NDC Special Projects > Real Estate Development Initiative (REDI) > Plaza Verde

Plaza Verde

                                       

Location: 1516 E Lake Street Minneapolis, MN 55407 Contact Info: (612) 728-5485 (612) 728-5402 Fax

It takes a lot of effort to stabilize a neighborhood, as businesses, nonprofits, arts organizations, community groups are all stakeholders who have a part to play in the creation of a thriving urban neighborhood. In the case of the Bloom/Lake area, home of the former Antiques Minnesota Building, the Neighborhood Development Center joined in with the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre, Cooperativa Mercado Central, and the Latino Economic Development Center to transform a vacant and blighted property on 1516 East Lake Street into a revitalized retail destination for community based businesses and a center for arts groups. It was recently named Plaza Verde and it's opening doors in January 2005.

This 43,000 sf, four-story building was renovated in 2004 to provide the entrepreneurs of the Coop-erativa Mercado Central an opportunity to grow and expand their businesses into street level retail spaces, and a voice in the fate of a central property in the heart of the emerging Latino district. The second floor has office spaces for Latino businesses, as well as the new Lake Street Business & Career Center , a joint venture of NDC, Minneapolis Community Technical College , Goodwill Easter Seals, and the City of Minneapolis . The third floor ballroom is leased to the Heart of the Beast Theatre for affordable studio, office and performance space for itself and other community-based arts organizations, fostering the cultural development begun sixteen years ago when Heart of the Beast Theatre renovated the Avalon Theatre on the corner of 15th and Lake Street .

Neighborhood Development Center (NDC), was the lead developer for the project, which had a total cost of more than $4.3 Million. This project is the first in Minnesota to leverage New Markets Tax Credits (NMTC) and the Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit, which will be used by Wells Fargo Bank and Wells Fargo CDC, in return for an equity investment from Wells Fargo CDC and loan from Wells Fargo Bank. In addition, gap financing was secured from the City of Minneapolis , Minneapolis Empowerment Zone, Midtown Phillips NRP, Partners for the Common Good, Northwest Area Foundation, Met Council Tax Base Revitalization Fund, Pohlad Foundation, and Piper Jaffray.

Before Renovations		After Renovations