St. Cloud’s 539 Properties Wins Economic Development Association of Minnesota Award

(KNSI) – An east St. Cloud catalyst site has been named the Economic Development Association of Minnesota’s 2024 Project of the Year.

The 539 Building, named for its East St. Germain Street address, houses both the Iron Street Distillery and Harvester Square event center. The accomplishment was marked at Tuesday’s Benton County Board of Commissioners meeting.

Owner Kevin Johnson thanked all of the partners who made the renovation possible, including the Benton Economic Partnership, Initiative Foundation and the City of St. Cloud. Johnson told the commissioners that BEP Executive Director Amanda Othoudt was an invaluable resource. He says she was at every walkthrough with potential tenants and helped with the rezoning efforts for the property.

Johnson explained the goal of the redesign was to create something modern that paid tribute to the building’s rich history. He felt it was a jewel when it was first put up nearly 100 years ago and one of the area’s most prominent stores. “International Harvester has got a great history, not only in St. Cloud but around the country. When it was built in 1928, they were the fourth-largest corporation in the world, and that tells you what kind of stature they had in the area. And this was the fourth building in the St. Cloud area, the biggest, of course.”

The building’s fortunes changed as the east side became economically distressed. By the 1970’s it had lost a majority of its value. “It was built for $150,000. But I ran into a gentleman a couple of months ago. His dad was a big realtor in the area. Well, he had this building listed for sale in the mid-70s, mid to late-70s. And I gotta believe this is probably a low point in the history of this building. He had it listed for sale for $35,000,” said Johnson.

Manufacturing was on the ropes then in a time of high inflation and rising costs to heat and provide utilities to 65,000 square feet.

Today, Johnson told the commissioners he was happy to report that the current valuation is in the millions of dollars, calling it a testament to what redevelopment can achieve.

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