St. Paul Officials Hoping to Develop RiverCentre Parking Ramp
The city of St. Paul put out an ad to private developers earlier this month for the “RiverCentre Ramp Opportunity Site” this week. The site falls within a federal Opportunity Zone, offering tax benefits for private developers who take on the job.
The city’s Housing and Redevelopment Authority is offering “air rights” above the RiverCentre ramp, which gives the opportunity for construction directly above the city-owned ramp. Nonetheless, the application also leaves open the possibility for an outright replacement to the ramp as well, if it offers the best outcome for the city’s plans. There is also available land adjacent to the ramp that can be developed, and the city hopes that some private developer may be able to construct a long sought-after river walk or balcony to look over the Mississippi River.
The ramp was shut down for a period of time in 2018 after part of the concrete ceiling fell on a car. The ramp was reopened, but city officials have failed to garner new funds from the legislature to build a new ramp. City officials hope to receive a bid from a developer by the end of November and begin construction by 2021, in hopes of the construction coinciding with the closure and reconstruction of the eastbound side of the Kellogg Bridge, which is immediately adjacent to the ramp above the bluffs. The goal is to have the redevelopment, and bridge, open by 2023.
A redevelopment of the ramp would be the latest effort by the City of St. Paul, in conjunction with private developers, to renovate and remake the St. Paul Buffs that overlook the Mississippi River.
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St. Paul seeks developer for ‘air rights’ above RiverCentre parking ramp