The CSM Corporation and Doran Companies, local developer of the Mill & Main luxury apartments on 501 SE Main St. as well as several other properties in the Twin Cities, have purchased an 8.5 acre site including a public pay parking lot and the General Mills Research Center property stretching from 2nd to 5th Avenues SE between University and 2nd St. SE. They hope to begin construction this fall on the first phase of their project.
Kelly Doran, who founded Doran Companies in 2007, mentioned that General Mills will still be renting out their Research Center for the next few years, so the redevelopment will be taking place on the block that is currently the public pay parking lot between 2nd and 3rd Avenues SE, where they hope to build a residential tower and town homes.
The Marcy-Holmes Neighborhood Association held a community meeting in the performance hall at Pillsbury A-Mill, 315 SE Main St., Wednesday, May 24 in the evening and invited Doran Companies to share their plans. Almost 100 community members were in attendance.
Marcy-Holmes began by sharing their guidelines for the site, which highlighted six goals they want the redevelopment to accomplish. “Be one neighborhood: Celebrate the neighborhood’s distinct character areas as a part of the vibrant whole. Live here now: Meet the needs of those who live here for any amount of time. Make the streets ours: Prioritize local use of streets through multi-modal and intersection improvement. Love the riverfront: Connect the Mississippi River to the whole neighborhood by enhancing local access. Welcome the tension of complexity and contradiction: Embrace the diverse physical environment, celebrating history and evolving appropriately. Make change contribute: Welcome growth that gives back to the community and contributes to a high quality of life.”
Doran shared a presentation detailing their project. He said there would be a few different buildings, the smallest with two stories and the tallest tower with 21 stories. He went on to say their focus residents would be families and seniors and that every unit would be rental only.
Doran said the luxury buildings would include fireplaces, hotel-like suites for guests, a putting green, an indoor pool and more. He also mentioned they would build some sort of parking available for rent.
After his presentation, they opened the floor for community input. People were given two sticky notes, blue for positive thoughts and yellow for concerns. After placing them under different categories the wall was consumed by yellow, with a few blue squares here and there.
Building Form: People were split about half and half concerning the height of the 21-story tower. Heritage Preservation: Some didn’t think the designs of the project flowed with the historic nature of the area. Land use/Economic Development: Suggestions for some sort of retail was brought up as well as having units be owner occupied. Issues of gentrification arose while several community members wished the City of Minneapolis would push for more affordable housing units instead of expensive luxury suites. Parking and Transportation: A lot of people were concerned about losing parking for those coming to events in the area. A positive was the project might open up new transit options. Public Realm/Open Space: People hope the development will focus on green space, trees, art and accessibility. A couple of the positives were that the courtyard in Doran’s plan will be nice for residents and that the entire project is better than the parking lot it will replace.
Doran mentioned that if the community disagrees on certain things, they plan to have many discussions and debates and are open to relook at certain aspects of the project as things progress. There will be meetings held between the City and the Developer, and the City Council will have the final say.
For questions or concerns contact Chris Lautenschlager, Executive Director of the Marcy-Holmes Neighborhood Association, chris@marcy-holmes.org, 612-623-7633.
Below: Aerial view shows the square-block surface parking lot in the left of the top graphic, where the first part of the project would be built, while the General Mills Research Center will remain as renter for the next few years. The parking lot would become a 21-story tower and some town homes. (Photo by Liz Jensen)
