Five things to know about plans for Destination Medical Center's Discovery Walk

After a slow winter marred with pandemic-related economic challenges, Destination Medical Center is gearing up to begin construction on one of its most-anticipated projects.

The Rochester City Council gave the green light Monday for DMC to move forward with its plans for Discovery Walk, promising to provide a link between the Heart of the City and the Soldiers Field Park area, two of DMC’s identified sub-districts. The project has been in planning stages since 2017.

Discovery Walk will become one of DMC’s two major public realm construction projects in 2021, in conjunction with the second summer of Heart of the City construction. Here are five things you should know about the project before construction gets into full swing.

A ‘defining’ experience for downtown

DMC leaders say Discovery Walk is designed to be a “multi-use linear parkway” along Second Avenue SW, running north/south between Mayo Clinic’s Annenberg Plaza and the doorstep of Soldiers Field Park.

Over the four-block, 28,000 square-foot stretch, plans call to plant 300 trees and add roughly 1,000 sitting places — including benches, table seating, and decorative rocks, according to renderings.

Initial estimates pegged the project’s cost at $16.8 million, but recent additions could drive the final total past $22 million.

The project includes funding for public art to be interspersed throughout the roughly half-mile project, and leaders from the city and DMC hope to see a boost in private investment in the areas surrounding the proposed development.

During Monday’s discussion, council members called the project a possible “highlight of the community” once completed, emphasizing the importance of pedestrian-first infrastructure projects.

“This could be one of the defining experiences of our downtown and of our city,” said Council Member Nick Campion.

Each block has its own identity

While the project is designed to be a gateway connecting two parts of the downtown area, the Discovery Walk experience itself will change by the block, according to city project manager Josh Johnsen.

The 500 block of Second Avenue SW — in proximity to several apartment buildings — is imagined to become a “neighborhood center” of sorts, featuring gathering areas for people living in the surrounding houses and apartments. Private businesses could potentially set up shop alongside the center, giving downtown residents more shopping and dining options.

Both Discovery Square buildings are on the 400 block of Second Avenue, which Johnsen says will be known as the “innovation district” of Discovery Walk. This portion of the project will be fitted with hundreds of benches and seats, intended for workers inside the Discovery Square buildings to use as space to work — or take a break from work.

A block north, the 300 block will be transformed from a surface lot for Mayo Clinic into green space and add a “food truck plaza,” with space for potentially 10 trucks to set up, according to Johnsen.

The 200 block will be primarily turned into green space, but the real changes will come underground; plans call for updated stormwater structures, electric and gas lines, and improvements to the sewer system.

A diverse set of collaborators

While Minneapolis-based design firm Coen+Partners has handled the majority of the design work thus far, seven community members of various backgrounds have been brought on to work as a co-design group, acting as a “bullhorn” for residents whose opinions may otherwise not be heard.

Wafa Elkhalifa, equity specialist for Rochester Public Schools and one of the members of the stakeholder group, says the cohort has been tasked with gathering information and opinions from diverse communities across Rochester and presenting them to the design team.

She says her recommendations have resulted in the team changing some design elements — a process she says has not happened in the past, but is essential to proper community representation in the final product.

“[Diversity] is not about putting up a welcome sign with all the languages anymore, or putting up a poster with diverse faces on it,” said Elkhalifa. “It’s about being part of the decision-making process.”

The project will also feature permanent installations from three Rochester-based artists born abroad, highlighting their journeys to Rochester and their interpretations of the history and ecology of our area. Two of the three will be displayed throughout the entire stretch of Discovery Walk.

Rendering: Punctuated Asymptote, by Sophia Chai; a series of bright blue pedestrian lights that all have different lengths, but raise the same height above sea level. Also included: “Photosynthesis,” by Zoe Cinel; a light installation on the 200 block of 2nd Avenue SW. / via council agenda packet

Additions will make it more expensive

In approving the project design, the City Council authorized the addition of $1.9 million in contingency funds — a common move in the construction business, accounting for any unexpected costs that may arise. The move brought the project budget to roughly $18.8 million, paid for through DMC’s Capital Improvement Program (CIP) funding.

But that was not the only addition adopted Monday. In the same vote, the council gave DMC staff the OK to seek bids for additional snowmelt ($2.1 million) and weather shelter projects ($1.1 million); if the bids are approved, the final price tag would climb just above $22 million. (Additional capital past the $18.8 million already authorized would come from unallocated state DMC funds, so no current projects would lose out on funding.)

Patrick Seeb, DMC’s executive director, said the additions are intended to make Discovery Walk accessible year-round for potential commuters and visitors. He noted that alternative approaches, such as building skyways and tunnels, would likely be more expensive.

“Another way to rationalize this investment in weather protection systems would be to ask: how would it compare to the cost of building a skyway or subway as a way of providing climate protection?”, said Seeb.

mixed opinions from the council

Council Member Kelly Rae Kirkpatrick was the lone member to vote against Monday’s proposed plans, citing concerns over “the amount of trees we’re trying to pack into that space,” plus a desire for more public input.

“I would really like to see ramped-up community engagement before it goes too much further,” said Kirkpatrick. “There’s already been over $870,000 spent on Coen+Partners just for general design services. I think we need to do a real broad reach-out to the community, with some of those virtual open houses like we’ve done in the past.”

While all other council members voted to approve the project, some were wary over the project’s escalating costs. Council Member Mark Bransford said he heard disappointment from some business owners over the project’s financial burden, and advised the council to use future engagement efforts to highlight the project’s benefits to the downtown core.

“There’s a lot of business owners downtown that are really struggling and suffering, and they see this, and they think ‘oh my goodness, a $20 million sidewalk,’ ” said Bransford.

Still, the majority of city leaders spoke in support of the project. Mayor Kim Norton said the finished product would turn Second Avenue SW into one of the most walkable areas in Rochester, likely leading to better business for shops around the project’s corridor.

Council President Brooke Carlson was in agreement, saying the project would become an “important asset” to the community.

“It does seem like a lot of money for a four-block stretch, but pedestrian-oriented spaces can be the highlight of a community,” said Carlson. “I’ve lived in those and traveled through them, and I truly value having those spaces while being in an urban setting.”

With the council’s action, the next step in the process will likely come in early April, when Johnsen expects to present bids for the weather shelter and snowmelt projects. The project also needs a final nod from the DMC Corporation Board. If all goes to plan, construction is set to start this summer with Discovery Walk fully completed by 2023.

Isaac Jahns is a Rochester native and a 2019 graduate of the Missouri School of Journalism. He reports on politics, business and music for Med City Beat.