Next decade of construction in downtown Rochester is ‘what most cities experience in 100 years’

ROCHESTER – For months, residents have asked what’s next for Destination Medical Center (DMC), the public initiative that promises to create an international medical hub in southeast Minnesota now that it’s on track to meet its financial goals.

DMC officials revealed few concrete details concerning its future at an annual meeting Thursday, but officials did promise one thing: A lot more construction is in the works for Minnesota’s third-largest city.

“The amount of construction Rochester will go through over the next 10 years is what most cities experience in 100 years,” DMC Executive Director Patrick Seeb told dozens of people at the Historic Chateau Theatre in downtown Rochester.

The Minnesota Legislature in 2013 signed off on $585 million in city, county and state funding for the initiative, which promised to pull in at least $5.6 billion in private investment in Rochester’s downtown over a two-decade period starting in 2015.

DMC is set to surpass that figure after Mayo Clinic announced a $5 billion downtown expansion in 2023. Mayo kicked off construction earlier this year, shutting down a number of downtown streets over the spring and summer. Mayo officials said last month that the most disruptive work is done.

The DMC initiative has spent much of this year touting its work redeveloping downtown and branding the community as “America’s City for Health.”

DMC officials say they’re focused on continuing that goal with three key drivers: creating more public infrastructure for sustainable, health-related projects, attracting more businesses to support and expand the city’s health and medical industries and creating conditions for more research and innovation.

“The proposition of Rochester being a home base for startup companies is really starting to take root,” Seeb said.

Other projects will come as they’re proposed, either through the city or through developers and organizations looking to invest.

What few specific project examples have come from residents in recent months. Seeb mentioned continued interest in restarting a Mayo Clinic medical museum as a potential attraction for visitors, while others in the past have pushed for a dedicated music hall.

That could become part of the Historic Chateau Theatre’s calling as the downtown venue hits 100,000 visitors this weekend since it reopened more three years ago under its newest operator, Threshold Arts.

Naura Anderson, director of Threshold Arts, said the Chateau had large-scale plans for the venue as it celebrates its 98th year this fall, including a large movie screen to bring back movies for the first time in decades.

“We’re creatives. We work really hard,” she said. “We have to be flexible and very adaptive.”

Larger projects likely will come to fruition as Mayo Clinic finishes its expansion in 2030. Mayo has provided the bulk of private investment in downtown, and non-Mayo investment has dipped in recent years in part because of COVID-19 and the glut of initial projects when DMC kicked off.

Seeb said he expects Rochester to support and grow around Mayo, from water and utilities work to making downtown more walkable and bikeable. He also pointed to the University of Minnesota Rochester’s recent growth as a chance for aggressive development to support area colleges and help train future workers at Mayo and biomedical companies.