St. Paul's office market, already the weakest in the Twin Cities, suffered another serious setback Thursday when U.S. Bancorp announced it would move 1,600 employees early next year to Richfield.
The move, which will nearly empty a 325,000-square-foot building on Shepard Road along the Mississippi River, represents more than one-third of the bank's workforce in St. Paul.
The Minneapolis-based bank has leased about 340,000 square feet at Meridian Crossings, an office complex near the intersection of Interstates 494 and 35W.
U.S. Bancorp spokesman Steve Dale said the flexibility to expand at the Richfield location played a part in the decision to move. The facilities will house a variety of operations, including technology, product management, human resources and credit and risk management, he said. He declined to say whether the bank would be hiring, but said the new office will give it the ability to grow.
The news was a coup for Richfield, where officials said they knew their city was in the running for the bank's relocation but didn't know for sure it was coming until it was announced.
"I'm absolutely elated," Richfield City Manager Steve Devich said. "With all the glum economic news, having 1,600 new jobs located in Richfield is a huge boost for us." He said the bank will be the city's second-largest employer, behind Best Buy Co. Inc., whose corporate campus is across 35W from Meridian Crossings.
It's a much different story for St. Paul and JLT Group Inc., the owner of the Shepard Road building that U.S. Bancorp has occupied for about 12 years.
U.S. Bancorp is St. Paul's largest private employer, and the third-largest behind the state of Minnesota and St. Paul Public Schools, according to the most recent research from the Capital City Partnership.