Will the Dayton’s Project ever be fully leased?

It’s that magical time of year when thousands of holiday shoppers pour into the Dayton’s Holiday Market to shop local while slurping bowls of wild rice soup (there are popovers designed to trigger Oak Grill nostalgia, too). But peering around the temporary vendor tables, many are likely to wonder: What goes on in this landmark building the rest of the year? Is anybody upstairs?

The Dayton’s Project is in receivership, which means the court appointed Lighthouse Management to oversee the 1.2 million square foot building after lenders claimed the owners defaulted on a $200 million loan. A September report from Lighthouse said the building “continues to operate at a significant loss.”

But office leasing has picked up a bit since my colleague Katie Galioto reported in April that the Dayton’s Project was just 11% leased. Today, 28% of the 843,000 square feet of office space in the building is leased, said Larissa Bodine, senior vice president at CBRE. She added that Dayton’s Project is seeing growing demand for spec suites — fully furnished, move-in ready offices that typically lease for shorter terms.

“Companies don’t want the hassle of designing an office,” Bodine said. The Dayton’s Project just added three more spec suites, a total of 50,000 square feet.

Current spec tenants include fintech company Sezzle, business consultancy JL Buchannan and marketing firm Lacek Group. Given its proximity to Target HQ, the Dayton’s Project is attracting firms that work with the retailer, like BlueBird Group and Uncommon.

Meanwhile, Buyer Support Group and Harvest Group are currently working out of spec suites while they build out permanent offices in the building. “Having an existing pool of ready-to-go space was critical in our ability to meet their timing and occupancy needs,” Bodine said. “We’re definitely seeing more confidence and a higher volume of companies looking for space.”

But it would take a lot of these 30,000-square-foot-type tenants to fill out this colossal building.

Minnesota’s startup community tends to get stuck in the middle. In a recent Greater MSP survey of around 40 firms in the Minnesota Investors Network, 74% said they make Series A investments (the first major funding round), compared to just 18% involved at the Series C stage (typically larger dollar amounts for established ventures looking to scale or acquire other companies). Serial entrepreneurs Scott Litman and Dan Mallin have spent years building up that early stage ecosystem as founders of MN Cup, the largest startup competition of its kind in the country. Now they’re turning their attention to the next hurdle: growing past $5 million in Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR). The duo will lead Minnesota’s first cohort of Birthing of Giants, a two-year educational program for founders whose companies are anywhere between $5 million and $250 million in ARR.

“This is different than a CEO roundtable,” Litman said. “This is MBA-level, focused on how you scale, position your company for capital, or get it ready to sell.” Litman estimates that Minnesota has around 50 companies that would qualify. The program, which meets quarterly, is open to founders from other states as well. Set to launch in January, a few spots remain. Register for a Dec. 8 virtual information session to hear the pitch.

Houston White and Greg Cunningham will host a conversation about authenticity, connection and building community at the Minneapolis Club on Thursday, Dec. 4. They’re calling it “Our Differences Make Us Dope” and inviting anyone interested in bridging communities through culture and commerce to attend the free event. White is the founder of the Camdentown Business District in North Minneapolis with a diverse portfolio of business initiatives including Houston White Men’s Room and a clothing collection at Target. (Watch a recording of his talk from the Strib’s North Star Summit). Cunningham is U.S. Bank’s senior vice president and chief community impact and inclusion officer. He also chairs the U.S. Bank Foundation Board. Reserve your spot for what promises to be an engaging conversation.

Target saga: Analyzing Target’s failings has become sport, with all the national news outlets feeling compelled to weigh in. The latest is Bloomberg, with a deep dive that accuses Target of letting its arrogance get in the way of a necessary retail evolution. The lengthy article treads familiar ground of Brian Cornell’s hybrid leadership taking a toll. But incoming CEO Michael Fiddelke is his predecessor’s biggest defender, telling a Bloomberg reporter that he and Cornell are completely aligned. “We both know that I — with the team — need to grab the pen and write the next chapter. Brian’s been super open and supportive about that.”

Competition for 3M and nVent: The Strib’s Patrick Kennedy takes us inside Maxwell Labs, a Little Canada startup that is developing a technology that could compete with 3M and nVent on making data centers more energy efficient. Founded by Mike Karpe, Jacob Balma and Alejandro Rodriguez, Maxwell’s approach uses lasers in place of liquid cooling methods.