5-story apartment building planned for Old Town
MANKATO — After going more than half a century without any major new buildings, Mankato’s historic Old Town business district might get its second multi-million-dollar private investment in less than five years.
A new five-story apartment building with a ground-floor storefront is being planned for 502 N. Riverfront Drive — covering much of the space currently serving as a food truck hub.
The building, featuring 33 apartments and a top-floor patio overlooking the heart of Old Town, is being developed by Coldwell Banker Commercial Fisher Group, according to documents submitted to the city of Mankato.
The same development group was behind the “Studio 5” building constructed directly across the street at 507 N. Riverfront in 2021. That three-story building, which offered ground-floor commercial space and nearly 20 studio apartments, was the largest private investment in Old Town since the 1960s when new buildings were added to the Hubbard Milling complex.
Studio 5, a $2.87 million project that was sold in 2022 for $4.2 million, had a footprint of 5,460 square feet. The new building, currently referred to in planning documents as “502 Hub,” would be two stories taller with a footprint of nearly 9,000 square feet.
Plans show a ground floor with 2,300 square feet of commercial space facing Riverfront Drive, backed by 13 stalls of covered parking at the rear of the building. The second, third and fourth floors would each offer a pair of two-bedroom apartments and seven one-bedroom units.
The top floor includes an additional two-bedroom unit and six one-bedroom apartments plus the 1,500 square foot open-air patio offering views of the business district.
Apartments would range in size from as small as 628 square feet to as large as 1,079 and each would offer a small private balcony.