Third Street in downtown Brookings has begun to see some changes. A building has been torn down at 307 Third St., between The Lantern Lounge and Vintage Willows to build an apartment complex, and will most likely be a professional office.

The complex will include upscale loft apartments, which are similar to those of the Wooden Legs Brewery. There will be 16 units total. The main floor will include mixed-use offices, with private parking in the back of the location.

“It’s designed for the young professional person with the students in mind,” said Brian Gatzke, the owner of the property. “The younger generation does not want maintenance.”

Brookings Mayor Tim Reed feels that the complex will attract the younger citizens of Brookings as well.

“I’m sure that it will be appealing to some students, but I know that these kind of apartments are appealing to the young professionals … having a wide variety of housing helps us retain young people, “ Reed said.

The building will take approximately one year to obtain the proper permits and finalize the design. An additional nine months to one year will be used to construct the complex. Cost estimates of the project are yet to be determined.

Gatzke got the idea of building the complex in the downtown area when attending a housing seminar. “I travel all over and I have done some housing seminars in Minneapolis and Chicago … in order for downtowns to reenergize, they have to add young professionals,” Gatzke said.

Gatzke hopes the complex will revitalize the downtown area so others will remodel their buildings 

 “I like that there is mixed use being done downtown … it helps to make a vibrant downtown,” Reed said. “Anytime that you can have people that are living downtown, it helps the businesses downtown … it’ll improve their business. It also just adds the use to restaurants and night life.” 

Approximately two weeks ago, the building was torn down to begin the process of constructing the complex. The building once was previously Artz Family Locker, a meat market. It was later sold to become Hagman’s Bakery. After the business closed its doors, Gatzke gutted the building to be torn down. All of the cooking equipment located in the building from the bakery, was donated to the Delta Chi fraternity to help with the remodel of their house. Metals and copper that could be recycled was donated to Estelline to use as a fundraiser for their church. All of the cement from the building has also been recycled.