Nye's closing: Shouldn't preservation include cultural assets, not just bricks and mortar?

In 2015, a unanimous vote by San Francisco city supervisors put forth to citizens Proposition J, an economic tool for legacy businesses such as neighborhood shops and bars; 56.97 percent of voters approved. More than 600 pubs in England are legally designated "assets of community value." New York, Paris and Barcelona have initiatives, too. With the closing of Nye's in northeast Minneapolis, let us take stock.

To be fair: Running any independent business, much less one in an aging historic structure, is hard. Replacing urban parking lots with retail and housing density is good. And the Minneapolis Heritage Preservation Commission long ago bestowed the protections of a historic district to the narrow 1900s building at Hennepin and Lourdes that has been a bar since it was built. Further, bartenders and accordion players are not immortal.

The historic buildings that house the "old side" and the Chopin Dining Room will be preserved and restored for continued retail use, according to the new development proposal. But there is more to preserve and protect than bricks and mortar; the interior furnishings will be auctioned shortly, dispersing artifacts across the region. The sum of Nye's parts will become much less than the whole. Recent elegies celebrate the "time-capsule" atmosphere of the Polonaise Room piano bar. Its unchanged 1964 interiors are old enough — and cohesive enough — for historic status in their own right. Yet that vernacular hasn't been sanctified, despite the fact that people generally spend more time communing with interiors than facades.

Seven criteria inform the Heritage Preservation Commission's designations. Consider 1, 3 and 4: exemplifies cultural/social history; is associated with neighborhood identity; embodies distinctive characteristics of style. Sounds like Nye's. What are the places in your neighborhood that provide intangible value?

CityLab.org recently published findings that "preferences of people have changed in ways that favor the downtown … for these highly urbanized amenities, like in entertainment services." Yes, places evolve, but let's recognize their original attractions. It seems that developers follow us to them.

"The good news is historic preservation is good for the economy," writes Donovan Rypkema, a real estate and economic development consultant and founder of PlaceEconomics. "In the last 15 years dozens of studies have been conducted throughout the United States, by different analysts, using different methodologies. But the results of those studies are remarkably consistent — historic preservation is good for the local economy. From this large and growing body of research, the positive impact of historic preservation on the economy has been documented in six broad areas: 1) jobs, 2) property values, 3) heritage tourism, 4) environmental impact, 5) social impact and 6) downtown revitalization."

Existing federal and state tax credits for historic structure rehabilitation are a valuable tool, but can we develop more symbiotic policies for cultural preservation, too? If the northwest corner of the Nye's block will continue to feature retail in two of the four existing buildings, it raises the question: How can policy incentivize developers to incorporate, not displace, legacy businesses?

Quirky and beloved local institutions are a notable part of what is attracting people and development to urban neighborhoods around the country. Iconic Nye's became one of the most important marketing tools for the area itself and for new developments within it. But Northeast's luster — in the form of sparkly gold saddle booths and flashing marquee lights — is a little less bright now.