MINNEAPOLIS — The owners of Calhoun Square will be dropping that name from the Uptown Minneapolis shopping plaza effective immediately.
Northpond Partners purchased the shopping center last October, and said it has been evaluating ways to better serve the community, including exploring a new name.
"As a reflection of our support and solidarity with the city of Minneapolis and the Black Lives Matter movement, we have decided to expedite this process," Northpond Partners said in a statement on the Calhoun Square website.
The owners said the name and signage would be removed from the building immediately.
"The tragic death of George Floyd and ensuing events throughout the country have made it crystal clear that to move forward as a community we must remove painful reminders of the worst chapters in our nation's history," the ownership group said. "A property named for a known racist and champion of slavery has no place in Minneapolis or anywhere in our society."
Calhoun Square, located at Lake and Hennepin in Minneapolis, previously shared an identity with nearby Lake Calhoun, which was named for U.S. Vice President John C. Calhoun, a slave owner from South Carolina who also served as a U.S. Senator and Secretary of State.
Opposition to Calhoun's legacy led the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board to change the name of Lake Calhoun to its original Dakota name of Bde Maka Ska.
Northpond Partners said it would have an open conversation with its tenants, customers, and neighbors about a new name for the shopping plaza, to be revealed at a later date.
According to its website, the now-former Calhoun Square and its shops are closed until further notice due to the coronavirus pandemic.
