Beginning this spring, downtown Columbia Heights will undergo big changes with a new mixed-use development that city officials acknowledge is a risk but believe has potential to revitalize the north-metro community.
"The council wanted to shoot for the moon," said Aaron Chirpich, the city's community development director. "There isn't a template for this. … Any bold vision takes an element of risk."
It's an unusual mixed-use development combining a new City Hall, 265 market-rate apartments, and coffee shop and cafe space, all under one roof. Construction of the $60 million, six-story building in the city's central business corridor will kick off this spring, after council members signed off on the land usage and zoning Monday night.
The city is partnering with Minneapolis-based developer Alatus to demolish a vacant city-owned property on the corner of Central Avenue and NE. 40th Avenue to make way for the project.
Chirpich noted a comparable development in Oakland Park, Fla., but the closest mixed-use examples in Minnesota don't quite match up to what Columbia Heights is shooting for. Waconia City Hall is in the same building as senior market-rate public housing. Moorhead City Hall is in the middle of a privately owned mall, though Moorhead might sell to find a new home for City Hall.
Columbia Heights council members recently reviewed a rezoning proposal before giving final approval Feb. 24. Chirpich said this is a critical phase of the project, but up ahead is a "tangled web of contracts and agreements." The city will own the space for City Hall and share building and parking ramp maintenance costs with Alatus.
The existing City Hall, at 590 NE. 40th Av., was built in 1942 and has extensive deferred maintenance, including asbestos and ADA noncompliance. An architecture firm estimated renovation costs would exceed $6.6 million, so the city checked out replacement options. They considered adding onto the new public safety building or rebuilding in the existing location. But a stand-alone City Hall would run between $8 and $10 million, Chirpich said.
The partnership is significantly cutting cost. The City Hall portion of the new mixed-use project — about 20,650 square feet — is around $5 million, Chirpich said, and Alatus will receive between $8 and $10 million in tax increment financing (TIF), to help fund its share. "This project doesn't happen without TIF," he said.
