Northfield Construction Company helped Carleton College with some straw bale house construction this winter. The webmaster for the Northfield.org community site blogged on it this week and created a photo album for the project.



I'm curious to learn about the testing the students and professors did on the homes. We constructed the platforms for all the homes, and the roof structure for one of them. All the houses are small....about 8' by 8' and 6' high. The students have placed temperature measuring devices inside the homes to monitor how the straw bales perform for insulation.

There is a fair amount of work going on with alternative construction methods. Straw bales, glass bottles, shredded synthetic fabrics, etc. all all being worked with. It is good to see interest at Carleton to investigate the performance of some of these materials. I'll post more when I learn the results of their tests.

Posted by Ray Cox at 11:12 AM | Link

 
I receive a great magazine called Eco-Structure. It deals with all sorts of ecologically sound construction practices and projects. In the latest issue, there were articles on historical preservation using green design, drainable concrete surfaces, recycling materials, etc.

The article that really caught my eye was on private power systems for homes. The article features a development in Kingman, AZ where all the homes are "off grid" as there is no grid available to connect to. The development consists of 2,500 acres and will eventually consist of 500 homes as well as some small commercial support businesses.

This is an interesting concept. I will admit that there are two things that make it possible to do this. 1) Arizona's climate and 2) a high percentage of vacation homes. With the Arizona climate generally sunny, with good design the homes should not require excessive cooling and can capture the sun for energy production. Vacation homes don't use energy on a full time basis or at such high levels either.

I mentioned in an earlier posting that I'm working on a new home in Northfield that will not be connected to the power grid. The home will generate power through the use of wind and photovoltaic panels, and store power in batteries. Work is moving along well on the home...but no power production yet. Stay tuned.

Posted by Ray Cox at 4:29 AM | Link

 
Yesterday several of my employees and I were invited to a "Thank You" luncheon hosted by the Northfield Community Action Center (CAC). The lunch was to recognize everyone that worked on the permanent supportive housing that was constructed over the past year. It was wonderful to see over 100 construction workers and architects show up for the lunch held at the Odd Fellows Park in Northfield.

I had a good chat with Jim Blaha, CAC Director, about the project.


Jim spoke to the group to thank everyone for their hardwork. My company donated much of the siding installation and the work was performed over the winter months. We had some cold days there so it was great to be assembled together on a nice August noon hour.

Jim told us that the buildings are working well and they provide safe, secure housing for homeless people and people with mental disabilities. I told Jim that the really great part of the housing is the fact that the Northfield community took charge and developed this housing without any state or federal assistance. Many construction companies and suppliers donated work to help make this housing a reality. As a donor I can truly say that this donation is one of the most satisfying donations my company has made. We provided housing for vulnerable people and did it on our own.

The lunch was catered by Nerstrand Meats.


They brought a whole roasted hog. With hungry construction workers the hog was turned into a pile of bones in short order! No one opted to eat the head, which looked sort of interesting with an apple in its mouth and cherries in its eyes.



It is great to live and work in a community where it is possible to construct homes for the less fortunate using a large amount of donated labor and materials. Once the need was identifed and a plan prepared to address the need, the construction firms and workers really stepped up to the plate to help out.

Posted by Ray Cox at 9:48 AM | Link

 
Northfield Construction Company has been a corporate sponsor of the Cannon River Wateshed Partnership (CRWP) water forum each year it has been held. This is a fun event that is held on Bridge Square in downtown Northfield. This year's event was held Saturday. The rain mainly held off and it was a good day for the forum.

As the elected State Representative from the Northfield area and current vice chair of the Environment and Natural Resource policy committee in the House, I participated in an issues forum with my election opponent.



There were many organizations present on the Square----all concerned and caring about the water quality in the Cannon River and the State of Minnesota. There was a good crowd at the morning issues forum, thinning out a bit later when some rain rolled through. CRWP is a good organization that works hard on water quality issues....a big thank you to them for organizing the water forum again this year.

Posted by Ray Cox at 3:57 AM | Link

 
Yesterday evening I was invited to attend the chairperson orientation for the Northfield Sesquicentennial Celebration planning. Yes...the City of Northfield will be 150 years old next year! The event is being organized by the Northfield Historical society and I'll be providing assistance in various ways.

So far the planning involves an opening candle lit walk in January 2005 and ends with a Governor's ball in December. Most of the planned activities will take place between May and September. The focus for the event is listed as "strengthing the 150 years of community through culture". Marian Hvistendahl was dressed in period costume and played the role of Mrs. John North. She did a great job portraying Ann North.

It is wonderful to see the Northfield Historical Society so involved with this important event. I know they will lead a great celebration of our 150 years. Watch for upcoming announcements and events.

Posted by Ray Cox at 4:12 AM | Link

 
The rain cleared up and Northfield had a great National Night Out celebration last night. The event was held outside the Safety Center where the 5th Street bridge was blocked off to traffic. Northfield Construction Company is a sponsor of the event.

There were lots and lots of families out strolling around. Northfield Construction Company staffed a table about home security. We had samples of deadbolt locks, glass blocks for basement windows, etc. I prepared a checklist for home security to hand out. We had free balloons, pencils, key chains, and NFL football schedules. There were free hot dogs, chips and pops for everyone from the National Night Out organizing committee----a really fun evening.

I visited with a lot of people about various security issues. The children liked the flexible plastic keychains in the shape of a hammer. The pencils were a hit with school just around the corner.

I had a chance to visit the Police Chief Gary Smith. I hadn't really seen Gary since he returned from his training seminar with the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Virginia. Gary said many of the things he learned there have already been put to good use back here in Northfield. I also congratulated Gary for running a weblog site....it is good to read thoughts from out Police Chief.

There were several Defeat of Jesse James Days Junior Royalty candidates, as well as Queen candidates at the event. Northfield's big event, Defeat of Jesse James Days, arrives the first week of September.

It was good to be out visiting with friends and neighbors as part of the National Night Out activities. And it was great to see so many people attend the event.

Posted by Ray Cox at 4:10 AM | Link

 
Northfield Construction Company had another fun event....our summer picnic. The week before we were in Belle Plaine at Bar-B-Q Days and last week it was our annual summer picnic.



The picnic was held at Sechler Park in Northfield. It is a great place to hold a picnic. There is good shelter in case of rain, and there is fine play equipment for the little ones that are along. Our picnics are family events for everyone.



NCC has several employees that have very young children. We had gifts for all the children regardless of age. The food was catered by Dale Finger from the Quarterback club---some of that great broasted chicken!

This is a fun time to gather together and let families meet each other and chat away from work settings. I always think it is good for spouses and children



to see some of the other people that work for Northfield Construction Company.



It truly has been fun for me to watch families grow up over the years. My longest term employee has been working with me since 1977. I've watched his children grow up, go to college, and start their own young families. There are several employees that have been working here 10-15 years. With families of all ages it is really fun to get together, play, visit and just enjoy a good relaxing summer evening.

Posted by Ray Cox at 6:11 PM | Link