Sunrise Cyclery bike shop in Southwest Minneapolis will be moving to a new location along the
Midtown Greenway in the coming months.
The bike shop will take over a one-story warehouse space that has long served exclusively as storage, according to Sunrise owner Jamie McDonald.
Its move was prompted by the sale of its longtime home at Bryant and Lake. In many ways, it's an upgrade for the bike shop, which caters to local commuters and recreational riders, with new and used bike parts, he says.
For starters, at its new digs, the bike shop will be able to spread out more, with 5,000 square feet as opposed to its existing 3,000, he says.
McDonald also has a vision for an open public area, where people can work on their own bikes with the shop’s tools.
In general, the bike shop will be able to offer more programming, and even dedicate some space to the
Wellstone Bike Club, an organization it has partnered with through the years. The club helps youth start bicycling.
“The number of bikes we’ll be able to turn through here will be better, too,” he adds.
Sunrise will carry on the look and feel of a “friendly neighborhood bike shop.” To achieve that, it’ll take about $25,000 to build out the industrial building, he says. The project involves everything from installing utilities to getting a new door.
A new roof for the building, plus landscaping for the site, are also in the works. “To get an underused facility and bring it back to some function is a good thing,” he says.
All in all, the new location will be convenient for bicyclists on the trail. Plus, “More eyes on the Greenway can’t hurt,” McDonald adds. He expects the bike shop to have a positive impact on the area, just as it has at its old location.
“It gives people a meeting place other than the local coffee shop, to do something healthy, fun, and safe,” he says. “They can come and meet with a bunch of other like-minded people and ride their bikes.”
The bike shop tentatively plans to get its new location up and running in mid-November.
Source: Jamie McDonald, owner, Sunrise Cyclery
Writer: Anna Pratt