urbanMSP

Jacob Frey wants to turn the Post Office into a giant food marketplace.

http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/ta ... 94761.html

I absolutely love this idea. They show examples of the the Ferry building in San Fran, but I also think a bit of Pikes Place too. Now, it probably would be no where near as significant and cool as Pikes, but it could follow a similar idea. Wonder if there are some weird secret parts of the building that could be converted as well.

It'd be a shame to see the (really quite handsome) lobby of the Post Office destroyed. It's one of the few public civic spaces in the city, and going there feels like a rare moment of luxury.

I wonder if it would be possible to have both the market and USPS use the building. It's so huge, I've always wondered how USPS can be utilizing the entire thing...

Right. No idea what the layout of the building is besides the lobby, but I could potentially see the post office keeping that space, and the upper floors even, with the market taking over the West River Road level and its giant fancy (and fenced-off) arcade. Bring the parking ramp down to allow a for river connection besides the windy bike ramp, and you're golden.

Fun fact: One week ago today I was walking past this building on the WRR side, brainstorming things to do with that fenced-off area. I also came up with a riverfront market.

Any chance building plans could be dug up for this somewhere?

I am also thinking, if the WRR arcade ever does get developed, that sidewalk is awfully narrow in front of the arcade. I wonder if WRR could be narrowed at all? Just like 4 feet would be great in that scenario. If they resurfaced it with pavers and got rid of the curb it would really open up the market into the park space and the river.

Jacob Frey wants to turn the Post Office into a giant food marketplace

http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/ta ... 94761.html

I absolutely love this idea. They show examples of the the Ferry building in San Fran, but I also think a bit of Pikes Place too. Now, it probably would be no where near as significant and cool as Pikes, but it could follow a similar idea. Wonder if there are some weird secret parts of the building that could be converted as well.

Dang, this was my idea for the farmer's market redevelopment.

Some of the initial buzz about the soccer stadium included mention of an Eataly-type thing over there, which I really like as an idea, but that location would be kind of ridiculous. Could see it working much better over here closer to the center of gravity.

Back in a prior life, I was for a brief time (18 months) a postal worker at the downtown Post Office. Before being hired, I had to go to the downtown Saint Paul facility to pee in a cup, and I remember thinking what an incredible residential conversion that property could be (this was nearly 20 years ago!)
What I remember most about the Minneapolis facility is how incredible the views were from the cafeteria balcony. Here I was, working a second shift clerical job, and at "lunchtime" I could get my marginally adequate cheeseburger and step outside to experience what have to be some of the most beautiful views in the city.

It'd be a shame to see the (really quite handsome) lobby of the Post Office destroyed. It's one of the few public civic spaces in the city, and going there feels like a rare moment of luxury.

Why do you think it would destroyed? They are talking about revitalizing it not ruining it.

Why do you think it would destroyed? They are talking about revitalizing it not ruining it.

It's the lobby of a Post Office. Frey's plan would, in his best-case, have the building no longer be a Post Office. I don't know to what other practical purpose you would put a block-long narrow room lined with teller windows.

Could be a block-long narrow room lined with market stall windows.

Have you ever been inside there? I think it'd be pretty tight for that kind of use.

From what I've looked at, it doesn't seem that tight. It could be used for some kiosks in the middle or something of that kind. We're talking about this:



correct?

Yeah that can easily be repurposed without changing much of the original finish. I don't get what all the hysteria is about with this.

And the lobby is basically the only historic interior space of a building that is absolutely enormous. I don't see that there would be any problem preserving it.

And the lobby is basically the only historic interior space of a building that is absolutely enormous. I don't see that there would be any problem preserving it.

Does this building have a historic designation? Assuming it does, the lobby would have to remain as it is. The teller windows, the stone walls, the original light fixture, the floor, ect. It would be almost impossible to alter its current use because of this. The simple act of cutting in openings for market stalls would be a non-starter. Worry not Eost, a developer would not be able to alter that lobby, unless it was to bring it back to a more historic state.

That's just not true.

Historic Preservation has a vested interest in keeping old buildings useful, because that's the key to keeping them around. Yes, this space either is or should have historic designation, but that doesn't mean that no changes can be made. Preserving a space in amber, but in so doing rendering it utterly useless for future uses, doesn't help anyway. Reasonable modifications that make a space useful for another function and another generation is absolutely consistent with The Secretary of the Interior's Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties.

I'd always hoped to see the post office become the future base/podium for a tower or two built out the center of its roof.

And the lobby is basically the only historic interior space of a building that is absolutely enormous. I don't see that there would be any problem preserving it.

Does this building have a historic designation? Assuming it does, the lobby would have to remain as it is. The teller windows, the stone walls, the original light fixture, the floor, ect. It would be almost impossible to alter its current use because of this. The simple act of cutting in openings for market stalls would be a non-starter. Worry not Eost, a developer would not be able to alter that lobby, unless it was to bring it back to a more historic state.

I'd always hoped to see the post office become the future base/podium for a tower or two built out the center of its roof.

ah! well now that we have the suggestions of keeping every single detail exactly the same, and gutting it to build one or two big a** towers maybe the rest of us can settle on a modest redesign similar to the Oak Grove building being redesigned into a wonderful new interior layout that can bring it into a modern day where people can use the mostly unused building... Unless... somebody want's to suggest a grand central subway station, or a Walmart Super center?

Gutting it? Is that what you saw in what I wrote? Very uncharitable of you.