Work on Target Store to Begin Early This Fall

Expect work on a 135,000-square-foot Target store in Inver Grove Heights to commence early this fall, according to a report by the Pioneer Press.

After a nearly two-year delay in construction, Target has confirmed that it is again moving forward on the store, which is expected to be the anchor for the Argenta Hills commercial development at the junction of Hwy. 55 and Hwy. 3 l in Inver Grove Heights.

A Target Corp. spokesperson told the Pioneer Press that the Minneapolis-based retailer has plans to build a "Pfresh" format Target store in Inver Grove Heights. Pfresh stores include produce and meat but fewer grocery items than a SuperTarget, according to the article.

An opening date hasn’t yet been named for Target. In order for IGH Investments to receive a $1.25 million loan from the city, the Target store must be open for business no later than Dec. 1, 2012.

, which voted 3-2 to OK a modification to a Tax Increment Financing district spending plan. Money from the TIF district will be placed into an escrow account and paid to IGH Investments upon the fulfillment of certain development requirements.

In return for the financial jump-start, the developer agreed to complete roughly 150,000 square feet of commercial development on the Argenta Hills site and finish site improvements, including paving, landscaping and on-site lighting.

The deal brought to an end the two-year standstill on development in Argenta Hills. Construction on the project all but ceased as the recession hit in 2008, leaving the city with acres of parking lots, lighting and other improvements, but no stores or tenants. Negotiations between city officials and IGH Investments to complete the proposed development reignited this spring, fueled in part by the extension of a state law that allows cities to funnel TIF money into construction projects outside the boundary of a TIF district.

City Administrator Joe Lynch said in a memo to the council that the completed development will bring as much as $77,000 in annual tax revenue to the community.