Ross Currier, Northfield Downtown Development Corporation (NDDC)

It’s the something annual MayFly Music Festival…two-days of outdoor (weather-permitting) performances of local and not-quite local musicians this Friday and Saturday night at the Contented Cow.  Friday night is, of course, Bob Dylan’s birthday, so expect a bit of the bard from the north country in the song-selection.

Friday, May 24th: MayFly, 5:00 p.m. to close, Contented Cow; Opening Reception: An Exquisite Body of Work, 7:00 to 9:00 p.m., Northfield Arts Guild; 3rd Annual Latino Play Festival; High School Auditorium; and Craig and Maren Wasner, 8:00 p.m., Tavern Lounge.

Saturday, May 25th: Graduation Weekend Concert, 3:00 p.m., Skoglund Center on the St. Olaf College campus; MayFly, 5:00 p.m. to close, Contented Cow; and Alison Rae, 8:00 p.m., Tavern Lounge.

Sunday, May 26th: Quiz Night, 8:00 p.m., Contented Cow.

The Northfield Downtown Development Corporation (NDDC) is proud to present the 8th Annual Taste of Northfield, Thursday, May 30th, from 5:00 to 10:00 p.m.

This year the event will be in and around Bridge Square, including the Sesquicentennial Legacy Plaza along the Cannon River.  Featuring delicious food and beverages, a beer and wine garden, and live entertainment, the Taste of Northfield promises fun for everyone.

The event takes place rain or shine. Along with tasty treats being served up by a baker’s dozen of local food vendors and a beer and wine tent, this year’s Taste of Northfield will feature a special bank raid re-enactment by the infamous James-Younger Gang and performances by a variety of local musicians.

The Taste of Northfield is a private-public partnership, built on private contributions, public support, and hundreds of volunteer hours.  It is a community event with local businesses, local government, and local people coming together to help contribute to a vibrant and vital downtown Northfield, MN.

The NDDC is a non-partisan, non-profit community organization dedicated to the vitality of downtown.  We thank you for your support.

Bridge Square Band Photo Courtesy of Griff Wigley.

It’s been a long time in coming but now it’s arrived: the Northfield Arts Town Website.  It’s an event worth celebrating, so let’s do it.  Saturday evening: music, beverages, and a circus tent atmosphere at High Noon Tattoos and Art Gallery in downtown Northfield.  More info at http://northfield.artstown.us/town/

Friday, May 17th: Occasional Jazz, 5:00 to 7:00 p.m., Contented Cow; Sergio Mojica, 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., Hogan Brothers Acoustic Cafe; 3rd Annual Latino Play Festival, 7:00 p.m., Nothfield Arts Guild Theater; Jon Manners, 8:00 p.m., Tavern Lounge; Lau Hawaiian Collective, 8:00 to 10:30 p.m., Contented Cow; and Alluvian, 11:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m., Contented Cow.

Saturday, May 18th: Wake-Robin, 12:00 to 1:00 p.m., Bittersweet; Spring Dance Concert, 3:00 p.m., Northfield High School; Caryl and the Hitchhikers, 5:00 to 7:30 p.m., Contented Cow; Tom and Larry Quinn, 7:00 to 9:00 p.m., The HideAway; 3rd Annual Latino Play Festival, 7:00 p.m., Northfield Arts Guild; Northfield Arts Town Website Launch Party, 7:00 p.m., High Noon Tattoos and Art Gallery; Jeff Ray, 8:00 p.m., Tavern Lounge; The Sleepers, 8:00 p.m., Contented Cow; and Optimum Trajectory, 9:00 to 11:00 p.m., Contented Cow.

Sunday, May 19th: Northfield Men’s Chorus: The Troubadours, 3:00 p.m., Bethel Lutheran Church; and Quiz Night, 8:00 p.m., Contented Cow.

It’s the 7th Annual Girls Nite Out in downtown Northfield, MN.  Gather your girlfriends for a fun night of shopping, giveaways, hors d’oeuvres and refreshments in downtown shops, boutiques, and restaurants.  The evening peaks with performance fun at the Grand Event Center.  So come on (down)town, girlfriends.

Friday, May 10th: Girls Nite Out, 5:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m., Downtown, Northfield; New Moon Trio, 5:00 to 7:00 p.m., Contented Cow; Chris Anders, 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., Hogan Brothers Acoustic Cafe; Sweet Jazz, 6:00 to 9:00 p.m., The HideAway; The Laramie Project, 7:30 p.m., Arcadia Charter School; Dan Israel, 8:00 p.m., Tavern Lounge; and Ova Younder, 9:00 to 11:30 p.m., Contented Cow.

Saturday, May 11th: Down By the River: A Tribute to Neil Young, 4:00 p.m.  to late, Contented Cow; The Laramie Project, 7:30 p.m., Arcadia Charter School; and Art Vandalay, 8:00 p.m., Tavern Lounge.

Sunday, May 12th: St. Olaf Orchestra, 3:30 p.m., Boe Chapel on the St. Olaf College campus; and Quiz Night, 8:00 p.m., Contented Cow.

The NDDC’s Council-initiated, Staff-supported, Downtown Parking Conversation is coming up to milestones, roadside attractions, and destinations on the road to parking enhancement for Northfield.  Supporters of a vibrant and vital downtown will want to explore these places of interest.

The draft report on the Downtown Parking Conversation is available for your review.  You can find it at Parking Management for Downtown Northfield.  Your feedback is greatly appreciated.

There will be a video conference panel discussion about parking in downtown Northfield this Monday afternoon.  Representatives of the stakeholder groups will share experiences and ideas.  For more information, go to Parking Management for Downtown Northfield.

Finally, the final report on the Downtown Parking Conversation will go to the City Council on Tuesday, May 14th at their work session.  More information on your local government is available at the City of Northfield’s website.  Your City Councilors are interested in your thoughts about parking in downtown Northfield.

Taste of Northfield has taken place in June and July in past years. This year it’s going to be in May. Shake your late-winter blues off  and join us in Bridge Square on May 30. More details to follow.

In New Orleans, down river is Downtown and up river is Uptown.

Up river (that’s the Cannon River) in Northfield is the Arcadia Charter School.  This weekend, they’re doing The Laramie Project.  It recounts the story of Matthew Shepard, a 21-year-old student at the University of Wyoming who was kidnapped, beaten, and left to die.  This production is a mixed cast of Arcadia students and adults from the Northfield community.  Students under 15 must be accompanied by an adult.

Up on the western hill, there is St. Olaf College.  They’ve got a bit of a reputation…for their music.  This Sunday, afternoon and evening, there’s a whole lot of music going on up on that hill.  It includes a chorus and some singers, Norse brass, and some of that nationally-recognized St. Olaf Jazz.   Check it out and see if the reputation is well-deserved.

Then there’s downtown.  At least three places have live music on both Friday and Saturday nights.  We are fortunate, here in Music City, Minnesota, so come on down(town) and enjoy it.

Friday, May 9th: Carey Langer, 5:00 to 7:00 p.m., Contented Cow; Luke Fox, 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., Hogan Brothers Acoustic Cafe; Companydance Spring Concert, 7:30 p.m., Kelsey Theater on the St. Olaf College campus; The Laramie Project, 7:30 p.m., Arcadia Charter School; Sasha Mercedes, 8:00 p.m., Tavern Lounge; Shoot Lucy, 8:00 to 10:30 p.m., The Contented Cow; and Jazz Concert I, 8:15 p.m., Lion’s Pause on the St. Olaf College campus.

Saturday, May 4th: And the Ship Sails On, 4:30 p.m., Weitz Cinema on the Carleton College campus; Better Together, 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., Hogan Brothers Acoustic Cafe; Companydance Spring Concert, 7:30 p.m., Kelsey Theater on the St. Olaf College campus; The Laramie Project, 7:30 p.m., Arcadia Charter School; Very Short Play Festival VII, 7:30 p.m., Northfield Arts Guild Theater; Martin Devaney and Jake Hyer, 8:00 p.m., Tavern Lounge; Matthew Griswold, 8:00 to 10:30 p.m., Contented Cow; and The Damn Band, 11:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m., Contented Cow.

Sunday, May 5th: Viking Chorus/Manitou Singers, 2:00 p.m., Boe Chapel on the St. Olaf College campus, Jazz Concert II & III, 4:30 p.m., Lion’s Pause on the St. Olaf College campus; Norseman Band, 7:30 p.m., Skoglund Center on the St. Olaf College campus; and Quiz Night, 8:00 p.m., Contented Cow.