City Council Meeting Date: April 15, 2025
To: Mayor and City Council
City Administrator
From: Mathias Hughey, Associate City Planner
Title
Consideration of Second Reading of Ordinance 1075 Designating Central Park (421 4th St. E.) as a Local Heritage Preservation Site.
Body
Action Requested:
The City Council will consider the second reading of Ordinance 1075 designating Central Park (421 4th St. E.) as a local Heritage Preservation Site.
Summary Report:
The City has “declared as a matter of public policy that the preservation, protection, perpetuation, promotion and use of areas, places, buildings, structures, lands, districts and other objects having a special historical, community, or aesthetic interest or value is a public necessity and is required in the interest of health, prosperity, safety and welfare in the community.” The value of heritage preservation is repeatedly reaffirmed through public engagement, where residents and visitors cite the historic charm of Northfield as a major draw and defining characteristic.
The HPC is tasked with identifying “places, buildings, structures, properties, district areas, or properties within the community [that] are significant in American history, architecture, archeology, engineering, landscaping, and culture.” City Code, in conformance with state and federal law, establishes the Certificate of Appropriateness (COA) process for preserving the historic character of those places. That COA is guided by the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards and guidelines for the treatment of historic properties. Attached is a publication discussing the appropriate treatment of historic landscapes.
Background:
The HPC has applied to designate Central Park as a Heritage Preservation Site. Realizing a recommendation made in the City’s 1992 Preservation Plan.
For a detailed accounting of the park's history, see the attached application.
In the original plat of the City of Northfield, John North dedicated the city block now known as Central Park for use as a Public Square. On that 1856 document, Caleb Iddings, the original surveyor attested a large stone had been placed at each of the 4 corners of Central Park to facilitate future surveys. Thus, Central Park served as the basis for all future surveys as lots were sold, and streets and buildings were constructed.
The park was a central feature of early Northfield and Northfield’s oldest residential neighborhood. It has hosted community events, served as a campground at times, featured a “bandstand” for many years, was used by students when the school was still in service, and has hosted a playground since the 1970s.
Despite being 169 years old, Central Park has changed little throughout the city’s history, retaining much of its original character - in preservation terms, it is “intact.” The diagonal walks are an early feature, originally mowed grass; they were paved with concrete in 1929. A fountain was also constructed in the center of the park in the 1900s. This fountain was replaced with the seat wall in 1954, which was restored around 1991. The park has also long featured rows of trees around the perimeter and a general composition of lawn and shade trees with some ornamental plantings.
Preservation of the park would focus on retaining these character-defining features. It does not preclude further amenitization of the park, so long as proposed improvements do not negatively impact the character-defining features. For example, reconfiguring the diagonal walks would be considered inappropriate.
Process:
The Heritage Preservation Commission reviews the application for designation as established in Section 8.4.7, Type 4 Review Procedure (Planning Commission or Heritage Preservation Commission Recommendation and City Council Decision) and makes a recommendation to the City Council.
In addition to the approval criteria as established in Section 8.5.7(C), the HPC and the Planning Commission may also refer to the applicable Secretary of the Interior standards, and current procedure as recommended by the state historic preservation office when determining if a site should qualify as a Heritage Preservation Site.
After the HPC has made a recommendation, the PC shall review the application for designation in accordance with the Type 4 review procedure as established in Section 8.4.7, Type 4 Review Procedure (Planning Commission or Heritage Preservation Commission Recommendation and City Council Decision) and shall make a recommendation to the City Council.
Communication with Minnesota State Historic Preservation Office:
Prior to designating a proposed Heritage Preservation Site, the HPC shall forward information concerning the proposed designation to the Minnesota State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) for comment within 60 days.
The SHPO provided a response letter on December 3, 2024, describing Central Park as “an ideal candidate for local designation.”
Review and Decision by the City Council:
The City Council shall review and decide on a Heritage Preservation Site application in accordance with Section 8.4.7, Type 4 Review Procedure (Planning Commission or Heritage Preservation Commission Recommendation and City Council Decision).
Prior to deciding, the City Council may request a review and recommendation by the Planning Commission for the designation's conformance with the comprehensive plan. The City Council shall adopt findings in support of any decision to designate a Heritage Preservation Site in the form of an ordinance.
Approval Criteria:
Northfield’s criterion for local heritage preservation site designation mimic that of the National Register evaluation with two additional criteria, #1 and #6. All of the following criteria shall be considered in the review of Heritage Preservation Site designation applications:
(1) That the quality of significance in American history, architecture, archeology, engineering, and culture is present in districts, sites, buildings, structures, landscaping, and objects that possess integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association; or
Staff Response:
Central Park possesses integrity of design, setting, feeling, and association, and is significant to local culture as a characteristic feature of Northfield from the time of its founding and the earliest neighborhood.
(2) That are associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history; or [National Register Evaluation Criteria A]
Staff Response:
Central Park has made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of Northfield’s history. The site was included in the original 1855 town plat and designated as a Public Square for purposes of free passage or of ornamentation and improvement as grounds of pleasure, amusement, recreation, or health. The original surveyor, Caleb W. Iddings, also placed a stone at each corner of the Public Square to make future measurements from, and to establish the original street grid. The status of the park has been central to several court cases, including a Minnesota Supreme Court case that reaffirmed the status of the park as held in trust by the City and aided in preserving its historic configuration.
(3) That are associated with the lives of persons significant in our past; or [National Register Evaluation Criteria B]
Staff Response:
The park was included in the original plat of the city as established by John North, at the founding of Northfield. In addition to founding Northfield, Mr. North was involved in the framing of the state of Minnesota's constitution and the founding of the University of Minnesota.
(4) That embody the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction, or that represent the work of a master, or that possess high artistic values, or that represent a significant and distinguishable entity whose components may lack individual distinction; or [National Register Evaluation Criteria C]
(5) That have yielded, or may be likely to yield, information important in prehistory or history; or [National Register Evaluation Criteria D]
(6) That have a unique location or singular physical characteristics representing established and familiar aspects of a view, vista, site, area or district in the city.
Staff Response:
Central Park’s location is unique and exclusive to the public square established in the original plat and has continued in that use, uninterrupted, through to the present day. It is surrounded by some of the earliest houses built in Northfield and located two blocks east of the historic business district. The park retains many of its character-defining features including two diagonal walks that cross in the center of the park, a central, circular area at the center, rows of shade trees along the streets, and the park-like landscaping of mowed turf combined with ornamental plantings, and shade trees. The park predates most of the homes in the neighborhood and is therefore a defining feature of the earliest neighborhood in the city.
Conformance with the Comprehensive Plan:
The designation of Central Park as a local Heritage Preservation Site conforms with the 2008 Comprehensive Plan, specifically with the following objectives and strategies:
Parks and Recreation Objective 2 - “Provide residents with parks and natural areas for recreational uses, protection of the natural environment, and visual/physical buffering of land development as a means to maintain the sense of place, ambiance, appearance, and history of the community.”
Legal Status and MN Supreme Court Case:
Central Park is unique among Northfield’s parks because it was dedicated as a “Public Square” at the founding of the town. This status places constraints on the space that do not apply to other parks.
In the late 1940’s Central Park was the subject of a legal battle that clarified state-level law regarding parks in Minnesota. When the City wanted to transfer the land to the school district, a group of residents sued to block the transfer. The case made it to the Minnesota State Supreme Court, which blocked the move, siding with the residents. The court found that as a public square, the park was intended to serve “…as grounds for pleasure, amusement, recreation or health,” and “the dedication meant an ornamental square or square to be used and enjoyed by the public generally, and that it did not mean a square or space to be used as a school athletic field or school playground.”
The designation of Central Park as a heritage preservation site has no bearing on the City’s obligation to maintain Central Park as a public square. Northfield has only one park dedicated as a public square, making Central Park a unique asset. It continues to function as a public square, hosting community-wide events while also serving as a neighborhood park.
Recommendations from HPC, Parks and Recreation Advisory Board and PC:
Heritage Preservation Commission Recommendation
The HPC recommended the designation of Central Park as a local Heritage Preservation Site on January 6, 2025. The recording of the meeting is available can be watched from the hyperlink attached. The HPC supports the designation based on:
ü City Code criteria, SOI standards, SHPO response, and Comprehensive Plan support;
ü the foundational role of the park in the establishment and early history of Northfield;
ü that the park meets four of the six criteria that would qualify it as historic;
ü because the character-defining features are intact;
ü and because the park has a high degree of integrity.
Parks and Recreation Advisory Board (PRAB) Recommendation
The PRAB recommended the designation of Central Park as a local Heritage Preservation Site on January 22, 2025. The recording of the meeting is available can be watched from the hyperlink attached. The PRAB supports the designation based on:
ü City Code criteria, SHPO response, and Comprehensive Plan support;
ü and because the park can accommodate additional amenities without sacrificing historic integrity.
Planning Commission Recommendation
The PC reviewed the application on February 20, 2025, and did not recommend designating Central Park as a heritage preservation site. The recording of the meeting is available can be watched from the hyperlink attached. The PC does not support the designation based on:
ü the added review of a COA. This is not consistent with City Code criteria or supported by the 2008 Comprehensive Plan.
Staff Recommendation:
Staff recommends adopting Ordinance 1075 designating Central Park as a local Heritage Preservation Site.
Alternative Options:
The City Council may decline to designate Central Park as a local heritage preservation site.
Financial Impacts:
NA
Tentative Timelines:
ü November - HPC Initiates application
ü January - HPC and PRAB Review application including SHPO’s comments
ü March - PC review and recommendation
ü April - Public Hearing and City Council review and decision
ü May - If designated, the ordinance goes into effect