Ryan envisions industrial, housing for Thomson Reuters site in Eagan

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Minneapolis-based Ryan Cos. US Inc. is unveiling preliminary plans to potentially bring hundreds of new housing units and more than a million square feet of industrial uses to a big chunk of the former Thomson Reuters office campus in Eagan.

An Eagan city staff report reveals that the developer’s proposed land uses for the 179-acre redevelopment site include 1.2 million to 1.5 million square feet of industrial uses in three to seven buildings on the eastern part of the site. No specific users have been identified.

Also proposed are 70 to 140 single-family homes on the southwest, and 80 to 180 townhome units on the northwest. The site is off Dodd Road/Highway 149 near the Interstate 494 and Interstate 35E interchange.

The city recently released the staff report in advance of Tuesday’s meeting of the Advisory Planning Commission. The commission will review the developer’s request to change the city’s land use designation for the site from “major office” to industrial and residential.

The meeting “allows the commission to see and review the preliminary proposal, and for the community to learn more and provide public comment in the public hearing about the proposal,” Jill Hutmacher, Eagan’s community development director, said in an email.

Ryan Cos. announced in February that it reached a deal with Thomson Reuters to acquire a 179-acre portion of the site, but the developer didn’t disclose specifics at the time about its redevelopment plans.

The redevelopment site includes a 1.1 million-square-foot office building, three data centers totaling 333,912 square feet and 90 acres of undeveloped land. The “mostly vacant” office building is on the southern part of the site, according to the staff report.

“There has been a dramatic shift in the office sector, and it creates an exciting opportunity for Ryan and the city of Eagan to reimagine the future of the 179-acre site,” Tony Barranco, Ryan’s North Region president, said in a statement Monday.

“We believe commercial development on the east side of the site focused on light industrial, advanced technology and logistics would grow Eagan’s job opportunities and add to the commercial tax base in context with the Dodd Road corridor. Residential developers have also expressed interest and recognize Eagan as an attractive community. Some residential development could be an option on the western portion of the site.”

Ryan’s submittal to the city is part of the land use approval process and “will be our focus in the coming months,” Barranco said. From there, he added, the city will vote on whether the land use amendment Ryan is seeking will go to the Metropolitan Council for review.

“While plans are still emerging, we are committed to work with the community throughout the redevelopment process,” Barranco said.

Thomson Reuters previously announced that it will relocate its Minneapolis-St. Paul-based office to The Landing near the TCO Performance Center at Viking Lakes in Eagan, while keeping its print manufacturing facility at the company’s current campus.

The 1.24-million-square-foot manufacturing building on the south end is not part of Ryan’s land use plans.

As for the other buildings, Ryan is “evaluating solutions to preserve all or a portion of the current office building and data centers,” though “current market conditions are resulting in the evaluation of the future use of offices and their potential redevelopment across the country. At this time, it is likely that the existing buildings may be replaced by another use as called out in this application,” according to a project narrative.

Nearby uses include residential, industrial and office-warehouse properties. In the project narrative, Ryan said it aims to redevelop the site “in a manner that would thoughtfully interact with the existing land uses surrounding the site.”

Hutmacher said the city is “really early” in the process. Among other steps, the proposed development will trigger an environmental review process, she said.

“The developer is responsible for conducting and submitting the environmental review. After those steps are completed, the proposal would come back to the Council for additional actions,” Hutmacher said.

“As you can see, there are many steps in this process. The [Advisory Planning Commission] and City Council meetings over the next few weeks will allow us to hear from the community and elected and appointed officials on the preliminary concept to help inform the potential next steps and actions.”

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