urbanMSP

City Club CBD is really just a souped-up version of the early 20th Century residential hotels in big cities. Fine if the developer wants to build another, but just do it on a vacant lot and don't tear down any buildings with historical significance.

The dramatic change and look along this stretch of Nicollet is still hard to get used to. But for the most part, I think it's hard to argue its not a positive for the neighborhood. I hope the retail spaces are leased to independently owned businesses. An inexpensive restaurant at the corner of 15th ...

The eastern side of North Loop is defying the odds and evolving into downtown's 21st century walkable retail district. It appears the tipping point has happened given the latest wave of development. Pretty cool to see after 20 years of waiting patiently ( along with my late friend Allen who predicte...

Feature on the lighting: https://www.architecturalrecord.com/articles/14200-nicollet-mall-in-minneapolis I live on Nicollet Mall and IMO the lighting is the most successful aspect of the renovation , particularly the high mast light poles. The beacons on the poles are programmable and change/altern...

Way better than the original proposal. Something to jazz up the south side is a great idea.

I won’t hold my breath on this one. The budget is small - given the scope of what really would need to be done to transform the dismal Mall frontage of City Center. It’s not only lipstick, but cheap lipstick at that. I don't know, The Nicollet Mall frontage has been neglected by the owners for deca...

Just finished checking it out after the ceremony. It's really wonderful, the fountains are such a statement and the presence of water is invigorating. It lacks the polish of a sparkly new park but maintains the character and history of the city and architecture. Children flailed around in the now s...

Over the top and garish for Minneapolis. Love it!

I would second that....

Thanks for the coy answer. So just when does the construction begin

There are four well established, very expensive steakhouses within a few blocks of this new restaurant. Not sure if they will all be sustainable long term. Sure wish the landlords along Nicollet Mall would try to attract more diverse retail than just restaurants. I'm hoping at least The Daytons Proj...

The AECOM and Sherman proposals are really the only two serious contenders in this RFP. If AECOM has a sound financing plan, and the pragmatic issues of building's design are well thought out, I think they have a good chance of being chosen. If that's not the case, it's a shoo-in for Sherman.

Agree, the Sherman proposal is nice and if its chosen that's fine. As far as the trees in the pocket gardens of AECOM, they would be consistently be well maintained by the condo association, with the species carefully chosen to be hardy enough to thrive in their constrained environment. It will be l...

AECOM's proposal is very innovative and creates a unique architectural design for Washington Ave. Plus having a residential project that's home ownership creates more diversity in the housing stock in a downtown that's so heavily rental. Kind of hate to say it, but Washington Ave ( and downtown for ...

I think its a mixed bag of some things better and other elements not as nice. Yet that was true with the previous two versions of the mall. Definitely would have been better if they were able to afford the more elaborate pavers that were initially proposed. A budget of 50 million dollars doesn't go ...

^^Having the stable and wealthy firm RBC sign on as anchor office tenant for The Gateway Project was a huge step in getting that project to move forward. I give UP a lot of credit for their perseverance in working out such a great proposal for this complicated site.

^^The panels change color/tonality as you pass by it along the Greenway. It's rather unique and really fun to look at.

Beautiful tower that works well at both the base and on the skyline. Great addition to downtown Minneapolis.

It'd be so easy to fix... Wrapping poles in brighter colors, more storefront having garden spaces, MORE GLASS (honestly, glass can be many colors and they'd break up the tans, grays and browns. Good suggestions! And frankly , filling all those empty storefronts between 8th and 5th streets would be ...

The leaves are really filling in now after the water has been turned on. Rain helped too. Happily, some of the trees have revived. However, I'm still noticing quite a few dead or visibly distressed ones, although I'm guessing some of that should be expected the first year given transplant "sho...

Those Birch are probably not exposed to as much salt. I guess there's some warranty on the trees so they can be replaced. Maybe they should just stick with the known, and plant trees that can definitely withstand the harsher conditions along Nicollet Mall.