Strip mall, retail space planned near Alerus Center

An architecture firm says it will build a 14,900-square-foot strip mall across the street from the Alerus Center in Grand Forks.

Forty-Second Street Square, at 801 S. 42nd St. at the intersection with Garden View Drive, will consist of eight retail spaces ranging between 1,724 square feet and 2,024 square feet.

The space will probably attract tenants such as restaurants, shops and other light retail that could serve a part of western Grand Forks close to UND, Altru Health System, the Alerus Center, and a number of new hotels and apartment developments, said project developer Mike Kuntz, a principal with Icon Architectural Group.

Icon submitted plans to the Grand Forks Planning Office of Oct. 30.

Construction on the $2 million project should be finished by June, and its developers are working on commitments from prospective tenants, Kuntz said.

Forty-Second Street Square will sit to the west of the office building shared by Icon and engineering firm AE2S.

“It’s always been part of the master plan,” Kuntz said.

The company also plans to break ground next spring on a combination office building and upscale apartment building along Garden View Drive, just south of Icon’s present building.

“We’re one year away from needing space,” Kuntz said.

The new buildings would visually reflect the design of the Icon and AE2S building and incorporate some of the energy-efficiency measures used in the offices.

“We believe that with our whole campus we need to remain well-planned and complementary,” Kuntz said.

A fourth building is planned north of the retail plot, but Kuntz said plans and a construction date for that part are still being decided.

Icon’s plans are a significant retail addition to the 42nd Street corridor. Besides the Alerus Center and Canad Inns and its attached businesses, that stretch is the location of three hotels and two convenience stores. Kuntz said the project could contribute to further development of 42nd as a retail area for the west side of Grand Forks.

“Hopefully, this would add to the momentum,” he said. “That’s how you develop a critical mass.”

A 224-unit apartment complex is also under development on the other side of 42nd Street by Campus Crest, a North Carolina company that builds apartments tailored for students.

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