Buildings On East St. Cloud Block Sold, Marked For Redevelopment

ST. CLOUD - We now have a little clearer picture about the future of an east St. Cloud block. After a lot of negotiations, plans for redeveloping the 400 block of East St. Germain Street are starting to move forward.

Back in October developer Bob Abel bought the Ace Bar and Grill building. Now, this week he's finalized on the buying the rest of the buildings on that block, with the exception of the former Holiday Station Store.

Abel says he's still planning to open a quality steak house restaurant in the Ace Building. The rest of the buildings would be torn down, and a patio would be created next to the Ace.

This news means a longtime staple in east St. Cloud - The Dutch Maid Bakery - will be moving. Owner Jeff Muntifering says they've leased the building there for the last 60 years. Muntifering says they're hoping to find a new building to relocate in. He says he's not sure yet how long Dutch Maid has left in their current location.

Abel says Kwik Trip does own the former Holiday building. He says he's in negotiations with them and he could end up selling the rest of the block to Kwik Trip, or he could buy the building from them and it could be developed into something else.

The whole redevelopment project could hinge on getting a state grant. Abel has been working with local EDA's to apply for a state grant of up to $250,000.

St. Cloud EDA Director Cathy Mehelich says the total cost for the demo work and burying the overhead power lines is about a half million dollars.

She says she's seen a few preliminary designs for a possible layout of a Kwik Trip on the site.

The current assessed value of the block is $818,000. The projected value upon completion is $3 million.

The demo work could begin as soon as this spring.