Mayo Clinichas strapped on its bib and is taking a hammer to its Lobster.
Mayo has crews doing interior demolition in the former Red Lobsterspace at Second Street Southwest and Broadway in downtown Rochester. However, Mayo Clinic says that there's no plan behind the work being done in former 187-seat seafood restaurant.
"The future use of that space is still not decided," said Kelley Luckstein, Mayo Clinic public affairs.
The 11,880-square-foot, street-level space at 200 First St. S.W. is in the 60-year-old Rosa Parks Pavilion. Mayo Clinic has owned it since 1997.
After 25 years of leasing the space, Red Lobster moved out in 2011 to take over a new stand-alone restaurant by the Apache Mall. At that time, Mayo Clinic officials said they were considering options for the prominent downtown corner.
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They were still pondering in 2012, when Mayo sent in workers to remove the carpet, paneling, ceiling tiles and bar left behind by the restaurant.
That work permit was very detailed in describing the purpose." Just removing items for clean-up to get rid of fish odor," it said. "Future tenant not defined at this time."
This latest permit, filed with the city last week, is not as colorful nor specific. However, it did estimate the value of the interior demolition job at $65,000.
That's a lot of clams for work on a space that has been drifting along without direction for three years.
It seems that Mayo Clinic still is fishing for a definition for that phrase from the 2012 permit: "Future tenant."
— Jeff Kiger
Heard something? Contact Mike Klein at mklein@postbulletin.com or Jeff Kiger at jkiger@postbulletin.com, or call 507-285-7700.
