urbanMSP

There could be another apartment complex going up soon at West End: http://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/p ... rsues.html

Dolce Living, a Florida-based developer is looking to replace the current Olive Garden and vacant Chili's with a two-phase apartment project. This is directly adjacent to the recently completed West End Flats (70% pre-leased they say). The current owner of the two parcels, Duke Realty, sounds willing to sell the properties to Dolce. This would be their first luxury apartment project in MN. Chili's is already closed and will be redeveloped first. Olive Garden's lease runs through this year, but they have two 5-year renewal options. Duke Realty also developed and owns West End and the large vacant parcels to the east of this site, slated for future office towers.

Here's what everything looks like at the parcel level: http://gis.co.hennepin.mn.us/property/m ... 2924320020

I believe more properly those restaurants a in Golden Valley, not SLP. Golden Valley was the stick in the mud that prevented 16th from being linked to the frontage road underpass beneath TH100, with one consideration that if the West End development connected 16th, traffic would drop along the 394 frontage road (Wayzata Blvd) where those restaurants were, making those Golden Valley land values lessen.

Is this actually Golden Valley? Google maps has the border just west of 100, but not all the way over to these restaurants.

This brings up a question I have always had... When a major road project like 394 goes through a city very close to the border, how often does it become the new border and the area on either side is annexed to a different city?

It looks like GV has a little piece south of 394 by 169 also. Any other examples?

They're in St. Louis Park. The city council is talking about this development tonight at their study session. Looks like a 6-story 163 unit building on Chili's and in the future when Olive Garden's lease is up, 1-2 buildings there. Information starts on page 16 of the agenda packet: http://www.stlouispark.org/webfiles/fil ... 7_22cs.pdf

I see the border now, I guess in my head I assumed the little but that zinged across 394 extended a tad further. That proposal looks just fascinating. I wish more projects like this went a bit taller and the higher stories were stepped back. I'm a fan of the stepped back look generally and would favor taller buildings if the upper stories used that aesthetic. The cube block look I understand is more economical, but can be so looming to the pedestrian traffic below.

Article from the Business Journal (includes renderings)- apparently it didn't go over all that well with the city:
http://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/b ... ments.html

There has already been a traffic study in this area for the office development that Duke Realty has put forward-->ONE MILLION square feet of office. Also, before the Flats at West End was built, the traffic study ALSO included 300 dwelling units. Flats at West End = 119. So, this area can ALREADY absorb 181 MORE dwelling units AND the traffic, et cetera associated with ONE MILLION more square feet of office. What am I missing?

If people were willing to live next to highways, International Market Square would have people living there... Wait, what? And Hoigaard Village sits almost on top of a highway? You don't say.

Well, okay then. Maybe they should look at building next to transit options like an express bus line to Downtown... Oh, there is on a half block from this? And it is a block from the HOV lane entrances?

I got nothing, and neither do the council skeptics. But if they reduce the number of people living there, the developer might need TIF financing, which makes city council people giddy inside because they get to be important when they hand out favors. See?

@Anondson: NAILED IT!
@mini-chi-bus: You bring up a VERY important point. The NIMBY's and the anti-progress crowd are currently winning...massively. How can the urbanists and progressives start to make our voices heard? I just don't see the representation at the public hearings.

Parts of SLP have a proper grid to them, but this is not one of those areas. Having an area with parking lots that take up more of the parcel than the building they serve fits my definition of sprawl pretty well. Intersection density is also sparse. That said, I'm glad the city is encouraging a certain level of sprawl repair. But they could still do a lot to improve sidewalks and bike paths in the area (the North Cedar Lake Trail isn't far away, but it's difficult to reach). If the city stayed right on top of redevelopment, a true grid could probably be introduced, but they'd be just as well off simply fitting new roads into some of the existing gaps -- you'd end up with more of an Old World messy street layout, but it would probably still alleviate stress on many of the existing arterials and make the place more walkable.

Makes me wonder what WAS here....before all of this stuff was built from mostly the 1950's and onwards. This is pretty much THE closest part of the suburb to DT Minneapolis, and my guess is that this was developed as something else before it became a business park, but maybe not. OR....maybe it was just a field with no good access to Minneapolis or other communities until Hwy 100 and I-394 came slicing through....but I thought Hwy. 100 was this beautiful urban expressway before interstates existed.

It was mostly sprawly suburban stuff from the get-go. Here's a link to Historic Aerials starting in 1947:

http://www.historicaerials.com/aerials. ... &year=1947

Wow! Already a cloverleaf in 1947?

That is because of Mn 100 (The Lilac Way) being the "beltway", not because of US12, which wasn't upgraded fully until ~1994 (I-394).

There is a nice documentary on The Lilac Way, http://www.restorelilacway.com/Mn_DOTs_Partnership.html

Dolce reduced from 163 units to 158. Fewer studio and more 3-bedroom units (for families). Instead of one level underground parking, will have two underground levels. Ground level will have more usable space for residents.

I'm pleasantly surprised, these are nice improvements. Hope the city goes with this.

http://sailor.mnsun.com/2013/08/21/more ... ouis-park/

Dolce living has bought the site for this project

http://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/m ... -west.html

http://www.startribune.com/business/225405462.html

Strib picked up on the story today. Looks like it's going before the City Council on Oct. 7. All quotes from Sue Sanger indicate she's voting no.

Re: the quotes from Sue Sanger. I just don't know even what to say. How can something like this "change the character" of the entire city?

While in some ways the influx of small apartments complements life in the city, “they’re also a potential problem because they do not have room for families,” she said. “If that trend continues, we will have fewer and fewer children in our community, and that will have a very negative effect on the public school system.”

Say what?

I have the first comment. Talk about a weird thing for a city council person to say.