Jeremy Bernardy MFP

Thinking Outside the (Big) Box Lake and Nicollet Adaptive Reuse

Jeremy Bernardy

Master’s Final Project University of Minnesota College of Design School of Architecture

Thinking Outside the (Big) Box Lake and Nicollet Adaptive Reuse

Jeremy Bernardy

“What kind of landfill do we have that 3,000 empty big box buildings can go into?�

-Julia Christensen , Author Big Box Reuse

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MINNEAPOLIS

History

RICHFIELD

BLOOMINGTON

Nicollet Ave, Mpls: The thoroughfare was cutoff in the 1970s to build Kmart.

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This thesis attempts to provide an adaptive reuse of the Lake Street Kmart building (and its adjoining land plots) as a way to showcase an architectural example of a sustainable alternative to demolition.

Big box stores have become a problem for cities. As soon as a retailer vacates their store the community is left with a large building that is often difficult to lease to other tenants either because of the sheer size or legal requirements (LaVecchia, 1). With the amount of brand identity that often accompanies major retailers, they typically prefer to build new stores (often on greenfields) instead of remodeling old stores or repurposing stores from other corporations (Ford, 1). This has led to a significant amount of wasted materials through demolition, eyesores from dilapidated stores, and giant building footprints that are difficult to fill with new tenants.

Lake Street and Nicollet Ave was once a vibrant cross section for business and development in the 1930s and 1940s. However in the following decades it became a place of blight and disrepair in conjunction with the Gateway District. The City of Minneapolis had received a large funding amount totaling more $16 million in the 1950s and 1960s as part of the Federal Urban Renewal

program in order to clear blighted areas of the city and redevelop them to promote urban growth. Toward the end of the 1960s the program had lost favor in Washington with funds drying up across the nation, despite ongoing construction projects. The City was eager, however, to continue their ambitious plans to clear blighted areas of downtown Minneapolis. With federal funds becoming unavailable the City sought other avenues to move ahead. They sought local public funding through the property taxing authority by establishing Tax Increment Funding (TIF) districts that would target redevelopment areas in the city.

As a way to generate the needed capital to acquire and clear blighted sites the City of Minneapolis issued city-backed bonds.

As development occurred, the increased or incremental property taxes generated within the district were earmarked to pay off the city bonds (Nathanson, 1).

The city’s TIF District #2, created in 1972, covered an eight blocked area at Lake Street and Nicollet Ave with plans to clear the land for development that would create an urban model mini- Southdale as a way to compete with the suburb of Edina. The development plans included a large shopping center surrounded by apartments, offices, restaurants, and a movie theater (Nathanson, 1).

The City’s intent with the TIF districts was based on the

assumption that development would occur once blighted areas were demolished. In 1972 the City began to clear the Lake and Nicollet site after granting redevelopment rights to Nicollet Lake Group. Shortly after however the real estate firm was unable to deliver on its promise to develop the area into the next great area of Minneapolis. By the fall of 1976, a large portion of the Nicollet-Lake district had been demolished but only minimal development occurred (Nathanson, 1). That same year the city had to begin payments on their city-back bonds. The problem lay in the lagging development that the city had hoped would occur to begin paying back the debt. With minimal development in several of their TIF districts including Nicollet-Lake the city was looking at bond payments of about $1.8 million in 1978.

Unless City Council was able to find another option they would be forced to pass this cost onto the taxpayers for not only the TIF District but also the entire city. As the financial and political pressure mounted relief came in the form of Kmart.

The decision to close Nicollet Ave off was part of a wellintentioned economic development strategy but was devised as part of the typical suburban model of Kmart. The project catered to the automobile instead of the city model in which customers typically arrive by foot or bus. The store has experienced great success with it consistently being one of the company’s most

Above Left (Credit: Bill Lindeke): Mini-Southdale Proposal 1972 Above Right (Credit: Bill Lindeke): Lake and Nicollet Development Plan 1972

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profitable stores.

The problem with the site is not Kmart itself, in fact according to a Kmart executive “it [10 W. Lake St.] is one of the chain’s most successful stores, and reports that 62 percent of customers live within five miles” , but rather that the building blocks off a high traffic route and important connection for the city (Callaghan, 1).

This project attempts to provide an architectural adaptive reuse of the Lake Street and Nicollet Ave site through hybridizing the retail store to enhance the urban experience.

Minneapolis Redevelopment The City of Minneapolis has plans currently (2015) to acquire the Lake and Nicollet site (10 W. Lake St. and 30 W. Lake St.) in addition to 29 properties surrounding the site as part of their Lake and Nicollet Redevelopment Plan. Some of their objectives include: 1). “Re-connect Nicollet Ave across Lake Street and the Midtown Greenway” 2). “Promote the Nicollet-Central modern streetcar” 3). “Increase the number of housing units and provide diversity in housing types, densities, and affordability levels” 4). “Increase retail activity and density in commercial districts” and 5). “Eliminate blighting influences” . While these are wellintentioned goals for creating a better community they also have

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the potential to enable a situation in which the district becomes unaffordable for current residents.

According to survey data collected on neighborhoods in Minneapolis, the area surrounding Lake and Nicollet falls within poverty zones and has been since at least 1980 (American Community Survey Data). With this area being a working class neighborhood further analysis was conducted to see what the potential for gentrification would be in the coming years.

According to data collected in 2010 this site falls within an area that recently gentrified and therefore has potential to continue further in the trend. Areas immediately surrounding the site, however, did not gentrify. With new development this opens the door for the area to swing in either direction.

The goal of this project is not to create development that pushes out current residences but rather intelligently adapts the site to promote growth within an established neighborhood and give residents the resources they need to succeed on their own from an inside out approach. In this example the inside-out approach seeks to improve the resources within a community to enhance the outside appearance rather than the outside-in approach which begins by improving the outside appearance that in turn replaces the inside of the community.

URBAN KMART

EXISTING BUILDING ADAPTIVE REUSE

Lake St. and Nicollet Ave Transformation: The pedestrian oriented site contributes to the new “Urban Experience” through a multi-part program.

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MICRO STORES

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that will connect people with the city, and create a pedestrian central zone that caters to the human not the automobile.

The Urban Experience

Hybrid Retail

Adaptive Reuse of the Kmart Building rather than demolition

What does the new community look like?

HYRBID RETAIL

The new Lake and Nicollet site will be composed of a five part system that will work in conjunction with each other to promote sustainable living, provide resources and options for residents to grow local business, provide integrated transportation options

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URBAN EXPERIENCE RE SID

ESS R SIN TO BU UBA INC

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RETAIL INCUBATOR

BUSINESS INCUBATOR

RESIDENTIAL MID- RISE

RETAIL INCUBATOR

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Adaptive reuse provides a sustainable alternative to demolition by diverting resources away from landfills. According to Julia Christensen in her 2009 book there were some 3,000 empty big box stores across the nation at that time and the problem continues to grow. As stated by her we simply do not have enough landfill space to demolish every single one of these buildings.

By considering this fact for the Lake and Nicollet site a two part analysis was conducted as a way to understand how to effectively transform the building so that it could be a lasting resource for the community, respond to the community needs instead of a corporation’s needs, and divert as waste away from the landfill.

In the first part, a construction analysis was completed to gain knowledge of how big box stores are constructed and what the typical materials are. This gave insight into what kind of modifications were possible and how much it would cost.

The construction of typical commercial buildings versus typical big box stores is not that much different when

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NEW CONSTRUCTION MIXED-USE

Above: Image caption information.

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URAN MODEL KMART (45,660 RSF) RETAIL HYBRID

LAKE STREET

Top: Site Entry on Lake Street Bottom: Lake Street and Nicollet Avenue Transformation

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1ST AVE SOUTH

BLAISDELL AVE

BUSINESS INCUBATOR AND MID-RISE RESIDENTIAL

BUSINESS INCUBATOR AND TRANSIT HUB

LOW-RISE RESIDENTIAL

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HYBRID RETAIL

BUSINESS INCUBATOR

1. Mechanical and offices 2. Loading and Receiving 3. Small stores 4. Medium stores 5. Micro stores 6. Food Cafe

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URBAN MODEL KMART 45,660 USF

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1. Bus Depot 2. Walk-thru Food Court 3. Transit Office 4. Entry Lobby 5. Management Office 6. Large Lecture 7. Business Incubator 8. Classrooms

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RETAIL INCUBATOR 1. Medium Stores 2. Small Stores 3. Underground Parking 4. Loading Dock 5. Mechanical 6. Leasing Office 7. Residence Lobby 8. Micro Stores 9. Indoor Park 10. Kiosks 11. Large Stores

RESIDENTIAL 1. Medium Stores 2. Small Stores 3. Leasing Office 4. Underground Parking 5. Lobby 6. Mechanical/Janitorial 7. Amenities 8. Amenities

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Above: The connected programs contribute to the new “Urban Experience”

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you are considering similar markets. Conventional office or retail buildings fall in the range of $100-$150/SF whereas conventional warehouse buildings are $50-$80/SF (Brown Wegher Construction). Some factors that can contribute to added cost are more expensive façade materials, additional windows and doors, and additional mechanical, electrical, and plumbing. The point being that a big box store has similar “bones” or base as a more fancy commercial building but lacks the “additive” elements that make it attractive and distinct within communities.

In the second part, an analysis of current big box transformation projects was conducted to establish a scale of projects and what typical elements go into a transformation. These gatherings were later used to inform what went into the Lake and Nicollet transformation.

In this proposal instead demolishing a valuable resource for the surrounding community (Kmart) the building can be adapted to accommodate new retail and business activity while allowing Kmart to remain an active member of the site. ¬The transformation includes splitting the building into two parts allowing Nicollet Avenue to reopen with plans for the NicolletCentral Modern Streetcar to run through and adding a variety of store sizes (120-1200 square feet) to the perimeter of the “new” Kmart. This retail hybrid would allow small growing busi-

Above: Retail street experience with transit hub

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nesses the opportunity to receive more street visibility while the larger, more established Kmart can occupy the interior of the building. The new Kmart would be reduced from its current suburban model at 89,400 square feet to a more urbanized store at approximate 46,660 square feet. Other big box retailers have followed suit such as Target” Express Stores with their new urban models planned for 2016 (45,000 square feet or less) and Walmart’s Neighborhood Store concept (40,000 square feet) (Ausick, 1). The smaller urban store will allow Kmart to not only remain a presence in the community but also anticipate future growth for the district.

Residence

Increase site density The new site will include two residential buildings, one a mid-rise mixed use and the other a low-rise with amenities. The varying heights will allow for the “retail street” behind the units to not be completely shaded and for Lake Street to have visual connection to the neighborhood behind it rather than a tall wall of apartments. The mixed-use residence has a similar variety of store sizes on the ground level that allow a range of retail possibilities from small donut shops or an artist’s gallery up to larger

stores that may house a clothing boutique or restaurant. The low-rise building would include small stores on the backside of the building (retail street) with amenities for residents.

Business Incubator

and locations for support resources such as financial planning, accounting, and law. With transportation centralized on the site this not only provides easy access for owners to commute daily but also for clients and customers.

Growing a community with support resources

Retail Incubator

As part of working class districts, small businesses often represent an identity that people can classify as their own. There exists a connection to the community and sense of pride. The most difficult parts of beginning a small business can often be not having the right resources or the customer visibility potential (Brustein, 2). The business incubator will occupy the right side of the split up Kmart building and provide space for co-working desks, conference areas, classrooms, and lectures. These resources would be available when new business owners seek to rent space. Part of the building would also house a transit hub for both bus traffic and the streetcar. This hub would propel the site into a central activity district and allow the visibility for owners to grow their businesses in a supportive environment. The second floor of the mixed-use residence would be dedicated to businesses that require office space rather than a retail store or just a desk. The floor would include conference rooms, open lounges,

The retail incubator would be a subdivision of the business incubator but would be aimed at more retail store type businesses whereas the business incubator would be people who desire an office and related support spaces. The retail incubator would feature a mini-shopping mall experience with a variety of stores and business types. This space, located on the ground floor of the mid-rise residential building and on the perimeter of the urban model Kmart, would provide high visibility for new small businesses and offer a connected, pedestrian friendly experience for clients and customers visiting the site.

The store types would range in size from small 120 square feet micro-stores up to traditional sized retail at 1500 square feet. This would allow a certain amount of flexibility to remain on the site but change stores as a business either grows or shrinks.

A space for small business

Above: Winter activity to promote a year round destination

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Modern Streetcar

A connected transit system The Nicollet-Central Modern Streetcar would run through the site and provide a vital connection north to “Eat Street”, Downtown Minneapolis, and across the Hennepin Avenue Bridge to Northeast Minneapolis (Nicollet-Central Streetcar Plan). By opening up this connection to the city increased traffic would be brought to the site through this new infrastructure and allow the site to become a retail destination for all of Minneapolis similar to how “Eat Street” developed for food. The right side of the adapted Kmart building would include programmed space for a transit hub allowing a place for people to rest or eat while they wait for the next bus or streetcar to arrive. Developing this site to be transit oriented will serve to progress the area into less automobile dependence while anticipating further urban growth where cars become unnecessary.

Pedestrian-oriented communities are ones that do not rely on the automobile for daily needs. Instead they aim to provide one’s essential necessities for life including living, working, and social desires within distance of mass transit or walk-ability. The new Lake and Nicollet site connected by mass transit through the

Above: The transformed site connected to the Midtown Greenway

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streetcar will be connected to the pedestrians by including an experience that encompasses the entire site; not just the front street face. In the rear of the site a connection to the Greenway will include a sweeping bicycle/walking path that will tie into the existing path and provide a park like experience in the back of the building which has been neglected up to this point.

Conclusion

Lake and Nicollet Adaptive Reuse seeks to adapt the

existing Kmart Big Box store overall demolition to vitalize the block on Lake and Nicollet as an urban center for the neighborhood. Implementing adaptive reuse establishes an example of how we can rethink our current building supply and land resources by converting the large footprint to serve other functions. This thesis proposes to create a pedestrian zone shopping center with the addition of the transportation line situated at the center of the site. Mixed-use program and various micro-stores brings vitality to the urban center. The new urban block at Lake Street and Nicollet Avenue will be a site that fosters local growth of the surrounding community while setting a precedent for future projects that suggests a sustainable approach to readapt the ever growing waste that results from abandoned sprawling mega-stores.

Acknowledgements

soon.” MinnPost., November 6, 2015, Politics and Policy Section.

I would like to thank my studio instructor Dr. Kristine Mun, the numerous faculty, and reviewers including Salvador Blumenkron for helping to not only shape the project but also challenge me to think about a critical piece of Minneapolis in a new light.

Christensen, Julia. Big Box Reuse. Massachusetts: MIT Press, 2009.

Selected Bibliography

Ford, George “Former Big Box Stores Pose Challenge, Opportunities.” The Gazette., March 31, 2014, News Section.

Ausick, Paul. “Walmart Now Has Six Types of Stores.” 24/7 Wall St., March 22, 2014, Economy Section.

LaVecchia, Olivia. “For cities, Big box stores are becoming even more of a terrible deal” Institute for Local Self-Reliance, June 16, 2015, Independent Business Section.

City of Minneapolis. “Lake and Nicollet Redevelopment Plan.”

Public Draft., February 28,, 2014,

Brown Wegher. “How Much Does a Construction Project Cost?”

Brown Wegher Construction. http://www.brownwegher. com/cost-of-construction-chart/(accessed January 30, 2016).

Nathanson, Iric. “The History of the “Nicollet Wall” and a hamstrung City Hall.” MinnPost, April 23, 2014, Politics and Policy Section.

Brustein, Darrah. “The 20 Hardest Things about Starting a Small Business.” Business Collective., October 13, 2013, Starting Up Section.

Powell, Logan T. “American Community Survey 5-year Data” United States Census Bureau, February 24, 2016, Developers Section.

Callaghan, Paul. “Yes, Minneapolis just took a big step toward reopening Nicollet Avenue. No, it’s not happening anytime

City of Minneapolis. “Nicollet-Central Modern Streetcar.” Public Draft., October 4, 2014.

Above: Lake St. and Nicollet Ave. intersection with the Modern Streetcar line.

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