DIXIE'S ON GRAND TO BE REDEVELOPED INTO RETAIL SPACE AND APARTMENTS

A new mixed-use project is in the works for a site within the Summit Hill neighborhood.

Located at 695 Grand Avenue, the proposed project would be constructed on a site that today is home to a commercial building that houses Dixie’s on Grand, Emmett’s Public House and Saji-Ya. Both the retail building and an adjacent surface parking lot would be demolished in order to make way for a new building that would be home to retail space, apartments and indoor parking.

In total, the new building is anticipated to cost just over $32 million to complete. Peter Kenefick, one of the co-owners of Dixie’s, has partnered with Reuter Walton to co-develop the project.

The proposed five-story building would include 10,000 square feet of ground floor retail space along with 81 apartments on the four floors above. Apartments within the building would range in size from 900 to 1,650 square feet and would feature one and two-bedroom layouts, all of which would also include a den space.

Two levels of parking are planned to be included within the building. The below grade level would be for residents of the building and would be accessed via an existing alleyway behind the building. The ground level of the building would include parking for retail tenants with access points from both Grand Avenue and St. Albans Street.

Designed by ESG Architecture & Design, the new “U” shaped building would feature a continuous streetscape façade on the lower four floors while the fifth floor would be set back in order to help with the massing of the building. An outdoor courtyard would sit within the “U” of the building on the second floor.

Peter does not plan on bringing back Dixie’s on Grand to the new building once complete, but he does anticipate bringing back both Emmett’s Public House and Saji-Ya. In addition to the two restaurants, there will be about 3,000 square feet of space left over for one more ground floor tenant that could either be a retailer or another restaurant.

Plans for the project will still need to be approved by the St. Paul Planning and Economic Development department later this summer. Work on 695 Grand Avenue is anticipated to begin as soon as this fall.