A new bee 'sky rise' in Como Park offers home for pollinators

The St. Paul pollinator "sky-rise" is part work of art, part science experiment.

October 11, 2017 at 3:18PM

A new custom-built high-rise featuring a sleek wood and metal design and breathtaking views of Como Lake hit the market Wednesday morning. Best of all? The list price is free — to bees and butterflies.

The pollinator "sky-rise" is the work of Public Art St. Paul and the Bee Lab at the University of Minnesota. The purpose of the striking yellow tower is more than artistic, however. Researchers hope to learn what kind of man-made housing will attract, protect and nurture pollinators at a time when natural habitat is disappearing.

At the same time, officials hope the tower and its nearby bins of free flower seeds — milkweed, purple prairie clover and black-eyed Susan — will elicit support for developing even more pollinator habitat.

It didn't take long Wednesday for a handful of bees from the nearby Shoreline Habitat Restoration Project to check out their potential new digs.

"I see a bee up in the bee house!" shouted Colleen Sheehy, executive director of Public Art St. Paul.

"I think they're excited for their urban house," said Amanda Lovelee, a lead artist on the project along with Christine Baeumler and Julie Benda.

The sky-rise was funded with $113,000 from the Knight Foundation, as well as money the city of St. Paul set aside to develop public art.

The project will last three years and cost $300,000 total, Sheehy said. In addition, a $245,000 Minnesota Futures Grant from the U will help researchers test the bee house's design, use and effectiveness.

Wild bees are known to live in dead plants or fallen trees, said Colleen Satyshur from the Bee Lab. But a lot of that potential habitat is often cleared away and researchers don't know much about what makes a good artificial nest site for Minnesota's 400 or so species of bees.

For example, do they like nesting in sunny areas, or shade? Figuring out what makes the most attractive and useful nest "is critical to their survival for the winter," Satyshur said.

If the bees like what they see, she said they will begin nesting by spring. Researchers would observe them during the summer and, in the fall, take a peek inside the sky rise for more clues on their preferences and behavior.

The 4-foot-high bee and butterfly sky-rise sits atop a bright yellow 10-foot pole near the intersection of West Como Boulevard, Nagasaki Road and Horton Avenue. Officials hope to erect a second sky-rise near Lake Phalen in the fall and researchers hope to build another at the University of Minnesota campus.

Lovelee said the partnership between Public Art St. Paul, the city and the U will help highlight an issue that can be hard to understand.

"This is a great big beautiful sculpture that can draw people in and get them to pay attention in ways they might not have otherwise before," Lovelee said.

James Walsh • 651-925-5041

The city of St. Paul's first bee "Sky-Rise" habitat sat atop a pole Wednesday morning near Como Park. ] ANTHONY SOUFFLE ï anthony.souffle@startribune.com Public Art St. Paul held a event to unveil the city's first bee "Sky-Rise" habitat Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2017 near Como Park in St. Paul, Minn. The high rise home for pollinators was designed to not only provide bee habitat, but to allow researchers to study how wild bees use man-made structures.
The city of St. Paul’s first bee “sky rise” habitat sat atop a pole Wednesday morning near Como Park. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)
Artists Julie Benda and Amanda Lovelee spoke during the unveiling the city's first bee "Sky-Rise" habitat. ] ANTHONY SOUFFLE ï anthony.souffle@startribune.com Public Art St. Paul held a event to unveil the city's first bee "Sky-Rise" habitat Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2017 near Como Park in St. Paul, Minn. The high rise home for pollinators was designed to not only provide bee habitat, but to allow researchers to study how wild bees use man-made structures.
Artists Julie Benda and Amanda Lovelee spoke during the unveiling of St. Paul’s first bee “skyrise” habitat. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)
Bees worked in the nearby flowers following the unveiling the city of St. Paul's first bee "Sky-Rise" habitat. ] ANTHONY SOUFFLE ï anthony.souffle@startribune.com Public Art St. Paul held a event to unveil the city's first bee "Sky-Rise" habitat Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2017 near Como Park in St. Paul, Minn. The high rise home for pollinators was designed to not only provide bee habitat, but to allow researchers to study how wild bees use man-made structures.
Bees worked in the nearby flowers following the unveiling of St. Paul’s first bee “skyrise” habitat. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)
Luke Myers and Hannah Whitney, education assistants with Bee Real Bee Everywhere rode around on the electric bike they've dubbed the "beemobile" following the unveiling the city's first bee "Sky-Rise" habitat. ] ANTHONY SOUFFLE ï anthony.souffle@startribune.com Public Art St. Paul held a event to unveil the city's first bee "Sky-Rise" habitat Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2017 near Como Park in St. Paul, Minn. The high rise home for pollinators was designed to not only provide bee habitat, but to al
Luke Myers and Hannah Whitney, with Bee Real Bee Everywhere, rode around on the electric bike dubbed the “beemobile” after the unveiling. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)

about the writer

James Walsh

Reporter

James Walsh is a reporter covering St. Paul and its neighborhoods. He has had myriad assignments in more than 30 years at the Star Tribune, including federal courts and St. Paul schools.

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