Dinkytown hotel v. Historic preservation

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Developer Kelly Doran’s plan to build a six-story hotel in the heart of Dinkytown received a setback January 21 when the Minneapolis Heritage Preservation Commission rejected his three requested demolition permits, pending a review to determine whether Dinkytown should be designated a historic district.Anne Behrendt, legal counsel and spokeswoman for Doran Development at the HPC hearing, said her company will “very likely” appeal the decision to the City Council, which could reverse it to pave way for construction of a 125-room hotel in the four-block business district adjacent to the University of Minnesota.City planner Janelle Widmeier prepared the staff report to the Heritage Preservation Commission (HPC), recommending approval of permits to demolish two business buildings at 1315 and 1319 Fourth St. S.E. and a home around the corner at 410 13th Ave. S.E. The business buildings on Fourth Street Southeast house the Mesa Pizza and Camdi restaurants, a tattoo parlor, the Publika coffee shop, and the University LifeCare clinic.Council Member Jacob Frey, who represents the Third Ward including Dinkytown, said that the appeal is a quasi-legal process so he’s not allowed to comment in advance. But, he said, he wants to hear the presentations to the City Council before he decides. He suggested there might be ways to compromise between the developer and the neighborhood, which opposes tearing down existing businesses to build a hotel.This drawing from Doran Companies shows the proposed six-story hotel for the 1315 and 1319 Fourth Street Southeast. Continue Reading

Locals vs. chains in Dinkytown: What do you remember?

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One projected consequence of the major new developments in Dinkytown is that rents for commercial space will increase, forcing out small stores and stimulating the increase of chains, like CVS Pharmacy which is the major anchor of the newest mixed-use building.For more on Dinkytown developments and people, click here.A neglected aspect of this story is that a number of chains have been in Dinkytown over the years and many of them have come and gone.Several friends sat at the counter at Al’s Breakfast recently and made a list of ones we remembered. Here’s a list of those who are no longer in Dinkytown:Baskin RobbinsB. Dalton BooksBest Steak HouseBridgemanBurger KingBuffalo Wild WingsCD WarehouseCheapo RecordsCaribouFanny FarmerHoigaard’sKhan’s Mongolian BarbequeKinko’sNelson’s Office SupplyNational Camera ExchangeRagstockRegisRocky Rococo PizzaSchaak ElectronicsStarbucksVideo UpdateWells Fargo.Dayton’s University Store came and went from Dinkytown long before Southdale’s opened in 1956, leading to the proliferation of Dayton’s stores in suburbs. Sound of Music left Dinkytown before the company became Best Buy.Dinkytown Business Association President Skott Johnson has said that some local owners of chain franchises, like McDonald’s, are actually active members of the local community.Does your memory of chains in Dinkytown agree with ours? Can you think of others? Continue Reading

Alive and well in Minneapolis: Small businesses in Dinkytown want you

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Sidewalks are shoveled, streets are well lighted, parking is convenient, and people are friendly.Welcome to Dinkytown USA.That’s the image the small businesses in Dinkytown would like to project as you plan activities before or after an athletic event or an evening at local pubs and restaurants – despite developers who have displaced some small businesses in the area.Dinkytown is often celebrated as a place for locally-owned businesses, but lots of chains have operated there over the years. How many can you remember? Click here to test your recall, and add your memories. For more on Dinkytown developments and people, click here.Georgia Sander, owner of Kafé 421 at 421 14th Ave. S.E., said she gets three calls a day from people asking whether she’s still open. Continue Reading

Property owners attack Dinkytown plan, seek more meetings

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Eleven Dinkytown property owners have organized to attack the proposed small-area plan and any design guidelines or historic designation for their four-block business district adjacent to the University of Minnesota.Dinkytown is often celebrated as a place for locally-owned businesses, but lots of chains have operated there over the years. How many can you remember? Click here to test your recall, and add your memories. For more on Dinkytown developments and people, click here.At the same time, they said expanding the planning district and rezoning it to C3A, “the highest density mixed-use district—is essential for this area.” C3A makes possible the six-story apartment buildings with commercial street-level space – two of which are under construction in the four blocks of Dinkytown and several others being built nearby.Despite eight months of weekly open meetings by the small-area planning group, a letter signed by the individuals organized as the Dinkytown Property Owners Group accused Minneapolis city planner Haila Maze and the Dinkytown Business Association of neglecting their property interests in proposing a small-area plan for Dinkytown, especially in a public presentation November 18 at the Varsity Theater.“To be clear, it is important to point out that the Owners Group is a completely separate entity, with differing viewpoints and perspectives, than the Dinkytown Business Association,” the letter said. “We are concerned that the process thus far is not benefitting from the input of property owners in the district.”DBA President Skott Johnson has said the working group for the plan has met regularly since March and that their meetings have been public and that some of the signers had been notified.Nonetheless, Maze and Johnson agreed to additional meetings to discuss the property owners’ issues and their demand to be listed among the stakeholders in implementing the plan.The plan addresses four major categories: heritage preservation; economic development; transportation and parking; and land use and design. Continue Reading

Skott Johnson closes Autographics, leaves Dinkytown at the end of December

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Skott Johnson lived in the Sigma Nu fraternity house as a University of Minnesota journalism student in the 1970s when he began working for Nelson’s Office Supply on Fourth Street Southeast where the Pagoda restaurant stands today.Dinkytown is often celebrated as a place for locally-owned businesses, but lots of chains have operated there over the years. How many can you remember? Click here to test your recall, and add your memories. For more on Dinkytown developments and people, click here.Johnson, a native of Austin, Minn., found that he liked the big city of Minneapolis and the small-town feel of Dinkytown so much that he stayed after graduation.As Nelson’s closed its Dinkytown store, Johnson, then manager of Nelson’s photocopy and printing department, created his own printing and copying business called Autographics in 1989.Thirty-six years after graduation, 24 years after creating Autographics, and 18 years off and on as president of the Dinkytown Business Association, Johnson will close his shop at the end of this month and return to Austin to care for his ailing mother.His departure could vacate a significant corner in Dinkytown, a four-block business district adjacent to the University of Minnesota in Southeast Minneapolis. His building houses several other businesses and sports an iconic collage, invoking memories of streetcars and Bob Dylan.And Johnson, 59, will leave a bigger gap in the Dinkytown Business Association, which has become strongly identified with him after his many years as DBA president.“It’s really evolved over the years,” Johnson said. Continue Reading

MN Videos | Talkin’ Dinkytown

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The historic business district of Dinkytown has been a staple point in the cultural fabric of the University of Minnesota for decades. One could easily spend a day (or week!) exploring the vast variety of shopping and delicious cuisine Dinkytown has to offer. Today many of the old businesses are being replaced with large apartment complexes and bigger business. Dinkytown is changing, but as the buildings get built higher, the people remain grounded. Watch this short film and discover why Dinkytown, Minnesota is indeed “where the love is found.”Directed By Spencer KnottOriginal Song: “Talkin’ Dinkytown” Written & Performed By Kevin NoonanProduced By Spencer Knott & Kevin Noonan Continue Reading

Minneapolis City Council rejects moratorium on Dinkytown development

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The Minneapolis City Council, with a tie vote of 6-6 on August 30, rejected a proposed moratorium on the four-block core of the Dinkytown business district adjacent to the University of Minnesota.Council Member Diane Hofstede had proposed the six-month moratorium to allow time for the Dinkytown Business Association and Marcy-Holmes Neighborhood Association to complete small-area plans before new development projects begin. Both associations had endorsed the moratorium.The moratorium’s failure allows a developer to proceed with plans for an apartment building in the traditionally small-scale business area.Kelly Doran, who was at the City Council meeting, will continue with a proposal to build a six-story mixed-use building that would replace two buildings that currently house Mesa Pizza by the Slice, Camdi Vietnamese restaurant, and other small businesses. The Doran development would require rezoning from C1 commercial to C3A mixed use.The plan, which he presented to a committee of the whole of the City Planning Commission Aug. 29, shows commercial space and parking on the ground level and 70 dwelling units, including 130 bedrooms, on the upper floors.“Dinkytown needs development,” Doran said after his presentation. “If we don’t do this development, Dinkytown will continue on a downward spiral.”An objective look at the buildings, including the rear of the buildings, would reveal the need for improvements, Doran said.He admitted that his plan might not displace the most needy buildings, but refused to comment on which buildings might be worse.Doran told the planning commission that none of the Dinkytown buildings has a historic designation, but he said he favors preserving Al’s Breakfast, the Varsity Theater, and the former drug store building that houses Loring Café.Ted Tucker, president of the planning commission, said he invited Doran to present his proposal, but he’d prefer a more informal conversation about the nature of Dinkytown and what his project would contribute to it.“This is a very complicated area,” Tucker said. Continue Reading

More development in Dinkytown? Public forum will address long-term plans

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The future of Dinkytown will be the subject of a public forum on September 9, a meeting convened by those creating a small-area plan for the unique four-block business district adjacent to the University of Minnesota.Minneapolis city planner Haila R. Maze announced the meeting in an email to the community just days after a developer proposed a new mixed-use building on Fourth Street Southeast, Dinkytown’s main street.The meeting will begin with a 6 p.m. reception followed by a 6:30 p.m. presentation and open house in the Varsity Theater. The Dinkytown Business Association will host the meeting featuring Maze and City Council Member Diane Hofstede.Doran Companies has proposed a six-story, 70-unit apartment building with ground-level retail on Fourth Street between 13th and 14th Avenues, the Star Tribune reports.This project would fit on the south half of the block on which Opus Development has begun construction of a larger six-story mixed-use development along Fifth Street, taking land that housed the House of Hanson, Duffy’s Pizza, and parking lots.Some community and business leaders have proposed a moratorium on development in Dinkytown at least until the plan is completed.“The Dinkytown area has been experiencing a great deal of change and transition,” Maze said. “This has raised a number of important questions regarding the future of the area, and how important issues are being handled—including everything from community character to parking availability.”The meeting will provide an update on the planning process and seek public input on land use and development; parking and transportation; market conditions and trends; and preservation, design, and community character, Maze said.Hofstede, who is in a close re-election race, had proposed a delay of the Opus Development until the small-area plan is completed.Read our complete coverage of development in Dinkytown.Coverage of issues and events affecting Central Corridor communities is funded in part by a grant from the Central Corridor Funders Collaborative. Continue Reading

“A lovely development”: Minneapolis City Council clears the way for Opus development in Dinkytown

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The Minneapolis City Council on August 2 rezoned a portion of Dinkytown to pave the way for a mixed-use apartment and commercial building that displaces the House of Hanson and other long-time businesses on Fifth Street Southeast between 13th and 14th avenues.After the council meeting, a teary-eyed Laurel Hanson Bauer said her 82-year-old business, the House of Hanson grocery store, would close after this weekend—assuming her negotiations with Opus Development go as planned.Her nemesis on the issue, Kristen Eide-Tollefson, owner of the Book House, which has moved after eviction from Hanson’s building, was philosophical about the loss, saying her opposition Save Dinkytown movement stimulated an important discussion among City Council members on development, density, and planning in the city.The victor, Opus Development, could begin construction on its six-story 140-unit apartment building as early as next month and complete it a year later, the Star Tribune reported.Pat Duffy, who owns Duffy’s Pizza and manages the adjacent parking lots, says he’s closed the pizza business but he will keep the parking lot open.“We’ll keep it open just as long as we can, probably until the bulldozers show up,” he said. Appearing enthusiastic about the sale, he said, he has begun discussing the possibility of opening his pizza business in the new Opus building when “Dinkytown will be a vibrant business district again.”“With customers,” added his wife, Susan Duffy. She originally bought their property, which includes five rental units in two old Victorian homes, in 1996.“It was zoned R5 when I purchased it in October 1996,” she said, adding that category allowed much higher density than the current C1 business zoning that the City Council changed to C3A for mixed residential and commercial use.“Dinkytown has been my life,” Susan Duffy said. “It’s the only place I’ve ever worked.”Bauer said she started working for her father 44 years ago when she was 12 years old. “I worked for free at first, but later he paid $1 an hour. Continue Reading