Architects, designers recommended for Water Works

Finance and Commerce; June 10, 2016

The Board of Commissioners of the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board on Wednesday will consider selecting a group of designers and architects to work on the Water Works Park project.
Minneapolis-based Damon Farber Landscape Architects, HGA Architects and St. Paul-based 106 Group have been recommended to the board by a selection committee to lead final design and cultural resource consulting services for the “Mezzanine Phase” of Water Works.

Planning And Zoning Approves 40-Story Building Near St. Anthony Falls

WCCO TV; June 10, 2016

The Minneapolis Planning and Zoning Committee has approved a 40-story condo planned for the Mississippi riverfront, according to the Star Tribune.

Rapid Bus Service A Line Opens Saturday in Twin Cities

KSTP TV; June 10, 2016

Metro Transit will open the new rapid bus service A Line Saturday morning.
The A Line is supposed to be faster than regular buses. It will offer services at Rosedale Shopping Center in Roseville to Snelling Avenue and Ford Parkway in St. Paul and to the Blue Line 46 Street station in Minneapolis.

PinKU prepares to open flagship restaurant in Northeast

The Journal; June 10, 2016

At first glance, PinKU’s flagship restaurant in Northeast is easy to look over. Yet, a closer look at that the apartment-sized concept reveals the founders’ fine-tuning to be a leaner, more refined fast-casual restaurant chain.

Co-founders Xiaoteng “X” Huang and John Sugimura have been building out the Japanese street-food concept’s first location in former Primrose Park space in Northeast Minneapolis since earlier this year. The 960-square-foot restaurant officially opens the night of Friday, June 17 at 20 University Ave. NE in the Nicollet Island-East Bank neighborhood.

New headquarters brings attention to DC Group’s success

Star Tribune; June 9, 2016

A striking new office building with a sweeping glass facade along West River Road in Minneapolis is inspiring a lot of curiosity.

“People always want to know, ‘Who’s in there? What do they do?’ ” said Jon Frank, chief executive of DC Group, which has occupied the new space only a few months. “And that’s just what we wanted. It’s meant to be a kind of a monument to what we’ve accomplished as a family-owned company and to the city of Minneapolis, which we feel very deeply about.”

North Loop gets new parklet

The Journal; June 9, 2016

Hyde Development and The Musicant Group have collaborated on a new parklet in the North Loop — a bench with a trellis lined with vines near the Velo apartments at 2nd Street North and 1st Avenue North.

Max Musicant of The Musicant Group said the space will make the street experience more vibrant.

Upper Harbor developer search coming soon

Finance and Commerce; June 9, 2016

The city of Minneapolis is expected to begin seeking a developer next month for the Upper Harbor terminal area, a 48-acre swath of land previously used as a shipping terminal in the northern part of the city.
A request for qualifications will likely be released in July with responses due in October, said Kathleen Boe, executive director for the Minneapolis Riverfront Partnership, which has worked closely with the city on plans to update the corridor.
Redevelopment along the Mississippi River could start as early as 2019, Boe told a group of business and community leaders at a Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce talk on Thursday.

MPCA, scrap yard owners agree to reduce metal-shredder dust in north Minneapolis

Star Tribune; June 9, 2016

A state regulator and the owner of a north Minneapolis scrap yard agreed Thursday to a plan to reduce potentially harmful dust from metal shredding at the riverside facility, under prodding from a judge.

But the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency is still pursuing the administrative revocation of a permit for shredder operations. The agency has alleged that shredder operator Northern Metal Recycling either misled it about emissions during the permit process, or has changed operations since the permit was issued, or both.

City planning street café pilot program

The Journal; June 9, 2016

A street cafe takes the parklet concept, first introduced in the city in 2014, and expands it to table service.

Parklets are public patio structures that extend the sidewalk into the roadway and provide seating, bike parking, planters and public art. City ordinances prevent restaurants from serving directly to people in a parklet. Street cafes are similar to parklets but serve as an extension of the restaurant or cafe and won’t be open to the public.

CPM plans 70-apartment complex near old Grain Belt brewery

Minneapolis St. Paul Business Journal; June 9, 2016

CPM Cos. has submitted plans to the city of Minneapolis to develop a 70-unit apartment complex with a first-floor restaurant in Northeast Minneapolis.

The site (at 1317 Marshall St. N.E.) is across the street from the five-story Grain Belt Apartments and kitty-corner from the former Grain Belt brewery. An auto sales and repair shop and a single-family home would be demolished to make way for the project.

Minneapolis zoning panel approves 40-story condo tower, overruling preservationists

Star Tribune; June 9, 2016

A 40-story condo tower planned for the Minneapolis riverfront got a nod from the city’s zoning and planning committee Thursday, paving the way for consideration by the City Council.

Five of the committee’s six members voted to overturn the Heritage Preservation Commission’s rejection of the tower, which Minneapolis developer Alatus plans to build in the St. Anthony Falls Historic District.

Minneapolis panel sides with Alatus on condo plan

Finance and Commerce; June 9, 2016

The project is planned on the northeast quadrant of southeast Central Avenue and Second Street.

Council panel OKs proposed 40-story condo tower planned for riverfront

The Journal; June 9, 2016

A key City Council committee has cleared the way for Alatus’ 40-story condo tower planned for the city’s riverfront to move forward.

The Council’s Zoning & Planning Committee overturned the Heritage Preservation Commission’s decision to deny approvals for the project on grounds it would be too tall for the area, which is part of the St. Anthony Falls Historic District.

MPCA, scrap yard owners agree to reduce metal-shredder dust in north Minneapolis

Star Tribune; June 9, 2016

A state regulator and the owner of a north Minneapolis scrap yard agreed Thursday to a plan to reduce potentially harmful dust from metal shredding at the riverside facility, under prodding from a judge.

But the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency is still pursuing the administrative revocation of a permit for shredder operations. The agency has alleged that shredder operator Northern Metal Recycling either misled it about emissions during the permit process, or has changed operations since the permit was issued, or both.

Northern Spark turns climate change into a fun night out

Star Tribune; June 9, 2016

There will be bees. Also a coral reef, melting ice, polluted Popsicles, paper boats, weather balloons, wolf calls, moose antlers and food made from dandelions.

Now in its sixth year, Northern Spark has grown up to have a conscience and a commitment. It’s still a free, all-night festival of lights, music and food, but with a slower, more relaxed and possibly quieter vibe. Plus a big issue to chew on.

TBT: City and River on the Cusp of Change

RiverLife Blog; June 9, 2016

The early 1980s was a period of transition in the relationship between Minneapolis and the Mississippi River. The City had published a riverfront redevelopment plan, Mississippi/Minneapolis, in the early 1970s, shortly after General Mills had moved its headquarters to Golden Valley. The Stone Arch Bridge had closed to rail traffic in 1978, further eroding the historical reliance on heavy industry and transportation to define the city-river nexus. But the transition did not yet have a full sense of direction; it would be five years after this photo, in 1988, before the river corridor in the Twin Cities would achieve national park status and the state legislature would create the St. Anthony Falls Heritage Board.

Coming Soon: Todd Macdonald and Luke Shimp’s Pizza Place

Mpls St. Paul; June 8, 2016

Remember six months ago when Parella, our number four best new restaurant of 2015, shut abruptly and we lost Todd Macdonald’s incredible suckling pig and that bizarrely super fantastic green mixed salad? And do you remember the head-scratcher when Macdonald signed on with Luke Shimp, the powerhouse behind the Red Cow burgers-and-wine mini upscale chain? Well mysteries revealed: The two are opening an as-yet-unnamed Italian restaurant on the corner of 2nd Ave. and Washington Ave. in the North Loop, in a former auto body shop.

Rapid Transit Buses Set For Big Debut

WCCO-TV; June 8, 2016

A new kind of bus service is coming to the Twin Cities.

Metro Transit is about to release their fleet of 12 new rapid buses on the A Line of Snelling Avenue, Ford Parkway and 46th Street.

How have visits to National Park Service sites changed in 100 years?

Star Tribune; June 8, 2016

As the National Park Service turns 100 years old in August, people are flocking to the parks, monuments, historical sites and other national treasures that the agency oversees.

Total visitors in 2014 and 2015 were higher than in previous years, according to National Park Service visitor data on about 375 sites where they track attendance or generate estimates.

New Orleans-to-Itasca Mississippi River bikers hit St. Paul soon

Pioneer Press; June 8, 2016

As executive director of the Friends of the Parks and Trails of St. Paul and Ramsey County, Shirley Erstad hopes to get the public to submit comments on technical changes to development rules along the Mississippi River.

But her daughter has other ideas.

When it rains it pours: Stem Wine Bar is latest NE addition

Mill City Times; June 4, 2016

When Ivy Ivers Taheri told me she’d been in the business for 20 years, I must have looked skeptical. “No, really. I was busing tables when I was 13 and I have been in the hospitality industry ever since,” she exclaimed.

Stem Wine Bar is a full-service restaurant, bar and lounge. A spot for wine drinkers in a sea of venerable Northeast breweries. The roots go deep with beer making in the area, but Ivy, who is also a partner at The Tangiers, saw an opening for her passion - great wines and small plates.

3rd Avenue redo in downtown Minneapolis gets underway Friday

Star Tribune; June 3, 2016

Minneapolis city crews on Friday will begin removing the center median on 3rd Avenue S. in downtown Minneapolis, marking the beginning of a redo that will last for the remainder of the 2016 construction season.

Vikings stadium ready for occupancy

Finance and Commerce; June 3, 2016

The new $1.11 billion home of the Minnesota Vikings is officially ready for occupancy, a month and a half ahead of schedule.
That milestone happened Friday when the city of Minneapolis issued a “certificate of occupancy” for the 1.75 million-square-foot U.S. Bank Stadium, which is nearing completion in downtown Minneapolis.
As the name implies, the state’s building code requires the certificate before people can occupy a new building. The Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority, the Vikings and other “stakeholders” can now move in, stadium builder Mortenson Construction said Friday.

Read more: http://finance-commerce.com/2016/06/vikings-stadium-ready-for-occupancy/#ixzz4ApwoilyD

Making the case for land trusts

Finance and Commerce; June 3, 2016

Jeff Washburne wants developers to give more thought to land trusts in redevelopment projects.

As executive director of the Minneapolis-based City of Lakes Community Land Trust, Washburne has been busy making a case for the model, especially while developers prepare to respond to a Minneapolis request for proposals to redevelop a surface parking lot in downtown.

In its RFP, the city specifically calls out a preference for long-term affordable housing, including ownership options that use a land trust model. Proposals to redevelop the 36,000-square-foot lot at 205 Park Ave. S. are due June 10.

Draft Horse: Draft Call

The Journal; June 3, 2016

When it comes to tracking charisma, train your eyes across the river: Northeast has become our Brooklyn.

Artists have scored affordable working spaces, indie enterprises are flourishing, and so’s the food scene. Merging all three in a perfect storm of creativity is the Food Building on NE Marshall. The visionary behind the enterprise is that crazy-smart pioneer of all things tasty, Kieran Folliard. He bought the building to serve as a food-biz accelerator, whose tenants include Red Table Meat Company and Lone Grazer Creamery, supplying restaurant and home kitchens along with The Draft Horse, a casual café, invoking those fine products and others of local origin on its anti-fancy menu.

North Loop’s Maytag building sells for $4M

Minneapolis St. Paul Business Journal; June 2, 2016

The Maytag Building in the North Loop has been sold for $4 million, according to a certificate of real estate value filed in Hennepin County this week.

The Minneapolis building is in the midst of a $10 million to $12 million redevelopment into office and retail space by a partnership between Minneapolis-based Saturday Properties and New York-based Vor Development.

Tracing the missing stories of the Red River Ox-Cart Trail

MinnPost; June 2, 2016

Even in a city as historically minded as St. Paul, some traces of the past can be hard to find. Certain narratives jump to the fore and get reinforced again and again, while others seem to fade away, are pushed to the margins or lost in time.

For the next few months, visual artist Kit Leffler will be embarking on an artistic treasure hunt to trace some of the Twin Cities’ oldest European history, the path of the Red River ox-cart trails that once connected St. Paul to settlements along the Canadian border. As part of a residency program, she’ll be leading a series of tours to find and represent the path of the trail from downtown St. Paul to Fridley, uncovering clues of the route and unearthing a few shards of history that lie underneath today’s urban landscape.

TBT: The Mississippi River Gorge as “natural”

River Life Blog; June 2, 2016

There is a growing buzz about making the Mississippi River Gorge in Minneapolis more “natural.” It’s certainly a fine idea to talk about and plan for restoration of some features and dynamics that the river had at this place in the past. But we should not rely on a static concept of “nature,” in large part because “nature” simply isn’t static. So “restoration” of any dynamic system like a river requires close attention to the complex question: Restoration to what condition?

I-35W bridge glows orange for gun violence awareness

Star Tribune; June 2, 2016

The I-35W bridge over the Mississippi River in downtown Minneapolis was glowing orange Thursday night to bring attention to the problem of gun violence.

The Minneapolis City Council and Mayor Betsy Hodges declared Thursday as National Gun Violence Awareness/Orange Walk Day.

Minneapolis to beef up police patrols in downtown Minneapolis

Star Tribune; June 2, 2016

Downtown Minneapolis residents and visitors will see more officers patrolling on bicycle, horseback and in plainclothes this summer as part of the annual SafeZone initiative.

From June to August, Minneapolis police will partner with the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office and Metro Transit police to walk downtown beats in an effort to prevent crime and respond to public safety issues.

Schafer Richardson plans North Loop building

Finance and Commerce; June 1, 2016

The developer is actively pursuing tenants for a new 11-story, 200,000-square-foot building

New branding for Superior Plating, Alatus appeals preservation decision

The Journal; May 31, 2016

While plans for an official groundbreaking have been pushed back until mid-June, Lennar Multifamily has quietly released more details about its 20-story project going in at the former Superior Plating site. Peter Chmielewski, vice president of development with Lennar, told The Journal that the 280-unit apartment building will be branded as NordHaus, taking cues from the city’s Scandinavian and German influences. More than 22,000 square feet of retail space is being marketed by CBRE. Site work has been going since earlier this year to prepare the site for construction.

This River, This Place: Musing above the Mississippi with Pillsbury A Mill’s quintessential artist, Aldo Moroni

Mill City Times; May 31, 2016

If he were inclined, from this perch overlooking St. Anthony Falls “could Minneapolis’ artist Aldo Moroni literally look across the river to the Mill City side and peer into the windows of some of the well-heeled private collectors who own one or more of his sculpted towers, wall sconces or commissioned works?”

Ever respectful of his collectors’ privacy, he only acknowledges that this could be the case. He counts celebrities and CEO’s among his numerous collectors.

How thoughtful design can reduce racial inequity

MinnPost; May 31, 2016

At first glance, the Minneapolis-St. Paul region looks well prepared for continued economic and cultural vitality. That’s been our story since World War II — a steady climb in the direction of greater prosperity, quality-of-life and international prominence.

But a significant roadblock stands in our path toward this bright future: the stark facts of racial inequity. We rank embarrassingly low in educational performance, income and job opportunities for people of color. If present trends prevail, the percentage of disadvantaged people living here will rise drastically by 2040, when an estimated 40 percent of all metro residents will be nonwhite. This shatters our proud self-image as a generous, progressive place dedicated to giving every kid the chance to get ahead.

For Covington Inn’s owner, river life is grand, but it’s time to move on

Pioneer Press; May 30, 2016

St. Paul sits proudly on the mighty Mississippi River, its rushing water cutting through the city as it makes its way to the Gulf of Mexico. Most of us St. Paulites have spent at least some time on the river’s banks, or perhaps on one of the many boats that ply its water. As we admire the river from afar, there are those who call its water their home.

Housing plan by private interests with public backing holds promise on North Side

Star Tribune; May 29, 2016

The brass at Thor Construction is tar­get­ing north Minneapolis.

For commercial development, jobs and hous­ing.

And that’s a good thing. Because the North Side, with the highest proportionate concentration of minorities and lowest incomes, is the weak link in the Twin Cities economy. De­spite pock­ets of new com­mer­cial devel­op­ment along W. Broad­way and Low­ry Avenue, and a sprin­kling of new hous­es, the core neighborhoods are still plagued by crime, high un­em­ploy­ment, board­ed-up hous­ing and resident flight thanks to the 2006-09 mort­gage cri­sis.

Jefe Urban Hacienda: The New Boss on St. Anthony’s Main Street

Mill City Times; May 28, 2016

Just days after their opening, Jefe Urban Hacienda has the look and feel of a well-established restaurant. The only giveaway to the fact that they opened less than a week ago is the adrenalin-rush-delight the staff has as guests come in the door. Esti welcomed us, Luisa served us and they were both gleeful and insistent that we meet everyone.

Editorial: Environmentalists, agriculture industry team up on Minnesota water quality

Star Tribune; May 27, 2016

Achieving the ambitious goal of ensuring that all of Minnesota’s waterways are swimmable and fishable — not just some of them, as is the case now — will require teamwork between the state’s passionate environmental advocates and its powerful agricultural industry.

Unfortunately, these two influential lobbies often have been at loggerheads when it comes to water quality. The reason: Cleaning up lakes and rivers will require changes in long-standing agricultural practices to reduce industry runoff, a significant source of water pollution in Minnesota.

Slope repair above West River Parkway nearly done

Finance and Commerce; May 27, 2016

Two years after a mudslide closed down a stretch of the parkway.

Minneapolis’ vanished history: Life on Skid Row

MPR News; May 27, 2016

The edge of downtown Minneapolis now known as the Gateway District was once the city’s Skid Row — a dense collection of bars, liquors stores, flop houses and rescue missions.

Decades ago, men lined the street, according to journalist James Eli Shiffer — some asleep, some passed out drunk, some brawling. They were seasonal laborers who came from all over the country to work on farms or in lumber mills. On the offseason, they crowded into the city, and onto Skid Row.

Streetscapes: Living in downtown Minneapolis was a badge of shame in the days of the Gateway

Star Tribune; May 27, 2016

The thousands of people settling in downtown Minneapolis these days may feel like pioneers, as they move into converted warehouses and industrial-chic apartment buildings rising from former parking lots. They’re welcomed with coffee shops and taprooms and gourmet grocery stores and boutiques selling $200 jeans.

But there was a time, not long ago, when the city had plenty of people living downtown, and it couldn’t wait to get rid of them.

New company building modular homes on vacant lots in north Minneapolis

Star Tribune; May 27, 2016

A Twin Cities start-up construction company is launching an effort to fill hundreds of vacant lots in north Minneapolis — remnants of the city’s predatory lending and foreclosure crisis — with factory-built homes that will be made and sold for far less than the cost of an average new house today.

“This is what we’ve been trying to do for five years,” said Cherie Shoquist, a project manager for the city’s planning and economic development department, lauding the plan as a solution to a long-term problem.

Ravi Norman startup targets North Minneapolis lots for quick-build homes

Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal; May 27, 2016

An affiliate of Thor Construction has begun building modular homes on vacant lots across North Minneapolis, part of an effort to spur home ownership in lower-income neighborhoods.

The Star Tribune has a report on Smart Homes, a startup conceived by Thor CEO Ravi Norman and based, for now, at Thor’s headquarters in Fridley. It began construction Thursday on its first house, an 1,800-square-foot, four-bedroom bungalow at 43rd and Irving Avenues. It plans to build homes on another 15 lots and will acquire more if there’s demand.

Business briefing: Valspar sees $18M in merger costs

Pioneer Press; May 26, 2016

Valspar Corp., in the midst of a merger with rival Sherwin-Williams Co., said earnings in its latest quarter fell amid restructuring costs and lower paint sales.

Minneapolis edges St. Paul for title of nation’s best park system

MinnPost; May 26, 2016

The tie has been broken, and St. Paul isn’t going to be happy about it.

After finishing in a dead heat with Minneapolis a year ago, the capital city slipped to second in the Trust for Public Lands’ 2016 ParkScore Index, a measure of the nation’s best — and worst — parks systems.

New DNR rules may allow some taller buildings on St. Paul riverfront

Finance and Commerce; May 26, 2016

Key St. Paul development sites along the Mississippi River could soon allow higher building heights with a new set of rules from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.

We’re No. 1! And 2: Mpls. edges out St. Paul for nation’s best park system

MPR News; May 26, 2016

After tying for first place last year, Minneapolis narrowly beat out St. Paul for the title of America’s best park system, according to The Trust for Public Land.

The conservation group released its 2016 ParkScore Index Thursday, which analyzes parks in the 100 largest cities in the United States. Minneapolis scored 86.5 points while St. Paul had 82.5.

#TBT: Summer Reading about Rivers

River Life Blog; May 26, 2016

Well, “Throwback Thursday” doesn’t mean we have to go very far back, right? In the spirit of (hoped for) summer reading time, I offer the Introduction to Issue 2 of Open Rivers: Rethinking the Mississippi, which went live last month:

We commonly think of rivers as, for the most part, staying where they belong, in the river bed, occasionally coming out into the floodplain under fairly predictable conditions conducive to high water that we call “floods.”

Minneapolis and St. Paul have the best parks in the country

Pioneer Press; May 26, 2016

Minneapolis is officially home to the best parks system in the nation, and St. Paul is close behind.

The Twin Cities were neck-and-neck in an annual scorecard of cities with the best parks systems, but the City of Lakes edged out the Most Livable City in America by a nose.

Stanton’s latest downtown condo project clears hurdle

Star Tribune; May 26, 2016

Coon Rapids developer Jim Stanton received approval this week from the Minneapolis Planning Commission for his biggest downtown condo project yet: the Legacy, a 374-unit building near the banks of the Mississippi River. Next stop for the project is a vote by the Minneapolis City Council.

The commission was asked to approve a request to rezone the land and to issue a conditional-use permit. The developer was also asking for permission to exceed height restrictions in the area, which currently limit buildings to six stories or 84 feet, according to a city staff report. The height of the proposed building is 17 stories or 190 feet in height.

Architects, designers recommended for Water Works

The Board of Commissioners of the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board on Wednesday will consider selecting a group of designers and architects to work on the Water Works Park project.
Minneapolis-based Damon Farber Landscape Architects, HGA Architects and St. Paul-based 106 Group have been recommended to the board by a selection committee to lead final design and cultural resource consulting services for the “Mezzanine Phase” of Water Works.

Planning And Zoning Approves 40-Story Building Near St. Anthony Falls

The Minneapolis Planning and Zoning Committee has approved a 40-story condo planned for the Mississippi riverfront, according to the Star Tribune.

Rapid Bus Service A Line Opens Saturday in Twin Cities

Metro Transit will open the new rapid bus service A Line Saturday morning.
The A Line is supposed to be faster than regular buses. It will offer services at Rosedale Shopping Center in Roseville to Snelling Avenue and Ford Parkway in St. Paul and to the Blue Line 46 Street station in Minneapolis.

PinKU prepares to open flagship restaurant in Northeast

At first glance, PinKU’s flagship restaurant in Northeast is easy to look over. Yet, a closer look at that the apartment-sized concept reveals the founders’ fine-tuning to be a leaner, more refined fast-casual restaurant chain.

Co-founders Xiaoteng “X” Huang and John Sugimura have been building out the Japanese street-food concept’s first location in former Primrose Park space in Northeast Minneapolis since earlier this year. The 960-square-foot restaurant officially opens the night of Friday, June 17 at 20 University Ave. NE in the Nicollet Island-East Bank neighborhood.

New headquarters brings attention to DC Group's success

A striking new office building with a sweeping glass facade along West River Road in Minneapolis is inspiring a lot of curiosity.

“People always want to know, ‘Who’s in there? What do they do?’ ” said Jon Frank, chief executive of DC Group, which has occupied the new space only a few months. “And that’s just what we wanted. It’s meant to be a kind of a monument to what we’ve accomplished as a family-owned company and to the city of Minneapolis, which we feel very deeply about.”

North Loop gets new parklet

Hyde Development and The Musicant Group have collaborated on a new parklet in the North Loop — a bench with a trellis lined with vines near the Velo apartments at 2nd Street North and 1st Avenue North.

Max Musicant of The Musicant Group said the space will make the street experience more vibrant.

Upper Harbor developer search coming soon

The city of Minneapolis is expected to begin seeking a developer next month for the Upper Harbor terminal area, a 48-acre swath of land previously used as a shipping terminal in the northern part of the city.
A request for qualifications will likely be released in July with responses due in October, said Kathleen Boe, executive director for the Minneapolis Riverfront Partnership, which has worked closely with the city on plans to update the corridor.
Redevelopment along the Mississippi River could start as early as 2019, Boe told a group of business and community leaders at a Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce talk on Thursday.

MPCA, scrap yard owners agree to reduce metal-shredder dust in north Minneapolis

A state regulator and the owner of a north Minneapolis scrap yard agreed Thursday to a plan to reduce potentially harmful dust from metal shredding at the riverside facility, under prodding from a judge.

But the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency is still pursuing the administrative revocation of a permit for shredder operations. The agency has alleged that shredder operator Northern Metal Recycling either misled it about emissions during the permit process, or has changed operations since the permit was issued, or both.

City planning street café pilot program

A street cafe takes the parklet concept, first introduced in the city in 2014, and expands it to table service.

Parklets are public patio structures that extend the sidewalk into the roadway and provide seating, bike parking, planters and public art. City ordinances prevent restaurants from serving directly to people in a parklet. Street cafes are similar to parklets but serve as an extension of the restaurant or cafe and won’t be open to the public.

CPM plans 70-apartment complex near old Grain Belt brewery

CPM Cos. has submitted plans to the city of Minneapolis to develop a 70-unit apartment complex with a first-floor restaurant in Northeast Minneapolis.

The site (at 1317 Marshall St. N.E.) is across the street from the five-story Grain Belt Apartments and kitty-corner from the former Grain Belt brewery. An auto sales and repair shop and a single-family home would be demolished to make way for the project.

Minneapolis zoning panel approves 40-story condo tower, overruling preservationists

A 40-story condo tower planned for the Minneapolis riverfront got a nod from the city’s zoning and planning committee Thursday, paving the way for consideration by the City Council.

Five of the committee’s six members voted to overturn the Heritage Preservation Commission’s rejection of the tower, which Minneapolis developer Alatus plans to build in the St. Anthony Falls Historic District.

Minneapolis panel sides with Alatus on condo plan

The project is planned on the northeast quadrant of southeast Central Avenue and Second Street.

Council panel OKs proposed 40-story condo tower planned for riverfront

A key City Council committee has cleared the way for Alatus’ 40-story condo tower planned for the city’s riverfront to move forward.

The Council’s Zoning & Planning Committee overturned the Heritage Preservation Commission’s decision to deny approvals for the project on grounds it would be too tall for the area, which is part of the St. Anthony Falls Historic District.

MPCA, scrap yard owners agree to reduce metal-shredder dust in north Minneapolis

A state regulator and the owner of a north Minneapolis scrap yard agreed Thursday to a plan to reduce potentially harmful dust from metal shredding at the riverside facility, under prodding from a judge.

But the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency is still pursuing the administrative revocation of a permit for shredder operations. The agency has alleged that shredder operator Northern Metal Recycling either misled it about emissions during the permit process, or has changed operations since the permit was issued, or both.

Northern Spark turns climate change into a fun night out

There will be bees. Also a coral reef, melting ice, polluted Popsicles, paper boats, weather balloons, wolf calls, moose antlers and food made from dandelions.

Now in its sixth year, Northern Spark has grown up to have a conscience and a commitment. It’s still a free, all-night festival of lights, music and food, but with a slower, more relaxed and possibly quieter vibe. Plus a big issue to chew on.

TBT: City and River on the Cusp of Change

The early 1980s was a period of transition in the relationship between Minneapolis and the Mississippi River. The City had published a riverfront redevelopment plan, Mississippi/Minneapolis, in the early 1970s, shortly after General Mills had moved its headquarters to Golden Valley. The Stone Arch Bridge had closed to rail traffic in 1978, further eroding the historical reliance on heavy industry and transportation to define the city-river nexus. But the transition did not yet have a full sense of direction; it would be five years after this photo, in 1988, before the river corridor in the Twin Cities would achieve national park status and the state legislature would create the St. Anthony Falls Heritage Board.

Coming Soon: Todd Macdonald and Luke Shimp's Pizza Place

Remember six months ago when Parella, our number four best new restaurant of 2015, shut abruptly and we lost Todd Macdonald’s incredible suckling pig and that bizarrely super fantastic green mixed salad? And do you remember the head-scratcher when Macdonald signed on with Luke Shimp, the powerhouse behind the Red Cow burgers-and-wine mini upscale chain? Well mysteries revealed: The two are opening an as-yet-unnamed Italian restaurant on the corner of 2nd Ave. and Washington Ave. in the North Loop, in a former auto body shop.

Rapid Transit Buses Set For Big Debut

A new kind of bus service is coming to the Twin Cities.

Metro Transit is about to release their fleet of 12 new rapid buses on the A Line of Snelling Avenue, Ford Parkway and 46th Street.

How have visits to National Park Service sites changed in 100 years?

As the National Park Service turns 100 years old in August, people are flocking to the parks, monuments, historical sites and other national treasures that the agency oversees.

Total visitors in 2014 and 2015 were higher than in previous years, according to National Park Service visitor data on about 375 sites where they track attendance or generate estimates.

New Orleans-to-Itasca Mississippi River bikers hit St. Paul soon

As executive director of the Friends of the Parks and Trails of St. Paul and Ramsey County, Shirley Erstad hopes to get the public to submit comments on technical changes to development rules along the Mississippi River.

But her daughter has other ideas.

When it rains it pours: Stem Wine Bar is latest NE addition

When Ivy Ivers Taheri told me she'd been in the business for 20 years, I must have looked skeptical. “No, really. I was busing tables when I was 13 and I have been in the hospitality industry ever since,” she exclaimed.

Stem Wine Bar is a full-service restaurant, bar and lounge. A spot for wine drinkers in a sea of venerable Northeast breweries. The roots go deep with beer making in the area, but Ivy, who is also a partner at The Tangiers, saw an opening for her passion - great wines and small plates.

3rd Avenue redo in downtown Minneapolis gets underway Friday

Minneapolis city crews on Friday will begin removing the center median on 3rd Avenue S. in downtown Minneapolis, marking the beginning of a redo that will last for the remainder of the 2016 construction season.

Vikings stadium ready for occupancy

The new $1.11 billion home of the Minnesota Vikings is officially ready for occupancy, a month and a half ahead of schedule.
That milestone happened Friday when the city of Minneapolis issued a “certificate of occupancy” for the 1.75 million-square-foot U.S. Bank Stadium, which is nearing completion in downtown Minneapolis.
As the name implies, the state’s building code requires the certificate before people can occupy a new building. The Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority, the Vikings and other “stakeholders” can now move in, stadium builder Mortenson Construction said Friday.

Read more: http://finance-commerce.com/2016/06/vikings-stadium-ready-for-occupancy/#ixzz4ApwoilyD

Making the case for land trusts

Jeff Washburne wants developers to give more thought to land trusts in redevelopment projects.

As executive director of the Minneapolis-based City of Lakes Community Land Trust, Washburne has been busy making a case for the model, especially while developers prepare to respond to a Minneapolis request for proposals to redevelop a surface parking lot in downtown.

In its RFP, the city specifically calls out a preference for long-term affordable housing, including ownership options that use a land trust model. Proposals to redevelop the 36,000-square-foot lot at 205 Park Ave. S. are due June 10.

Draft Horse: Draft Call

When it comes to tracking charisma, train your eyes across the river: Northeast has become our Brooklyn.

Artists have scored affordable working spaces, indie enterprises are flourishing, and so’s the food scene. Merging all three in a perfect storm of creativity is the Food Building on NE Marshall. The visionary behind the enterprise is that crazy-smart pioneer of all things tasty, Kieran Folliard. He bought the building to serve as a food-biz accelerator, whose tenants include Red Table Meat Company and Lone Grazer Creamery, supplying restaurant and home kitchens along with The Draft Horse, a casual café, invoking those fine products and others of local origin on its anti-fancy menu.

North Loop's Maytag building sells for $4M

The Maytag Building in the North Loop has been sold for $4 million, according to a certificate of real estate value filed in Hennepin County this week.

The Minneapolis building is in the midst of a $10 million to $12 million redevelopment into office and retail space by a partnership between Minneapolis-based Saturday Properties and New York-based Vor Development.

Tracing the missing stories of the Red River Ox-Cart Trail

Even in a city as historically minded as St. Paul, some traces of the past can be hard to find. Certain narratives jump to the fore and get reinforced again and again, while others seem to fade away, are pushed to the margins or lost in time.

For the next few months, visual artist Kit Leffler will be embarking on an artistic treasure hunt to trace some of the Twin Cities’ oldest European history, the path of the Red River ox-cart trails that once connected St. Paul to settlements along the Canadian border. As part of a residency program, she’ll be leading a series of tours to find and represent the path of the trail from downtown St. Paul to Fridley, uncovering clues of the route and unearthing a few shards of history that lie underneath today’s urban landscape.

TBT: The Mississippi River Gorge as “natural”

There is a growing buzz about making the Mississippi River Gorge in Minneapolis more “natural.” It’s certainly a fine idea to talk about and plan for restoration of some features and dynamics that the river had at this place in the past. But we should not rely on a static concept of “nature,” in large part because “nature” simply isn’t static. So “restoration” of any dynamic system like a river requires close attention to the complex question: Restoration to what condition?

I-35W bridge glows orange for gun violence awareness

The I-35W bridge over the Mississippi River in downtown Minneapolis was glowing orange Thursday night to bring attention to the problem of gun violence.

The Minneapolis City Council and Mayor Betsy Hodges declared Thursday as National Gun Violence Awareness/Orange Walk Day.

Minneapolis to beef up police patrols in downtown Minneapolis

Downtown Minneapolis residents and visitors will see more officers patrolling on bicycle, horseback and in plainclothes this summer as part of the annual SafeZone initiative.

From June to August, Minneapolis police will partner with the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office and Metro Transit police to walk downtown beats in an effort to prevent crime and respond to public safety issues.

Schafer Richardson plans North Loop building

The developer is actively pursuing tenants for a new 11-story, 200,000-square-foot building

New branding for Superior Plating, Alatus appeals preservation decision

While plans for an official groundbreaking have been pushed back until mid-June, Lennar Multifamily has quietly released more details about its 20-story project going in at the former Superior Plating site. Peter Chmielewski, vice president of development with Lennar, told The Journal that the 280-unit apartment building will be branded as NordHaus, taking cues from the city’s Scandinavian and German influences. More than 22,000 square feet of retail space is being marketed by CBRE. Site work has been going since earlier this year to prepare the site for construction.

This River, This Place: Musing above the Mississippi with Pillsbury A Mill’s quintessential artist, Aldo Moroni

If he were inclined, from this perch overlooking St. Anthony Falls “could Minneapolis’ artist Aldo Moroni literally look across the river to the Mill City side and peer into the windows of some of the well-heeled private collectors who own one or more of his sculpted towers, wall sconces or commissioned works?”

Ever respectful of his collectors’ privacy, he only acknowledges that this could be the case. He counts celebrities and CEO’s among his numerous collectors.

How thoughtful design can reduce racial inequity

At first glance, the Minneapolis-St. Paul region looks well prepared for continued economic and cultural vitality. That’s been our story since World War II — a steady climb in the direction of greater prosperity, quality-of-life and international prominence.

But a significant roadblock stands in our path toward this bright future: the stark facts of racial inequity. We rank embarrassingly low in educational performance, income and job opportunities for people of color. If present trends prevail, the percentage of disadvantaged people living here will rise drastically by 2040, when an estimated 40 percent of all metro residents will be nonwhite. This shatters our proud self-image as a generous, progressive place dedicated to giving every kid the chance to get ahead.

For Covington Inn’s owner, river life is grand, but it’s time to move on

St. Paul sits proudly on the mighty Mississippi River, its rushing water cutting through the city as it makes its way to the Gulf of Mexico. Most of us St. Paulites have spent at least some time on the river’s banks, or perhaps on one of the many boats that ply its water. As we admire the river from afar, there are those who call its water their home.

Housing plan by private interests with public backing holds promise on North Side

The brass at Thor Construction is tar­get­ing north Minneapolis.

For commercial development, jobs and hous­ing.

And that's a good thing. Because the North Side, with the highest proportionate concentration of minorities and lowest incomes, is the weak link in the Twin Cities economy. De­spite pock­ets of new com­mer­cial devel­op­ment along W. Broad­way and Low­ry Avenue, and a sprin­kling of new hous­es, the core neighborhoods are still plagued by crime, high un­em­ploy­ment, board­ed-up hous­ing and resident flight thanks to the 2006-09 mort­gage cri­sis.

Jefe Urban Hacienda: The New Boss on St. Anthony's Main Street

Just days after their opening, Jefe Urban Hacienda has the look and feel of a well-established restaurant. The only giveaway to the fact that they opened less than a week ago is the adrenalin-rush-delight the staff has as guests come in the door. Esti welcomed us, Luisa served us and they were both gleeful and insistent that we meet everyone.

Editorial: Environmentalists, agriculture industry team up on Minnesota water quality

Achieving the ambitious goal of ensuring that all of Minnesota’s waterways are swimmable and fishable — not just some of them, as is the case now — will require teamwork between the state’s passionate environmental advocates and its powerful agricultural industry.

Unfortunately, these two influential lobbies often have been at loggerheads when it comes to water quality. The reason: Cleaning up lakes and rivers will require changes in long-standing agricultural practices to reduce industry runoff, a significant source of water pollution in Minnesota.

Slope repair above West River Parkway nearly done

Two years after a mudslide closed down a stretch of the parkway.

Minneapolis' vanished history: Life on Skid Row

The edge of downtown Minneapolis now known as the Gateway District was once the city's Skid Row — a dense collection of bars, liquors stores, flop houses and rescue missions.

Decades ago, men lined the street, according to journalist James Eli Shiffer — some asleep, some passed out drunk, some brawling. They were seasonal laborers who came from all over the country to work on farms or in lumber mills. On the offseason, they crowded into the city, and onto Skid Row.

Streetscapes: Living in downtown Minneapolis was a badge of shame in the days of the Gateway

The thousands of people settling in downtown Minneapolis these days may feel like pioneers, as they move into converted warehouses and industrial-chic apartment buildings rising from former parking lots. They’re welcomed with coffee shops and taprooms and gourmet grocery stores and boutiques selling $200 jeans.

But there was a time, not long ago, when the city had plenty of people living downtown, and it couldn’t wait to get rid of them.

New company building modular homes on vacant lots in north Minneapolis

A Twin Cities start-up construction company is launching an effort to fill hundreds of vacant lots in north Minneapolis — remnants of the city’s predatory lending and foreclosure crisis — with factory-built homes that will be made and sold for far less than the cost of an average new house today.

“This is what we’ve been trying to do for five years,” said Cherie Shoquist, a project manager for the city’s planning and economic development department, lauding the plan as a solution to a long-term problem.

Ravi Norman startup targets North Minneapolis lots for quick-build homes

An affiliate of Thor Construction has begun building modular homes on vacant lots across North Minneapolis, part of an effort to spur home ownership in lower-income neighborhoods.

The Star Tribune has a report on Smart Homes, a startup conceived by Thor CEO Ravi Norman and based, for now, at Thor's headquarters in Fridley. It began construction Thursday on its first house, an 1,800-square-foot, four-bedroom bungalow at 43rd and Irving Avenues. It plans to build homes on another 15 lots and will acquire more if there's demand.

Business briefing: Valspar sees $18M in merger costs

Valspar Corp., in the midst of a merger with rival Sherwin-Williams Co., said earnings in its latest quarter fell amid restructuring costs and lower paint sales.

Minneapolis edges St. Paul for title of nation's best park system

The tie has been broken, and St. Paul isn’t going to be happy about it.

After finishing in a dead heat with Minneapolis a year ago, the capital city slipped to second in the Trust for Public Lands’ 2016 ParkScore Index, a measure of the nation’s best — and worst — parks systems.

New DNR rules may allow some taller buildings on St. Paul riverfront

Key St. Paul development sites along the Mississippi River could soon allow higher building heights with a new set of rules from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.

We're No. 1! And 2: Mpls. edges out St. Paul for nation's best park system

After tying for first place last year, Minneapolis narrowly beat out St. Paul for the title of America's best park system, according to The Trust for Public Land.

The conservation group released its 2016 ParkScore Index Thursday, which analyzes parks in the 100 largest cities in the United States. Minneapolis scored 86.5 points while St. Paul had 82.5.

#TBT: Summer Reading about Rivers

Well, “Throwback Thursday” doesn’t mean we have to go very far back, right? In the spirit of (hoped for) summer reading time, I offer the Introduction to Issue 2 of Open Rivers: Rethinking the Mississippi, which went live last month:

We commonly think of rivers as, for the most part, staying where they belong, in the river bed, occasionally coming out into the floodplain under fairly predictable conditions conducive to high water that we call “floods.”

Minneapolis and St. Paul have the best parks in the country

Minneapolis is officially home to the best parks system in the nation, and St. Paul is close behind.

The Twin Cities were neck-and-neck in an annual scorecard of cities with the best parks systems, but the City of Lakes edged out the Most Livable City in America by a nose.

Stanton's latest downtown condo project clears hurdle

Coon Rapids developer Jim Stanton received approval this week from the Minneapolis Planning Commission for his biggest downtown condo project yet: the Legacy, a 374-unit building near the banks of the Mississippi River. Next stop for the project is a vote by the Minneapolis City Council.

The commission was asked to approve a request to rezone the land and to issue a conditional-use permit. The developer was also asking for permission to exceed height restrictions in the area, which currently limit buildings to six stories or 84 feet, according to a city staff report. The height of the proposed building is 17 stories or 190 feet in height.