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It was the crown jewel of Minneapolis upon its construction and stood magnificently in the downtown core of the city, but alas, the Metropolitan Building was ill fated.
The building, designed by E. Townsend Mix and built by N.N. Leighton and Company for the Northwestern Guaranty Loan Company, was the first skyscraper in the city of Minneapolis. It was a $2 million investment and was built in 1890-91 with a Romanesque charm. The exterior masonry facade was built with New England granite and Portage red sandstone, which gave the building a distinct colour. Interior supports were made of cast iron and the floors were built of tile and terra cotta. The central oak-lined foyer was open throughout the 12 floors of the building which was topped by a skylight that allowed light into the building in a time when electric lighting was not all too common, although the building was later wired. The interior balconies surrounding the central court and the stairs had translucent structural glass floors, allowing even more sunlight to illuminate the building. The top floor of the building housed a rooftop restaurant with observation towers jutting up from its corners, while the rest of the building housed offices.
The 218-foot Metropolitan building was a victim of time and politics, as Minneapolis headed towards an era of urban renewal. 40% of Minneapolis’ downtown was slated for destruction to make room for urban growth and to allow modernism to take over its downtown core. The Met’s position in this area eventually lead to its demise and on December 18th, 1961, the majestic building was destroyed. Many preservationists and architects in the city protested its demolition, arguing that the building was not in any structural danger nor was it vacant or useless. Modernist ideology won in the end, however, and the Met did not have a chance of survival, a decision that many still regret to this day.
In 2010, some giant stones of marble from the Metropolitan Building were found in an old warehouse, which set off the city’s preservationists and architects in an effort to find use for them. Eventually, several blocks of stone from the historic building were used in constructing the Ice House Plaza, which was designed by sculptor Zoran Mojsilov and opened in May of 2012. Additionally, the Hennepin County Public Defender's office seen in the above photo now stands on the site of the Metropolitan Building.
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