City Council Votes to Grant Demolition Permit for Hotel Astoria Building
DULUTH, Minn. – Back in 2021, the owners of the historic Hotel Astoria requested permission to tear down the structure due to extensive deterioration. The owners also asked three local businesses within the building to leave and relocate last year.
The permit to tear it down was put on hold as the Heritage Preservation Commission blocked the demolition. On Monday evening, a consideration to reverse the decision was brought to the Duluth City Council.
The owners of the building say it has been in decline for decades and that an estimated 11.6 million dollars would be needed to restore it.
“You have two option’s regarding this building. The first option is to deny us a demolition permit. This would force us to secure the building by boarding up all the windows and doors to deter people from breaking in. It won’t take long for graffiti artists, gang members or just random folks to tag the building. This will be an eye sore to visitors and the community that live and work in the downtown area. The second option is to allow us to demolish the building. Based on cost and condition, this is the right decision in this case,” ZMC Hotels Operations Administrator, Anne Stratioti says.
ZMC Hotels, Anne Stratioti said that the building also poses a risk of injury or worse to the public and specifically the fire department.
However, some residents argued that it is worth the investment to repair it to keep the historic district alive.
“I think this is a very short term decision to demolish and once it’s gone it’s gone and the long term decision that I thought the city of Duluth embraced of this historic district. We need to build it up instead of tear it down and I guess that’s my bottom line. Please support the HPC, they’re the experts,” Local Preservationist, Linda Peplinski says.
Stratioti says that as part of the permitting process, they are required to submit engineering plans to uphold the below grade wall that supports Superior Street and the sidewalk. Once the demolition starts, they plan to provide fencing as well as barriers and signage around the area.
