Environmental Quality Commission Meeting Date: September 1, 2016
To: Environmental Quality Commission
From: Jasper Kruggel, Streets and Parks Manager
Title
Future City Council Work Session Discussion Items
Body
Action Requested:
The Northfield Environmental Quality Commission evaluates each future City Council Work Session item and can support the projects via motion before the City Council Joint Work Session with the Environmental Quality Commission.
Summary Report:
The intent of this Environmental Quality Commission agenda item is to allow the group to discuss items identified as priorities before the Environmental Quality Commission meets formally with the Northfield City Council. This sequence of action will allow for the Environmental Quality Commission to show support for items the group has indicated it wants to pursue shortly.
Bird City
The Bird City Minnesota program allows for the City of Northfield to educate people about the benefits of birds through signage, group meetings, and initiatives to conserve and foster birds in the Northfield Area. The Environmental Quality Commission has indicated that this program is a priority for the group.
Mayor’s Energy Task Force
The Mayor’s Energy Task Force creates a guiding document regarding the City’s energy use and ways to address reducing the energy consumption and possibly converting to a renewable source. The final document that was created by the Mayor’s Energy Task Force in 2007 was never formally adopted by City Council. The group now called Northfield Energy Friends wishes to create an energy sub-committee of the EQC to continue to work on this.
Community Solar
With the ever expanding options to purchase community solar, this is an area the EQC has indicated that should be explored to reduce the carbon footprint of Northfield. This initiative may be tied to the Mayor’s Energy Task Force findings and recommendations, but doesn’t necessarily have to be if the group is not renewed by the Mayor.
Urban Forest Asset Management Plan
The Urban Forest Asset Management Plan is another document that was prepared years ago but never formally adopted by City Council. The idea of this initiative is to reboot this document and incorporate new best practices along with working alongside Council to formulate feasible tasks associated with this document.
The establishment of a joint EQC/PRAB newsletter
The EQC has indicated that it would like to start a quarterly newsletter that could be paired with the PRAB if they choose to participate in this joint venture. This quarterly newsletter would include information about the meetings and also helpful tidbits for the readers about ways to be more environmentally conscious.
Bicycle Friendly Community - Bronze Level
The EQC has indicated that focusing on receiving “Bronze” accreditations for the Bicycle Friendly Community program. This initiative will require working with local bicycle groups along with City Council in a close manner to achieve the goal of “Bronze.”