Demolition of two Second Street apartment buildings will begin Monday to clear the way for an expansion of Rochester's Ronald McDonald House.
Ronald McDonald House sent out notice late Friday afternoon that demolition of the apartment buildings at 806 and 812 Second St. SW will begin Monday. The two buildings are just east of the Ronald McDonald House at 850 Second St. SW.
The nonprofit provides housing for children and their families who are in Rochester for medical treatment at Mayo Clinic. House officials say the demolition will allow them to expand. They did not release any details yet on size of the expansion.
"Not having a room for a family breaks our hearts, especially at a time when they need our shelter and support the most," stated Ronald McDonald House Executive Director Peggy Elliott in the announcement.
The 35-year-old Ronald McDonald House can house up to 42 families at one time. In 2014, it served 795 families, but had to turn 1,071 families away. In the past three years, the Ronald McDonald House has turned away more than 3,000 families because rooms weren't available. The facility's last expansion was 11 years ago.
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The nonprofit McDonald House acquired the buildings in January in conjunction with Mayo Clinic, which is partnering on the deal.
Both of the buildings to be demolished were officially acquired on Jan. 30. The 812 Second Street Street property was purchased by the Ronald McDonald House in a pair of separate deals for $825,500 and $137,500.
A similar series of transactions occurred for the 806 Second Street building. The Ronald McDonald House paid the estate of John T. Oliphant $890,000 on Jan. 2, 2014.
Mayo Clinic then paid the Ronald McDonald House $1 million for both properties on Jan. 30 of this year, according to Olmsted County Property Record. Both the Ronald McDonald House and Mayo Clinic are listed as owners of both apartment complexes.
