The Northfield News created a feature insert in their newspaper this week featuring 25 young people in the area that are emerging as leaders in the community. Tristan Cox was one of those featured. The photo at left shows Tristan standing in front of his home....the house that the late Senator Paul Wellstone lived when he taught at Carleton College.

Tristan grew up working at Northfield Construction...from painting our old shop, to doing demoliton work on area projects. He now is working in the commercial real estate development area and helping with promotion and sales for Northfield Construction.

It is great to see so many young people in the area being recognized for the work they are doing, and to know that we have a good group of future community leaders in the pipeline.

Posted by Ray Cox at 5:33 AM | Link

 
Work is moving along very well for our townhome project in New Prague for the Scott County Housing and Redevelopment Agency....called Bohemia Acres. Each building has two living units in it with separate garages.

The siding is just now being finished up. The homes have nice tall windows and we are using trim accents on the exterior to highlight this feature.

The interior work is also progressing very well. The cabinets are being installed as well as interior doors and trims.

In about a month the project should be complete and ready for occupants.

Posted by Ray Cox at 4:51 AM | Link

 
Today the Vintage Band Festival begins in Northfield. This is the first time such an event has been planned and organized in Northfield, and in fact just may be the nation’s first Vintage Band Festival. This should prove to be a great weekend filled with wonderful music and events.

The Vintage Band Festival is hosted by the City of Northfield, Carleton College and St. Olaf College, and sponsored and supported by many, many local organizations. Northfield Construction Company has done its part by sponsoring ads for the event.

There will be bands from all across the country as well as some international bands performing. There will be vintage baseball games played on Saturday. Sunday will have many bands playing in area churches. I urge you to take part in whatever activity works for you. And if you are reading this posting in preparation or consideration of moving to Northfield....this is the kind of activity this city hosts and you can expect on a regular basis when you live here.

Posted by Ray Cox at 3:56 AM | Link

 
Last Friday was one of those days that hits you in the gut and sucks the air right out of your being. My friend Don Starr unexpectedly died. Don was an architect, living and working in this area. We worked on countless projects, from new homes and additions to commercial projects. This spring we helped Don build a new home for his family and an office for his architectural firm. Don’s family came above all else in his life.

Don was always involved in the community... doing whatever was needed to help people. If a non-profit organization needed some help with a design of a building, or a layout of a site, Don was there for them. He spent countless hours working with local Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts. I especially like that Don sparked creative designs in these boys, helping them fabricate sculptures and various projects.

In the photo below from this website, Don is shown next to me in the center. This was the dedication of Marilyn's Place....sustainable living homes for people needing assistance. Don did the architecural work for these homes in Northfield.



Here Don is shown in the background with a number of Boy Scouts. I submitted the winning bid for the United Nations quilt the boys made. I have it hanging on the wall in my office in St. Paul.



In Don’s 47 short years on earth he touched so many people. Always having a smile and a kind word, he will be missed by everyone in this area.

Posted by Ray Cox at 4:35 AM | Link

 
Yesterday Phil Olson and I had a short meeting with people that are working with us on the Amerman Soccer Pavilion. Northfield Construction is coordinating a signifcant amount of volunteer labor from area construction companies to build this project for the community.

Rick Estenson (right in photo) and Charlie Cogan (center in photo) from the Northfield Rotary Club have been great at doing the financial,fundraising, and support work. Howard Meriam (second from left) and Joel Walinski (second from right) with the City of Northfield have guided the project along. Mike Healey with Healey Construction, left in the photo, has been doing a wonderful job providing donated services for portions of the concrete work.

In a few more weeks we should have the work wrapped up and ready to be used by the community.

Posted by Ray Cox at 4:52 AM | Link

 
Our work continues at the Oak Trust Credit Union in Eagan. This has been a nice project for us. The roof is now in place, most windows are installed and the rough site work being finished.

The building will have a very nice drive-up window to handle transactions. While the facility is not huge, it is appointed very nicely and looks great.

Notice the black fencing in the foreground of the above photograph. It is silt fencing. Silt fencing is used around the preimeter of most projects today to control runoff on sites. Without silt fencing soils can be washed over the curb and into the street, where it ends up getting into the storm water piping and system. Silt contaminates our lakes, rivers and streams so it is a good plan to include it in any urban construction project.

Posted by Ray Cox at 5:18 AM | Link

 
We started a great project in Faribault last week. The work is at an historic home in that great old rivertown of Faribault, just up river from Northfield. Our work involves the demolition of an older small garage structure on the side of the home, and construction of a new double garage.

Work moved along very quickly with the skilled operation of the backhoe/loader by American Excavating. As you can see from the photos, the home is constructed with beautiful native limestone. We had to be very careful not to disturb any of the stonework, and we will be using some new stone facing on the garage walls.

When the project is complete the owners will have a new garage with a patio on the roof.

Posted by Ray Cox at 12:49 PM | Link

 
Northfield Construction Company again had a parade entry in the Bar-B-Q Days parade in Belle Plaine. This year we had a truck with signs noting our work at the Faith Resident Apartments we recently completed for The Lutheran Home Association in Belle Plaine.

Ellen drove the pickup and Diana and I walked the parade handing out candy and NCC pencils. The kids really liked getting a pencil and many of the dads appreciated a carpenter pencil.

Prior to the start of the parade I had a great time visiting with people on the sidelines.

I also visited with the driver of the Cemstone Concrete Products truck. The drum of the truck is painted red, white and blue making it a real hit for the parade.

Scott County was there with their mounted patrol officers keeping things under control.

Right after the parade I helped out by selling Bar-B-Q sandwiches in the community meat stand.

Making Bar-B-Q sandwiches in back of me this year was Rick Huckle and his wife Chris. Rick is the President of Riverland bank in Jordan.

Belle Plaine does a great job with Bar-B-Q Days. Everyone at Northfield Construction Company has enjoyed getting to know people in this area and completing projects in Belle Plaine.

Posted by Ray Cox at 3:59 AM | Link

 
One of the truly great things about Northfield is the wonderful events and activities that take place here. During the summer months just about every Thursday evening there is a fun community event on Bridge Square in the heart of Northfield.

Last night we had two things going on. The first was the annual Pie in the Square event put on by the Northfield News. They handed out pie and ice cream to everyone that wanted some. A new twist this year was the opportunity to bid on the right to toss a pie in the face of a News staffer! The funds raised went to the local food shelf.

Right after the Pie in the Square we had a concert by the Songs of Hope. This is a Minnesota group consisting of 10-13 year old children from all around the world. They bring their songs and cultural messages to communities in Minnesota and the upper Midwest.

We also had a food wagon set up on the Square. My Rotary Club provided workers to staff it, with the proceeds also going to the local food shelf. It was a warm evening to be in a food wagon!

If you are thinking of moving to Northfield I can assure you that there is no shortage of activities in this city. Between our two excellent colleges, Carleton and St. Olaf, and the various service clubs and community organizations there is something fun and rewarding to do every day.

Posted by Ray Cox at 3:56 AM | Link

 

Posted by Ray Cox at 6:52 AM | Link