Block E (archive)

[Nordeastmpls]

I agree. I said long ago, keep the movie theater, keep the bowling alley. Renovate the exterior and list the spaces for lease and let it fill up organicly.

[Wedgeguy]

I'd like to see a movie theater that doesn't show the same handful of movies as every other theater in the metro/country. I think a theater that showed art films, foreign movies, documentaries, classics and other limited release films could do well here. Especially if they got a liquor license.

I think that Landmark has pretty much got the lock on the art, foreign and independent films distributors. Unless they get rid of the Lagoon with phase 2 of Mozaic, there will not be a large enough market for Edina, Uptown , and Block E to all successfully show those kinds of films.

[jet777]

I agree that people will drive into downtown and pay $20 to park for live shows, but probably not to watch the same movie available in St Louis Park with booze, reserved seating, and free parking. And as a for a small neighborhood theater that shows some decent indie flicks and not just common Hollywood trash like Scary Movie 17, we already have that. Its called st Anthony main, and you can walk there pretty easily from the north loop. It's a great theater and the popcorn is good and cheap. Shhh, don't tell too many people though because I don't want to watch 35 super hero movies this summer.

[Tom H.]

Heck, I'll be surprised if Kieran's and OD's both survive another bad Twins season.

Hey, they're on pace for a 108-win season! #itshappening

[Viktor Vaughn]

I think that Landmark has pretty much got the lock on the art, foreign and independent films distributors. Unless they get rid of the Lagoon with phase 2 of Mozaic, there will not be a large enough market for Edina, Uptown , and Block E to all successfully show those kinds of films.

You may be right. I'm no expert on the market, and frankly, I don't go to movies in the theater very often. It just seems like 95% of Twin Cities movie theaters show the same 5% of new movies. And since the Hollywood trash shoved down the pipeline somehow gets worse every year, there might be a little more room in the market for the majority of movies that aren't in the theaters at all outside of NYC/LA/Chicago.

I agree that people will drive into downtown and pay $20 to park for live shows, but probably not to watch the same movie available in St Louis Park with booze, reserved seating, and free parking. And as a for a small neighborhood theater that shows some decent indie flicks and not just common Hollywood trash like Scary Movie 17, we already have that. Its called st Anthony main, and you can walk there pretty easily from the north loop. It's a great theater and the popcorn is good and cheap. Shhh, don't tell too many people though because I don't want to watch 35 super hero movies this summer.

I noticed St Anthony Main is showing three Hollywood movies and has one screen devoted to the Cuban Film Festival, so it doesn't have to be either/or. Also, I noticed the Lagoon is still showing On the Road, I'm going to book a babysitter for that one.

I just wonder if there's room for a little more creative concept, like the brew-n-view in Chicago or the Zinema in Duluth. Maybe they could go back to showing adult films in nod to Block E's past? That would be unique to this market...

[writruth]

As the downtown Minneapolis population remains on track to double from 35,000-70,000 by 2025, the demand for a walkable, first-run theater, will also increase. In addition to Hennepin Avenue, keep an eye on the North Loop, Mill District and DTE, near the future stadium. As those areas continue to develop, they could become capable of supporting a new movie theater.

[MNdible]

Zinema in Duluth would be a great model for the North Loop, although they were seeded with some significant philanthropic grant money -- not sure you could do it for-profit.

[mullen]

http://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/b ... ctice.html

[gpete]

I guess we should wait to see if this pans out, but my kneejerk reaction is negative. I really wish Block E had uses that would interact more with the public. A large practice facility doesn't sound promising.

Alatus' ownership of Block E has so far been a disappointment.

[MNdible]

That movie theater space was always going to be difficult to make "interact with the public". I think this is a pretty good use for some of that high-volume, windowless space.

[gpete]

That's a fair point. Awkward space.

[twincitizen]

Did anyone see the Rybak tweet/facebook status yesterday about a "major announcement" coming today?? I sincerely hope this isn't it!

[MNdible]

He did a press conference with Don Samuels this morning about a major increase in road repair/maintenance. I'm guessing that's what he was referring to.

[gpete]

I think he was talking about Mpls/SP being named the fittest city in america for the third year in a row (by the American College of Sports Medicine).

[Unity77]

His tweet stated "nice" announcement. He was probably referring to today's announcement that MPLS - STPL has been named the healthiest, fittest cities in the USA for the third year in a row.

[John]

I guess we should wait to see if this pans out, but my kneejerk reaction is negative. I really wish Block E had uses that would interact more with the public. A large practice facility doesn't sound promising.

Alatus' ownership of Block E has so far been a disappointment.

I'm fine with the idea of a practice facility, but the exterior still needs to be dramatically re-skinned , and the street level should include retail that interacts with the public as you say. My guess is the practice facility won't use up all the vacant space, and there will be room for other niche uses.

[writruth]

Where is the imagination?

In the heart of the great metropolis, the best idea we can come up with to re-make Block E is a practice facility for the Wolves? There are at least two better options for this in Minneapolis than Block E. Why not have the Wolves and Gophers develop a dual use, split-wing practice facility near the Bierman Building on the University campus? Make it a massive eight-court facility with multiple weight rooms, showers, training rooms etc. Make the building large enough so that both the Gophers mens and women's teams and the Wolves and Lynx could use it.

Having the Wolves/Lynx players and coaches work out at the same facility as the Gophers could provide an extra recruitment incentive for the mens and women's college players who would be able to have close-up access to the pros. An eight-court training facility probably doesn't exits anywhere else in the country and would be a major upgrade for all of the programs. The facility could also be used for summer basketball camps/clinics, and state tournament practice facilities.

Or, if that's proves a non-starter, the other obvious downtown Minneapolis site for a Wolves/Lynx practice facility would be near the Farmers Market behind Target Field. It's proximity to Target Center, and the Twins home stadium would be a natural fit in what would be an expanded sports stadium district.

If neither of those options fly, the downtown Armory could fairly easily be re-purposed for a state of the art training facility. All three options would likely be better than a Block E option.

[sushisimo]

I'm fine with the idea of a practice facility, but the exterior still needs to be dramatically re-skinned , and the street level should include retail that interacts with the public as you say. My guess is the practice facility won't use up all the vacant space, and there will be room for other niche uses.

My initial reaction to this training facility news was basically a wretching dry-heave, but looking at some numbers, maybe what you're saying could be feasible. The Wolves want to go from a current 12,000 sq ft facility to upwards of 50,000. Block E is around 213,000 sq ft with all three levels, so perhaps they could use the top level or something (I think that's the theater space), and still have available space for more public uses on skyway and street levels.

[go4guy]

I think this is a perfect location for the Wolves, and it will probably be in the old theater space. I am not as concerned about what the use of that 3rd level space is as I am with what they put in the 1st and 2nd levels and how they remake the exterior.

[min-chi-cbus]

Let's put them on the street level and have all of the people on the street watch them practice like they sometimes do with newscasters!!! I bet they focus more at practice.