How well do you know downtown St. Paul? What’s the tallest building? Oldest restaurant? Priciest condo? See the list below to find out.
MOST EXPENSIVE CONDO, BASED ON MARKET VALUE
The St. Peter Penthouse, 350 St. Peter St., Unit 1300
2015 estimated market value: $1.77 million
The two-story penthouse perched on top of the Lowry building was on the market last year for $2.25 million. The 5,100-square-foot residence is almost certainly bigger than your house, garage and tree house combined. Owner and developer James Halverson, chief financial officer of Bloomington-based Halverson & Blaiser Group, bought the condo for about $300,000 in 2008, when it was just “raw space and a lot of pipes,” and has since sunk some $1.68 million into it. It now has four fireplaces, two terraces, 12-foot ceilings, panoramic views of the downtown skyline and, of course, a “very impressive closet,” Halverson said. The unit was recently re-listed for the same price.
Check out the real estate listing for more photos
MOST EXPENSIVE CONDO, BASED ON SALES PRICE
Great Northern Lofts, 300 Wall St., Unit 603
Sales price: $990,000 ($1.2 million in 2015 dollars)
This condo was purchased in 2005 for about $990,000 at the height of the real estate boom. Adjusted for inflation, that would be about $1.2 million today. It had a 2015 estimated market value of about $648,000.
The 2,800-square-foot unit offers views of downtown and comes with a built-in theater and rooftop patio, according to the owner, who asked to keep his name out of print.
TALLEST BUILDING and MOST EXPENSIVE BUILDING, BASED ON SALES PRICE
Wells Fargo Place, 430 Wabasha St. N.
Standing at 471 feet, the 37-floor building towers over downtown. It was built in 1987, just one year after Jackson Tower, downtown’s second-tallest building, went up. The building is home to Wells Fargo Bank, Minnesota State Colleges and Universities, a food court, and other retail and office spaces.
Texas-based real estate investment firm Unilev Capital purchased the skyscraper at the height of the real estate bubble in 2006 for about $105 million. Adjusted for today’s dollars, that would be about $123 million.
OLDEST BUILDING and OLDEST RESTAURANT/BAR
The Original Coney Island Tavern, 444 St. Peter St.
Constructed in 1858, it was reportedly built by a stonemason who had a storefront on the main floor and a residence for his family above. The property would later become famous for slinging Coney dogs out of the restaurant founded by Nick and Frances Arvanitis in 1923. The institution hummed along until 1994, when Frances Arvanitis fell ill. It has reopened sporadically for special downtown events — such as the Republican National Convention in 2008, the Red Bull Crashed Ice competition and the Winter Carnival — and regularly hosts private parties. The founders’ daughter, Mary Arvanitis, has preserved its historic charm since assuming ownership. It still boasts its 1930s bar and jukebox, chock-full of old hits such as “Ol’ Man River” by Frank Sinatra, “San Antonio Rose” by Patsy Cline and “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” by the Andrews Sisters.
BIGGEST PRIVATE EMPLOYER
Securian, 400 Robert St. N.
The insurance company employs 2,600 people. Downtown’s second-biggest employer, Travelers insurance company, has about 2,000 employees. (That’s the company with the giant red umbrella atop its building.)
MOST EXPENSIVE BUILDING, BASED ON ESTIMATED MARKET VALUE
The Science Museum, 120 W. Kellogg Blvd.
The Science Museum’s 2015 estimated market value is about $124 million. The current site, on the banks of the Mississippi River downtown, is 370,000 square feet and includes five permanent galleries, 10 acres of outdoor exhibits and the Imax Omnitheater. Incorporated in 1907 as the St. Paul Institute of Science and Letters, the museum started out in the St. Paul Auditorium and then moved to the Merriam Mansion on Capitol Hill and later 30 E. 10th St., where it remained until moving to its present location in 1999.
NEWEST RESTAURANT
The Handsome Hog, 203 E. Sixth St.
Lowertown’s newest restaurant opened March 21 in the former Bin Wine Bar space and offers “everything from snout to tail pig,” said chef Justin Sutherland. What does that mean? Crispy pig tails, whole roasted pork jowl, braised pork shoulder, pork chops, pork sandwiches, you name it. The contemporary Southern-themed menu is definitely pork-centric but also features shrimp and grits, a modern take on chicken and waffles, and other entrees.
NEWEST BUILDING
CHS Field, 360 N. Broadway St.
The city finished building the new home for the St. Paul Saints in early 2015. The 7,201-seat ballpark in Lowertown cost about $63 million, with the majority — about $51 million — financed with public money.
Some 8,600 fans flocked to the Saints’ home opener May 21, which included appearances by a Mardi Gras-style parade, a new pig mascot and even actor Bill Murray, a part-owner of the team.
The venue also hosts concerts, weddings and other public events.
BIGGEST PROPERTY
Union Depot, 214 E. Fourth St.
A stop for railcars, buses and light-rail trains, the grand building and its accompanying bus bay sit on nearly 10 acres of land. After a fire destroyed an early train depot, construction of a replacement began in 1917 and wasn’t completed until 1926. Some 85 years later, the public poured $243 million into renovating the historic space, and the landmark reopened in 2012.
