urbanMSP

The lot which was originally planned for Sexton Phase II is up for sale, listed at $6.4 million. I believe the original project for this lot was around 32 floors and called for 300+ units. There's no indication as to how long the lot has been on the market.

http://www.loopnet.com/Listing/18609682 ... apolis-MN/

That's 9x the assessed value of $707,900.

Emporis has a picture of it:

http://www.emporis.com/building/the-sex ... lis-mn-usa

Nice find!

Refresher course on the legal mess that engulfed Sexton Lofts at the tail end of the condo boom.

http://www.startribune.com/business/18220569.html
http://www.startribune.com/business/96172644.html
http://www.tcdailyplanet.net/article/20 ... exton.html
http://www.behindthemortgage.com/2011/0 ... again.html

Wow, what a mess. That phase two building would have been a nice addition to that corner too.

They can ask for 6.4 M, unless they want to sit on the land for awhile I think they will get only half that price. Not too many developer will want to pay a high price on a piece of land that may have some title disputes going on over it. They are pricing the land as they think that their is standing to build 32 on it. With the height of the other DTE buildings I think they would be lucky to get a 30 story building on this site. Also this will probably not be a block connected to the skyways which would also lower it's value. IMHO

Plus at this point there are too many other under used blocks that can be developed for less. We are also going to have to see how things shake out in the more established areas north of 4th Street. There are plans that are already laid for more than a few parcels that would hit the ground and help to create a vacancy rate dilemma for the east side of DT.

Here's a new one: http://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/b ... ntown.html

Interesting. It's nice to hear that there's someone actually looking to develop this 1/4 block. Having such a tall tower here should be a key turning point for the surrounding blocks which are littered with surface parking lots. We may even get another tower on this block on the corner of 5th and 7th.

Let's hope they are looking condo's instead of apartments. That would make the Eclipse have to do a better job in design to get buyers to want. Disadvantage is the grocery stores are further away, but definitely in the swing of things. Nearer the commercial core, closest available skyway entrance, the park, the Vikings stadium.

Could there be a need for a third grocery store downtown in this area with the new housing (maybe even a TJ's?)

Could a co-op do well downtown? Possibly with an even smaller footprint than a Whole Foods or Lunds? I think so.

Right now the only large residential buildings in the immediate area are the Sexton, Center Village, Grand Park and Skyscape. You also have a large number of Students who live at North Central University who walk up 7th on a regular basis to get jobs, food and shopping in the downtown core. There's definitely enough people to support a smaller grocery store at this location and demand will certainly grow as the other surface lots will eventually be developed.

Poor trader Joe's. they can keep on trying to get into MPLS proper. Where would be a good home for that in DTE?

The Ryan project (either of the Wells Fargo bldgs or the parking ramp) would be a decent place for a ~15k sf grocery. It will be hard enough for them to draw enough retail users to 4th Street (a very non-traditional retail area) already. Filling up the first floor of one of the buildings with a single user that has a regional draw would be a slam dunk.

Actually the parking ramp would be pretty perfect. Satiates Trader Joe's hunger for parking and fills first floor retail in the ramp for Ryan. Fulfills the need for a grocery on the eastern half of downtown and will be an easy on the way stop for downtown workers that drive home on 35

A Trader Joe's could serve both the DT East, Mill District, and Cedar-Riverside/West Bank pretty well at the Ryan Project site since its pretty close to the light rail and the area should be more walkable for nearby residents after it's completed. Given it's a mid-end grocer, it shouldn't lead to an oversaturation of grocers in Central Minneapolis since Lund's and WF are upscale, plus they are in the western Central neighborhoods.

A store on the Sexton lot would probably be geared toward mainly Mill District and Elliot Park residents I assume, since it's kind of in the middle of the two districts.

I would say maybe a co-op would work best on a lot like Sexton, and a chain grocery store like TJ's would be best in a more prominent area like the Ryan project.

How about a grocery inside one corner of the Armory?

Something like Midtown Global Market would be cool to see there (I think someone suggested that in the Armory's page on this site way back). Sexton could have a restaurant or a small convenience store, and other retail (maybe even a pub or bar) to serve the surrounding area. Something geared towards HCMC workers/visitors since it's about a block away from the Sexton could be beneficial as well.

I always thought a grocery store would be perfect on the top floor of the IDS Tower and they could charge $15 for the elevator ride. Yup.

This parcel is cursed as the developer of this and the 2006 proposal seem to come into the game just when the market's played out. I really doubt this will happen as a total rental project. If they propose a condo, condo/rental building, or other multi-use project they have a better chance.