Hotel Uptown

If all goes as planned, Uptown could see a hotel again. That's what Curt Gunsbury and a group of investors would like. Gunsbury brought the East Calhoun Community Organization initial concepts on a hotel/condo project that would occupy a site on Holmes Avenue just south of Lake Street. The project could include 80-90 hotel rooms and 10-24 condo units. No plans have been submitted to the City, as Gunsbury said that the City wanted him to come out to the neighborhood first. Several options exist for the site, which he does not have control, but one option calls for an eight-story building and the other option would have a seven-story building. The hotel, currently dubbed "Hotel Uptown," would be independent and modeled after many European hotels. Gunsbury said they would work on the plan over the next several months and hope to submit in late summer.

Since summer, the City of Minneapolis issued a moratorium on new developments in Uptown that require a Conditional Use Permit to increase their permitted height. Gunsbury's hotel was redesigned as a six-story building, which is two stories (though under 10 feet) taller than what is permitted without the permit. To move forward, Gunsbury submitted a waiver request to continue through the approval process. If the waiver is approved, the project could continue with the standard proceedings to determine if the project can receive its Conditional Use Permit. The waiver request was approved on January 19th, 2007 by the City of Minneapolis' City Council Zoning and Planning Committee. On January 26th, 2007, the full City Council approved the waiver, meaning that Gunsbury can continue to pursue Hotel Uptown. On March 5th, 2007, the Planning Commission gave land-use approvals for the project, except did not grant as much Floor Area Ratio (FAR) as the project requested. FAR determines the maximum square footage a building can have, essentially managing the building's "bulk". While the ruling supported the hotel project, the reduced FAR prevents the developer from building the hotel, and has since appealed the decision to the City Council.

The City Council's Zoning and Planning Committee will hear the appeal on April 5th.

March 6, 2007: On March 5th, the Planning Commission approved the Hotel Uptown project with one exception, where it reduced the Floor Area Ratio (FAR) from its requested 3.84 to 3.51. The FAR alteration means that the building's floor area (mass) will have to be less than proposed. Unless the ruling is challenged, this would set up a race between the Mozaic project and Hotel Uptown to return a hotel to the Uptown area.
February 10, 2007: In January, the City of Minneapolis granted Hotel Uptown's waiver request to be allowed to continue forward in the approvals process. The City of Minneapolis has a moratorium on development projects that require a Conditional Use Permit to increase the project's height. Hotel Uptown is seeking an eight foot / two-story increase in its permitted height.
August 12, 2006: In early August, the developer presented new plans for their hotel in Uptown. The condos were removed and the overall height reduced significantly.

Property Address: Option A: 3009, 3013, 3017, 3021, 3027 Holmes Avenue S. Option B: 3017, 3021, 3027 Holmes Avenue S.
Lot Size: Option A: 27,380 Square Feet. Option B: 16,152 Square Feet
Current Use: Parking Lot, Knob Hill (commercial), Office/Housing
Proposed Use: Hotel, residential, underground parking ramp, potential cafe/wine bar
Proposed Height: 87' (large parcel option), 95' (small parcel option)
Current Parking: TBD
Proposed Parking: TBD (~1 per hotel room)
Parking Requirement: TBD
Hotel Units: 80-90
Housing Units/Type: 0
Commercial Space: Private hotel bar for patrons only
Other Space: TBD

• Weyer, Jake. "Detailed Plans Presented for Proposed Uptown Hotel." Southwest Journal 14 Aug. 2006.
• Anderson, Mark. "Gunsbury Team Gets Jump in Race for First Uptown Hotel." Finance and Commerce 10 Aug. 2006.