07-08-2025
Construction no longer threatens Stanley's in northeast Minneapolis, restaurant says
A popular northeast Minneapolis bar and restaurant is no longer under threat of closure due to construction in the area.
A spokesperson for Stanley's Northeast Bar Room said Thursday the Minnesota Department of Transportation is no longer considering taking over the restaurant's location as it revamps University Avenue.
The project seeks to "increase safety and make University Ave. Northeast easier for everyone to travel on," MnDOT said. Some of the proposals included the agency claiming eminent domain and leveling Stanley's.
The intersection Stanley's sits on — Lowry and University avenues — has seen dozens of injury crashes over the last five years, and the co-owner of the restaurant said the building has been hit at least two dozen times.
"It's a wild intersection," Luke Derheim, co-owner of Stanley's operator Craft and Crew Hospitality, said. "We know that there's an elevated risk of traffic accidents."
According to the project's website, MnDOT now plans to shift the Lowry and University intersection to the south. The department said this will lower the crash rate, cause fewer traffic delays and provide more space for large vehicles. The proposed design would still impact Stanley's and other adjacent properties.
"We know there are still businesses facing potential challenges, and we continue to stand with them," Stanley's said in a statement.
The building Stanley's occupies is over 130 years old and has borne its current moniker for 15 years.
Construction on the project is set to begin in 2027. Other plans include narrowing University from four lanes to three, widening the sidewalks and adding boulevards.
