As memory serves, the last big project downtown was The Carlyle. The Carlyle, that condo monstrosity that feigns elegance and overcharges on principle. It began in 2004 and only just sold the last of its units. And who bought that last unit? Would you believe it if I said it was a retired couple? Of course not. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if your response was an eye-roll with a snarky quip about -another- retired couple. Don't get me wrong--retired couples eat out often, enjoy the city and act respectable. I appreciate all of those things. But I also appreciate people who want to create an atmosphere, engage with their neighbors, and develop an area that reflects themselves.
Where do most yuppie/hipster/20-something kids live these days? Uptown. And where do most of them socialize? Uptown. But off-shoots are happening--Northeast is picking up steam and quickly becoming the "real artiste" locale for the authentic types, Seward is growing and expanding in its hippie-dippy-ness like all organic vegetables do, and I'll bet even St. Paul is benefiting from those who just want to escape the area that just replaced the Uptown Diner with an Apple store. And into this mentality come the Mill City apartments. Downtown can easily become the new yuppie hangout, much to the chagrin of Chino Latino. Residents can boast cultural centers like the Guthrie, a dense scene of amazing restaurants, some great live music venues, amazing accessibility to the rest of the metro area, and a pretty amazing river. Not to mention that they probably work six blocks away and could probably walk half of that in the skyway during the winter.
Up until now most downtown dwellers have been seen (at least to me) as relatively older, relatively wealthy, and relatively passive. They might frequent the restaurants and theaters, but they have not formed a sense of community. There might be great relationships happening within these towers, but it rarely translates itself to the street level. A yuppie movement might change that. You could build off of the Thursday farmers market, start a outdoor yoga class at Gold Medal Park, involve fun centers already there like Open Book or Alliance Francaise. The abundance of real estate and the dearth of storefronts needs to be balanced if downtown is ever going to become a consistently desirable location to live. A real commercial business explosion will not realistically happen for a few years even if the apartments do spur a sense of community, but at least one foundation stone has been laid.
