Minneapolis unveils plans for a new municipal office building
The city of Minneapolis is planning to move 1,300 employees to a new municipal office building slated to go up on Government Plaza in about two years.
The 10-story glass and aluminum structure is part of a $210 million project that also includes City Hall renovations.
The building will replace a parking ramp on Fourth Avenue South that's scheduled for demolition this summer.
City Coordinator Nuria Rivera-Vandermyde said that right now employees are scattered around several downtown buildings.
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"That's not conducive to a workplace that talks to each other, that collaborates with each other, that breaks down the silos that we keep talking about," she said.
Rivera-Vandermyde added that the new building will house a variety of employees — from police investigators to information technology staff. And it means the city can stop leasing space downtown.
"This will end some of those leasing arrangements, and frankly, some of the buildings that we own, we'll be able to put employees in a much better structure," she said. "And not just employees. We have our development counter in one of the oldest buildings in the city and that has outlived its usefulness."
The city is selling two smaller buildings and also plans to move workers out of leased offices.
Finance officials say existing bonds will be used, and the project will not involve a tax increase.