According to a report from the Minneapolis Star Tribune, Target has paid approximately $110 million to terminate its lease for corporate office space in downtown Minneapolis. The termination covers nearly one million square feet at City Center (33 S. 6th St.), a building that Target vacated five years ago.

The property, owned by an entity affiliated with South Korea’s Samsung conglomerate, is now being prepared for sale, as reported by a February 2 loan servicer report. Target’s decision to exit the space in 2021 emerged among the earliest signs of the pandemic’s profound impact on office occupancy trends.

Target, one of City Center’s original tenants when it opened in 1983, had last renewed its lease in 2015 with more than ten years remaining. Since vacating the space, Target has continued paying rent for the vacant offices, contributing to a period of economic uncertainty in downtown Minneapolis—a district historically reliant on white-collar commuters.

Efforts to sublease the space have been limited, with only law firm Fox Rothschild securing approximately 40,000 square feet by early 2022. A Target spokesperson declined to comment directly on the lease termination but emphasized the company’s ongoing commitment to downtown Minneapolis.

The retailer had previously held the title of downtown Minneapolis’ largest employer until it fell below Hennepin Healthcare in 2024 employment rankings. Last summer, Target also implemented a policy requiring its largest corporate unit to return to the office three days per week as part of efforts to consolidate space across other downtown properties near its Nicollet Mall headquarters.