Uptown - LynLake - The Wedge - News & General

[daveybabymsp]

Not a huge fan of this project, but when there is a huge oversupply of retail space and an undersupply of housing, it is a natural correction for housing to replace some retail. It is possible that there is a future where the city regrets approving this project because Uptown retail has a huge resurgence, but we can’t pretend that we know future. It is also possible that there is never demand for that much retail space at Lake and Hennepin in the next 30 years. The developers are just reacting to the current landscape and guessing what will be most profitable, which is probably not retail.

[Wezle]

Yeah, I suppose at the end of the day, more housing is more housing. There are already a ton of vacant storefronts in the area and adding another 300+ residents within walking distance can only be good to increasing commercial demand. Would've been nice to see even a small 500sqft commercial space though.

When I was in Mexico City earlier this year, I was shocked at how many shops, cafes, and restaurants were operating out of what looked like 250sqft of space. Some of that is because the climate makes it easier to spill out into the street a bit more, but it's still something that we could be inspired by here in order to make it easier for small businesses to lease space.

[Anondson]

Subdividing might be a hurdle that local ordinances make into a challenge.

It might also be the terms of financing stops them.

I wonder if building owners could speak up about what holds them back.

[BikesOnFilm]

Not a huge fan of this project, but when there is a huge oversupply of retail space and an undersupply of housing, it is a natural correction for housing to replace some retail.

I get that development is all about conservatism and value engineering, especially in a market environment like today. But I wish they had thought through for a second that the Seven Points mall will probably always be dead and removing a bit of the retail that can actually work independent of the mall isn't going to change that.

Unfortunately, I think they still somehow believe that putting residents here will bring back the mall, and unless you really start courting smaller tenants a la Karmel Mall, I don't see it happening.

Someone with vision would have put the housing where the mall is today. Someone hedging their bets would have focused on the vacant lot and put off the mall itself for a few more years to see how Uptown's recovery plays out. This is the "we already paid for the renderings and we've lost enough money already, put something in the ground so we can sell it in a few years" approach.

[twincitizen]

^Good take. My guess is the owner probably needs to close the land sale to Doran ASAP just to continue paying the mortgage on the mall, or they risk losing it to the bank. Northpond paid $30 million for it back in 2019 (half of what Ackerberg and Chase bank paid in 2014), and obviously haven't been earning much from commercial rents or parking revenue since.

They also haven't sold off the vacant lot on Lake which they paid another $4.5 million for. Personally, and I'm sure I'm not alone here in this opinion, I do not want to see that site become affordable housing. At least not until Uptown is somewhat back on its feet. It's too bad the once-planned 14-story building didn't happen. That would've been sick...the design was nothing breathtaking but at least average or better. At the present moment, there's not enough rent growth in Uptown for any market-rate housing to pencil out, so the subsidized, 100% affordable project is likely the only thing that could get built anytime soon. Better than a vacant lot I guess, but damn, what could have been.

Lastly, "Seven Points" still annoys me. "Uptown Square" is so obvious...but they went with something goofy based on the number of spikes on the big sign. Whatever.

[Tom H.]

I'll be honest, when I saw "Seven Points" on the thread, my first thought was that we were talking about something going on at Seven Corners / West Bank. I had to stop and think for a second what the heck even is "Seven Points".

[BikesOnFilm]

I'm sure a consultant laughed all the way to the bank on that one.

[Silophant]

Now THIS is a discourse generator.

[angrysuburbanite]

Now THIS is a discourse generator.

I'll probably get murdered for the boundaries I chose: Bde Maka Ska, 25th Ave, Lyndale, and 35th Ave. In hindsight I think I went a little too far south and not far enough north.

[Tom H.]

Everyone knows Uptown is a vibe, not a geographical area.

[Nick]

Very funny.

I feel like I mostly associate "Uptown" with retail/commercial spaces and, with the current situation, throwing lines on a map was difficult. I included LynLake but not the north side of the lake. Didn't go all the way up to Franklin but did extend down to the cemetery. It could get better someday! People should leave the house more often.

[Anondson]

And the Uptown vibe is Central and Hennepin.

[Bakken2016]

And the Uptown vibe is Central and Hennepin.

Don't you mean CenHen

[daveybabymsp]

And the Uptown vibe is Central and Hennepin.

Don't you mean CenHen

It’s Old Town now, keep up

[Emerson Uptowner]

I have lived in uptown since '96 and have rarely shopped in what is called uptown and recently never. I love my place but I shop in St Louis Park, Edina, and Richfield. Thankfully there is a LA Fitness in Richfield. The one in St. Louis Park that was just remodeled is terrible. I am not sure what the answer is as far as retail.

[Chuggachuggachoochoo]

My definition of Uptown is pretty tight:

West from Maka Ska and Lake, north to 26th Street (Uptown Diner being the north entrance), east to Dupont, and south to 31st. That's it.

Honorable mention: Pizza Lucé is a liar.

[twincitizen]

^Congratulations on making your first post, 6.5 years after creating an account! Thanks for sticking with us

[seanrichardryan]

That is a really ugly project.

[Chuggachuggachoochoo]

^Congratulations on making your first post, 6.5 years after creating an account! Thanks for sticking with us

It's funny. I've posted under a couple of accounts over the years; I moved, and since my old handle alluded to my old neighborhood, it was time for a change. When I tried to create this account recently, I found out that apparently I had already created it 6 years ago

Anyway, I'm a long time (sometimes infrequent) participant in the local forums. Same account name over at Skyscrapercity. I've been following the local stuff since the days of Twincityscape

[rhettcarlson]

Michael Lander offers a drastically improved plan for the Calhoun Square redev. I really hope he has some sway with the Doran/Northpond teams.

https://www.minnpost.com/cityscape/2025 ... listening/