Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

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RedDutch
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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby RedDutch » August 19th, 2021, 10:11 am

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?

Silophant
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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby Silophant » August 19th, 2021, 10:21 am

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.
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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby MNdible » August 19th, 2021, 12:51 pm

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.

Blaisdell Greenway
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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby Blaisdell Greenway » August 19th, 2021, 2:24 pm

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.

datasage
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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby datasage » August 19th, 2021, 8:18 pm

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.

seanrichardryan
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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby seanrichardryan » August 19th, 2021, 8:26 pm

Funny, what's currently there was part of a similar 'coordinated plan' of the 1970s.
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TroyGBiv
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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby TroyGBiv » August 23rd, 2021, 11:20 pm

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.

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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby EOst » August 24th, 2021, 7:51 am

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.

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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby Mdcastle » August 24th, 2021, 8:54 am

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.

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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby LakeCharles » August 24th, 2021, 10:57 am

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.

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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby MNdible » August 24th, 2021, 11:21 am

Anybody else think it's weird that we use the phrase "square block" even when the blocks are definitely not square?

datasage
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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby datasage » August 24th, 2021, 1:14 pm

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.

datasage
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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby datasage » August 24th, 2021, 1:20 pm

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.

seanrichardryan
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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby seanrichardryan » August 24th, 2021, 2:16 pm

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

Q. What, what? A. In da butt.

datasage
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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby datasage » August 24th, 2021, 4:39 pm

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
I had always assumed that building as just apartments. But looking at a few records, I am not sure most owners are actually residents.

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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby Blaisdell Greenway » August 25th, 2021, 7:48 am

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

seanrichardryan
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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby seanrichardryan » August 25th, 2021, 8:24 am

This image of the original vision is pretty funny considering their stated redevelopment goals- it includes a XXX Cinema, Liquor Store, and hooker? Image
Q. What, what? A. In da butt.

Bob Stinson's Ghost
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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby Bob Stinson's Ghost » August 26th, 2021, 8:55 pm

The history of 2933-35 Nicollet is documented in exquisite detail here:

http://twincitiesmusichighlights.net/venues/mr-luckys/

martykoessel
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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby martykoessel » August 26th, 2021, 10:06 pm

That is a good read! Now I’ll be even sadder to look at that ex-KMart parking lot.

pillsdoughboy
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Re: Nicollet Ave / Eat Street - Whittier, Stevens, Loring Park

Postby pillsdoughboy » April 8th, 2022, 4:15 pm

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.


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