70% of Northfield voters turn away from roundabout

Northfield residents are telling village officials to hit the brakes on a plan to add a roundabout in the center of the community.

Nearly 70% of Northfield voters (2,161 out of 3,291) voted no on an advisory referendum on whether a roundabout should be included in plans to improve Happ Road, the town’s main thoroughfare.

The referendum results are non-binding, meaning no direct action is necessary; however, organizers who helped get the ballot on the referendum hope it leads to change.

“I think the people have spoken,” said Karen Roth, one of the leaders behind the Save Happ Road Committee. “I think the citizens of Northfield have been trying to tell the board of trustees this very same message so this was the perfect opportunity for that. It is fantastic. We are very happy.”

A roundabout has been a central feature in the Happ Road improvements since the project’s beginning nearly a decade ago. Northfield officials have promoted the roundabout as a safety feature for motorists and pedestrians at an uneven intersection at Happ Road and Orchard Lane.

As the project progressed and construction approached, however, residents and local business owners began to organize in opposition, specifically to the roundabout. And the Save Happ Road Committee was born, and a referendum was placed on the November ballot.

Three trustees — Barnaby Dinges, Charlie Orth and Tom Whittaker — announced their opposition to the roundabout at a recent public meeting.

During that meeting, Trustees Tracey Mendrek and Matt Galin did not offer an opinion on the proposed roundabout, instead saying they wanted to see the results from the referendum. Upon seeing them Tuesday, the trustees sent the following collective statement to The Record:

“Given the overwhelming negative response, we believe the project must go back to the drawing board. As trustees, we must now work collaboratively with our community and our local business owners to create a vision that excites and inspires the entire Northfield community.”

The five-arm roundabout would connect Happ Road, Walnut Street and Orchard Lane and, in the middle, feature a fountain, which officials have said, along with the renovated roadway, could help make the town’s center a more desirable destination.

The driver of the opposition is the permanent displacement of residential land on Happ Road and parking spaces off of Orchard Lane and Walnut Street, bordering to Metamorphosis Spa. Plans call for the removal of up to 20 spaces between the two streets, as well as the removal of several trees up and down Happ and along Orchard.

The Record is a nonprofit, nonpartisan community newsroom that relies on reader support to fuel its independent local journalism.

Subscribe to The Record to fund responsible news coverage for your community.

Already a subscriber? You can make a tax-deductible donation at any time.