I remember when Cossetta's was a small an Italian grocery store on Ryan and what is now Eagle street in St. Paul.   It is a family owned business started in about 1911.  They moved to West 7th street 25 years ago.  Both of my children had jobs there at one time or another and jobs are a good thing.  

The market is still there and I am a frequent shopper.  I go there for the bread, cheese and meat and there is also the very popular Cossetta's restaurant where a person can buy some pasta or maybe a pizza.   They are in the middle of a major expansion but are still open and busy during construction.  There is plenty of parking in a large lot behind the building. 

Construction

The project is in partnership with the City and  will create a one of a kind premier Midwest destination for Italian food.  The project consists of a three level structure that will connect to the existing Cossetta’s restaurant using a portion of the existing parking lot.

A new parking lot will be constructed on property owned by Cossetta’s at 212 Smith Street. (I think the parking lot is done)  The restaurant and food emporium expansion will include a bakery, meat market, take out meals and gelato.
- Estimated total development costs: $7.3 million
- Estimated total public investment: $2 million
- Estimated construction jobs: 112
- Estimated permanent jobs: 100
- Financing: Jobs Bill TIF

It is wonderful to see new construction and to see so many people working. I will be taking more photos as the construction continues. Remember to shop local and support your neighborhood businesses.  

 I have a rather large collection of photographs of front doors.  Some of the doors belong to houses but most belong to historic buildings and businesses.  If you have a home on the market and you would like to make a good first impression paint the door.

Red is a good color but if red is not the right color consider a fresh coat of paint or varnish or maybe a new door.   

Sophie Joe's West 7th Street St. Paul, MN

I think it would be fun to photograph all of the murals in St. Paul but that would take a lot of time because there are so many.  This one on the side of Java Train coffee shop on Pascal street in the Como Park neighborhood really caught my eye. 

Java Train

 There is a new donut shop in the area and we don't have many.  I have been waiting for the novelty to wear off but the lines are still mighty long. 

Welcome to the Mojo Monkey on West 7th street in St. Paul, Minnesota  the home of "handcrafted fresh donuts".

Mojo Monkey

They open at 5:30 in the morning during the week and 6:30 on the weekend. I am going to see if I can buy a donut at 6:30 tomorrow morning without having to wait in line.

 These were taken in St. Paul near where the 3M tapes and adhesive plants used to be near E 7th and Minnehaha in St. Paul.   I believe there used to be a Whirlpool plant in the area too and not too far away are the remains of the old Hamm's brewery which was another great source of jobs.   There are vacant homes and empty commercial buildings of all sizes around town and in most towns around the country.  I once worked in this area.  There is a vacant lot where my office used to be. 

yard sale 

It looks like they gave up on the house and decided to try selling the yard instead. 

history 

Wescott Station Antiques

The sign on the door says: "Fairly cool Inside"  Thanks for making me smile.  Wescott Station is located at 226 West 7th Street in beautiful St. Paul Minnesota. 

At least it isn't a dry heat. 
 

Nice Ride

Nice ride started last year in Minneapolis.  In June they started installing Nice Rice Kiosks in St. Paul.  This one is on Sherburne Avenue near University Avenue just outside of Checkers pizza.  The bikes can be rented by the hour and the first 30 minutes are free . . kind of.   The details and pricing can be found on the Nice Ride MN web site.

I talked to some people who have used the bikes.  They are easy to adjust and the kiosk accepts credit cards. There are going to be maps at each station soon and of course more stations.  The bikes are pretty heavy duty which is probably a good thing.  

No one has asked me if the bikes will cause property values to rise but I will go out on a limb and say they can't hurt.