Former Kozy Owner Speaks Out About Lawsuit Against City
Eric Ringsred: City Not Doing Enough To Save Former Kozy Building
DULUTH, Minn. – The former Kozy building owner, Eric Ringsred spoke out to FOX 21’s Dan Hanger Wednesday for the first time since filing a lawsuit against the city of Duluth last week claiming the city is not doing enough to preserve the historic structure that’s falling apart.
The Kozy Bar and apartments on East First Street went up in flames in November of 2010 and was later condemned by the city of Duluth.
Ringsred tried to save the structure but ultimately failed through battles with the city. And on top of that, he lost ownership of the property in 2016 after the county sold it to the Duluth Economic Development Authority (DEDA) as tax-forfeited property.
But as Hanger reports, Ringsred is still not backing away and still pointing the finger at the city – this time in a lawsuit claiming the city doesn’t care to save the structure that was once pristine town homes in the 1880s and known as Pastoret Terrace.
“I don’t think the city has put forth the kind of effort they could in looking for a reuse. I think the record will show that,” Ringsred said.
In the lawsuit, Ringsred claims city officials are letting the building deteriorate to the point of demolition to make way for new development without going through the proper channels with the city’s Historic Preservation Commission.
Previous Story: Former Kozy Building Owner Files Lawsuit Against City of Duluth, DEDA
City attorney Gunnar Johnson told FOX 21 the buildings condemned condition all started and is a result of Eric Ringsred.
“Dr. Ringsred has had a history of buying buildings in Duluth, neglecting them and unfortunately it’s been the city and the tax payers that have had to clean up his mess,” Johnson explained. “He has had a number of suits similar to this one, and we have had to fight them off in the past and we will continue to do that going forward.”
Ringsred does give some credit to the city for investing millions of dollars into another building he formally owned one block lower on East Superior Street known as the historic NorShor Theatre.
But Ringsred believes there’s an unfair game of city officials choosing what historic property they like better than others.
“They seem to be kind of schizophrenic — to just completely go unattended and then they are willing to pour multiples of millions into other things,” Ringsred said.
Meanwhile, after the city of Duluth and DEDA denied three development proposals for the site last year, Johnson says they’re continuing marketing efforts for the right fit. But he cautions those efforts will now be delayed even more because of the new lawsuit filed by Ringsred – a lawsuit Ringsred believes is the last fight to preserve history.
“I would like to see them obviously rehabilitate and restore the property, and I think there’s a lot of the public that would like that. Although many are discouraged and many are frustrated and many are sick of seeing it there in the condition it is. I don’t think that hope is lost,” Ringsred said.
