For the past 35 years, St. Louis Park resident and business owner Kurt Lerman has never seen St. Louis Park's historic Walker Lake neighborhood as vibrant as it is today.
“It used to be a ghost town at night,” Rahman said. “I'm always busy now.”
Located in the city's Lenox neighborhood near the intersection of Walker and Lake Streets, this area was once the commercial center of St. Louis Park. In the late 19th century, lumber businessman and art collector T. B. Walker, founder of the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, led a group of investors to develop the neighborhood into an industrial hub along the Minneapolis and St. Louis Railroads, according to the Saint. It was founded as . Lewis Park Historical Society.
The area prospered until the national economic crash of 1893, after which development stagnated for about 50 years. According to city documents, business growth stalled when development moved away from the area due to the elimination of streetcars in 1954 and the opening of strip malls in the late '40s and early '50s. And it has almost subsided.
As more businesses opened on the city's Excelsior Boulevard, Walker Lake “desperate,” Rahman said.
From an economic standpoint, Rahman said it is essential to revitalize the city's original commercial center to appeal to new business tenants and their customers.
“It was one of the first things people saw when they came to town,” he says. “If it looks rundown, that's the impression people have of St. Louis Park.”
Attempts were made to improve the district over the years, but the implementation of those plans met with little success. The city reversed course in his 2018, leveraging recommendations from business owners to eliminate barriers to commercial growth. The city is rezoning the district to give new property owners more flexibility in using some of the district's historic buildings, including the use of shared parking, said Jennifer Monson, the city's redevelopment manager. It is said that he did it. The city implemented a revitalization plan that included additional parking, bike lanes, public art, resurfacing roads and sidewalks, and renovating some buildings.
Monson said this was a $6 million investment by the city.
“This is the heart of St. Louis Park,” she said. “It has a high school, it has a central community center, it's a small business hub. We really wanted to maintain the character of the area and keep it walkable.”
As a result of changes and improvements, small and medium-sized businesses have moved in. The district is currently home to more than 100 businesses, including restaurants, hair and tanning salons, pet stores, fitness studios, and clothing stores.
new business arrives
Spencer Johnson, founder of Sota Clothing, a brand that caters to Minnesota pride, purchased the Walker Building, named after TB Walker, in 2018. Constructed in 1892, the building is considered the oldest building in the district and one of the oldest in St. Louis. park.
“It checked all the boxes for us,” Johnson said.
Johnson moved in around the same time the city began implementing a revitalization plan. We had to endure construction, but it was worth it. He said the area has great potential, primarily due to its proximity to downtown Minneapolis, but also the growing number of millennials and Gen Z buyers who are buying first-time homes within walking distance of surrounding neighborhoods. This was also cited as a reason.
Additionally, real estate costs and taxes in St. Louis Park were significantly lower than in Minneapolis, Johnson said.
Since 2018, Sota Clothing's sales have increased by at least 10% every year, he said.
“Just looking at the growth of business in this area, it's huge,” he says.
Luke Derheim, a partner in Craft & Crew Hospitality, a Hopkins-based restaurant group with six locations in the Twin Cities, praised the area's mix of industry and residential along the highway. 7 and thought that relocating would be advantageous to the group's growth. In 2019, his company opened The Block, a dog-friendly pub off Walker Street and Louisiana Avenue in a former vacuum retail store.
“We saw that St. Louis Park needed more restaurants,” Durheim said.
Like Johnson, Durheim believed Walker Lake was an area ripe for development given its young demographic. As of 2020, the majority of St. Louis Park's more than 50,000 residents were between the ages of 25 and 34, according to Minnesota Compass, a division of St. Paul-based Wilder Research. .
Durheim and business partner David Benowitz further expanded their efforts in St. Louis Park last December, purchasing the former Galaxy Drive-In. The drive-in has been converted into Wells Roadside, a dog-friendly burger joint serving ice cream, beer and wine. The drive-in will continue to show movies and will be located just outside the Walker Lake area.
change trajectory
Monson said there were multiple vacant lots in the Walker Lake area in 2018. She said she currently only has two properties available for rent and none for sale.
“It was amazing,” Johnson said. “Many new businesses have opened since we moved in.”
Durheim, Rahman and Johnson were founding members of the Walker Lake Business Association, which was created as part of the city's revitalization plan. Durheim said the three have been advocates for the business community for about three years, and between business owners and residents who wanted a communal gathering place to call their own and be “proud.” A communication channel has been established.
With construction of Metro Transit's Green Line light rail extension station at Louisiana Avenue and Wood Dale Avenue in St. Louis Park expected to be completed by 2027, Rahman predicts increased traffic to the area.
Rahman began buying property in Walker Lake in 1996 and owns about 22,000 square feet of property in the district between three buildings, all with room for a total of 15 tenants. He intentionally keeps rents below market rates to keep Walker Lake attractive to small business owners and avoid turnover.
He doesn't want the area to deteriorate again.
“This place is alive,” Rahman said. “And that wasn't 25 years ago.”
