Downtown Minneapolis Retail News

[amiller92]

Seems like the shopping on offer in the North Loop skews toward menswear, for some reason.

[Tyler]

Parking is probably 10th on the list of reasons people go to Galleria before NL. And if its holiday season, its the opposite, actually. (But raise the street parking rates already!)

[amiller92]

A few weeks ago we had dinner at Bachelor Farmer and saw some comedy at Acme. There was a spot on the street right in front of Cooks of Crocus Hill (i.e., two doors down from BF) and open spots in the lot across from Acme. That evening, at least, parking was not an obstacle.

Not recently, but I too have found parking at the Galleria difficult during the holiday season.

[MNdible]

Anecdata:

I was recently shopping in the North Loop and also found some convenient on-street parking. But in the short time I was there, I heard *three* other customers complaining to clerks about how much of a pain parking was.

[dajazz]

There was a meeting a few weeks ago with North Loop businesses (looking at possibly creating business improvement district for the NL) and several of the businesses commented on the lack of parking for customers. Evenings and weekends I've found it's relatively easy to find a spot, but during the day it can be a challenge. I wouldn't be surprised if street parking rates are raised, especially with all the surface parking lots around Bachelor Farmer set to go offline in the coming months (assuming of course the West Elm Hotel project actually happens).

[grant1simons2]

Anecdata:

I was recently shopping in the North Loop and also found some convenient on-street parking. But in the short time I was there, I heard *three* other customers complaining to clerks about how much of a pain parking was.

People LOVE to complain about parking. It's literally like talking about the weather here. Park 2 blocks away, "wOw PaRKiNg sUrE IS hARd".

See the easiest solution to all of this is to build something on Washington. Like a 10 story mixed use building East of the railroad bridge with like 400 parking spaces that could be converted in the near future. 2 below, 2 above. 250 units of apartments or condos, leaving like 200 spaces for people to park for Colonial Warehouse, Foundry, etc.

There is no solution in complaining. There will never be free parking in North Loop. There will never be a massive surface lot built.

[5th Ave Guy]

I've lived in the North Loop for 10 years now. Parking has become significantly harder to find in that time. I'm not saying that's a bad thing... I'm happy with everything that has driven it, but to not expect people to complain when a convenience has gone from easy to hard is naive.

[mattaudio]

What's strange is that parking is supposedly much harder in the North Loop yet...
1. I know many people who work in the NL and park on the street during the work day (something which would never happen downtown).
2. There are still areas without meters in the NL!

It sounds like the lack of convenience is because of improper parking policy and pricing, not lack of parking.

[dajazz]

I've lived in the North Loop for 10 years now. Parking has become significantly harder to find in that time. I'm not saying that's a bad thing... I'm happy with everything that has driven it, but to not expect people to complain when a convenience has gone from easy to hard is naive.

Agreed. I've been down here for 18 years and I remember back when it was a sea of surface lots. I love that everything is being filled in but with more workers/residents/visitors coming into the NL and the number of parking spaces available decreasing significantly I'm not surprised at people commenting on the lack of parking. Increasing meter rates to discourage workers from camping out in spots for 8 hours would be great as would enhancing public transportation in this area.

[QuietBlue]

I think that for a number of people, a lack of surface parking lots = no parking, even if there is plenty of street parking available. It's a perception issue. Maybe it's not factually correct, but that's how people behave.

[Nathan]

Well good thing there are at least 3 large new parking garages going up in the neighborhood.

That might actually help the price of valet parking in the area which could help with some of the perceived congestion from people coming into the neighborhood. I work at the Hewing and spaces for valet are extremely competitive and the runners have to run blocks to get to the cars. If valet were under 8$ (ours is 12 i believe) it would be competitive with parking yourself anywhere plus convenience.

I also see this issue going away as the neighborhood fills in and the attractions are more spread out/ the neighborhood is more self sufficient and less reliant on visitors to sustain business.

[Didier]

It's a perception issue. Maybe it's not factually correct, but that's how people behave.

I think this. The Galleria actually has a really terrible parking situation, but most people just instinctively consider a parking lot to be easier than city parking.

[dajazz]

Well good thing there are at least 3 large new parking garages going up in the neighborhood.

That might actually help the price of valet parking in the area which could help with some of the perceived congestion from people coming into the neighborhood. I work at the Hewing and spaces for valet are extremely competitive and the runners have to run blocks to get to the cars. If valet were under 8$ (ours is 12 i believe) it would be competitive with parking yourself anywhere plus convenience.

I also see this issue going away as the neighborhood fills in and the attractions are more spread out/ the neighborhood is more self sufficient and less reliant on visitors to sustain business.

Doesn't the Hewing valet use the surface lot behind Bachelor Farmer? A neighbor texted me that the lot will close on March 31st.

[amiller92]

I think this. The Galleria actually has a really terrible parking situation, but most people just instinctively consider a parking lot to be easier than city parking.

Always have to wonder whether "it was hard to park" means "I had to parallel park" or "I had difficulty finding a spot."

[josephmck]

Like beauty, ease or difficulty of parking is in the eye of the beholder.

[Oreos&Milk]

Like beauty, ease or difficulty of parking is in the eye of the beholder.

Yes, most people I know think it's normal to complain about the parking at any big box stores simply because the empty spaces are to far away from the store entrance. You can NEVER win when it comes to parking. The only option is to not even try. Go bold and cater to the people who walk and take transit.

[amiller92]

Turns out people will figure out how to park or otherwise get there, if there's a reason to do so.

[Nathan]

Apparently it didn't take long to fill Shinola's spot.

https://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/ ... north.html

[min-chi-cbus]

That’ll make the wife happy!

[grant1simons2]

Huge land.