Feedback: New Businesses, Skateboard Park, Corrections System

This is a weekly feature called "Feedback Friday" where we let you know what your neighbors have been saying on our Facebook page, to us on Twitter and in the Northfield Patch comment section about the stories from the past week.

Trio of New Businesses Join Downtown

Dr. Jacob Conway
My mother just got a bracelet that she LOVES from Makeshift Accessories! Good luck to you Devin! Your work is great! 

Arlen Malecha
WELCOME to all these three new businessesand A+ Tattoo who recently opened in the 500 Block of Division St. A local merchant stopped into our real estate office (Coldwell Banker South Metro, 419 Division St) the other day and we were discussing how nice it is that there aren't many, if any, open store fronts on Division St. at the moment. So, to the people opening new stores in Northfield, welcome and thank you! 

Park Board Recommends Riverside Park for Skateboard Park

JoAnn Eaton
I certainly hope so. Those skateboarders have been exceedingly patient with this city. They deserve a nice skate park.

Christian Arthur Brumm
I'm glad someone on the board acknowledged that the current skatepark has horrible equipment.

PRAB Skateboard Park Recommendation Deserves Our Support

Zach Pruitt
As always, Jane, you are so thoughtful and insightful. Thank you for sharing this important viewpoint.

Tiffany Peterson
Yes! We should support ALL Northfield youth. Let's design a great park and view it as something positive for Northfield.

Rosalee
Jane: Well-done!!. Riverside Park is a fine asset. It's good to see the variety of ways it is used by many different groups holding concerts, weddings at the Pergola and the Car Show during DJJD. Northfield was named in the top 100 communities as a good place to raise children. Let's support ALL the young people.. 

Beaumaster: We Need to Evaluate Our Current Corrections System

Britt Ackerman
Good article Paul. I commend you for your support of the proposed legislation which would provide a mechanism for relief in the form of a certificate of rehabilitation. You do a good job in this article of explaining the futility of rehabilitation in merited cases. It's important to counter the "lock them up and throw away the key" mentality so prevalent in public opinion.

However, I believe that our focus should be on reforming our current expungement law, to make expungement a meaningful remedy again. When it comes to obtaining employment and housing, the stigma of a conviction won't disappear with a certificate of rehabilitation. However, expungement of criminal records will protect a rehabilitated offender from the effects of onerous and oftentimes inaccurate background checks. I trust our judges' discretion in determining which offenders merit expungement.

Rehabilitated felons just need someone to give them a chance. When you say "[t]he record of the crime would remain for the felon to explain" you minimize the reality of the situation. Employers who are not familiar with the criminal justice system won't take a second look at a rehabilitated offender, so long as there are other candidates without a record, certificate of rehabilitation or not.

Nevertheless, any step toward reducing barriers to entry is positive, therefore I thank you for bringing this issue to light and for understanding that reform is needed. 

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