Posted: 3:20 pm Mon, November 7, 2011
By ?MARISA HELMS
Tags: Accenture Tower, Ameriprise, CB Richard Ellis, construction, Minneapolis, Opus Group, skyway
The Accenture Tower, 333 S. Seventh St. in Minneapolis, has two skyway access points ? one to the south, the other to the east ? and is getting a third, this one over Third Avenue South to link to the Ameriprise Financial Center. The building lacked an all-important westward connection toward the downtown core. (Staff photo: Bill Klotz)
Skyways are not a luxury in Minneapolis.
There?s no denying the convenience these pedestrian walkways offer, especially in winter. It may be 20 below outside, but as one slogan puts it: When you?re in the skyway, you can ?walk for miles ? it?s always 70 degrees.?
Employees, residents and visitors alike have come to expect a full downtown experience while never putting on a coat or stepping foot outside. So if you want to succeed in business downtown, skyways ? especially well-placed skyways ? are a critical asset for attracting tenants, customers and employees.
The owners of Accenture Tower, at 333 S. Seventh St., have learned this lesson well and are installing their third skyway, this one over Third Avenue South. Though the building already has two skyway access points ? one to the south, the other to the east ? the tower has lacked an all-important westward connection since it was built in 1987.
?We never had a direct link into the core,? explained Jim Kenney, vice president of leasing for Accenture Tower?s property managers, CB Richard Ellis. ?That has been the only strike against this project since the doors opened, and we?re fixing that once and for all.?
Accenture?s newest skyway will cross Third Avenue South and link to the Ameriprise Financial Center.
?It?s really exciting for us,? Kenney said. ?It?s going to be a game-changer. It completely repositions us in the marketplace.?
Kenney says the westward connection means Accenture Tower tenants will be ever closer to downtown?s cultural epicenter.
?Three buildings, and you?re in the Crystal Court,? Kenney said.
Kenney says the new bridge has advantages for Ameriprise tenants, who will have easy access to Accenture Tower?s parking and a new high-end restaurant in the works.
Ameriprise did not return calls requesting comment.
The price tag for the new Accenture Tower skyway is $3 million. The tower?s owner, the California State Teachers? Retirement System (CALSTRS), is footing the bill. CALSTRS will be the sole owner of the skyway and will be responsible for its upkeep.
The vast majority of the skyway system is privately owned, so the Accenture arrangement is not unusual. Even so, some skyways are jointly owned by the connecting buildings. The city of Minneapolis owns only about a quarter of the system and is responsible only for the skyways that link to city buildings and city-owned parking structures.
Additionally, the city takes a hands-off approach to skyway governance, choosing to delegate all skyway approval and authority to a 16-member Skyway Advisory Committee. Members include property owners, city officials and downtown residents.
Michael McLaughlin, advisory committee facilitator and all-around skyway expert, says contrary to what many people think, there is no official implementation plan for the system.
?It?s entirely market-driven,? McLaughlin said. ?We?re very much seeing that in this example of the Accenture to Ameriprise link ? with the owners of the Accenture building saying they want it. Clearly they recognize there?s a market value to having a good skyway connection.?
When finished, the new Accenture skyway will become the 84th bridge in the eight-mile system connecting 73 downtown blocks.
The glass structure is 12 feet wide by 15 feet high and weighs several tons. The skyway will connect Accenture and Ameriprise at the second floor, sitting at least 16 feet above street level.
Leith Dumas, an engineer and senior project manager for the Opus Group, is designing and building the skyway.
Dumas says he has worked on ?quite a few? skyways over the years, and they have always presented challenges, particularly aesthetically.
In this project, Dumas had to bring into the design an offset joint that will jog the skyway over by 22 feet. That?s because the Accenture and Ameriprise buildings don?t match up exactly. Dumas said the offset has turned out to be a plus for the design because he did not want the new bridge to feel like a straight steel tube.
?There?s always that challenge ? that you don?t want people to feel like they?re in a rat maze,? Dumas said. ?The joint in the middle breaks up the skyway and gives it some interest. So when a pedestrian is traversing the skyway, they won?t have that tunnel feeling.?
The full steel skeleton of the bridge is scheduled to be installed Saturday. Then the glass will be set, the roof poured, and the mechanical systems installed.
Across the river in downtown St. Paul last week, city officials and local businesses made a media event out of opening the latest addition to that city?s 40-block skyway system ? a rebuilt walkway over Fifth Street. The new bridge, a mix of walls and windows, links the St. Paul Athletic Club and the Alliance Bank Center. It had been closed since April because of construction of the Central Corridor light rail transit line.
One woman quoted in the St. Paul Pioneer Press remarked that the city?s new link is ?almost as good as a Minneapolis skyway.?
The newest skyway in Minneapolis should be open for business by the end of this year, Dumas said.
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