"I'm betting on downtown": 1-on-1 with exiting Minneapolis Downtown Council head Steve Cramer
MINNEAPOLIS -- Think about everything that downtown Minneapolis has been through -- changes in how we work, and a period of unrest following a murder that stunned the world.
Now, downtown Minneapolis is figuring out how to build back better for its next season, but the Minneapolis Downtown Council will have to continue that work with a new leader. Steve Cramer, the current President and CEO, is retiring.
Still, Cramer told WCCO he's excited about the next chapter for downtown as he looks back on how it's evolved. The grandson of an Iowa politician, he says public service ran in the family. But there was always something special about Minneapolis
"I think it came from being a young kid in Iowa who would have a family vacation in Minnesota every year. Coming through Minneapolis, going to Twins games," Cramer said.
Cramer, a long time city council member, ran for mayor in the 1990s and then, after a few other stops, eventually landed at the Minneapolis Downtown Council, the link and advocate between the business community and people who work and play in the city.
"Our job as a downtown community is to make sure that people who are coming jn for those things are having a great experience and want to come back for other things," Cramer said.
Beyond entertainment, downtown of course has changed during his career.
"When I came here 45 years ago, downtown really was a regional shopping destination. We're not that anymore," he said.
The physical landscape is altered by things like new stadiums.
"We've also built a new park downtown, the Commons Park over by U.S. Bank Stadium. Another great kind of asset and resource for downtown," he said.
Another big project was redoing Hennepin Avenue, as well as another famous stretch of street.
"We've also redone Nicollet [Mall]. That was a big project, a lot of controversy," Cramer said. "The public realm downtown is really important and it's something that we've paid a lot of attention to."
He says renovated spaces like Peavy Plaza aren't enough on their own. They have to be activated with events.
"I think we really excel at that kind of thing. Super Bowl, Final Four, Major League Baseball All-Star Game -- those were all outstanding events," Cramer said. "It really has been professional sports, theater, music, our great restaurants that are the leading edge of kind of the recovery of downtown."
That recovery comes after a tough stretch of years, filled with questions about safety.
"There is a reality, but the perception outstrips that reality. And so we have to have people come back and really understand it for themselves," Cramer said. "We invest millions of dollars provided by the business community in a wide range of safety programs, and we're a really good partner for law enforcement. We have a partnership with Hennepin County now where we literally have two social workers that are part of our outreach team."
There have also been questions about viability with fewer workers physically in the office, noticeable in particular in our Skyway system.
"We have less buying power coming into downtown," Cramer said. "Overall we're just going to have fewer people downtown on any given day, and that's going to have an impact kind of on retail and some of the restaurants."
Some companies are packing it up and leaving downtown. AT&T just announced its plans to move to Bloomington.
"Honestly, our worst fears about companies exiting downtown have not been realized," Kramer said.
Cramer says, while commercials vacancies are up, residential ones are about where they should be.
"The downtown residential population has just grown dramatically," he said.
In all, 57,000 people live in the greater downtown area, and Cramer says Mayor Jacob Frey wants to attract more. Cramer thinks some vacant offices are ripe for apartment conversions.
"I think for the most part I hear positive satisfaction with being in downtown. There are always concerns. I mean, I have them in my neighborhood," Cramer said.
Months shy of his retirement, Cramer will tell you he's optimistic.
"It's not going to be without its challenges going forward, but we're moving into a different phase of downtown," Cramer said.
He sees vacancies as possibilities for new businesses, old abandoned buildings as future housing. He'll tell you some companies are moving in, and fine dining spots are fully booked for dinner. And that building on those victories will pull downtown into its next season.
"I'm betting on downtown," Cramer said.
Cramer is retiring in December. There will be a search process to find his replacement, but the timing of that is yet to be determined.