Part of a 4 phase development by a future SW Light Rail West Lake station that will bring 739 new multi-family units. Phase 1 and 2 will be the two towers, 3 and 4 will be low-rises surrounding the twin towers and the already built original Calhoun tower which is 22 stories.
This week the Minneapolis Planning Commission unanimously approved controversial plans for a pair of new apartment towers overlooking Bde Maka Ska.
St. Louis Park-based Bader Development wants to build two 26-story buildings adjacent to a pair of low-rise apartment buildings on a 5.4-acre site at 3430 List Place in south Minneapolis, according to a city staff report submitted before the meeting.
The proposed $100-million-plus project, which is being called the Calhoun Towers, would have about 750 units and would be adjacent to a 21-story, 113-apartment tower that was built in 1962.
Some neighbors have objected to the project, which would be built in four phases, because of its high density and its proximity to Bde Maka Ska. The project is adjacent to the future Southwest light-rail line’s West Lake Street station and next to the Midtown Greenway bicycle trail, which the developer said will help allay concerns about parking and congestion.
The developer was asking for a conditional-use permit, rezoning, a final plat approval and several setback variances. A representative for the company said the project will next be reviewed in early August, and that based on the unanimous approval from the Planning Commission, the company is optimistic it can start construction on Phase I in early 2019. The second phase of the project could include income-restricted apartments.
I was pleasantly surprised to walk by this tonight and see that it's now under construction. Probably not meeting the SSP definition of "construction" quite yet, but definitely lots of site work going on.
Looks like this project is now called "West Lake Quarter"
Not surprised the name changed. I still like the original two tower version better. I’m getting tired of hulking earth-toned apartment buildings. But I’m glad to hear it’s starting to go up.
Mods: can we get a name change on this thread to “West Lake Quarter”?
Hard to convey in photos, but the size of this site is really impressive. Can't think of the last time there was a project of this scale in Minneapolis outside of downtown. Since the entire project is on pilings, it's kind of cool to see the grade beams going in up close rather than strip footings.
Looks like the ramp will be precast. They've also set up their construction office trailers within the tower footprint. I'll take that as confirmation that they won't be starting on the tower portion in earnest until next year.
So, I was poking around google street view looking at the surroundings before construction started. The area around the original tower was hideous. Do I remember hearing somewhere that a second tower was planned originally that never happened? That’s the only reason I can come up with for that dirt parking lot that used to face Abbott, and the weird layout of the old parking structure.
^ Not sure about a second tower originally planned, but that might be the case. If you go back in Streetview, you can see that the dirt lot hasn't been there very long, it was originally a landscaped area along the service drive and at some point relatively recently they just started using it for parking without paving it. Not great.