A recently-established nonprofit subsidiary of the St. Paul Downtown Alliance has acquired the sprawling Alliance Bank Center from troubled property owner Madison Equities, the first step toward stabilizing the vacant office and retail complex, which was been boarded up since April.

The St. Paul Downtown Development Corporation announced Friday it acquired full title, ownership and control of the prominent building, which holds an official street address of 55 and 56 Fifth St. E. and extends across Wabasha, Cedar and Minnesota streets. The nonprofit purchased the Alliance Bank Center’s bank note earlier this year. Otherwise, financial details behind the transaction are private, according to a written statement from the development corporation.

The building, which spans some 300,000 square feet and dates to the 1960s, has become emblematic of the office and retail vacancy challenges facing downtown St. Paul and Madison Equities, previously known as downtown’s largest property owner.

Madison Equities put the Alliance Bank Center and nine other properties up for sale en masse more than a year ago following the death of company principal Jim Crockarell; several locations have fallen into foreclosure and disrepair.

‘Core of downtown’

The Downtown Development Corporation, which brought on real estate attorney Dave Higgins as its first president and employee last February, will spend the next 12 months or so evaluating redevelopment options and reviewing community recommendations for the Alliance Bank Center, which sits in the “core of downtown,” according to the corporation.

“Downtown St. Paul is at a pivotal moment of transformation, and revitalizing the core is key to unlocking a consistent, vibrant downtown experience that extends from the arena district to Lowertown,” said Higgins, in the written statement. “The SPDDC will thoroughly assess a variety of potential redevelopment alternatives for the property informed, in part, by an upcoming community engagement process.”

More details on how the public can get involved will be shared later this fall.

‘A safe and secure asset’

Higgins said the nonprofit will work with the city and other partners over the next year to “maintain a safe and secure asset.” The nonprofit has hired private property management and security partners to oversee the building, which will remain closed to the public.

Skyway connections to the Osborn370 building and Treasure Island Center remain open.

St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter was quoted in the written statement calling the Alliance Bank Center “critical to the future of our entire city” and the ownership transition “the next key step in driving investment, revitalization and growth of our tax base in the core of downtown.”

For more information, visit downtownstpaul.com/ddc.

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