Looking back at inaugural festivities for the Foshay Tower in 1929

“Minneapolis was literally bombed from the air on Friday night as hundreds of bursting, scintillating shells showered the business district.”

That’s how the Minneapolis Tribune described the fireworks that marked the opening the Foshay Tower in 1929.   

This summer, Downtown’s architectural icon got a new lease on life when it was reborn earlier this month as the “W Minneapolis.” However, inaugural festivities for the city’s newest hotel are not likely to equal the extravaganza that launched the Foshay Tower on an August weekend nearly 80 years ago.

The tower’s flamboyant developer, Wilbur Foshay, spent more than $100,000 to tell the world that his equally flamboyant office building, modeled after the Washington Monument, was open for the business.
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Visitors to The Hotel Minneapolis at 215 S. 4th St. can still visualize the banking business that occupied the 23,000-square-foot lobby for decades.

Bank vaults are embedded in the walls of the restaurant and lobby. The check-in area once held teller stations. A buffet counter and seating area occupy space where rows of desks once covered the main floor. Seventeen-foot-high Carrera marble columns tower up to the coffered ceilings.

The lobby is now designed to be reminiscent of a living room, with flat-screen TVs, long sofas and red pillows.

“This is a better art piece than anything we could have,” said General Manager Brian Schmechel, gesturing to an open vault surrounded by original brick.

The Hotel Minneapolis opened on Aug. 8, just in time for the Republican National Convention.

The hotel will host a convention-related event at restaurant Max, a venue with a 100-bottle wine list and two happy hours each workday. Lorin Zinter, the restaurant’s general manager, said they will offer reasonably sized portions of “lifestyle cuisine,” such as shrimp grilled flatbread and three-onion soup. The executive chef is Matt Holmes, a cook that staff rib for his one-time television appearance on the “Iron Chef.”
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Appropriately named for the Hindu god of wisdom and new beginnings, new Downtown Indian restaurant Dancing Ganesha seems to be off to a good start.

Located at 11th Street & Harmon Place, the restaurant opened for its dinner hours on May 29 and added its $9.99 lunch buffet on June 17.

Those who remember Willie’s Wine Bar that preceded it will find little recognizable in Dancing Ganesha, as the space has undergone a complete makeover in color palette and culture.

From mustard-colored cloth napkins to the cherry-stained bar and its hanging blue light fixtures, the space is adorned in muted primary colors. Clean lines produced by tables and cushioned chairs are interrupted by the gentle sparkle of traditional copper serving platters and bowls. On the farthest wall from the door of the restaurant, an elephant-headed Ganesha statue is mounted before a brilliant mural of Indian dancers.

Of course, the full bar was already in place, which restaurant Manager Vincent Ram sees as an advantage to other Indian dining options such as Ganesha’s sister restaurant Nalapak on Central Avenue in Columbia Heights.

The bar has both domestic taps and imported Indian beer, and amidst the menu’s contemporary cocktails are a variety of nonalcoholic, traditional beverages like lassi, a spiced yogurt-based drink, and natural shakes. Behind the bar, Bollywood films are broadcasted and contemporary Indian music — albeit at a distractingly high volume — fills the restaurant with language and pulse.
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‘SPARK24’

Let’s face it: Most of us will not be part of Republican National Convention mania.

You and I, we’re not VIPs, so if we’re going to get any political action, it’ll be from our TVs. Save for a few “Hey, I live there” moments as the Twin Cities’ skylines flash across the screen, not much is going to set us apart from John and Jane Doe watching CNN in El Paso, Texas.

Realizing this, local organizer Scott Mayer wanted to create a bash for Minnesotans to call their own, a party that people of all ages can go to at any time of day and that will double as a kick-off for the convention.

Planning for spark24 didn’t start until the early months of this year, impressive considering other much simpler events often take longer to piece together — and even more impressive considering Mayer was seeking out only Minnesota acts to fill 24 hours.
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Something just occurred to me. Acoustic guitars are the soccer balls of music: there’s usually one lying around and it doesn’t take a lot of expensive equipment to start playing. Which might help explain Rodrigo y Gabriela, an unplugged duo that cites heavy metal as their main influence.

Growing up in Mexico, Rodrigo Sanchez and Gabriela Quintero bonded over their love of high-decibel hard rock, trading the jagged riffs of their idols. The jagged instruments of their idols, however, weren’t as easy to acquire.

Their favorite bands seemed to prefer electric guitars with corners that would require childproofing in most homes. The Gibson Explorer, for instance, is shaped like the extra-credit problem from a trigonometry textbook. Just what do all those angles add up to? Can the Pythagorean theorem be used to solve this?

Unable to afford these acute-angled masterpieces, let alone a stack of amps, the two developed fingerpicked arrangements of metal songs for their nylon-string guitars.
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Everyone knows zombies love eating brains. But did you know the undead are also huge Led Zeppelin fans? It’s true — at least according to Jacqueline Ultan
of Jelloslave.

The classically trained cellist revealed this handy piece of information to me at the after-party for another one of her projects, “Come & Get It.” (The play, written and starring Kevin Kling, runs at the Open Eye Figure Theatre Aug. 6–11.)

“It was like the ‘Night of the Living Dead,’” says Ultan of her band’s 2004 gig at the State Fair.

“We kicked into Led Zeppelin and they were like …” she glances at those who Came & Got It, the wine-sipping after-partiers, hoping to find someone suitably walking-dead-like to use as an example. The gathering, however, is disappointingly well-behaved and lacks stumbling, slow shuffling, rolling eyes or grunting of any kind. A little more wine should take care of that.

Unable to find a proper zombie-surrogate to explain the audience reaction to “Whole Lotta Love” played by two cellos, Ultan spontaneously lets out a sustained, guttural “ahhhhhhh.”
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‘A’ Mill housing gets scaled back

Plans for nearly 1,000 riverfront housing units are being pared back at the East Bank Mills project that surrounds the Pillsbury “A” Mill.

Schafer Richardson Principal Kit Richardson cited the slow condo market and difficult capital markets to explain the potential changes.

In the fall of 2006, the City Council approved 960 housing units in 11 buildings between Main & 2nd streets and 3rd & 6th avenues southeast.

Now, the developer is considering a hotel at the Pillsbury “A” Mill, instead of 52 condominiums.

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Eric Lonidier

Date:  Aug. 11

Time: 12:04 p.m.

Location: Corner of 11th Street & Harmon Place

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Dome Souvenirs Plus Manager Ray Crump Jr. works 14-hour days when the Minnesota Twins play a home game at the Metrodome, so he’s not too sorry to see the Twins relocate to the other end of Downtown.

Crump said he plans to remain at 910 S. 3rd St. because the online business is booming and shorter retail hours would give him more time with his family.

Crump’s father, the Twins’ first equipment manager, opened Dome Souvenirs Plus next to the Dome in 1986, four years after the Metrodome was built.
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Traveling bathtub part of HCMC campaign

A steaming bathtub and a group of bathers will make their way down Nicollet Mall Tuesday for the launch of a Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC) campaign to prevent traumatic brain injury.

The rolling shower scene is meant to draw attention to the number one cause of traumatic brain injury: falls. The tub will travel from 5th Street to Peavy Plaza between 7:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. accompanied by campaign workers in bathrobes and slippers.

A second campaign event was set for 11 a.m.–5:30 p.m. Thursday, when HCMC’s interactive Brain Bar kiosk will make its way down Nicollet Mall. The educational display will allow visitors to build their own brain and share it through an online gallery.

HCMC
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The Hyatt Regency will be home to the Republican National Committee headquarters during the convention

Loring Park has a history of hosting protests and demonstrations, so the fact that the Republican National Committee’s headquarters will be stationed at a hotel overlooking the park has caught the attention of nearby residents.

The Hyatt Regency has devoted its entire facility at 1300 Nicollet Mall to the Republican National Convention (RNC). The Republican National Committee headquarters could occupy up to 74,000 square feet of meeting space, and all 533 hotel rooms are committed to the Republican staff and delegates from Idaho, Kentucky, Vermont and Maine.

“It certainly is a unique opportunity for our city and for our hotel, and we want to make certain that we do it right and put on a good show for these attendees,” said Hyatt General Manager Randy Thompson. He said the hotel is reviewing its procedures and retraining staff. “It’s just a matter of preparing for another convention, although a high profile one at that.”

Staff at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Coalition to March on the RNC to Stop the War said they haven’t heard of any demonstrations planned for the Hyatt, but said they wouldn’t be surprised to see spontaneous picketing there.

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Stevens Square has high doggie density

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STEVENS SQUARE — The small, shady park, the historic brownstone apartments, the proximity to Downtown — all those attributes have drawn generations of young professionals to Stevens Square.

Why is it, then, so many of today’s residents brought their Labs, shitzus, collies and pit bulls with them?

“It’s kind of hard not to see it,” said Steven Gallagher, executive director of the Stevens Square Community Organization (SSCO). “I would say that it seems like we have the most dogs per any other neighborhood around.”

Stevens Square has long been one of Minneapolis’ most densely populated neighborhoods. But it may also be in the running for the neighborhood most densely populated with residents of the hairy, four-footed, barking variety.

Anecdotally, it seems to be true. In conversations with neighborhood residents, many suggested Stevens Square had an unusually high number of canines.

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City Council Member Lisa Goodman (7th Ward) recently sat down with Southwest Journal reporter Steve Pease at her office at City Hall to discuss a number of city issues. The following are highlights from the interview.

Click here to see video from this interview

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North Loop

The men’s boutique MartinPatrick3 opened in a new location early this month at 121 N. 1st St.

The store has been tucked into the ID-inside Design shop, a boutique retailer at 211 N. 1st St., for the past year-and-a-half.

“It was doing really well and needed to have its own space,” said Owner Greg Walsh. “We really wanted to stay in the North Loop area.”

The store’s tagline is “essentials for mankind,” and the essentials range from watches to cufflinks, furniture, desk accessories, luggage, briefcases, books, eyewear, cologne lines and wallets.

“All geared around men, all boutique items that you don’t see in department stores,” Walsh said. “We really try to search out and isolate lines that aren’t represented in the Twin Cities.”
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CivicFest

While the main attractions for the Republican National Convention (RNC) will be held in St. Paul, the Minneapolis Convention Center will be home to a nonpartisan affair.

In coming weeks, crowds wearing everything from Brooks Brothers to Birkenstocks to baby booties will pack the Convention Center, 1201 2nd Ave. S., during CivicFest (Aug. 29–Sept 4).

The event will feature 35 educational exhibits chockfull of presidents and patriotism. There’s arguably no better time to become acquainted with the history of the United States’ presidents (aside from learning all of them in grade school) than during a national convention.

On the floor of the Convention Center, you’ll be able to step aboard a scale model of Air Force One only to walk outside and find yourself at the steps of the White House. As if that’s not enough, patrons can get a feel for being the president, when they take a seat behind a model replica of the desk in the Oval Office.
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North Loop

Church attendance at the Salvation Army has swelled to more than 200 people every Sunday, so the Salvation Army is expanding into its east parking lot to build a new service center and chapel.

The groundbreaking for the 6,000-square-foot addition at 1010 Currie Ave. took place in July, and construction is expected to be wrapped up in eight months. An agency that provides free chiropractic and acupuncture care would also move into the addition.

“It has a very steep-pitched cathedral roof on it, and it definitely is a little more picturesque than the former Dayton’s warehouse,” said Steve Horsfield, COO of the Harbor Light Center.

Looking forward, the Salvation Army wants to start up an “Opportunity Center,” which is a one-stop shop that provides housing help and other aid to people experiencing homelessness.

Hennepin County has issued a request for proposals to build three Opportunity Centers for families, youth and singles as part of the ten-year plan to end homelessness in the county.
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The Minnesota Twins are looking forward to fireworks at the open-air stadium in 2010.

Twins President David St. Peter said the organization is not close to making decisions about the frequency of fireworks displays, but he said the team would like to feature them at the new stadium.

“It’s a staple of virtually every ballpark in America,” he said.


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Hoping to stave off a collective headache for Downtown residents and workers during the Republican National Convention, Commuter Connection is hosting an alternative travel fair all day today.

The fair shares alternative options such as biking, using mass transportation and carpooling, according to a news release. Along with maps and bicycle parking information, commuting experts are helping to plan routes for those considering biking. They’ll give demonstrations, too, on what to do if a tire goes flat and how to use the bike racks on buses.

Staff also is helping to plan mass transportation and match rides for carpools.
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Spare the air

With nearly half the days of the year in Minneapolis spent under the pall of an air-quality advisory, Minneapolis is asking citizens to do their part to “spare the air.”

In 2007, Minneapolis experienced 178 moderately unhealthy days due to poor air quality, according to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.

While it has recently taken progressive measures — such as the City Council enacting a ban on idling more than three minutes for cars not in traffic — the city is asking citizens to voluntarily take clean-air measures into their own hands.

The city suggested numerous ways to change driving habits and therefore reduce emissions that create smog.
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Life after NRP update

Framework for the Future, a special report that is meant to act as a blueprint for future governance, structure and funding sources for Minneapolis neighborhoods, was adopted Aug. 8 by the City Council. However, the Council won’t act on many of the recommendations until it hears from the public at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 20 in Council Chambers.

The report, culled from work done by a special Neighborhood Revitalization Program (NRP) Work Group, calls for the creation of a new city department and citizen advisory board. Some of the ideas currently used in NRP are included in future plans, however, the structure will change.

The Neighborhood Community Advisory Board (NCAB) could largely replace the 17-member NRP Policy Board. However, the creation of this board has been delayed until public comment can be heard.

The report also called for the creation of the Neighborhood and Community Relations (NCR) Department, which would effectively serve as a centralized office between neighborhoods and other city departments.

The Council action on Aug. 8 also established the Committee of the Whole — where all Council members gather for committee reports the day before regular Council meetings — as a home base for future discussions and actions related to neighborhood structure and spending. The report went on to outline a five-step process to pick a director for the NCR and referred all future neighborhood budgetary matters to the Ways & Means Committee.

Millions in city taxes will no longer subsidize neighborhood projects after 2009. The state Legislature recently OK’d the creation of tax-increment financing (TIF) districts to create up to $24 million annually for the City Council to fund neighborhoods and pay down $100 million in debt remaining on the Target Center.

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