Macalaster-Groveland has long been a favorite St. Paul neighborhood. It is bordered by stately Summit Avenue on the north and Randolph Avenue bordering Highland Park neighborhood on the south, sandwiched between Mississippi River Boulevard and curvy Ayd Mill Road. It has a college town feel with unpretentious clusters of places to eat and shop scattered on corners throughout the neighborhood. It comes by its collegiate feel honestly with Macalaster College, the University of St. Thomas and St. Catherine University all within or along its borders… all highly respected, private schools which contribute to the neighborhood’s professorial vibe.
You might think it would be filled with students, but it’s not. Students tend to live on campus or in neighborhoods to the north or south, leaving Mac/Groveland as a mecca for families, working professionals and empty nesters searching for urban, walkable neighborhoods. Located midway between downtown St. Paul and downtown Minneapolis, it is ideally located for easy access to both cities, parks, the riverfront and the airport… but with no flights overhead to disrupt the quiet atmosphere of a college town.
Primarily a neighborhood of single family houses, they encompass a wide range of styles and prices… ranging from a modest $215k house with only 825 square feet near St. Catherine University and Trader Joe’s… to an stately Italian Mediterranean $2,200,000 home with 4,913 square feet on Mississippi River Boulevard. See current Macalaster-Groveland homes for sale.
When I asked a recent Mac/Groveland seller what they loved about living at 1755 Lincoln Avenue he was quick to say “The Location”!! Of course we have all heard the three most important things in real estate are (1) Location, (2) Location, and (3) Location! The reason location is so important is because it is the only thing about a house you can’t change. You can make updates to enhance the house itself, but the location is what it is. Many people sacrifice other ‘wants’ because of location!
He went on to talk about…
- FANTASTIC neighbors
- Tree-lined streets
- Close to Grand Avenue
- Convenient for both I-94 and 35E
With a WalkScore of 80, it is very walkable… meaning most tasks can be accomplished on foot.
Other clients who are moving here from Colorado and recently bought a house on Lincoln Avenue fit the profile of empty nesters moving into an urban, walkable neighborhood. They are not only excited to be moving into a neighborhood where they can walk to places to eat and shop… they are also moving close to their daughter’s family, perhaps the biggest motivator for retirement relocation!
Macalaster-Groveland was also once the home of Stonebridge, the greatest private estate ever built in the Twin Cities. The grounds extended to the Mississippi River, and included hundreds of plantings, a city-block-long mall stretching from the front of the residence to the river bluffs, two artificial lakes, a rocky stream including waterfalls and reflecting pool with an island. Curious? Read more about it here… Discovering Stonebridge… the lost Mac-Groveland estate once considered for the governor’s residence
Sharlene Hensrud, RE/MAX Results – shensrud@homesmsp.com
