DULUTH – The city’s most notoriously tumbledown building is set for demolition, pending the approval of a $2.1 million settlement between the city of Duluth and a local preservationist.
Duluth’s notorious former Kozy Bar is poised for demolition, after long legal dispute
The once-stately structure, formally known as the Pastoret Terrace, has been largely destroyed by fire and decay. A settlement lays out design guidelines for the downtown historic district.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
January 23, 2025 at 1:35AM
The fate of the Pastoret Terrace, an 1887-era Romanesque Revival structure, has been tied up in court for years. Dr. Eric Ringsred and the city reached a settlement in late May, and it was enforced by St. Louis County Judge Eric Hylden in December, according to a news release. Ringsred had earlier attempted to withdraw his offer to settle.
The terms include $1.4 million for grants and loans to owners of buildings inside the downtown Duluth Commercial Historic District where the Pastoret sits, and $700,000 to Ringsred and preservation organization, Respect Starts Here, for improvements to their properties within that district. The money is only for buildings considered “contributing” to the historic designation.
City leaders found it infeasible to restore “the decayed and fire-damaged property,” according to the release from Duluth attorney Steve Reyelts, who mediated the case.
The settlement also lays out design guidelines for the historic district. Storefronts of new construction must fit with the character of surrounding historic properties.
The city’s 1200 Fund will manage the grants and low-interest loans for repairs and investments. Buildings on the First Street corridor will receive priority, in an effort to help spur private spending in that area, the release says.
The city will also pay $30,000 in delinquent taxes related to Ringsred’s “contributing” properties in that district.
The Pastoret and the adjoining Paul Robeson Ballroom at 1st Street and 2nd Avenue E. were most recently home to the Kozy Bar and apartments. Several fires destroyed much of the property, designed by renowned architect Oliver Traphagen. Once stately turn-of-the-century townhouses, the Pastoret Terrace has been owned by the Duluth Economic Development Authority (DEDA) since 2016, when Ringsred lost it for failing to pay taxes. In 2018, Ringsred and Respect Starts Here filed a lawsuit seeking a stop to the city’s demolition plans.
A St. Louis County judge sided with the city, but the Minnesota Court of Appeals overturned his ruling in 2020, ordering the city to make repairs to prevent further deterioration.
Another fire led the city to ask the judge to allow the building to be partially torn down. He instead ordered the property stabilized, and a trial to determine its fate was delayed while another local developer explored rehabilitating the building.
In 2022, the Minnesota Court of Appeals said two Duluth judges erred in a defamation case Ringsred filed against the city of Duluth and the Duluth News Tribune.
The Pastoret Terrace was originally built as six luxury townhomes. The Kozy Bar was established in 1960, and 50 apartments had been constructed by the time a major fire occurred in 2010. City documents say a portion of the roof is collapsed and some of the structure is unstable.
DEDA was expected to vote on paying a portion of the settlement Wednesday night, with the City Council voting on the remainder at its Monday meeting.
The once-stately structure, formally known as the Pastoret Terrace, has been largely destroyed by fire and decay. A settlement lays out design guidelines for the downtown historic district.
