Long-awaited demolition begins at Lake Street Kmart site

Demolition began Tuesday on the Lake Street Kmart building, which has drawn criticism for years over Minneapolis' decision to bisect Nicollet Avenue for its construction in the late 1970s.

Crews began tearing down the west end of the former department store and hauling away rubble at 7 a.m. Tuesday, with the work expected to continue into next week, said project superintendent Jim Jude. Another week and a half will be dedicated to pouring concrete to level the demolished site.

By late Tuesday morning, about a quarter of the building had been torn down, with the demolition debris steadily moved out by dump trucks.

The city had planned to demolish the building next spring, making way for a reconnected Nicollet Avenue and a mixed-use development of housing and businesses. Minneapolis paid $9.1 million in 2020 to buy out Kmart's lease in preparation for the demolition.

But those plans were sped up after a fire broke out in late October, destroying the rear of the building and making the site unsafe. The cause of the fire is undetermined, according to investigators.

Minneapolis signed a $638,000 contract in early November with St. Michael-based Rachel Contracting for the demolition and debris removal.

Construction on the roadway to reconnect Nicollet Avenue is scheduled to begin in 2025, with other development following in 2027.

When the Lake Street Kmart opened in 1977, it was part of a revitalization effort for the Nicollet Avenue and Lake Street area. The decision to block Nicollet, a major city thoroughfare, inspired resistance from the beginning.

Since the store closed in 2020, homeless encampments have emerged in areas outside the building and around the perimeter.

Community leaders and city officials last month sought public feedback on the redevelopment of the 10-acre site.

People gathered Tuesday morning at the bus stop across 1st Avenue to watch two excavators rip into the building. Stephen McHenry stopped by on his bike to watch what he called "cheap entertainment ... It's exciting."

McHenry was happy to see the building come down, recalling that it would take him a long time to find what he needed at the big box store. A board member of the Lyndale Neighborhood Association, he said the demolition represents the city turning over a new leaf — a chance for city neighborhoods to see what can happen without a superstore in their midst.

"Not seeing it is a nice start," he added.

Seeing the building come down was disappointing for Trish Brock, who had fond memories of shopping at Kmart — especially in the garden shop.

"It was really nice to shop at, in its heyday," Brock said. "Whatever you wanted, you could get it."

Brock, a longtime resident of Stevens Square, which does not border the Kmart location, thought city officials should have included the broader community in the discussion on the site's future, rather than limit input to those who lived directly around the site.

Brock created a Facebook page to document and share the story of the building. She said she's posted photos of the building's original mural, the progression of the graffiti, a homeless encampment settling in across the street, the camp's removal the day before the fire — and the fire itself on Oct. 20.

"People lost track of the history of Kmart and denigrated it," she said.