Address: 317 2nd Av. S., Minneapolis
Hot Property: In Minneapolis, a 118-year-old office building will become a suites hotel
January 25, 2018 at 11:01PM
Type: Hospitality
Rooms: 203
Addition size: 41,300 square feet
Developer: Hawkeye Hotels
Architects: Cities Edge Architects, Ramaker & Associates
Details: A 118-year-old former office building in downtown Minneapolis is to be reborn as a Hilton Tru & Home2 Suites Hotel.
The eight-story stucco building at 317 2nd Av. S., formerly known as the Western Union Bank Building and the William E. Magee Building, had been used by Hennepin County for its public defender offices until vacating it six years ago. In 2015, it was purchased by Willmar-based TPI Hospitality, which at the time unveiled plans for its conversion into a 135-room Holiday Inn Express & Suites, including a 16,000-square-foot building addition.
TPI, however, never pulled the trigger on that project, and an entity related to Iowa-based Hawkeye Hotels purchased the property last month for $5.7 million, according to real estate records.
Hawkeye, in tandem with Eagan-based J.R. Hospitality, recently built a Holiday Inn Express & Suites in Bloomington; a Home2 Suites in Eagan; a Fairfield Inn in Shakopee; and a Marriott Springhill Suites in Arden Hills.
The newest plans for the downtown structure show an addition of 41,300 square feet, while the room count has jumped to 203. Most of the work will be on the existing building, including the removal of asbestos and lead paint.
Don Jacobson
about the writer
St. Paul Regional Water Services is testing water from the reservoir to make sure it is safe.
