urbanMSP

[quote=John]There are definitely people interested in building something very prominent for Minneapolis.[/quote]

I believe 612transplant was questioning whether this is supposed to be taken as a true statement or as unsubstantiated hyperbole.

The "can of worms" John refers to is was a period a few months back when John replied to literally every other post here with some form of the same complaint about the lower height, resulting in a request for him to stop. Everybody agreed that 36 stories would have been better but that the height is what it is, so the discussion moved forward.

Good start!

I'm more concerned about how this building meets the street and skyway levels. Will it be intergrated with the street fabric or will it be closed off like City Center. From the drawing I think it will be fairly open to the street. But I hope that they have well established enterances, logical ways for people to get from the street to the skyway level, and that there is a good restraunt on the end by the Nicollet mall that integrates the large expanse of street that is available.

Should this building be considered a skyscraper? Not in my book. Could this building be built taller? Absolutely, but I'm much more concerned about filling a slot on a prominent downtown intersection than I am worried about the height of the building. Adding a few more floors only add an extra 50 or so residents.

I'm not sure what constitutes a "skyscraper", but a "high-rise" is 12+ floors or 110+ feet, according to Emporis.

I didn’t mean to hijack the tread like this. I am very excited to see this lot become something, and I am defiantly concerned with the street interaction more than with the sky, but at the same time I feel like we are wasting the block sized lots. I don’t want a park at the end of Nicollet Mall, I want buildings. I want density. I want our skyline to continue to have a dominating presence.

It’s hard. Would you rather have a 300 footer or wait 15 years for something three times taller? Sometimes I can’t decide.

if it has a good presence on the sidewalk and on the skyway, that's all that matters to pedestrians. anything taller than 8 floors just causes my neck to hurt when i look up...

I know other people have said it on this thread, but I'm just happy to see something on this block. It will be bigger and nicer than what was there originally. I'm curious to see how the new Xcel building will play off of this one. Nic is more modern and looks like it belongs downtown, where the Xcel building looks more suburban.

I believe 612transplant was questioning whether this is supposed to be taken as a true statement or as unsubstantiated hyperbole.

The "can of worms" John refers to is was a period a few months back when John replied to literally every other post here with some form of the same complaint about the lower height, resulting in a request for him to stop. Everybody agreed that 36 stories would have been better but that the height is what it is, so the discussion moved forward.

No, that is not unsubstantiated hyperbole. And I was just trying to be a little light hearted about the whole "incident". Jeez, I do apologize if that still offends you so much. I have come around on this project and really like it (not quite sure about the name "Nic on Fifth" though).

I think the Xcel building is going to be impressive in the flesh. The more I look at its rendering the more I like it.

Agree.

If they use Kasota stone like their building across Nicollet then I think it will be a nice building.

If they use Kasota stone like their building across Nicollet then I think it will be a nice building.

do you mean on the first five floors only?

i'm hoping a skyway connection can be replaced going to the south...

Website: http://www.theniconfifth.com/

i wish some addtional renderings would be released. opus web site has nothing. with the groundbreaking this week i'd like to see how this building will look in the overall skyline. the building seems to be sort of a fraternal twin to u.s. bank tower further down nicollet.

i wish some addtional renderings would be released. opus web site has nothing. with the groundbreaking this week i'd like to see how this building will look in the overall skyline. the building seems to be sort of a fraternal twin to u.s. bank tower further down nicollet.

Probably because it doesn't show very well amongst the other "giants" nearby...

i wish some addtional renderings would be released. opus web site has nothing. with the groundbreaking this week i'd like to see how this building will look in the overall skyline. the building seems to be sort of a fraternal twin to u.s. bank tower further down nicollet.

Probably because it doesn't show very well amongst the other "giants" nearby...

It should show well at least from the north and west sides of town at it will be much taller than the buildingas around that edge of town.

It won't really show up all that much...the other office buildings on Washington up there are around the same height or taller...100 Washington is 350 feet, and even Marquette Plaza is 220 feet. Once the new Xcel building is finished...it is supposed to be around 160 feet, so I guess this will be more than 100 feet taller, but it won't exactly tower over anything in the area.

I think a ground-level view from the north would work well, that is high enough to crop out surface parking. A friend posted this photo on Facebook yesterday and I immediately wish it was taken from a position slightly closer to Nicollet Mall, and then the new development could be photoshopped in...

That old McDonald's building will come down tomorrow. There is also an updated rendering in the article, which also shows the new Xcel building next to it. The colors seem a little different in this rendering. The Xcel building is more orange, and the Nic seems more yellow.

http://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/b ... -mall.html