Downtown Revitalization Stretches East in Minneapolis

"The 20-year transformation of Washington Avenue S. in downtown Minneapolis is headed toward a finale that features five projects worth more than a half-billion dollars that would turn the area’s last surface parking lots into residences, shops and offices," report Jim Buchta and Nicole Norfleet.

The article describes the changes underway along Washington Avenue, east of Downtown Minneapolis, as a building boom where once there was only "risky" development investments. Change first arrived in 1999, when "CSM restored the historic train shed and Depot landmark and created the Renaissance Minneapolis Hotel, the Residence Inn and the Depot event space, that included an ice rink and an office center across the street," according to Buchta and Norfleet.

Now a 30-story luxury apartment tower and a new fire station are in the works, and a Trader Joe's was recently added, among lots of other changes. "East Town is not just the North Loop’s little brother anymore. It’s become its own thing," says Shane LaFave, director of multifamily development for Sherman Associates, in the article.