Part one of a major civic improvement on St. Paul's East Side kicks off Thursday with groundbreaking for the Payne-Maryland Project — a combined library/rec center.

The $14 million city project is scheduled to open next year, and a  second phase, likely (hopefully?) incorporating a local church, funeral home and nonprofits in an attached facility remains mired in a money-gathering mode.

While there's still much discussion about what to name the project, Mayor Chris Coleman sounds relieved to get a shovel in the ground:

MinnPost photo by Terry GydesenMayor Chris Coleman

"The Payne-Maryland project has been a priority of mine for several years, and I'm thrilled we're going to be breaking ground," he said. "This facility will provide one of Saint Paul's iconic neighborhoods, the East Side, with a state-of-the-art facility that combines a community center and library."

This first phase was designed by Hammel, Green & Abrahamson, with community coordination by the Payne Phalen District 5 Planning Council. Kraus Anderson is the construction manager.

Maryland Avenue will be widened, and the existing buildings at the southeast corner of Payne and Maryland and the Arlington Recreation Center will be demolished to make way for the new building and grounds.

Lengthy gestation stages

Today's groundbreaking marks the end of an ultra-long planning process, which isn't an unusual situation in St. Paul these days.

Construction started this summer on the Penfield apartment/grocery store in downtown, after a planning process that began in 2004.

These things take time.

Dan Bostrom

"Saying it's taken a while is an understatement," said Council Member Dan Bostrom of the Payne Maryland project. But it's an important measure, he said, for the oft-neglected East Side.

"The city is putting a flag in the air, saying that we're investing in a neighborhood with huge potential, and we're willing to put $14 million into a facility and that will encourage businesses and homeowners to invest, too," he said.

What's in a name?

But the project still doesn't have an official name.

Some, including Bostrom, are pushing to call it the "Herb Brooks Miracle Center," to honor the late hockey coach who grew up on the East Side, attended Johnson High School and went on to a stellar coaching career that included the "Miracle on Ice" Olympic Gold Medal performance in 1980.

Others want to keep the Arlington name on the building for continuity, because it replaces the Arlington Rec Center and the Arlington Hills Library. Or at least get the phrase "East Side" somewhere in the name.

Today's 11 a.m. groundbreaking at the corner of Maryland and Payne will be a catalyst in getting Phase Two going and in settling the naming issue, Bostrom said.

"We've got to get on the name decision soon," he said. "The biggest thing is to get started so people know it's real. We've talked about it for more than five years, but now it's happening and we can made some decisions."

Bostrom, who also attended Johnson (although a few years after Brooks, who graduated in 1955) is steadfast in his hopes to name the project for the hockey legend.

"I'd like to do something to recognize Herb; he was a kid from the Johnson area who was successful. He had talent and he worked hard.

"That's the theme I'd like to see reflected throughout this facility: the harder you work, the luckier you get."

Bostrom has a special place in his heart for the new facility. As a young cop, he lived on Geranium, just across the alley. And his son, Matt, who is now the Ramsey County sheriff, spent time growing up at the nearby Arlington Rec Center, which will be torn down to make way for the new combination building.

On the naming issue, city staff is currently conducting public input sessions,  said Ellie Galgano of the Parks and Recreation Department.

City policy allows for sites to be named for:

• Geographic names, based on adjacent street names, surrounding neighborhood or community name, or the name of other prominent nearby features, such as a water body
• Historic names, based on prominent historic people or events associated with the site’s general area.  Care shall be taken that historic names reflect the city’s multicultural diversity and traditions.
• Functional names, be based on the use, service or programs provided at the site.
• Memorial names, based on names of individual who made significant contributions to the St. Paul parks and recreation system and who have been deceased for at least three years.

Once a recommended name is selected, it will go to the Parks Commission, the mayor and the City Council.

Mayor Coleman said Wednesday he isn't backing a horse in the naming race, yet.

Phase Two

MinnPost photo by Joe KimballConstruction is under way for a new home for Kendall's
Ace Hardware on Phalen Boulevard.

Now that bulldozers and cranes will start work on the corner, where Kendall's Ace Hardware has been, there's a hope for renewed vigor in raising money for the second phase of the project — the private part of the public/private partnership. (Kendall's is moving to a new building south on Payne, at Phalen Boulevard, in another key development for the area.)

Interest in a shared facility began more than five years ago, with talks between the city and the nearby Arlington Hills Lutheran Church and Bradshaw funeral home. The YMCA also has expressed interest in programming at the new facility, too, and other nonprofits could be included in the mix.

When completed, the two phases would be connected, ideally with shared walls and passageways, said Al Oertwig, the former St. Paul School Board member who's now the president of the District 5 Payne Phalen District Council.

The city came up with its $14 million for the library/rec center phase from federal Recovery Zone andEconomic Development Bonds and went ahead with the public portion of the project, as fundraising continues for the rest. Patrick Seeb of the Riverfront Corp. has been brought in to work with the nonprofit partnership trying to move that phase forward.

Seeb said the city's efforts on the project represent "a new generation of how services are provided, with integrated programming."

He said to expect at least three years of fundraising for Phase Two. There had been a target of $24 million for the second phase, but that will be revised downward, he said.

Initial planning began in 2006, before the economic downturn which two years later "took the wind out it," Seeb said. Similar fates befell other laudable projects around the country.

With the Lutheran Church involvement in the proposed partnership, Seeb said church/state separation concerns have been raised and continue to be discussed.

"Everyone acknowledges that there are issues to be managed, but there are lots of examples where these things have been worked out, for example, a church renting from a public agency," Seeb said.

He says that with the city portion of project now under way, there will be renewed interest in getting the second phase rolling.

"People will be reminded that there's more to it. There will be momentum to keep our eyes on the ball," Seeb said.

Mayor Coleman says he's eager to get the rest of the project rolling, too.

"Along with our partners, I am committed to Phase II and look forward to meeting with folks soon on this.  There seems to be interest in everyone from private business to faith-based organizations, so I am excited to see that vision through," he said.