Frogtown Square

The intersection of University Avenue and Dale Street has been the backbone of Saint Paul’s Frogtown neighborhood dating back to the 1860s. For decades, Frogtown was home to the workers who were responsible for building the railroads and transportation industry upon which the city was established, and the University/Dale intersection was among the city’s most vital hubs.

The fortunes of St. Paul’s railroad and streetcar industry, however, turned with the growing popularity of the automobile, and during the ‘60s and ‘70s, disruption and disinvestments in Saint Paul’s core urban neighborhoods took their toll. Urban renewal efforts and the construction of Interstate 94 decimated the adjacent Rondo community. Storefronts along University Avenue became vacant. The intersection of Dale and University, once a focal point of commerce serving Frogtown families, became best known for its adult theaters, the Faust and the Flick, and strip club, the Belmont. Though the community successfully rallied to close the adult theaters, further positive change at the intersection has been slow to come.

The Frogtown Square project, currently under construction at the Northeast corner of Univeristy and Dale, is culmination of more than 15 years of effort by a partnership of of four local non profits (Model Cities, Inc., Greater Frogtown CDC, Neighborhood Development Center (NDC), and Aurora/St. Anthony Neighborhood Development Corp.). The project will feature underground parking, 11,700 square feet of commercial space on the first floor, and 50 units of permanent, affordable senior housing on the second, third and fourth floors.

The building will be designed to reflect the traditional art-deco themed buildings found along University Avenue and will reflect “transit oriented design” principles so that it interacts seemlessly with the Dale Street station on the forthcoming Central Corridor Light Rail line. Frogtown Square will further improve the look and feel of this high-profile intersection by upgrading the sidewalks, lighting and landscaping.

The housing will be owned and managed by Episcopal Homes will be targeted towards active, independent seniors. NDC, with its non profit partners, will own and manage the projects commercial space, which will be targeted toward emerging entrepreneurs from the surroudning community.

The project, which will create business opportunities, employement opportunities and housing opportunities for long time residents of the Frogtown neighborhood, will serve both as a catalyst and a model for future development along the Central Corridor line.