Reopenings, renovations, new arrivals — in downtown St. Paul

Despite its well-documented challenges particular business advocates call reports of the fall of downtown St Paul premature if not entirely off base given ongoing capital in office-to-residential building conversions new eateries and other fresh offerings Construction is underway on the Avalon a new event hall within the long-dormant James J Hill Center overlooking Rice Park The former business research center which opened in closed in amid growing maintenance necessities The Avalon could throw open the doors to weddings cultural events and musical performances amidst its Romanesque interior columns by late fall according to developer Peter Remes of First First Creative Real Estate in Minneapolis Developer Peter Remes looks over blueprints for the remodel and renovations of the James J Hill Center in downtown St Paul on Tuesday May John Autey Pioneer Press I was born and raised in St Paul disclosed Remes who didn t like at the idea of a century-old historic library sitting idle It was very crucial to me Having this building shuttered was not a benefit to anyone Remes who is perhaps best known in St Paul for reviving the Vandalia Tower business center mentioned it s taken four years to obtain permitting secure state and federal historic tax credits and work through other obstacles for the site which is getting a million upgrade That includes new bathrooms and heating air conditioning and ventilation systems as well as a new interior stairway to a new basement egress door The James J Hill Center overlooks Rice Park in downtown St Paul on Tuesday May John Autey Pioneer Press Despite the hefty price tag much of it is stuff that you won t even see he acknowledged Despite the well-chronicled foreclosures and other property setbacks downtown associated with major property owner Madison Equities there s a lot of great things happening here Remes stated It s not widely talked about The bad news gets the attention But there are people who are really dedicated to St Paul Bright spots elsewhere On Wabasha Street chef Terry John Zila has relaunched the former Gallery Kitchen in the basement of the Osborn building into a softly-lit event center geared toward private gatherings cooking classes and musical performances Terry John Zila owner of HepCat Coffee makes a cup of coffee in his new downtown St Paul eatery which is seeing renewed signs of life after two years of the pandemic March Scott Takushi Pioneer Press In addition to pop-up dinners to test the waters on his catering menus Zila plans to expand his HepCat Coffee space on the ground level reorienting it toward the lobby of the former Ecolab building with the help of a city STAR grant People are still discovering us revealed Zila who moved his catering operation and coffee shop into Osborn in February Two or three times a week customers say I didn t even know you were here ' Zila hopes to become a bit of a commissary for the new market-rate apartments under construction next door within the Stella the former Ecolab tower at Sixth and Wabasha streets Those apartments may be online by early next year adding to the foot traffic already evident at Osborn the former Ecolab Corporate Center which has drawn a wide range of both young and established planning and financial firms including Bridgewater Bank and the Greater MSP Partnership since its repositioning under PAK Properties Coming soon A Coming Soon sign advertises the imminent arrival of Six Mears a new Sixth Street restaurant where Barrio once opened its doors onto Mears Park John Autey Pioneer Press Meanwhile across downtown a Coming Soon sign advertises the imminent arrival of Six Mears a new Sixth Street restaurant where Barrio once opened its doors onto Mears Park Another event center Le Venere a new addition to the A Bulae event center will host a Roaring s-themed grand opening celebration toward the end of the month within the Gilbert Building on Wacouta Street Prince Coal Fired Pizza is expected to open in July within the former Black Sheep Pizza space at the Rossmor Building on Robert Street Palace Pub will be opening soon on Seventh Place in the space previously occupied by Wrecktangle Pizza s Wrestaurant at the Palace New arrivals Sherman Associates has completed its million to million conversion of Landmark Towers on St Peter Street from a -story office building It s now home to new luxury apartments with each layout named after s icons like The Bruce and The Axl The converted structure welcomed its first new tenants around the start of May Related Articles Homebuying options remain slim for middle-income earners St Paul Planning Commission deals setback to Hamm s Brewery apartments Petitioned on Reddit How to stop obsessing about money Trump tells US steelworkers he s going to double tariffs on foreign steel to Taylor Swift has regained control of her music buys back first albums Phe Coffee opened within the Sector House on Fifth Street in Lowertown this past January SoYen Desserts which opened in March continues to draw a sell-out crowd every weekend down the street in the Northwestern Building at E Fourth St The Union Depot s retail spaces are now fully leased with the modern additions of Story Line Books and the Eating House which debuted its new outdoor summer patio on Thursday Global Storage Partners of Carlsbad Calif was unable to install mini-storage in the Allen Building so it in the last few days purchased four of the six floors in the annex building to the Custom House Apartments on Kellogg Boulevard They ve installed Extra Space Storage as manager with large illuminated signage that has irked specific neighbors Relocations reopenings and new acquisitions On Wabasha Street Afro Deli is moving across the street from its current location and prepping a new food counter where Slice Pizza briefly served up pies within Treasure Island Center a former Macy s department store In July St Paul Brewing and Can Can Wonderland plan to reopen the recently-shuttered Dark Horse bar on East Seventh Street with a new chef decor and menu The Town Square food court and skyway has drawn several former tenants from Alliance Bank Center including B s Barbershop Greenwolf Hemp and Organics and Paul Hartquist Jewelers Other reopenings over the past year include Mickey s Diner Ruam Mit Thai and Alary s now home to Pete s BBQ Two temporarily-shuttered downtown storefronts La Noire Bridal and Garso Mini-Mart also plan to reopen in new downtown locations this summer In April Exchange Ventures LLC of Lake Forest Calif purchased the Gallery Professional Building a former diagnostic office building at W Exchange St from the Salvation Army for Despite the rock-bottom sales price for the vacant eight-story structure property taxes based on its assessed area value are high as are maintenance costs and parking is limited disclosed the buyer who did not disclose his full name when reached by phone May He revealed he s hoping to get several leeway from the city and county before renovating likely for office and retail uses he announced Parks Following an million planning and construction effort the long-awaited Pedro Park will open by late summer at th and Robert streets Along Kellogg Boulevard Kellogg Mall Park will soon host a publicly available restroom and a designated park ambassador to keep the park clean and amenities fresh according to St Paul Parks and Recreation A full schedule of summer events is online at kelloggmallpark com Osborn Plaza the city-owned plaza along Wabasha Street will be reconstructed this summer and fall Related Articles City of St Paul hosts downtown block party Ellison drops objection to appointment of Otto Bremer Trust trustee s daughter Christopher Harrington Experiencing the arts transforms the way we see the world Frost championship celebration livens up Xcel Vitality Center Judicial cookout for the homeless renamed for late founder Jim Randall St Paul Parks and Rec will soon replace a retaining wall in Mears Park a project The free summer concert series Lowertown Sounds returns this summer with the New Standards Salsa Del Soul Yam Haus Kiss the Tiger and the Flamin Ohs A complete schedule is online at LowertownSounds com A downtown block party is scheduled at Mears Park from to p m May with live music as well as food and drinks provided by Barrel Theory the Bulldog and Lost Fox Vandals uprooted freshly-planted trees along Shepard Road last November St Paul Parks and Rec replanted them on May Not far outside downtown the Victorian-style Irvine Park fountain has returned home following an eight-month restoration effort A full schedule of downtown park events is online at stpaul gov downtownparks