History

Built in 1917 at a prominent streetcar intersection, the Coliseum building has been a cornerstone of Lake Street and the Longfellow community for more than a century. Over its lifetime, it has been home to Freeman’s department store, professional offices, a third-floor dance hall, bowling alley, barbershop, and much more. The building was designed as a place of everyday gathering and exchange woven into the social and economic life of the corridor.

On May 25, 2020, George Floyd was murdered by Minneapolis Police. Just steps away from the Minneapolis Third Police Precinct, this intersection became the epicenter of protest and civil unrest that spread across the country. Many buildings and businesses along Lake Street were damaged or destroyed. The Coliseum was among the structures severely impacted and was initially declared a “total loss.”

Across the street, the multi-story historic Oddfellows building, another long-standing community landmark, was completely destroyed and demolished. Suddenly, the Coliseum and the nearby historic firehouse were two of the only historic structures left standing in the immediate area. For many in the community, losing the Coliseum building as well was intolerable. Too much had already been erased.

As Redesign joined neighbors in mourning, cleaning up, and beginning the long work of recovery, the message from the community was unmistakable: this moment of loss also carried an opportunity to rebuild differently: more equitably, more sustainably, and with greater community control.

From a conventional development perspective, the Coliseum was too large, too complex, and too costly to restore. Demolition was seen as the most rational path forward. In 2021, Redesign stepped in and purchased the building, not because it was easy or efficient, but because the community had made clear that letting it go was not an option.

The Vision

Redesign’s vision for the Coliseum was fundamentally about systems change – an opportunity to shift ownership and power and to create generational wealth for BIPOC small business owners through the equitable redevelopment of a site that bears the scars of the community’s pain.

Rather than asking what would maximize short-term financial return, Redesign asked a different set of questions: Who should own this building? Who should benefit from its restoration? And how could it serve the community for the long term?

In the wake of 2020, those questions carried particular urgency. Real estate wealth has historically been concentrated in the hands of a few, primarily white property owners. Reinforced by redlining, discriminatory lending practices, wealth and credit disparities, exclusion from information networks, and patterns of displacement that have repeatedly followed neighborhood reinvestment, the Coliseum represented an opportunity to interrupt that cycle at a highly visible and symbolically charged site.

Redesign partnered with BIPOC business owners Alicia Belton (Urban Design Perspectives), Janice Downing (CommonSense Consulting@Work), and Chris & Shanelle Montana (Du Nord Social Spirits) to stabilize and rehabilitate the building. Together, they navigated layered financing, historic preservation tools, and capital to make possible what traditional development models would not support.

Officially reopening on Juneteenth 2024, The Historic Coliseum Building became the first non-corporate space to return to active use in the area following the devastation of 2020, a milestone rooted as much in values as in construction.

Community Mission & Impact

Today, the restored building provides flexible commercial space for small businesses, nonprofits, and cultural organizations, offering stability in a high-visibility location with historic character and modern amenities.

More than a successful rehabilitation, the Coliseum challenges the assumption that historic restoration and affordability are incompatible. It demonstrates that when communities are listened to and when ownership structures are designed intentionally, buildings others have written off can become powerful tools for equity, resilience, and long-term wealth-building.

Once nearly lost, the Historic Coliseum Building is no longer a symbol of devastation. It stands as proof that systems can be redesigned, that memory matters, and that when communities retain ownership of their landmarks, they retain the ability to shape their future.