Day’s Inn Demolition Scheduled This Weekend
Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) - A nearly 100-year-old building in downtown Rochester has a date with a wrecking ball later this week. A notice distributed by the Rochester Public Works Department says demolition work on the Day’s Inn is scheduled to begin on Friday and continue through the weekend.
The former Carleton Hotel opened in 1920 at the site just east of the Methodist Hospital to service the growing number of people traveling to Rochester for treatment at the Mayo Clinic. Its fate was sealed earlier this year when the Rochester City Council voted to reject a proposal to grant the property landmark status under the city’s Heritage Preservation Ordinance. The hotel closed in September and the final tenant, a Pannekoeken Restaurant, closed earlier this month. At this point, the owners have not yet said what will be built at the site.
The demolition project will require closing the sidewalks adjacent to the property on Friday. Center Street, from 1st Avenue Northwest to the alley behind the building, and a 125-foot section of 1st Avenue north of Center Street will be closed to traffic on Sunday. The intersection at Center Street and 1st Avenue will remain open for travel to the west and south of the demolition zone.