In downtown St. Paul, a bridal shop moving into a long-vacant space on West Seventh Street will be eligible for up to a $100,000 loan from the city’s Housing and Redevelopment Authority, provided the proprietors can acquire another $31,000 on their own to complete financing.

LaNoire Bridal, previously located since 2022 in the skyway level of the Pioneer-Endicott building, plans to relocate to a larger, recently remodeled ground-floor location within the Fitz Flats building at 5 West Seventh St., which is nearly twice the size.

To finance the expansion, LaNoire Bridal received a $250,000 Small Business Administration loan from Drake Bank, more than half of which consolidated and refinanced existing debt. After fees and closing costs were paid, $89,300 remained for build-out of the new space and working capital, according to an HRA staff report.

That left a funding gap for furnishings, marketing and expanded inventory, which the shop owner was not able to close with additional financing because of the existing debt, and because any new loan would be subordinate to the SBA loan, according to the staff report.

Proprietor Lorraine Love and her new business partner, Jonathan Feliciano, asked the city for a low-interest loan of about $131,500. Based on staff recommendations, the seven-member city council, meeting Wednesday as the St. Paul HRA, voted unanimously to support a 10-year, $100,000 loan at 3% interest, contingent upon the shop securing a “non-debt source” to complete the $31,564 gap.

Ed Conley, principal with CCI Properties, purchased the four-story building at Wabasha and Seventh Street that was previously known as the Viking Apartments and conducted a major upgrade, right down to its witches’ hats-style parapets. The 1890s-era building, located at 467 Wabasha St., housed the Just/Us restaurant on the main floor in 2017 to 2019, as well as dozens of low-income tenants. “It’s the last Queen Anne Victorian building left in downtown St. Paul,” said Conley, in an email. Conley provided this photo of the building, from the 1920s. His initial plans called for 30 studio apartments and four one-bedroom apartments, as well as a ground-level restaurant or commercial space. LaNoire Bridal hopes to move in on the ground level in 2025. (Courtesy of CCI Properties)

Council President Mitra Jalali and other officials have expressed optimism that the store will activate long-dormant space on the ground level of the Fitz Flats building at Wabasha and Seventh Street. An 1890s-era Queen Anne Victorian building, the Fitz Flats was previously known as the Viking Apartments, which hosted the Just/Us restaurant from December 2017 until May 2019.

The historic property — believed to be the last Queen Anne Victorian in downtown St. Paul — was recently renovated by developer Ed Conley and CCI Properties.

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