Metropolitan Building
The most memorable loss is the Metropolitan building in 1962. At its birth in 1890, the twelve-story stone building with a fabulous interior of glass and iron announced that Minneapolis had come of age. Visitors had a selection of 400 shops and offices and the rooftop garden with its view of the city was not to be missed. Return to list

Pick-Nicollet Hotel
Another great landmark, the Pick-Nicollet Hotel, was built on the site of the Nicollet Inn in 1924. The Pick-Nicollet was a twelve-story neoclassical building designed by the Chicago firm of Holabird and Roche. Housing over 600 rooms, it served downtown Minneapolis well into the early 1970s. It was sold to a church and eventually torn down in 1991. Another hotel was planned for the site, but it is now used as a parking lot. Return to list

The Eastman Flats
The Eastman Flats on Nicollet Island were the premier row houses of their day. William Eastman and John Merriam developed the property between 1877 and 1882. The buildings established high standards of size and elegance for similar developments that followed. The flats were part of an upscale neighborhood on Nicollet Island, which included several freestanding houses. The flats were demolished in several phases in the twentieth century. The last of the development went down for a De La Salle High School expansion in 1959. Return to list

Tyrone Guthrie Theater
A much more recent loss is the Tyrone Guthrie Theater, designed by local Modernist Ralph Rapson. The Guthrie's design arose out of Rapson's work with the Walker Art Center. The result was a theater that seated 1,441 people and featured an irregularly shaped thrust stage that physically brought the performers and audience closer to each other. The theater-going experience was revolutionized. In 1980, Artistic Director Liviu Ciulei had the stage redesigned. The size, shape and height of the stage became adjustable, and the back wall was opened to give more depth. With plans for the Walker Art Center to expand in the new millennium, the theater came under threat. In 2002, the National Trust for Historic Preservation put the Guthrie on its list of the most endangered historic properties in the United States. Despite local attempts to save the building, it was demolished in late 2006. The empty site will soon hold a park and sculpture garden. Return to list

Donaldson’s Glass Block Building
In 1888, the city’s first modern department store was built on the corner of Nicollet Avenue and Sixth Street South. Two Scottish brothers built the Donaldson’s Glass Block Building to hold their burgeoning retail business. It was a brightly lit and spacious shopping store that eventually took up an entire city block. The company moved to smaller quarters in 1982 and demolition of the building was begun. A fire on Thanksgiving Day in 1982 fire destroyed the building. The Donaldson’s chain was eventually bought out by the Chicago department store firm Carson, Pirie, Scott who renamed the local stores Herberger’s. Return to list