Committee denies appeal; demolition of historic‑eligible grain elevator at 3501 Hiawatha approved subject to mitigation plan

The Business, Housing and Zoning Committee on March 4, 2025 denied an appeal requesting that the committee block demolition of the ADM Nokomis Grain Mill at 3501 Hiawatha Avenue and initiate a designation study; by denying the appeal the committee left in place the Heritage Preservation Commission’s approval of demolition subject to a mitigation plan.

Erin Kaye, senior city planner in CPED’s historic preservation section, told the committee the property — a 1914 mill with later additions and steel elevator/silo features — was determined individually eligible for the National Register and meets local designation criteria cited in the Minneapolis Code of Ordinances. The Heritage Preservation Commission concluded the property is historically significant but found demolition acceptable because the applicant demonstrated a lack of reasonable alternatives given the economic and structural challenges of adaptive reuse. The HPC approved demolition with one condition: a mitigation plan to document and recognize the site’s history before a demolition permit is issued.

Appellant Joel Albers and a group he represents, Save Minneapolis From the Wrecking Ball, urged denial of demolition and asked the committee to require feasibility assessments, specific adaptive‑reuse scenarios, and documentation of potential for affordable housing conversions, noting local and national examples of adaptive reuse. The applicant, developer Louis Zachary of Zachary Construction Group, and CPED staff said adaptive reuse at this site was economically infeasible given contamination, structural complexity and remediation costs. The developer presented a cost estimate submitted with the application in which adaptive reuse was estimated at roughly $28 million for a 25‑unit reuse scenario (about $1.1M per unit) while a full demolition and redevelopment scenario could support up to 240 units at an estimated $400,000 per unit. Staff also noted the property owner incurs about $676,000 per year in security costs to mitigate site safety and trespass issues.

After public comment and deliberation, Councilmember Ellison moved to deny the appeal and uphold the HPC decision to allow demolition subject to the mitigation plan; the committee voted in favor and the chair declared the motion carried. Councilmembers said the site’s redevelopment would advance city housing and transit‑oriented development goals, while acknowledging the historic significance and urging documentation and mitigation measures as required by the HPC condition.

Denying the appeal establishes that a demolition permit can proceed consistent with HPC conditions; staff said further review and planning for future development will take place through standard planning and permitting processes.