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Businesses leaving Alliance Bank Center
Several small business owners are facing a new reality after being told to vacate the Alliance Bank Center in St. Paul – some after several decades of operation at the downtown mainstay that will soon be vacant.
ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Many tenants are still in shock. This all comes just days after it was announced downtown St. Paul would lose its only grocery store.
Downtown still struggling
The backstory:
On Monday afternoon, Paul Hartquist and at least a dozen other tenants received an email from their landlord Alliance Center LLC, which is owned by Madison Equities, telling them to immediately vacate the building because there won't be any heat, cooling, or electricity because the building's utility bills haven't been paid.
A fire department memo said the utilities were scheduled to be shut off on Wednesday, giving the tenants less than 48 hours to get out.
"Shocked. Initially, I said you can't do this. This is ridiculous. It's illegal. You can't just throw people out, especially when their rent is paid up," said Bob Wolf, owner of Greenwolf Hemp and Organics.
Their landlord said it could no longer afford to operate the 16-story building with major skyway connections because of significant financial hardships due to the deteriorating condition of downtown St. Paul.
But St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter's office negotiated with the utility companies to keep the electricity on through the end of the month, giving tenants more time to pack up and move.
"I wouldn't have been ok if we had to be out by tomorrow. None of us would be," said Wolf.
Tenants on the move
Local perspective:
Hartquist's jewelry store has been on the skyway level of Alliance Bank Center for 35 years. But soon he'll have to find a new place to set up shop.
"I was blindsided. I wasn't expecting to have to leave right away like this," said Hartquist.
Hartquist plans to relocate his jewelry business to another building downtown. But he can't believe an office tower in the heart of the capitol city will sit empty before long.
"It's just not acceptable. Not appropriate. They should have given us much more notice," said Hartquist.