folks at the Community Action Center will operate this housing, which now consists of a three-unit house and a four-unit house just off Jefferson Parkway.

Ellen and I had a good time visiting with many friends and work associates on a beautiful day, to celebrate the completion of a great project. Northfield Construction Company provided a donation of the siding installation on the four-unit home. Greg Schmidt with Steve Schmidt Construction coordinated the work on the building and deserves a big "Thank You" for his efforts. The building was designed by Don Starr from Starr Design.

I gathered with Rev. Craig Ellingboe (St. Peter's Lutheran Church), Don Starr, Steve Schmidt, and Greg Schmidt in front of the house we all worked on.

The three-unit building was designed by Jay Jasnoch (Jasnoch Construction). Jay's father, Gene Jasnoch coordinated the construction of this building. Knowing what buildings like these should cost, I know Gene gave a sizeable donation to the Community Action Center when he turned it over to them. Jay did a great job designing a building that is attractive and very functional. The kitchens in the units are bright and full of natural light.


Justin Stets, CAC board member, was very involved in the project from the beginning. Justin and Jim Blaha never gave up. When the idea first was proposed they applied for state funding grants…two times. And two times they were turned down. Not giving up, they turned to the construction community for assistance in the construction, and to the City of Northfield and the Housing and Redevelopment Agency for the sites. They pulled the projects together and we now have wonderful new homes for people that need housing.

This CAC project shows how a community can work together to solve an identified need. The project does not have state funding…it was built completely using local efforts. This is an example many communities can and should use as a model for similar housing. It is tempting to always want to turn to the state for funding or housing. I firmly believe a much better choice is to do as the CAC did….involve your local builders, designers and construction professionals and create your own projects. As Justin and Jim found out, when you ask for help in this way, you may be pleasantly surprised at the response you get.

Housing needs for mentally ill people will never completely go away. Providing safe, clean housing in a growing part of the community is an appropriate way to meet some of these housing needs. I can't think of anyone that needs a bright, well designed, cheerful home more than a person battling mental illness. I'm proud to have been asked to be part of this great project.

Posted by Ray Cox at 5:00 AM | Link

 

Tuesday afternoon I was invited to the Open House and ribbon cutting ceremony for Laura Baker Services (LBS) new residential building. It was a beautiful day and many people showed up for the event.

Several people spoke to the assembled group, including Bob Bonner, President of the Laura Baker board and Keith Covey, Mayor of Northfield. For those of you that are not familiar with Laura Baker Services, it is a 100+ year old organization that serves the needs of the mentally handicapped, called an Intermediate Care Facility for the Mentally Retarded, or ICF/MR. It is located in a lovely residential setting on the east side of Northfield and is home to roughly 30 residents.

I was present at the ribbon cutting for at least three reasons yesterday. Northfield Construction Company was the general contractor for the new building. We worked with Professional Design Group, the architect for the project, to create a fine new 3,600 square foot facility that will house six residents in individual rooms suites. This building is the first of three buildings that we will build for Laura Baker Services. (See more photos in the Laura Baker photo gallery.)

Ellen and I were also recognized for being donors to the "Hand in Hand" capital fund raising campaign. We both are strongly committed to assisting local non-profit groups with their funding needs and were proud to make a generous gift to Laura Baker for this important new endeavor. We have worked with Laura Baker Services on annual events over the years and we are excited to be involved with this new capital campaign.

Finally, I was asked to speak to the group as the State Representative for Laura Baker Services. I have worked closely with Sandi Gerdes, Executive Director of LBS and others on ICF/MR funding issues in state government. I carried legislation this session to repeal a 10% co-payment requirement for ICF/MR facilities. It passed the House last month and now needs to make it through the Senate.

When I addressed the group I told them what it was like growing up a couple of blocks away from LBS, knowing LBS residents through my church and school work, etc. I pointed out how LBS helped Northfield residents grow up understanding the needs of mentally handicapped people, and that we all have an obligation to support those needs. I bring that understanding with me in my work in the State Legislature.

I want to make sure the state provides assistance, support and the necessary programs to help those in Minnesota that cannot help themselves. That is a priority for me. We may need to make adjustments from time to time to what we as a state are doing for able bodied residents, but care of our physically and mentally handicapped residents must be a top priority.

I send my best wishes to Laura Baker Services on the opening of the first of three new resident dwellings.

Posted by Ray Cox at 4:08 AM | Link

 

At the end of March, Boy Scout Troop 344 in Northfield conducted their annual fundraising event. This year they made a quilt and auctioned it. I was the winning bidder for the quilt.

The Scouts, along with their ScoutMaster Don Starr, came by my booth at the Northfield Home and Garden Show and presented me with the quilt.

The quilt is a very nice piece....really a work of art. The boys did a great job sewing the squares and placed a logo from the United Nations right in the center. The backing on the quilt is Ingeo....a corn fiber material made by Cargil/Dow. I had not seen such corn fiber material before. It is very soft and dense, not at all what I would have expected.

The Scouts had selected a number of organizations to share the proceeds of the auction. These included the American Heart Association, Faribault and Northfield food shelf, Maltby Nature Center, and other area non-profit ogranizations. In talking with the boys I could tell they had put a lot of thought into what groups they felt they should share their funds with.

I hung the quilt on the wall in my Legislative office in St. Paul. It looks great and is a good way to give the Boy Scouts some recognition for their quality work creating the quilt.

For more, see the Troop 344 weblog.

Posted by Ray Cox at 6:10 PM | Link

 
Last month we started construction on a large remodeling project for the River of Life Church in Hastings, Minnesota.

This work involves a total rebuilding of the existing church facility with a few small additions to accommodate new entrances. The building will end up with all new mechanicals, electrical, windows, roof, etc. While we are underway and moving along well, the project did not start out smoothly for the congregation.

I started visiting with the architect for this project last June. The church was planning their project and I was interested in doing the work. They ended up on a faster time line than I could work with, electing to start the work in August. Northfield Construction Company was simply too busy last fall to take on any new work, so I had to decline the opportunity to bid the project.

The church hired a contractor to do the required demolition and Phase Two work, which involved all the roofing, windows, etc necessary to totally secure and enclose the building. Work started late last fall but then slowed down quite a bit. In January the contractor was attempting to set some of the large new roof trusses when they became unstable and toppled. Many of the trusses were broken or damaged and a couple workers were injured. The church lost confidence in the contractor and called to see if we would be able to take over the job.

No contractor really likes to work on projects that have had a "rocky" start to them and an earlier contractor has been let go. I've occasionally stepped in and done so, and those projects all seemed to move forward properly, so I decided to do that in this case for the River of Life Church. We worked with the architect, Loren Abraham, to confirm costs and details.

In March we started work on the site. The first thing we needed to do was get the roof trusses set and work at making the building watertight. We are doing that now, and just about have all the new roof in place. We have also excavated for the new additions and are installing those foundations.

While this is not the "normal" way a project starts, I'm pleased that we can assist the River of Life Church with their project. They are a growing, dedicated congregation that will thoroughly enjoy their "new" church. We will be on the site for several more months completing the work. We'll add more photos to their gallery as we go.

Posted by Ray Cox at 4:38 AM | Link

 
At the Northfield Home and Garden Show last month Northfield Construction Company gave away door prizes. Our prizes were three $25 gift certificates to the James Gang Coffee Shop. Our three winners are:

1. Arliss Boyum
2. Willard Emery
3. Pat Vincent

Northfield Constuction Company performed the carpentry work to create the new building James Gang is in. Jim and Joan Spaulding, the owners of the James Gang, then hired us to do their tenant finish-out work. It was great working with Jim and Joan to create this fine new eating establishment.

I'm sure our three winners will enjoy using their gift certificates for a tasty breakfast or lunch.

Posted by Ray Cox at 4:41 AM | Link

 
Last month I renewed my membership in NARI....the National Association of the Remodeling Industry. This is just one of several oganizations Northfield Construction belongs to. Others include the Associated General Contractors (AGC), Builders Association of Minnesota (BAM), Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) , Better Business Bureau (BBB) and several more. All these organizations provide various support services for this somewhat challenging business.


NARI provides great continuing education programs. They are completly focused on remodeling work. Northfield Construction Company completes many residential and commercial remodeling projects each year. Remodeling work generally includes unique work challenges such as dust control, access to sites, handling debris, living conditions for the owners, etc. It is nice to be able to discuss these and other issues with other remodeling professionals. We exchange information, find out what works, and most importantly....find out what doesn't work.

NARI also produces an excellent bi-monthly trade magazine, The Remoders' Journal. The articles in the magazine often tie into some project we are about to start. We pass the magazine around the office and make sure people share the information. We often discuss information in the articles at our monthly safety meetings.

Trade organizations are a very useful part of the business of running a professional construction company. As a professional, I need to be willing to share my knowledge and also use the knowledge from others. That way we can continue to provide top quality projects to our clients, delivered using safe and responsible construction methods.

Posted by Ray Cox at 6:05 AM | Link