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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 19th, 2021, 10:11 am
by RedDutch
Agreed......Nicollet seems to be filling up slowly from DTC to 46th! Now we just need to reconnect at Lake and develop that God Forsaken old Kmart and massive parking lot. I wonder why the city hasn't issued a RFP?
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 19th, 2021, 10:21 am
by Silophant
The Kmart is in use as a post office until the two that were destroyed in June 2020 are rebuilt. I wouldn't expect an RFP until construction has at least started on those.
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 19th, 2021, 12:51 pm
by MNdible
Any RFP that they issue would be likely years from breaking ground. From a timing/construction point of view, they could easily issue an RFP right now. My sense is that the decision to hold back on an RFP is partially a political one, and partially the reality that city staff is stretched pretty thin right now.
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 19th, 2021, 2:24 pm
by Blaisdell Greenway
Any RFP that they issue would be likely years from breaking ground. From a timing/construction point of view, they could easily issue an RFP right now. My sense is that the decision to hold back on an RFP is partially a political one, and partially the reality that city staff is stretched pretty thin right now.
This makes sense, since they canceled the Lyn-Lake parking lot RFP due to staff focusing on rebuild efforts.
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 19th, 2021, 8:18 pm
by datasage
I see an opportunity to take Kmart site and a number of the blocks around it and turn it into a master plan similar to the ford site. A number of the buildings were damaged after the riots, it would be nice to see a coordinated plan to rebuild the area.
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 19th, 2021, 8:26 pm
by seanrichardryan
Funny, what's currently there was part of a similar 'coordinated plan' of the 1970s.
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 23rd, 2021, 11:20 pm
by TroyGBiv
Funny, what's currently there was part of a similar 'coordinated plan' of the 1970s.
I’ve seen that plan! I was reading your post and flashed back to a deck I found when I worked for the Downtown Council. The area was almost a “new town, in town” design.
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 24th, 2021, 7:51 am
by EOst
Funny, what's currently there was part of a similar 'coordinated plan' of the 1970s.
But don't worry, we've figured out everything that was right and wrong about previous top-down renewal projects and this time we're going to do it right.
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 24th, 2021, 8:54 am
by Mdcastle
Probable result: tear down a bunch of affordable retail that businesses can afford to rent, and replace it with "mixed use" where the ground floor retail that developers are forced to put in as a condition of getting their project approved sits vacant because no one can afford it.
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 24th, 2021, 10:57 am
by LakeCharles
Probable result: tear down a bunch of affordable retail that businesses can afford to rent, and replace it with "mixed use" where the ground floor retail that developers are forced to put in as a condition of getting their project approved sits vacant because no one can afford it.
In this 5 square block area, other than the building on the SE corner of Blaisdell & Lake, which I don't think would be redeveloped, you have 5 national chains which don't require cheap real estate, and 6 total independent businesses. No housing.
If you redevelop that at any density, you could have hundreds of apartments, dozens of offices, and I'm sure you'd be able to get 6 independent businesses back (that's basically 1 per block!).
Compare to 22 Twenty on Lake, a new building which fits 3 local businesses and 1 national chain (plus a bunch of housing) into 1/5 of a block.
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 24th, 2021, 11:21 am
by MNdible
Anybody else think it's weird that we use the phrase "square block" even when the blocks are definitely not square?
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 24th, 2021, 1:14 pm
by datasage
Funny, what's currently there was part of a similar 'coordinated plan' of the 1970s.
I’ve seen that plan! I was reading your post and flashed back to a deck I found when I worked for the Downtown Council. The area was almost a “new town, in town” design.
If you do have a link to that I would love to see it.
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 24th, 2021, 1:20 pm
by datasage
Probable result: tear down a bunch of affordable retail that businesses can afford to rent, and replace it with "mixed use" where the ground floor retail that developers are forced to put in as a condition of getting their project approved sits vacant because no one can afford it.
In this 5 square block area, other than the building on the SE corner of Blaisdell & Lake, which I don't think would be redeveloped, you have 5 national chains which don't require cheap real estate, and 6 total independent businesses. No housing.
If you redevelop that at any density, you could have hundreds of apartments, dozens of offices, and I'm sure you'd be able to get 6 independent businesses back (that's basically 1 per block!).
Compare to 22 Twenty on Lake, a new building which fits 3 local businesses and 1 national chain (plus a bunch of housing) into 1/5 of a block.
There are also some underutilized area on the other side of the midtown greenway as well as atlas staffing which was burned down.
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 24th, 2021, 2:16 pm
by seanrichardryan
Of relevance- Nicollet-Lake Square, 'Over 20 specialty stores in a climate controlled mall.' Still kind of exists as 'Intown on Lake' on the SW corner. Condos were built on top three floors.
https://digitalcollections.hclib.org/di ... ED/id/8155
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 24th, 2021, 4:39 pm
by datasage
I had always assumed that building as just apartments. But looking at a few records, I am not sure most owners are actually residents.
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 25th, 2021, 7:48 am
by Blaisdell Greenway
David Brauer did some archival research about the whole thing a few years ago and put into this twitter thread. This is my favorite/most cringeworthy - an original plat map of the site:
https://twitter.com/dbrauer/status/8445 ... 39520?s=20
He also put all the original scans into this file:
https://www.icloud.com/sharedalbum/#B0S5Uzl7VYbeAl
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 25th, 2021, 8:24 am
by seanrichardryan
This image of the original vision is pretty funny considering their stated redevelopment goals- it includes a XXX Cinema, Liquor Store, and hooker?
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 26th, 2021, 8:55 pm
by Bob Stinson's Ghost
The history of 2933-35 Nicollet is documented in exquisite detail here:
http://twincitiesmusichighlights.net/venues/mr-luckys/
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: August 26th, 2021, 10:06 pm
by martykoessel
That is a good read! Now I’ll be even sadder to look at that ex-KMart parking lot.
Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park
Posted: April 8th, 2022, 4:15 pm
by pillsdoughboy
https://lims.minneapolismn.gov/download ... %20Ave%20S
On the Planning Commission agenda for Monday the 11th: 12 unit, 3 story building a block south of MCAD right next to the Flamingo House. It replaces a duplex that was previously demolished on this site.
Note: the balconies, handrails, and bike racks will be pink to match the local landmark next door.
I like the design here! Sleek, but gives a nod to Whittier's artistic feel. Let's hope this standard of development continues.