Strong Local Economy : Development News

The grand opening of Sunrise Creative Gourmet Market on Saturday, March 8, continues a 100-year-long tradition for the Forti family of bringing hard working Minnesotans authentic Italian cuisine. The new venture at 865 Pierce Butler Route in Saint Paul includes a retail location, factory outlet, and large-scale cooperative commercial kitchen with dedicated gluten-free space.

Fourth generation owner Tom Forti is building on the foundation laid by his great grandfather in 1913, when he opened the original Sunrise Bakery in Hibbing. Guilio Forti emigrated from Rome in the early 1900s to work in the mines of southern Minnesota. Already in his 50s, he soon decided to leave the mine and return to his former craft—baking artisan Italian breads.

Sunrise Creative Gourmet holds its Italian heritage close while bringing age-old recipes into the modern age. Many of the recipes used today have been passed down from generation to generation, according to Forti. Using imported Italian equipment along with locally sourced ingredients maintains another level of authenticity while incorporating modern flare.

“It’s an emotional investment in the product,” Forti says.  “We’re a very prideful family and we take great pleasure in knowing people like our food.”

That pride was reaffirmed Saturday. With more than 500 customers stopping in to sample both classic and new fare from Sunrise, the small market was bustling from open to close. “It’s great for a little shop like this…we had no idea what to expect,” Forti says. “It was a pleasant surprise.”

Forti’s father started his own spinoff of Sunrise Bakery when he opened Sunrise Deli in Hibbing, incorporating fresh pastas, Italian meats, and more to the family’s line of baked goods. He and Tom’s mother own and operate the deli today, while his aunt and cousin run the original Sunrise Bakery, both in Hibbing.

Tom Forti is now bringing a new perspective to the family business. After graduating from the University of Saint Thomas in 2001, he went to work in the food industry, spending three years working retail and restaurants in Idaho. He moved back to Hibbing in 2004 to bring a wholesaling aspect to the family business. For the past nine years he has been working for Trudeau Distributing, a specialty grocery distribution company.

Through that role, he’s formed important relationships with Twin Cities’ grocers and co-ops, he says. He’s also become a familiar sight at area farmers’ markets, where he staffs the family stand.

While the Saint Paul retail expansion is an exciting development for the family business, it’s the cooperative commercial kitchen component that has Forti’s passion cooking.

“This building is going to service as retail, but really, we’re here to produce gluten-free pasta and hopefully gluten-free entrees,” he says.

With half the space dedicated for gluten-free production, Forti is looking forward to bringing in up to 12 other small- to medium-size businesses to use the space and sell their products in the marketplace up front.

The Sunrise Market will carry products from all the family’s related businesses including, fresh, frozen and dried pastas, sauces and porketta, as well as signature potica, biscotti, and other baked goods.

Source: Tom Forti
Writer: Kyle Mianulli

Vinyl aficionados can look forward to flipping through a new trove of wax when Barely Brothers Records opens later this month at 783 Raymond Avenue in the Creative Enterprise Zone on the Central Corridor in Saint Paul. Barely Brothers joins such retro and vintage shops in the area as Mid Mod Men and Succotash.

The shop’s grand opening celebration is March 22. Local music acts including Minneapolis-based Eleganza, and Matt Arthur & the Bratlanders, will perform.

Co-owner Mike Elias has spent a good part of his life digging through stacks of records. After working at various record shops for a decade, he spent 13 years at the Electric Fetus in Minneapolis. When he’s not pushing vinyl, he’s often spinning it at clubs and events around town where he performs as DJ Father Time.

Along with co-owner Spencer Brook, Elias is now bringing his erudite musical tastes to bear on this new venture. With 8,000 LPs and 20,000 45s in store, Barely Brothers will offer a “deep and eclectic” catalogue of used records along with new releases, according to Elias.

“We have a pretty good Latin Boogaloo section,” Elias says, only half joking. “People don’t even know they want this stuff yet,” Brook adds.

Just talking about music and expanding customers’ horizons is a big part of the joy of owning a record store, Elias says, while fingering through a rack of albums. “Show me what you like and I’ll show you what else you’ll like,” he says.

Elias and Brook also plan to host live performances in their new space. With movable racks, the record store by day can easily become an intimate music club by night. Elias hopes to tap local DJs—many of whom he calls friends—to spin records specifically from the store’s catalogue. The owners would eventually like to host art-show openings in the space as well.

Their eclectic inventory might attract a certain collector crowd, but Elias and Brook are non-discriminating in their music tastes.  “My tastes are expansive so I really can’t discount anyone else’s…unless it’s Billy Joel,” Elias says.

Brook says they want every music fan, especially young ones, to stop by the shop and rediscover a different way of listening to music. They’re critical of today’s digital music industry, which pushes single tracks over holistic albums.

“We want people to think about the way they are listening to music, that there are better ways to do it,” Brook says. His suggestion? “Sit down and put on a record.”

Sources: Mike Elias, Spencer Brook
Writer: Kyle Mianulli

As the craft beer boom and local food movement have shown, the Twin Cities has developed a palate for artisanal and locally produced fare. Shawn Person, of Moonshine Coffee Co., is now looking to expand our developing taste for specialty roast coffee. In early March, he’s opening a new storefront location in the Creative Enterprise Zone next to the Green Line in Saint Paul. Roundtable Coffee Works, he says, is a “coffee roasting manufactory.”

Inspired by craft guilds and modeled after collaborative workspaces, Roundtable Coffee Works will house an array of local businesses endeavoring to create their own unique Twin Cities’ flavors of specialty coffee. “It’s really about sharing knowledge and helping each other out—establishing that kind of community,” Person says.

It might not make financial sense for a local coffee shop to purchase and maintain personal roasting equipment. But being able to rent a roaster by the hour to make a one-of-a-kind specialty roast? That’s an opportunity Person is confident coffee entrepreneurs will jump at.

After six years in the Twin Cities’ roasting scene, Person is an industry veteran, he says. He already has several local coffeepreneurs on board and a surprising number of home roasters have approached him about utilizing the space. Due to rising interest, he also plans to have dedicated hours for hobbyists to come in and roast their own beans.

“There’s a growing awareness of specialty coffee in general,” Person says. He’s also noticing “differences in ways of selling coffee. By that I mean Starbucks, Dunn Bros., and Caribou all sell coffee a certain way, and it works. But then there’s another way to sell [it], and that’s small and local, with a neighborhood focus, as well as quality focus.”

Just as people are flocking to taprooms to taste local microbrews, so are they increasingly interested in how their morning java tastes—and is made. They want to feel connected to the process, he says. “People want to see the roaster... At Thanksgiving, they want to brew some coffee in the morning and tell their family, ‘Yeah, my buddy Shawn roasted this.’”

Roundtable will have a retail component though don’t look for tables to sit at with your laptop while you leisurely sip a breve hazelnut latte. The roaster will only offer drip coffee and espresso to go, along with beans. The Roundtable brand of coffee won’t be wholesaled either.

For Person, his start up is more about serving residents of and visitors to the neighborhood. Still, eager customers can purchase Roundtable Coffee beans, mugs, t-shirts and other gear for a limited time through an online pop-up shop and similar pop-ups he’ll schedule annually.

Source: Shawn Person
Writer: Kyle Mianulli

Sisyphus Brewery, named for a character in Greek mythology, plans to open in Loring Park in April. The brewery will include a taproom and a 100-seat theater for live comedy, music, and podcasts about beer. The name is about keeping things fresh, with new taps and new acts every week, says co-owner Sam Harriman.

Harriman, a comedy veteran who co-owns the brewery with his wife Catherine Cuddy, are renovating the first floor of a vintage warehouse space that previously served as storage for the nearby Dunwoody College of Technology. The 7,000-square-foot space has low ceilings, exposed brick walls, and industrial floors and ceilings that “We’re not touching,” he says.  The couple is taking a “less-is-more” kind of approach to the design, with wood and metal finishes setting the tone. 

Within the taproom area, Harriman adds, “we’re creating different zones” with booths, shuffleboard, and “a lot of different hangout spots.” In some ways, the place will feel more like a coffee shop, where people can linger over a beer or take in a show. The theater’s programming will come later — after the taproom gets set up.   

The couple decided to merge the brewery with an entertainment venue to differentiate Sisyphus from other breweries. In the near future, the local brewery scene will be “super competitive, more so than it is now,” he says. “I thought entertainment and beer would go perfectly together.”

Source: Sam Harriman, co-owner, Sisyphus Brewing  
Writer: Anna Pratt  



 

Rock Star Supply Co.’s busy location, in the Creative Enterprise Zone at the corner of Raymond and University in Saint Paul, is about to get busier. The educational nonprofit—its dedicated volunteers tutor elementary- and secondary-school children on writing, algebra, and other subjects—is working with San Francisco-based tutoring company 826 National to bring one of that organization’s signature “stores” to the Twin Cities.

Rock Star is currently a lively tutoring workshop that offers “a range of programs, all free of charge…[that] focus on project-based learning, homework help, [and] extra-curricular reading, along with spectacular writing prompts and smaller writing workshops,” according to its website. This summer, Rock Star’s headquarters, as part of 826’s new franchise-style expansion initiative, will be rebranded as the “Mid-Continent Oceanographic Institute.”

What? The name does make sense. Here’s why. In its 10-plus years, 826 National has developed a clever, family-friendly approach to branding. Each tutoring center (it currently has eight, mostly in major Northern cities) doubles as a store with an unmistakable “angle.” For instance, Boston’s “Bigfoot Research Institute” sells cryptozoology books and paraphernalia.

Chicago’s “Boring Store” doubles as a “Spy Supply Store.” (The “boring” part is meant to throw passers-by off the trail.) Seattle’s “Space Travel Supply Company” sells rocket equipment, space suits, and other accessories to “freelance space travelers.” Each store plows its merchandise earnings back into its tutoring operations. So how did the Twin Cities become home to the Mid-Continent Oceanographic Institute?

“We went through an extensive ideation process to arrive at Mid-Continent Oceanographic Institute,” says Jeremy Wang, chair of Rock Star’s Executive Board. “We’re playing off the idea that, to most of the country, we’re a ‘fly-over’ state, hence the Mid-Continent. And while we have a lot of coastline, none of it is oceanic.” Wang’s thrilled at the prospect of opening a “sub shop” that doesn’t sell anything edible.

The expansion also comes with challenges. “Our biggest hurdle is to be financially stable enough to build out the storefront and sustain our current programming,” says Wang, noting that the organization has traditionally relied on donations from individuals and foundations. Razoo and upcoming Kickstarter campaigns are providing a crucial shot in the arm.

What can kids, parents, and shoppers expect from Mid-Continent Oceanographic Institute, née Rock Star Supply Co.? “I think nearly everyone involved at Rock Star Supply Co. has been inspired by the 826 model,” says Wang. “So we don't really see our programming changing a whole lot as we transition.”

That said, Wang does expect Rock Star to add more writing workshops as the transition date approaches. And there’s the issue of merging educational programming and retail activities. “Unlike other 826 sites, we started without a storefront,” says Wang. “They mostly started their programming at the storefront, then worked their way into schools.”

For now, the folks at Rock Star are working to retain their core mission without neglecting the coming transition. For Wang and the rest of the board, this means seeking help wherever they can find it. “We are always looking for tutors in any subject, especially algebra,” he says, “as we have a whole group of students that comes in for Algebra 2 on Tuesdays.” Rock star math tutors: Take note.

Source: Jeremy Wang
Writer: Brian Martucci

A historic mansion in Minneapolis’s Lowry Hill neighborhood,  last used as an office four years ago, could soon see inhabitants once again. Owner Jack Kistler wants to renovate the 1906-built Eugene J. Carpenter house and bring in a bed-and-breakfast, a beauty salon, and several apartment units. 

The house is significant for its Georgian-Revival style exterior, the handiwork of Edwin Hewitt, who was a well-known local architect, according to city materials. The house was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.

Mina Adsit of Adsit Architecture, the firm behind the project, says the interior is well preserved, with its original panels and high ceilings intact, though the exterior needs to be restored. As such, the facade will be fixed up and repainted. The plan calls for the restoration of a previous covered porch along with an old garden space where a surface parking lot currently exists. The idea is to return the house to a residential use that’s in keeping with the neighborhood’s original character, Adsit says. 

That’ll help the owner to “tell the story of the house,” which was the first of its kind in the area. It’s also a chance to talk about the history of the Carpenter family, which had a hand in founding several arts institutions in the city around the turn-of-the-century, she says. In general, the idea is to “preserve that feeling of place that happens up there on the hill with the big houses.”   

“The whole area of the top of the hill is kind of threatened historically. These mansions are getting overwhelmed by the buildings around them,” she says. The goal is to begin construction on the house this spring and to open the place in the summer of this year, according to Adsit. 
    
Source: Mina Adsit, architect, Adsit Architecture 
Writer: Anna Pratt 

First & First, the creative developer of such hotspots as Icehouse, Aria, and 612 Broadway, has purchased the former Franklin Theater in Minneapolis. The historic 10,000-square-foot building, most recently owned by Franklin Art Works as a contemporary-art exhibition space, still has its original plaster movie screen and proscenia. The building also has a brick façade with a 29-foot-long stained-glass window, 35-foot-long arched entry, and second-level open-air balcony facing Franklin Avenue.

“The Franklin is a significant theater in Minneapolis history,” says Peter Remes, founder of First & First. “I’ve always loved this fascinating building, especially what’s behind the exhibition space, which people haven’t seen for decades: the spectacular old theater.” The building also has a storied history.

Originally known as the New Franklin Theater, the building was designed by Lindstrom and Almars and constructed in 1916. After serving as a neighborhood silent-movie house for 60 years, the building was gutted in 1977 and turned— under the ignominious ownership of Ferris Alexander—into a three-screen adult movie theater. After the City of Minneapolis seized the building in 1990, the Franklin was a bike shop and site for under-the-radar performances.

Franklin Art Works purchased the building in 1999. With help from the Neighborhood Revitalization Program, Franklin Art Works transformed the building into a contemporary art center. “They took a horrible mess and turned it into a well-respected art gallery that held numerous groundbreaking exhibitions by emerging artists,” Remes says.

First & First’s purchase signifies the company is moving into a new part of town and new type of building. “It is new for us,” Remes says. “We’re stretching our boundaries from where we typically focus or concentrate.”

“But the neighborhood, which is so culturally diverse, and the building, which on its own is gorgeous, are equally interesting,” he continues. “We just found the Franklin—a one-of-a-kind building waiting to be reactivated in an interesting way—to be a dynamic, unique project we’re intrigued by.”

Possible new uses for the building include an exhibition space with microbrewery, or “expanding the Aria concept here for smaller groups,” Remes says. “Because of the way the building sets up, it offers a lot of creative possibilities, which we also found compelling.”

In the next 60 days, activity will begin taking place in and around the building. “We would like to launch with unique and compelling programming that brings people from the community, and from outside of the neighborhood, into the building. We’re discussing internally how to find a balance of uses that creates that perfect harmony.”

Source: Peter Remes, First & First
Writer: Camille LeFevre

A new coffee shop called Five Watt Coffee is in the works for 38^th and Nicollet in Minneapolis. Five Watt aims to open within the next month, according to Lee Carter, who co-owns the place with Caleb Garn. The coffee shop’s name references an old record label called Five Watt Studios that Garn previously owned.

While scoping out possible locations, the pair looked all over the metro area before settling on the 1,100-square-foot space in the Kingfield neighborhood, Carter says. In terms of parking, visibility, accessibility, and construction costs, “It was the best spot by far,” he says. The space also has a full-sized basement that’s in good condition.

Initially, they’d overlooked this area of town due to nearby road construction. From what Carter can tell, some businesses didn’t outlast the road construction. “I’m just excited to re-use the corner and give the neighborhood something new,” he says. 
 
Plus, the neighborhood lacks a coffee shop. “We’re meeting the needs of the area and helping the intersection get back on its feet,” he says. “We’re really excited to have something in a familiar neighborhood for us.”   

Right now, the pair is wrapping up the build-out. Through the process, they’ve brought out some of the 1909 building’s original features, such as hardwood floors, an exposed brick wall, and a tin ceiling. “When we came in, there was drywall everywhere and a dropped ceiling,” he says. 

A garage door and new windows will help update the space, as well. Although they’re going for a modern aesthetic, “We don’t want to do something that’s sterile,” he says, but rather create a warm and inviting ambiance.  


Source: Lee Carter, co-owner, Five Watt Coffee
Writer: Anna Pratt 

Several years ago, Saint Paul’s historic Victoria Theater was nearly demolished. Now, after sitting vacant for 14 years, the place is getting a new lease on life. The Twin Cities Community Land Bank is closing on the purchase of the theater, according to Tyler Olson, the project coordinator. Olson is working with the volunteer-driven Victoria Theater Arts Initiative (VTAI), which will take over the building’s ownership in the future. 

Basically, the land bank is “holding” the property for the group. “The fear was that we would do the work upfront and the owner [of the theater] would get an offer that couldn’t be refused” from someone else, Olson says. 

A kickoff event, which includes building tours, begins at 2:30 p.m., Thursday, January 16.

VTAI, which began meeting a year ago, is comprised of representatives from various local organizations including the Frogtown Neighborhood Association, the Center for Hmong Arts and Talent, Historic Saint Paul, Dangerous Productions, and the New Victoria Theater Project. “We started saying, ‘Let’s make something happen here. It feels like now is the time, especially with the light rail coming,’” he says.   

That kind of grassroots effort is typical in Frogtown, where a "trend of organic growth" has taken hold, he says, citing the development of the nearby Frogtown Farms. 

Together, the consortium “intends to revitalize the building, transforming it into a community-owned and -managed center for arts engagement, education and performance,” a prepared statement reads. Irrigate, Springboard for the Arts, and the City of Saint Paul helped to make the project happen.   

What are the next steps? As it is, the building is a shell that needs to be renovated. “We really need to figure out all of the things that need to happen to make it workable and usable,” he says. The group is also “getting out into the community,” to find out what people are interested in seeing happen at the theater, he says. “People are excited about its potential.”
 
The theater will be “a huge boon to the community, a landmark destination,” he says. “The hope is that people will come to see something here they wouldn’t be able to see anywhere else in the Twin Cities."  


Source: Tyler Olsen, project coordinator, Victoria Theater Arts Initiative 
Writer: Anna Pratt 

For the owners of Sociable Cider Werks, a cider house and brewery in Northeast Minneapolis, it made sense to establish the business in an area characterized by a robust beer scene. Jim Watkins, who co-owns the cidery with Wade Thompson, also happens to live nearby.       

Sociable Cider Werks provides new inroads into the craft-beer movement by producing hard cider. “We can participate in the movement but do our own thing at the same time,” Watkins says. Sociable’s ciders, he adds, are for “people who have a palate for craft beer."   

Unlike the typical macro-cider house that produces sweet, middle-of-the-road-tasting ciders, Sociable is going for a bitter flavor, and mixes hops and grains into its concoctions. “We think ciders are supposed to be dry. They’re supposed to be bitter and torched. It’s a good representation of the apple,” Watkins says. 

The co-owners leased the cider house’s vintage industrial building just over a year ago.The place was a fixer-upper that gave the impression of a “junky warehouse” at the time. To make way for Sociable, the space was completely gutted and redone. Now, the cider house “has a cool aesthetic, with a lot of exposed brick and wood,” Watkins says.  

The 6,000-square-foot space is long and narrow, while the interior is open, giving visitors a feel for the whole operation, he says.  Already, the renovation has had a positive impact on the block. “I’ve heard from neighbors that they love having us here.”

Even though the taproom has only been open for a little over a month, the place already has regulars, which is a testament to the friendly beer community, hence the “Sociable” in Sociable Cider Werks, Watkins says. In “the craft beer scene in Minneapolis," he says, "everyone is willing to help each other.”
 
That generosity extends to the patronage, as many visitors go from one taproom to the next. “Northeast is a brewpub destination. It’s like Minnesota’s own little Fort Collins, Colorado," he says. "There’s a high percentage of breweries in a short distance and it’s walkable.”   


Source: Jim Watkins, Sociable Cider Werks
Writer: Anna Pratt 

Omforme, a Norwegian word meaning "to transform,” is the name of a new shop at 24^th and Lyndale in Minneapolis. Omforme also describes the ways in which its owner, Carter Averbeck, who is part Norwegian, gives furniture and other home goods a new lease on life. 

The shop offers a mix of vintage and modern pieces that reflect every era, as well as original furnishings from local designers. Some pieces are restored to their former glory, while others get a modern update, Averbeck explains.   

The shop evolved out of Averbeck’s other business, Trompe Decorative Finishes, through which Averbeck creates murals and decorative finishes for commercial and residential spaces. Often, when clients stopped by the studio, Averbeck says, they would remark on the unique furniture in the space--often pieces that Averbeck had reconditioned.

Before opening Omforme, Averbeck experimented with several pop-up shops. Those were successful, so he was able to secure a permanent home for Omforme.  

From the beginning, Averbeck wanted to be near Uptown, an area that has an artistic, hip edge to it, he says. 

Lyndale seemed like an ideal location. “Lyndale is moving so fast into what Uptown used to be,” with many new retail shops, restaurants, and apartments, he says. “I got lucky. It was the right space at the right time.”  

Previously, the 1,100-square-foot space had been a Gothic-style hair salon. Although the place needed a lot of attention, “the building has great bones,” Averbeck says.

Averbeck took his design cues from the vintage building. Old World details blend with crisp modern shades of white and charcoal gray, while the colorful pieces for sale lend ambiance. “It’s like a high-class manner house,” in Europe, “a timeless space,” he says. “People say it’s like walking out of Minneapolis, into some place else.”  
 

Source: Carter Averbeck, owner, Omforme 
Writer: Anna Pratt 

Karen Linner, principal at Shenandoah Consulting, and Harvey McLain, of the Turtle Bread Company, teamed up to renovate Longfellow Offices at 36^th and Lake in South Minneapolis. The new Longfellow Offices had its grand opening earlier this month. 

The vintage building previously housed an art gallery. The building's focus now is wellness, which Linner says is a “burgeoning market.” Longfellow Offices houses tenants that work in massage therapy, acupuncture, and Rolfing. A holistic diabetes group is also in the works.

Throughout the construction process, Linner and McLain sought to bring out the building’s best features.

“It’s a great building with great bones,” Linner says. 

The structure was gutted, then divided into 10 suites for practitioners. Tenants share a common hallway that’s equipped with a sink, plus a kitchenette and an accessible restroom.  

Linner and McLain added windows to allow for plenty of natural light, and they installed dimmable light fixtures, “which are convenient for practitioners,” she says.

They also paid attention to design details that preserve the building’s character. For example, hand-painted ceilings resemble old-fashioned pressed tin. Hardwood floors, high ceilings, subway tile, and wood trim add to the effect.  

Soundproofing in each suite was a priority. In wellness offices, Linner says, the “biggest complaints are about sound transmission. You don’t want to hear someone’s emotional release coming through the walls.”

Linner's  pleased with the way Longfellow Offices turned out. “People walk in and say, ‘This is such a nice building,' or 'It feels so calm in here,’” she says. 

On a broader level, “I hope we’ve created a community in the building,” she says, adding that the like-minded tenants “are part of a renaissance on East Lake Street.” 

Source: Karen Linner, principal, Shenandoah Consulting 
Writer: Anna Pratt 

Pharmacie, a boutique at 28^th and Lyndale in South Minneapolis, held its grand opening on Saturday, November 9.

The storefront space, which is part of the Greenleaf Apartments development, was previously a showroom for apartment rental, according to Sam Beberg, who co-owns Pharmacie with Roger Barrett. Beberg also owns and operates Hot Plate, a brunch spot in South Minneapolis, with Carrie Lewis.

For Beberg and Barrett, bringing Pharmacie to fruition has been a two-year endeavor. 

Pharmacie sells furniture, with a special emphasis on pieces made by independent designers from around the country, plus vintage items. Other household goods for sale include light fixtures, handmade pillows, glassware, cookbooks, toys, art, and gifts.  

The store’s aesthetic plays off of the French spelling of pharmacy. Apothecary items, candles, and beakers lend an authentic pharmacy feeling. A floor-to-ceiling graphic image of an old-fashioned pharmacy acts as a backdrop. The 1,400-square-foot space, which has tall ceilings, gets plenty of natural light through big windows.

With its reclaimed wood decor and modern fixtures, “Someone said [the shop] looks like an industrial farm, with the modern and rustic look,” Beberg says.   

Beberg and Barrett settled on the space in part for its proximity to Lyn-Lake and Uptown. 

The area is “like the new Hennepin,” Beberg says. “We feel like a lot of places are within walking distance, including bars and restaurants.” 

He hopes to see more shops fill in around the area, including the next-door space. Fortunately, the area gets plenty of foot traffic. “It would be nice to see more retail on the street,” he says. “Everyone wants more businesses so they can feed off of each other.”  


Source: Sam Beberg, co-owner, Pharmacie
Writer: Anna Pratt 

Spyhouse Coffee expanded into Northeast Minneapolis this fall with a third location in The Broadway, a former warehouse at Central and Broadway redeveloped by Peter Remes of First and First. 

The warehouse building’s other tenants include 612 Brew, Seventhsin (a creative agency), and the Steller Hair Co.

Christian Johnson, who owns the Spyhouse coffeehouses along with The Bad Waitress restaurant in South Minneapolis, scoped out plenty of other locations around town before settling on The Broadway, according to The Journal. At the time, the building was undergoing early renovation work, according to the story.

Today, old barn wood salvaged from an Amish farm in Wisconsin, and the warehouse's original flooring and thick beams lend a rustic feel to the place.

A variety of antiques, including an old-fashioned roaster and custom-made furniture, add character to the space, as well.

Johnson plans to turn the Northeast shop into a roastery that will provide coffee to the other locations, according to The Journal.   
 
Chris Bubser, an architect and community activist who lives nearby in the Windom neighborhood, says the place makes a nice impression from the street. “I think the outside of the building looks great, and I'm glad someone saved and repurposed another cool old Northeast building,” he says. 

He’s fond of the big floor-to-ceiling windows, which provide views of the interior from the outside. 

The renovation respects the building’s original architecture, and “changes the whole dynamic of what was a pretty unappealing corner," Bubser says. "Those kinds of improvements may seem small, but the more developers make such improvements, the more momentum is built." 

Source: Chris Bubser, community resident 
Writer: Anna Pratt 

"Welcome to North," a three-minute video created by Josh Chitwood and Morgan Jensen, highlights the positive aspects of life on the North Side of Minneapolis. 

Chitwood, who is studying media and communications at North Central University in the city’s Elliot Park neighborhood, set out to produce a film for the fourth annual RE/MAX Results City & Neighborhood Film Festival. The festival will take place on Nov. 14 at the Riverview Theater, according to the contest’s website. That day, the four top films along with an “audience choice”-award winner will receive cash prizes ranging from $1,000 to $6,000, the website states. 

At the same time, Chitwood would like to see the film get more exposure, even beyond the film festival. 
 
Chitwood recently moved to the North Side, while Jensen, his girlfriend, was born and raised in this area of the city. That has given them an appreciation for an area they describe as “the most stereotyped side of the city.” “It gets so much of a bad rap but both of us just love North,” he says. As such, “We wanted to get something else out there that would show the good here. A lot of the news doesn’t do that. We wanted to show people the true side of North that people don’t normally see--give them a new perspective on it,” he adds. 

As they were putting together the short film last month, the couple roamed around the North Side, chatting up random strangers. They found a number of willing interviewees who had lots of good things to say about the area. All of the interviews featured in the mini-documentary came out of their meanderings. “The film is supposed to be what we love about North. Well, we know what we love but we wanted to use other people’s voices,” he says. 

Chitwood, who’s been making videos since he was a young child, has been surprised by the response so far. The film festival hasn’t happened yet, but already in just a handful of days, “Welcome to North,” which is posted online, has gotten over 4,000 views. The number of clicks has been increasing daily. “It’s cool to watch it grow,” he says. 

Chitwood plans to show the film around town in the coming weeks. “We’ve gotten a lot of amazing feedback. A lot of people have been saying that this is just what they’ve always tried to tell people about North,” he says. 

Ultimately, “I hope it just gets people to be really curious about coming and experiencing North,” he says. For those who live here, he adds, it affirms what they already know about North Minneapolis. “There’s so much community and so many families that live here. It’s a beautiful place. It’s beautifully diverse." 


Source: Josh Chitwood, filmmaker  
Writer: Anna Pratt