HISTORY
Starting in 1985 as a solo entrepreneur in a small office in Lowertown in 1985, Steve Wellington began developing smaller office and retail properties in St. Paul and surrounding areas. His very first project, the 21,000 s.f. three story bank building located at 2265 Como Avenue in St. Paul leased up just four months after completion. A 10,000 s.f. retail center, Park Crossing, was constructed in the St. Anthony Park neighborhood in St. Paul's west midway area. This vital retail center anchored by a convenience store and a Bruegger's Bagel Shop, has remained 100% leased since its completion.
In 1989, WMI tackled two major mixed-use suburban developments – North Oaks Village Center and Woodbury City Centre. These projects required almost five years to complete, but remain as high-performing mixed-use projects located in the heart of two of the region’s most vital suburban cities.
The real estate downturn of the early 1990s provided WMI with an opportunity to acquire a number of under-performing assets at a relatively low cost. Between 1992 and 1997 period, WMI added more than thirty buildings to its property management portfolio. Many of these older properties were "value-add" type acquisitions, which required WMI to creatively redevelop buildings in need of new investment. Minnesota Office Plaza transformed an abandoned corporate headquarters into a new office building for the Minnesota Department of Education. A half-empty retail mall in Woodbury found new life with two new restaurant tenants and an extensive face lift. Snelling Office Plaza involved transforming a vacant K-Mart store into three single level office buildings, now full with successful technology and health care tenants.
More recently, the company expanded its reach to even more ambitious urban redevelopment projects. These include the $16 million redevelopment of the Hi-Lake Center in Minneapolis and the award-winning $8 million Penn Lowry Crossing project in north Minneapolis. The $11 million renovation of the Drake Building and the $14 million redevelopment of Bandana Square were two additional redevelopment projects in St. Paul, both of which successfully reclaimed historic commercial buildings.
Between 2002 and 2007, WMI expanded into residential construction with three successful urban condominium projects-Emerald Gardens (212 units), Metro Lofts (67 units) and Corridor Flats (36 units). All three of these projects experienced strong sales and solid financial success despite a very competitive marketplace. Two of these projects (Corridor Flats and Metro Lofts) won neighborhood design awards.
At each phase of the company’s development, WMI's President encouraged the company’s employees to expand their skills and to tackle new challenges. WMI has successfully followed a thoughtful yet an opportunistic business strategy, keeping itself attuned to new market conditions and adjusting its focus so that it could continue to build and develop in the midst of changing market conditions. Today it is proud to manage a diverse portfolio of more than 88 commercial properties in 18 different urban and suburban Twin Cities communities.