Bandana Square
Encyclopedia
Bandana Square is now an office center but was originally designed to be an enclosed shopping center
Shopping mall
A shopping mall, shopping centre, shopping arcade, shopping precinct or simply mall is one or more buildings forming a complex of shops representing merchandisers, with interconnecting walkways enabling visitors to easily walk from unit to unit, along with a parking area — a modern, indoor version...

 in Energy Park
Energy park
An energy park is a separate area used and planned for the purpose of clean energy development, like wind and solar generation facilities.Energy parks create many other economic development benefits too. In Ohio, energy parks are creating thousands of green jobs. In Minnesota, community wind parks...

 (an industrial street) in Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul is the capital and second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies mostly on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the area surrounding its point of confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Minneapolis, the state's largest city...

. The site is in the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

.

It included a Best Western
Best Western
Best Western International, Inc. is the third largest hotel chain, with over 4,195 hotels in nearly 80 countries. The chain, with its corporate headquarters in Phoenix, Arizona, operates more than 2,000 hotels in North America alone. Best Western has a marketing program involving placement of free...

 hotel and conference center, along with several unique restaurants such as the successful Dakota Jazz Club and Restaurant that is now located in Minneapolis. The Dino's
Dino's
Dino's is a Greek fast food restaurant that started in St. Paul, Minnesota at the Minnesota State Fair in the 1970s. Since then, it has expanded to year-round restaurants at several locations in the Twin Cities, starting with a small establishment at Bandana Square in St...

 Greek fast-food chain, formerly known as Dino's Gyros, also had its first year-round restaurant at Bandana Square (previously, the company had only set up stands at the Minnesota State Fair
Minnesota State Fair
The Minnesota State Fair is the state fair of the U.S. state of Minnesota. Its slogan is "The Great Minnesota Get-Together." It is the 2nd largest fair in the United States, and the largest state fair in the United States in terms of average daily attendance, though the State Fair of Texas runs...

 and other events).

The complex opened in 1984 after several early twentieth century railroad buildings (the Northern Pacific Railway
Northern Pacific Railway
The Northern Pacific Railway was a railway that operated in the west along the Canadian border of the United States. Construction began in 1870 and the main line opened all the way from the Great Lakes to the Pacific when former president Ulysses S. Grant drove in the final "golden spike" in...

's Como Locomotive Shops) were converted into what was to be a large festival marketplace
Festival marketplace
A festival marketplace is a realization by James W. Rouse and the Rouse Company in the United States of an idea conceived by Benjamin C. Thompson of Benjamin Thompson and Associates for European style markets taking hold in the United States in an effort to revitalize downtown areas in major US...

. Richard Faricy FAIA, the architect, would later recount that it was a remarkable project from the start. The financing and cooperation came from everyone—the railroads, the government, and even private grants.

However, the venture was unsuccessful and the facility was transformed into office space.

Museums

The Minnesota Children's Museum
Minnesota Children's Museum
Minnesota Children’s Museum is a non-profit community organization located in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The Museum mission statement is “sparking children’s learning through play”, providing an environment where kids can touch, climb, splash, crawl, push, pull, and press it all...

 moved from Bandana Square to downtown Saint Paul in 1995, taking with it many visitors.

The Twin City Model Railroad Museum is still located in the complex, and is the only non-office related tenant remaining.

See also

  • Galtier Plaza
    Galtier Plaza
    Galtier Plaza, located in the Lowertown historic district of St. Paul, Minnesota, provides space for working, living, eating, and recreating in a self-contained project on one square city block....

    , a similar development in Saint Paul
    Saint Paul, Minnesota
    Saint Paul is the capital and second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies mostly on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the area surrounding its point of confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Minneapolis, the state's largest city...

  • Saint Anthony Main
    Saint Anthony Main
    Saint Anthony Main is a shopping and office complex located on Main Street in the Nicollet Island/East Bank neighborhood of Southeast Minneapolis in the U.S. state of Minnesota. Commonly the area is associated with Northeast, Minneapolis as it is actually northeast of downtown on the east side of...

    , a similar development in Minneapolis
    Minneapolis, Minnesota
    Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...


External links

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