Schmidt Artist Lofts is located in St. Paul's West 7th neighborhood, a vibrant, eclectic area with blue-collar roots. (Photo: schmidtartistlofts.com)
Schmidt Artist Lofts is located in St. Paul’s West Seventh neighborhood, a vibrant, eclectic area with blue-collar roots. (Photo: schmidtartistlofts.com)

The City of Saint Paul has announced that the groundbreaking has begun on an exciting new near-Downtown Saint Paul affordable housing project, the Schmidt Brewery Artist Lofts. The historic Schmidt Brewery has been featured in several editions of the Saint Paul Almanac. The City notes:

The $120 million project will redesign the historic Schmidt Brewery to specifically meet the needs of artists. Schmidt Brewery, built in the 1930s, will have 260 units after the full-scale renovations, including 121 units in the bottling house, 126 units in the brew house, and 13 new construction townhouse units built on a vacant lot adjacent to the bottling house.

Video of the January 29th Groundbreaking Ceremony

Skip to Mayor Chris Coleman’s comments:
http://youtu.be/tMVDAh963_U?t=14m15s

The City of Saint Paul adds:

The proposed work will address structural and deferred maintenance issues associated with the age of the buildings. Specifically designed for the needs of artists, common amenities will include a yoga/Pilates studio, dance studio, pottery studio, play/performance studio, sound studios, paint studio, clay studio, kiln room, tool shop/frame room, and multiple gallery spaces and art display walls. The project is scheduled to be completed by June of 2014.

The Pioneer Press reports:

To convert a large corner of the brewery into housing, more than $69.3 million in tax-exempt bonds were issued by the city’s Housing and Redevelopment Authority, and more than $4.2 million in environmental cleanup funds were contributed by the city, Ramsey County, the Metropolitan Council and the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development. Dominium expects to receive more than $50 million in federal low-income and historic tax credits and $22 million in Minnesota state historic tax credits.

Schmidt Artists Lofts project consultant Jennifer Kramer told the Almanac that Schmidt will begin offering units for lease in late 2013, as an affordable housing program. Household income limits are as follows: 1 Occupant: $34,740; 2 Occupants: $39,720; 3 Occupants: $44,700; 4 Occupants: $49,620; 5 Occupants: $53,640; 6 Occupants: $57,600.

For more information visit schmidtartistlofts.com.