The River Walk is series of pedestrian friendly paths along the Cannon River.
People cited nearly every business downtown as institutions that build a sense of community for them. Goodbye Blue Monday Coffee shop, the Quality Bakery and the Art Store were some of the most common responses. In particular, one downtown business owner's response summarized many people's opinion about which businesses in downtown build a sense of community for them:
"There are many places that offer a sense of community in Northfield--if you
walk into Goodbye Blue Monday, the Quarterback Club, the Rueb, Tiny's and others--all
have their own character and group of loyal followers who regularly meet to
exchange ideas, news, thoughts. I have to believe that the same would
be true of the two bead stores, Cottage Industries, Bridge Square Barber shop
as well as the group of young people who hang out on Bridge Square."
Nearly every person I interviewed had different places that were fundamental
to their sense of community in Northfield. The locations that people felt closest
to varied significantly depending on the person. Some people experienced
a sense of community at the Rueb, the Eagles Club and the Quarterback Club,
while other people felt closest to the Mock Duck/ a British Tea Shop, Goodbye
Blue Monday and the Tavern Lounge. Interestingly, no one ever cited Target,
Sam Goody or any of the businesses located over 1.5 miles away on Highway 3.
This could stem from the type of businesses that are being built or relocated
on Highway 3. Typically, these businesses are not family owned and operated.
Research has supported that small, locally owned businesses create a sense
of community for individuals. They often encourage people to linger and
slow down a bit. They create a "third place" for people to socially interact
with one another. This is the fundamental bias upon which a person's sense of
community is built. The first and second places are a person's home and
work respectively. But, "we still need "third places" like pubs, coffee
houses, libraries, places of worship and parks where we can meet people on a
casual basis" (Ford, 2000). Nearly every person I interviewed valued their
"third places" in Northfield and felt that these places were an important aspect
of their sense of community.