It's been getting harder and harder to tease downtown St. Paul for its perceived lack of awesomeness -- what with the rise of the Lowertown bar scene and the area's great summer music fests.
Some credit for this transformation should go to Joe Spencer, the mayor's Director of Arts and Culture (shouldn't every city have one of these?). He has spent the past five years cultivating businesses he hopes will give downtown the attention it deserves.
Spencer, 36, thinks his latest move might prove to be one of the city's brightest additions. For months, the "arts guy" (as he's known) has been courting three businesses that would create a little rock 'n' roll symmetry inside the city-owned Lawson Commons building (former home to Pop!! and Fhima's before that).
Spencer hopes a scene will grow up around the Amsterdam Bar and Hall, a proposed music venue by the owners of the popular 331 Club. The bar's two next-door neighbors will include a resurrected Eclipse Records and a poster-art studio called Big Table.
Each business is expected to sign a lease in July, with plans to open by the end of the summer.
"I feel like this is the biggest accomplishment in my time here," Spencer said.
As the anchor of this triumvirate, Amsterdam will take over much of the massive Pop!!/Fhima's space. For its owner, Jarret Oulman, the prospect of opening a new bar comes at an interesting time. Business is still strong at the 331 Club (which he owns with his father, Jon) in northeast Minneapolis, but the duo recently closed their underperforming 501 Club in downtown Minneapolis. Their neighborhood-rock-bar formula didn't work at the much larger 501, and this St. Paul location is even bigger. But Oulman has a plan.
"We know the challenges of making a gymnasium look cozy," he said.
