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Swedish Bank Building
961-963 Payne Avenue, St. Paul (view map)
Part of the National Register of Historic Places, the Swedish Bank Building on St. Paul’s East Side provides financial services, employment opportunities, referral services, business development opportunities, and educational and training opportunities. The East Side Financial Center, a collaboration between US Federal Credit Union, Thrivent Financial and Lutheran Social Services, provides financial services and counseling. The Cultural Wellness Center of Saint Paul fosters economic development and business growth by supporting small businesses and economic activity in the neighborhood—particularly through culturally-specific training and education services.
The Swedish Bank Building was originally designed and constructed of solid brick in 1923, By the mid-1990s, the building had fallen into deep disrepair. One of NDC’s partners, the East Side Neighborhood Development Company (ESNDC), acquired the building in 1999. However, the costs and challenges of redeveloping the building proved a deterrent to private investment. The building stood vacant and broken—a blighting influence on the entire neighborhood—until 2005. At that point, ESNDC and NDC joined together to save the building and allow it to echo its historic role in the neighborhood—once again, it became a trusted institution where neighborhood residents could go for advice, opportunities and services to build assets for their families.
The renovation of the Swedish Bank Building combines elements of economic development, historic renovation, and revitalization to serve as a powerful symbol of economic re-birth and opportunity for the entire community.
