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Hutchinson economic director details housing, retail and redevelopment updates
Summary
Miles Seppold, Hutchinson's economic development director, outlined timelines for North Maple Apartments, siding and street work at the Landing on Lehi Street, a delayed Jorgensen demolition after asbestos was found, a new Thai restaurant and a national retailer at the Hutchinson Mall; he also described Enterprise Center arrivals and the status of a small proposed data center.
Miles Seppold, Hutchinson’s economic development director, opened the episode with a series of local project updates, saying the city has several residential, retail and redevelopment projects moving forward and a few with revised schedules.
Seppold said North Maple Apartments, on the former Burns Manor site on Hutchinson’s north end, is under construction with earthwork underway. "The plan is to build two buildings initially. Each one of them is 44 units," he said, and he expects the first two buildings to be ready for lease within about a year. He added that a third building would be built once the first two are full.
At the Landing on Lehi Street, Seppold said siding is being installed and interior work is moving from the top down; a site superintendent told him the siding work should take six to eight weeks. He described additional work on the west side of the building to pour a driveway to underground garages and said contractors were expected on-site in early June to dig a stormwater retention pond and install curb and gutter where an old boat landing now sits.
Seppold said demolition at the Jorgensen site has been delayed after additional asbestos was discovered during pre-demolition testing. "Lo and behold, they found some additional asbestos that needs to get taken out," he said, calling the discovery “a huge break” because remediation can occur before demolition begins. He estimated abatement would take about a month and that demolition could move to the end of June after remediation.
On retail and dining, Seppold said a Thai restaurant plans to occupy the former Zella’s location and could open around July; he said the owner operates several Thai restaurants in Minnesota and recently opened a location in St. Cloud. He also said a national retailer that is new to Minnesota is reconfiguring space at the Hutchinson Mall, with construction underway and a possible late-summer opening once the tenant’s identity is cleared to be shared.
At the Enterprise Center, Seppold reported that a cannabis chemistry testing lab is preparing its space and expects to start with eight or nine employees in June to test products for contamination and chemical-level compliance. He also highlighted Demos Materials, a startup of University of Minnesota PhDs that is developing biodegradable polymer beads; Seppold said the product could help address plastics lingering in the environment and that the company hopes to launch locally in June.
On a proposed data center in the industrial park, Seppold said the planning commission and city council previously approved the site plan and a conditional use permit that includes noise-testing and Minnesota statute–based limits. He described the project as small—about 7,500 square feet—and said it is not expected to use appreciable water. However, no building plans or permit applications have been submitted yet, so construction timing is uncertain and likely not before late summer or early fall.
Seppold closed the segment by inviting listeners to call with questions and noting several of the projects have moving parts and tentative schedules.
