Resler Building
1913-1914, 1920
PDF of Resler Building History
The Resler Building, at 25 Fourth Street North, was completed in 1914 by James Leck & Company. The five story plus basement building was constructed of reinforced concrete for light manufacturing. Concrete was used for columns, girders, floors, stairways, balustrades, newels, and window frames. The exterior is brick and stone and features Chicago windows on the first and second floors and simple brackets supporting a flat projecting cornice. The original building measured fifty-two by 110 feet, 45,000 square feet, and was designed to carry three additional floors. (James Leck was also the contractor on University Stadium, Syndicate Building, Dyckman Hotel, and the Baker Buildings.)
The building was designed by J. E. Nason, architect, and C.A.P. Turner, engineer. When built, the address was 27 N. Fourth Street.
Cement and Engineering News, Volume 27 (January-December 1915), described the concrete construction as,
“The perfection of fireproofing is shown in the stairway, which consists of reinforced concrete stairs, balusters and newels, and while the problem of building form was somewhat difficult, the cost is stated to have been lower than would have been the case with a cast-iron stairway of the usual pattern. Safety treads were placed on the steps at the time of concreting.
It was desirable that daylight should be admitted to the basement, which was to be used as a storeroom, and to accomplish this a bulkhead wall of concrete forms the front of the show windows. This permitted glazing the area between the ground level and the basement. This required some additional framing. A diagonal beam takes a considerable part of the load of the bulkhead girder.”
The building retained the Resler name into the late 1920s, although it was called the Patrick-Resler Building in 1927, before reverting to its original name.
In 1917, the Robitshek Company moved to the building. Robitshek was a manufacturer of sheep and leather-lined clothing. Subsequently, Robitshek became Robitshek-Schneider.
In 1920, an identical three-bay addition was constructed on the First Avenue façade.
In 1926, Robitshek merged with Johnson Bostwick, and combined, they became the largest Minnesota manufacturer of leather and sheep-lined clothing. The manufacturing for both companies was done in the Ressler Building with storage elsewhere. To accommodate the second business and the additional machinery, the building was remodeled.
In 1933, the employees worked to form a union, and a strike was called. Robitshek brought in strike breakers, and a melee broke out. Five of the union members were jailed. The employer sought and was granted an injunction. During this time, the building was referred to as the Robitshek Building.
The subsequent history of the building is unclear until Nate’s clothing occupied the building. For unknown reasons, beginning in 2007, the structure was identified as the Manufacturers Building, as the actual nine-story Manufacturers Building was located at the northeast corner of Second Avenue North and Third Street.
The building itself has also been referred to as Nate’s. Nate Witebsky founded Nate’s in 1916, and the men’s clothing store, before closing, had been downtown for ninety years, the last sixteen in the building known by its name. It was the fourth location for Nate’s with the original location at Marquette Avenue and Second Street South. Over those years, the business did well but peaked when annual sales reached $3.1 million and began declining when customers sought more casual clothes, and the area became more focused on entertainment. Nate’s decided to move its business elsewhere and placed the building on the market in 2007 for $4.5 million.
The Star Tribune reported in 2008 that the sale was to close in May of that year to Uppal Investors which planned to open a restaurant, Om, on the main floor. Om operated from 2009 to 2011. In 2008, Uppal had not yet decided on what would occupy the remaining floors, then housing small-office tenants. The upper floors were subsequently gutted.
Central Bank foreclosed on the building in January 2011 and the owners, a group called 401 Group LLC, declared bankruptcy.
The building was then vacant, but remnants of the elegant Om Restaurant, focusing on Indian cuisine, remained, including an expansive bar, a winding stairway and a chandelier that dangled between the first floor and basement, where Om’s dining area was located.
In 2012, the Star Tribune reported that Regional Hotel Management planned to buy the building and turn it into an upscale boutique hotel. Tom Biegler, president of the company stated that the company had long wanted to have a location in Minneapolis. Adding to the building’s attraction was the newly installed heating, cooling, and electrical system the former owner had added with the intention of turning the space into offices.
In October of 2012, the Star Tribune further reported that U.S. Hotel and Resort Management bought the then 55,250 square foot building for $2.7 million and planned to add another $8 million for renovations. A restaurant was planned for the lobby. A sixth floor had been added as a potential penthouse to be surrounded by a rooftop garden.
The original entrance on Fourth Street remains, but the main entrance has been moved to 401 First Avenue North. The raised concrete floor was lowered to create an ADA-compliant entrance.
The hotel plans never materialized and the building sat in a shell condition, aside from the restaurant, now closed. Swervo bought the building from Welsh Companies in 2015 and converted it to office, finishing the addition and replacing the restaurant space with office. Within a year, the building was fully renovated and filled with tenants.