When is a downtown arts district no longer an arts district?
When it’s taken over by excavators and hardhats, naturally.
At least, that’s the concern among some Lowertown artists, past and present. On the “Urban Deluxe” blog, a former Lowertown artist — who now lives in the artsy Minneapolis North Loop neighborhood — reflects on the changes that helped drive her out of downtown St. Paul, including four years of continuous construction. Where some see life and progress and a future minor league ballpark, she’s seeing gentrification and dude-bros swilling beers.
A selection:
“As John and I take in the rapid changes occuring in Lowertown, it’s interesting to watch the neighborhood transform from a tranquil artist community to Minnesota’s answer to Chicago’s Wrigleyville. Having attempted to pick up a pizza order from a Wrigleyville restaurant on game day last year, I can already see the demographic of Lowertown changing to resemble that neighborhood. Twenty-something sport-interested office workers and students are beginning to outnumber the resident artists, older professionals and retirees who were once the predominant population.”
Read more here: Urdan Deluxe MPLS.
There’s a bit of news among the sour grapes, too. It appears the Clouds in Water Zen Center is contemplating relocating within the next year to somewhere more “conducive to the contemplative goals of our zen center,” she writes.
Nigel Parry, a Lowertown artist, is also a bit pessimistic about the future of the arts in the place he calls home, even with the St. Paul Art Crawl rolling out this weekend.
Yes, there’s big changes coming to Lowertown, and major construction has been non-stop these past four years, more or less beginning with the Lofts at Farmers Market, Union Depot, Lafayette Bridge, underground utility relocation leading up to the Central Corridor work, Central Corridor track laying, Central Corridor maintenance facility, Pioneer-Endicott, Penfield, demolition for the future Pedro Park, and now the 6th Street sidewalk expansion, the Prince / Willius / Lafayette street construction and the new St. Paul Saints ballpark. Did we miss anything?).
Hey, even the dog park has been moved: dog park relocated.
With so much loud banging and burgeoning gentrification enveloping a once-sleepy warehouse district, the Pioneer Press ran a front page article on the mixed-emotions of Lowertown artists, here: artists concerned about neighborhood changes.
Of course, not every artist is feeling pessimistic. Some are excited to see a little more life downtown, which could be very good for business (and for street cred: ‘I live in Lowertown. Yeah, I’m that cool.’) At least one Lowertown blogger is looking forward to some progress at the site of the former Pedro Luggage Center, which was torn down to make room for the future Pedro Park (though little birds tell the Scoop he’s less hot about the early-morning construction at his own condo complex, the Rossmor): nicholasbackus.wordpress.com.
There’s always more news about Lowertown available from the fine folks at Lowertown Landing, here: Lowertown Landing news. The main page is here: LowertownLanding.com.
Meanwhile, demolition at the site of the future 7,000-seat regional ballpark recently resumed following the tragic death of an experienced demolition worker there: Saints stadium demolition resumes.