The Nicollet and Lake redevelopment project has been drawn without K-Mart in the picture so the project can move ahead without a K-Mart store there. The plan "B" option has been in place for quite some time. K-Mart changed management some time ago and it became clearly evident at that time that the new K-Mart managers were not interested in participating in the project. Now I guess we know why. Dean Devolis of DJR Architects has a 3-D model of the proposed development without K-Mart in it available for anyone who might want to see it.
If K-Mart closes the doors this would be tremendous boost for the Nicollet-Lake project. It would certainly put the developers in a much better place to negotiate. However, K-Mart does not own the land on which the store stands. It is unclear to me where the land owner stands with respect to the Nicollet and Lake redevelopment project. I still believe that a K-Mart with the doors locked presents a much better financial picture to this project than a fully opertional K-Mart. I am very concerned about the loss of a low cost retailer on Lake Street. I hate the thought of being held captive to Target just because any other choice forces me to drive to the suburbs. I hope if K-Mart closes that some other low cost retailers see this as an opportunity. On a personal note, I really like the "Martha" line. The Sears site looks like a tremendous place to attract another low-cost retailer. Maybe Robert Lilligren or R.T. can give Sam Walton a call and see if he is interested in doing an inner-city Walmart. What I am not sure about is whether filing bankruptcy will actually close the doors on the K-Mart store. The store on Lake street in one of K-Marts 10 most profitable stores in Minnesota. It seems to me that they would stay open as long as possible to continue bringing in some cash. Is there some financial pundit out there that can give a prediction about how quickly a business ceases doing retail business once they file bankruptcy? At any rate, it will certainly be an interesting story to follow. Barb Lickness Whittier 3 blocks from K-Mart __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Send FREE video emails in Yahoo! Mail! http://promo.yahoo.com/videomail/ _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest option, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
