From B’s Barbershop to Pino’s Pizzeria and Allegra Printing, the remaining commercial tenants at the Alliance Bank Center in downtown St. Paul were informed late Monday afternoon they should “immediately vacate the premises” as the 16-story building — which offers a major skyway connection — will lose all heating, cooling and electricity on Wednesday.

Shop owners and business proprietors received an otherwise unsigned notice from “Alliance Center LLC” — the limited liability corporation owned by Madison Equities — around 4 p.m. Monday encouraging them to pack up and leave, followed by a notice of “power shut-off” issued by the city of St. Paul.

“If the power is shut off, the building’s management company, Madison Equities, plans to walk away, and the bank … will not assume ownership,” reads the notice issued Monday by the St. Paul Fire Department. “This will result in the building being left vacant with no protection systems in place or maintenance being conducted.”

The news came as a nasty surprise to business owners, some of whom said Monday night they were at a loss to understand how a tobacco store, print shop, jewelry store and other longstanding tenants would relocate heavy equipment or myriad supplies in less than two days. Their leases, they noted, were month-to-month, not overnight.

Small businesses out of business

In addition to office tenants, “you’re putting 14 small businesses out of business,” said Bob Wolf, owner of the Greenwolf Hemp and Organics holistic products store, which has operated out of a skyway storefront in the Alliance Bank Center for the past five years. “Someone’s got to step up. This is crazy. I saw the look on people’s faces. They’re just heartbroken.”

Through the foreclosure process, Madison Equities has lost various properties to lenders in recent months even as it attempts to unload the majority of its downtown portfolio.

The company, long known as downtown St. Paul’s largest property owner, placed 10 buildings on the market together en masse last April following the January 2024 death of company principal James Crockarell.

At the time it went up for sale, the Alliance Bank Center’s 300,000 square feet of commercial space was about 44% occupied, according to the sales offering. Major tenants have, until recently, included the accounting firm Red Path, which relocated its headquarters months ago to the Securian Financial building.

Alliance Bank also moved its bank branch out of the building that now bears its name and into Wells Fargo Place on East Seventh Street.

Madison Equities blames city

Alliance Bank Center, located at 55 E. Fifth St. and once the home of Wells Fargo Bank and its predecessor, carried an estimated market value of $8 million last year. It was sold to Madison Equities in February 2020 for $4.1 million. It offers a major skyway connection between Osborn Plaza on Wabasha Street, over Cedar Street and on toward Minnesota Street, raising concerns about the loss of skyway access at a time when downtown residents are increasingly hard-pressed to find accessible skyway entrances.

The building’s announced closure is the latest setback to befall downtown St. Paul in the era of remote work, coming just three days after Lunds and Byerlys said it would exit Lowertown, leaving downtown without a grocery store.

Tenants of Madison Equities’ residential and commercial properties have long accused the property owner of neglecting maintenance and mismanaging some of downtown’s most iconic properties, several of which are low on or completely devoid of lease-holders. Legal fights have also erupted in recent years over the company’s management of security guards.

On Monday, Madison Equities cast blame on the city for not stepping up to pay the private property owner’s utility bills, and issued notice that “landlord Alliance Center, LLC is facing significant hardships due to the deteriorating condition of downtown St. Paul and the flight of tenants away from the Central Train Station that is located across the street from the Alliance Bank Building.”

“You should also know that the landlord has been in contact with representatives of the city of St. Paul and have asked the city of St. Paul to step in and help pay utilities at the building for the benefits of all of you. Unfortunately, the city of St. Paul has so far refused to provide any financial assistance to maintain utilities at the property.”

The notice indicates that Madison Equities had reached out to its lender, Royal Credit Union, which “has shown no interest in providing any additional funding for the building.”

Storeowners hope city will help with relocation

Late Monday night, some storeowners who close shop before 4 p.m. had yet to come across the notice that they’d been ordered out.

“There’s been rumors they’re going to turn off our electricity,” said Bilal Saleem, better known as Mr. B, who has run B’s Barbershop downtown for nearly 20 years and in the Alliance Bank Center for eight of them. “I’ve had other business owners call me but that’s all I know.”

Saleem took news of the Alliance Bank Center closure in stride, noting he had already made arrangements to relocate to the Town Square building at 445 Minnesota St. by April 1. For that to happen, he needs city inspectors to greenlight a wash sink or shampoo station and multiple electrical outlets in his new space.

“They can’t move forward until the inspectors come, and the inspectors are taking their time,” he said.

Saleem and Wolf both predicted they would land on their feet, but they hoped the city would at least help businesses fast-track relocation to Town Square and other properties downtown, if not help find a buyer for the Alliance Bank Center, which dates to 1967.

“I don’t know anybody who is going to be able to move in the dark on Wednesday,” Wolf said, noting a ground-floor tenant sells tobacco. “A tobacco store has thousands of products. It’s sad.”

Related Articles

Country star Keith Urban to return to Xcel Energy Center in September

Downtown St. Paul Lunds & Byerlys closes permanently on March 26

Concert review: Justin Timberlake dazzled the crowd at the X, at least the ones who could see him

New nonprofit and its leader provide a strategy for downtown St. Paul’s revival

Over a St. Paul Valentine’s Day lunch hour, judges married 21 couples for free in Ramsey County

After one of the worst single day sell-offs in Tesla’s history, President Donald Trump threw his support behind his advisor, billionaire Elon Musk, vowing to buy one of his cars on Tuesday.

Tesla has been pummeled this year under competition from rival electric vehicles, particularly out of China, as well as his close association with Trump and with far right causes globally.

Shares have plummeted 45% in 2025 and on Monday tumbled more than 15% to $222.15, the lowest since late October, reflecting newfound pessimism as sales crater around the globe.

In an overnight post on his Truth Social platform, Trump said Musk is “putting it on the line” to help the country. Trump claimed in the post that “Radical Left Lunatics” were attempting to “illegally and collusively boycott Tesla, one of the World’s great automakers, and Elon’s ‘baby.”

The stock climbed more than 3% before the market open on Tuesday.

Numerous auto industry analysts have attributed Tesla’s recent sagging stock — and auto sales — to Musk’s support of Trump and other far right candidates around the world. In recent days, Tesla showrooms in the U.S. have been besieged by protesters, its vehicles vandalized on the street. Tesla owners, perhaps in a bid to avoid being targeted, have placed bumper stickers on their cars with messages like, “I bought it before Elon went nuts.”

Federal prosecutors charged a woman in connection with a string of vandalism against a Colorado Tesla dealership, which included Molotov cocktails being thrown at vehicles and the words “Nazi cars” spray painted on the building.

Musk pumped $270 million into Trump’s campaign heading into the 2024 election, appeared on stage with him and cheered Trump’s victory over Democratic candidate Kamala Harris in November. Tesla stock soared to $479 per share by mid-December, but have since lost 45% of their value.

Musk has become the face of the Trump administration’s slash-and-burn government downsizing efforts, known as the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. The department has promised massive federal worker layoffs and aims to drastically reduce government spending.

Analysts have said Musk’s shift to right-wing politics doesn’t appear to sit well with potential Tesla buyers, generally perceived to be wealthy and progressive consumers.

Tesla sales are falling precipitously in California, the company’s biggest U.S. market, and the company recorded its first annual global sales decline last year. Similarly, Tesla sales plunged 45% in Europe in January, according to research firm Jato Dynamics, even as overall electric vehicle sales rose. The sales numbers were particularly bad in Germany and France.

The latest auto sales figure from China show that Tesla sales there have been nearly halved from February a year ago, although the decline is largely due increased competition from domestic EV companies.

But sales in the U.S. have fallen due to competition, and a country sharply divided about Trump.

U.S. Analysts at UBS Global Research expect deliveries to fall 5% in the first quarter and full year compared to the same periods for 2024.

“Our UBS Evidence Lab data shows low delivery times for the Model 3 and Model Y (generally within two weeks) in key markets which we believe is indicative of softer demand,” they wrote.

In addition to backing Trump, Musk has also shown support for the far-right, pro-Russian, anti-Muslim party in German y, called the British p rime minister an “evil tyrant” and called Canada — a major Tesla market —”not a real country.”

Tesla is not the only Musk-led company to run into trouble recently. His X social media platform crashed several times on Monday, which Musk claimed was a “massive” cyberattack. But like the clear-cutting he’s done with federal jobs, Musk slashed the number of employees at X and technology experts warned of increased vulnerability.

Last week, a rocket launched by Musk’s SpaceX exploded and broke apart over Florida, about two months after another of the company’s rockets failed.

After making a few savvy moves on Monday, the Vikings wasted very little time making a splash on Tuesday.

As most Minnesota were still driving to work, Vikings announced that they have agreed to terms with Pro Bowl defensive tackle Jonathan Allen. It’s a 3-year, $60 million for Allen, who was recently released by the Washington Commanders.

It’s a worthwhile risk for the Vikings considering how much they have struggled to generate pressure in the trenches.

Since being selected in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft, Allen has recorded 42 sacks, 60 tackles for a loss, and 118 quarterback hits across 108 starts. Though some might think he’s prime at 30 years old, there’s reason to believe Allen could be revitalized playing for coordinator Brian Flores.

There’s also some intangible qualities that Allen brings to the table, including his leadership and his toughness. After suffering a torn pectoral muscle last season, for example, Allen worked his way back from the injury much faster than expected, playing a key role for the Commanders in the playoffs.

It’s worth noting that because Allen was released by the Commanders earlier this offseason, he does not count against the Vikings in the formula used for determining compensatory picks next offseason.

Related Articles

Vikings agree to terms with cornerback Byron Murphy Jr.

Source: Vikings agree to terms with Pro Bowl center Ryan Kelly

Report: Sam Darnold leaves the Vikings, agrees to terms with the Seahawks

Source: Vikings agree to terms with cornerback Isaiah Rodgers

Five players the Vikings should target with NFL free agency set to begin

By MATTHEW LEE, Associated Press

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Senior officials from Ukraine and the United States opened talks Tuesday on how to end Moscow’s three-year war against Kyiv, hours after Russian air defenses shot down more than 300 Ukrainian drones in the biggest such attack since the Kremlin ordered the full-scale invasion of its neighbor.

Two people were killed and 18 were injured, including three children, in the massive drone attack that spanned 10 Russian regions, officials said. No large-scale damage was reported.

Meanwhile, Russia launched 126 Shahed and other drones and a ballistic missile at Ukraine on Tuesday, the Ukrainian air force said, as part of Moscow’s relentless pounding of civilian areas during the war.

In the Red Sea port city of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, journalists briefly entered a room where a senior Ukrainian delegation met with America’s top diplomat for talks on ending Europe’s biggest conflict since World War II.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio smiled for the cameras. Asked what his expectations for the meeting were, Rubio gave a thumbs up and replied, “Good.”

US National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, left, and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio hold a meeting with Ukrainian officials, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, March 11, 2025. (Saul Loeb/Pool Photo via AP)

Across the table, Ukrainian officials, including the country’s top diplomat and defense chief, sat without any facial expressions as the meeting got underway at a luxury hotel. There was no immediate comment from Ukrainian or U.S. officials on the drone attack.

However, Ukrainian presidential aide Andriy Yermak, who was also taking part in the talks, told reporters that the most important thing was “how to achieve a just and lasting peace in Ukraine.” He said security guarantees were important to prevent Russia from invading again in the future.

In 2014, Russia seized Crimea from Ukraine and threw its weight behind pro-Kremlin militias in eastern Ukraine. They seized large swaths of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions and fought against Kyiv’s forces for the following eight years.

Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister was also on hand as American, Saudi and Ukrainian flags stood in the background. Officials did not answer any of the shouted questions.

In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the United States will inform Russia about the results of the Jeddah talks, which he described as “normal practice.”

Talks bring a chance to mend US-Ukraine relations

The meeting in Jeddah offered an opportunity for Kyiv officials to repair Ukraine’s relationship with the Trump administration after an unprecedented argument erupted during President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s Feb. 28 visit to the White House.

Critically, Ukraine needs to persuade Washington to end the U.S. suspension of military aid and some intelligence sharing after the Oval Office blowout. U.S. officials have said that positive talks in Jeddah could mean it may be only a short suspension.

Ukrainian officials told The Associated Press on Monday that they will propose a ceasefire covering the Black Sea, which would bring safer shipping, as well long-range missile strikes that have hit civilians in Ukraine, and the release of prisoners.

The two senior officials said Kyiv is also ready to sign an agreement with the United States on access to Ukraine’s rare earth minerals — a deal that U.S. President Donald Trump is keen to secure.

While traveling to Jeddah, Rubio said the U.S. delegation would not be proposing any specific measures to secure an end to the conflict but rather wanted to hear from Ukraine about what they would be willing to consider.

“I’m not going to set any conditions on what they have to or need to do,” Rubio told reporters accompanying him. “I think we want to listen to see how far they’re willing to go and then compare that to what the Russians want and see how far apart we truly are.”

Rubio said the rare earths and critical minerals deal could be signed during the meeting but stressed it was not a precondition for the United States to move ahead with discussions with either Ukraine or the Russians.

He said it may make more sense to take some time to negotiate the precise details of the agreement, which is now a broad memorandum of understanding that leaves out many specifics.

The Kremlin is sticking to its conditions for peace

The Kremlin has not publicly offered any concessions. Russia has said it’s ready to cease hostilities on condition that Ukraine drops its bid to join NATO and recognizes regions that Moscow occupies as Russian. Russia has captured nearly a fifth of Ukraine’s territory since the war began.

Russian forces have held the battlefield momentum for more than a year, though at a high cost in infantry and armor, and are pushing at selected points along the 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line, especially in the eastern Donetsk region, against Ukraine’s understrength and weary army.

Ukraine has invested heavily in developing its arms industry, especially high-tech drones that have reached deep into Russia.

Most of the Ukrainian drones fired overnight — 126 of them — were shot down over the Kursk region across the border from Ukraine, parts of which Kyiv’s forces control, and 91 were shot down over the Moscow region, according to a statement by Russia’s Defense Ministry.

This photo released by Moscow Region Governor Andrei Vorobyev official telegram channel shows the site where one of the shot down Ukrainian drones fell, outside Moscow, Russia, on Tuesday, March 11, 2025. (Moscow Region Governor Andrei Vorobyev official telegram channel via AP)

Moscow’s Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said over 70 drones targeted the Russian capital and were shot down as they were flying toward it — the biggest single attack on Moscow so far in the war.

The governor of the Moscow region surrounding the capital, Andrei Vorobyov, said the attack damaged several residential buildings and a number of cars.

Flights were temporarily restricted in and out of six airports, including Domodedovo, Vnukovo, Sheremetyevo and Zhukovsky just outside Moscow, and airports in the Yaroslavl and Nizhny Novgorod regions.

Associated Press writer Hanna Arhirova in Kyiv, Ukraine, contributed to this report.