Not so long ago, Gaviidae Common, the two-block, two-building retail center on Nicollet Mall, seemed close to being another victim of the decline in downtown Minneapolis retail. But during the past couple of years, New York–based Brookfield Properties, which owns and manages Gaviidae, has been quietly rebuilding it. In 2007, it opened several new stores, including Len Druskin Man, the Romeo and Juliet Shop, and StyledLife—all locally based. They’ve joined national retailers Ann Taylor and Neiman Marcus to create an interesting and (so far) successful mix. Brookfield executives Sternberg and Picking (along with Erin Harney, Brookfield’s local marketing manager) have driven Gaviidae’s rejuvenation.
“Rejuvenation” is the word: Gaviidae’s newer stores have a generally younger appeal, just the right touch for the downtown condo crowd and out-of-towners staying at new hostelries like the Chambers and the Westin. Brookfield has gotten Brooks Brothers, also trying to update itself, to move into the City Center, just across the skyway from Gaviidae. All moves that suggest a real (if still modest) rebirth of downtown retail.
