The Sears Redevelopment Neighborhood Meeting was held to listen to the voices of the neighborhood
(St Paul, MN) — March 15, 2024 — A bonding bill at the Senate Floor was introduced at March 7th to support the Sears building remodeling effort. Led by Asian Media Access and collaborated with the Asian American Business Resilience Network (AABRN), we have been working with the Capitol Area Architectural and Planning Board (CAAPB) and the City of St. Paul, to envision the creation of a community hub at old St. Paul Sears site to serve a diverse set of purposes, including residential, commercial, cultural, educational, and artistic.
The Bonding Bill will provide the much needed resources to create such a vibrant and unique atmosphere to attract locals and distant visitors alike, encouraging investment and the revitalization of a historically impoverished neighborhood.
Sears Building Remodeling Plan includes:
• A sports and digital arts focused charter school
• A wellness center for health modalities research, business developments, IT and food enterprise training
• An event center, food court, and 3D theme park for entrepreneurs to experiment
• A zen garden for green space
• A kids’ zone for childcare needs
With the belief that traditional and modern technologies can support and enhance our day-to-day lives, AABRN plans to enhance the wellness and cultural ecosystem to blend with artistic creations through the use of novel technologies, encouraging the entrepreneurial spirits of lifestyle medicine and entertainment entrepreneurs. Services like business development and IT skills-building can help our entrepreneurs turn their visions into realities, as well as assisting artists in creating virtual realities to inspire and entertain. These activities will support our very own charter school students in accessing all the resources and opportunities available to pursue career pathways, such as multimedia or sports therapy. As a true community hub, we aim to create an environment that is welcoming to families, giving shape to our kids’ zone—an area designed for engaging in child-friendly activities under supervision. This will better suit the needs of visiting and employed parents.
Alongside the Sears Building remodeling, a mix-used development, including comprehensive housing plan (including senior and affordable housing), and a retail business center, all will be included in the Sears site to complete the “Learn, Live, Play and Work” ecosystem. AABRN ultimately plans to redevelop the former Sears site to become a World Cultural Heritage Corridor to be guided with twin visions of community and innovation, as one cannot exist without the other. We believe that innovation cannot happen in a vacuum, that community enhances the contents and transforms the shape of innovation, and that innovation should continuously work to improve the conditions not just of the individual, but of the community as a whole. This site could become such a space, providing resources and opportunities to adults and youth alike, in hopes of growing a vibrant hub that will brighten the futures of the surrounding areas and of those who come through. AABRN welcomes area residents and interested parties to join our planning process.
