Oxbo/West 7th Project

Molin designed, produced, and installed the structural precast concrete products for this six-story mixed-use luxury apartment and retail development. The project is a keystone in revitalizing St. Paul’s historic downtown. Built on the site of the former Seven Corners Hardware Store, the project was designed as a U-shaped footprint and will feature 191 studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom, and three-bedroom townhome apartments, 2 levels of parking and 11,500 square feet of retail space on the street level.

The luxury living area will include an outdoor courtyard featuring a pool, hot tub, bocce ball, and grill areas as well as a patio and club room offering scenic river views. “Projects like this one demonstrate the power of collaborative, community-focused development,” said Mayor Chris Coleman. The design-build nature of this precast podium project required collaboration between Molin and the design team which began when the project was in the conceptual stage.

Molin assisted in determining the most efficient layout of the precast to provide maximum space efficiency and allow for the many architectural features. The design team provided the total lateral load at the podium level and Molin was responsible for the distribution of these forces through the precast diaphragm to the precast shear walls that carried these loads to the footings. A great deal of coordination with the design team was required to locate the precast shear walls within the complex floor plans. According to George Parrino,

Opus Design Build-Senior Project Manager; “Benefits of using precast for multifamily projects include speed in which the building podium can be erected and the ability to work through the winter months.” Parrino continues, “Some unique design features included: Varying the precast plank elevations at the level 2 podium to help accomplish exterior balconies, a recessed tank area on the level 2 precast plank to accommodate a swimming pool and insulated precast wall panels where installation of insulation and cladding materials was not desirable. In all the projects I’ve worked on with Molin, I have always been impressed with their quick response time.” Molin’s precast and prestressed products for this project included: 94-precast columns, 126-prestressed beams, 124,000 square feet of hollow core and solid slabs, and 53,000 square feet of insulated and non-insulated wall panels, shear walls, and spandrel panels.