Rochester caught a glimpse of its potential future at the 2021 DMC annual meeting, thanks to a large-scale, interactive prototype of a reactivated Zumbro riverfront. In the late afternoon, information booths dotted the pathway between 4th Street SW and 2nd Street SW and sparked thoughtful, educational interactions between attendees and stakeholders from every facet of the community.
Everything from nature to transportation, from history to diversity, was up for discussion.
On two separate nights this summer, Mayo Civic Center’s Riverfront Plaza was alight with paper lanterns, cheerful reunions, and healthy arrays of international foods and artisanal goods. That vibrance is a hallmark of the Night Market, an event founded by Tiffany Alexandria as a way to bring a bit of Asia to the Med City. The third and final Night Market for 2021 runs from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday, September 18 at the Mayo Civic Center and Rochester Art Center.
The recent Hyatt House ribbon-cutting ceremony marked a milestone for Rochester. The event heralded the completion of the city’s first Qualified Opportunity Zone project: a hotel of 172 apartment-style, long-stay suites designed to provide crucial comfort for patients traveling into the city.
“This is really a home away from home for people who need a place of comfort and safety,” said Chris Schad, Director of Business Development for Discovery Square. “People who are staying here become members of our community.”
Thousands of people returned to downtown Rochester this month to celebrate the return of Thursdays Downtown, a summer staple in the community. Amid the live music, food, and shopping, attendees could also spend time checking out the big changes happening in the Heart of the City Phase 1 project.
DMC Economic Development Agency executive director Patrick Seeb, City of Rochester Mayor Kim Norton, and Rochester Downtown Alliance executive director Holly Masek stopped by the Heart of the City Thursday morning to welcome residents and visitors to the first Thursdays Downtown of the year. They shared that as the summer progresses, parts of the Heart of the City project will re-open as soon as they’re complete.
If speaking on behalf of downtowns across America, Mark Twain might have quipped “…the reports of my death are greatly exaggerated.”
In most communities, the downtown is its central gathering place, home to event and hotel venues, a concentration of businesses and their workforce, and the greatest mix of unique restaurants and retail. It is where baby boomers and millennials alike have migrated to live a vibrant urban lifestyle. It is where traveling visitors often begin their exploration of a region.
“My announcement today is that all lights are green when it comes to this important rapid transit bus project for the city of Rochester,” said U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar last Friday at a press conference at the Rochester Government Center.
Senator Klobuchar was joined by Rochester City Council President Brooke Carlson and Destination Medical Center Economic Development Agency (DMC EDA) Executive Director Patrick Seeb.
She highlighted the project’s potential impact to the city’s fabric of caregiving, as well as the high-level federal interest in it. In May of 2021 it was announced that the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) had rated the project as “Medium-High.” Her former presidential debate stage mate, U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, included $56 million for the project in his proposed $2.5 billion budget for 2022. These “breadcrumbs,” as she called them Friday, are why the senator sees green lights.
One Discovery Square, Mortenson’s life sciences building which opened in 2019 in the Discovery Square sub-district in downtown Rochester, reached a major milestone this spring: the building is now 100 percent leased. Thermo Fisher Scientific is the latest company to commit to space alongside other tenants, including Mayo Clinic, University of Minnesota Rochester, Epic, Philips, Boston Scientific, RION, WuXi Diagnostics, Cytotheryx, Exact Sciences and Café Steam. The Destination Medical Center Corporation (DMCC) Board of Directors at a recent meeting commended the continued momentum in the sub-district.
The first phase of Destination Medical Center’s Heart of the City public realm project includes major infrastructure improvements and renovation of the east side of Peace Plaza and surrounding areas. The new design will create active, engaging experiences for residents, visitors and patients in the heart of downtown Rochester. These updates will provide enhanced safety measures, including curbless streets, and provide greater accessibility for people of all abilities. Here are five things to know about the project as it nears completion:
Take an inside look at the newly opened Hyatt House Rochester Mayo Clinic Area with general manager Mike Fox. The hotel is owned by PEG Companies and managed by In-Group Hospitality: A PEG Company. The hotel adds value to the City of Rochester as the first ever Qualified Opportunity Zone project and is a vital part of the Destination Medical Center (DMC) initiative to revitalize Downtown and fulfill the strong demand for extended stay accommodations for patients of Mayo Clinic and their families. DMC supported this development with public infrastructure funding.