"We think that we can create a nice situation for them."

CITY WILL PRESS SEARS TO MOVE LAKE STREET K-MARK, REOPEN NICOLLET AVENUE

The Minneapolis Observer, 10/11/04

The September 29 sale of the K-Mart at Lake and Nicollet could signal some movement on the city's longtime desire to reopen Nicollet Avenue--or not.

As Michael Metzger reports in the Southwest Journal, a consortium of developers and neighborhood groups next month will unveil a development plan for the site in the hope that the store's new owner--Sears--will be amenable to demolishing the store and opening up the thoroughfare to the popular Eat Street district to the south, which has been blocked for more than 20 years.

Though Sears has announced that it will renovate rather than rebuild the 49 K-Mart stores it acquired last month, Council Member Dean Zimmermann (Ward 6) said he was optimistic that a deal could be negotiated. "This is the most optimistic I've felt about opening up Nicollet for a long time," he said. "That somebody who is not in bankruptcy now owns the property is a good thing. We think that we can create a nice situation for them."