MCDONALD'S

The Park McDonald's Gala Grand Opening was held on June 12-15, 1958 at 6320 Lake Street. It was Park’s first, the state's second (the first was in Roseville), and the world's 93rd McDonald's ever built. Original owners were Sim Heller and James D. Zein, the latter the owner of the Criterion restaurant in St. Paul. The land was purchased from Mrs. C.E. Christy, although there is a William Shragg associated with this property and 6300 Lake, next door.

When approached for a permit to construct the restaurant, the City Council approved it as a matter of routine on October 28, 1957, after a positive report from the Planning Commission. But soon afterwards, a great hue and cry arose over the proposed drive-in, led by Art Meyers, the President of the Chamber of Commerce, who claimed “This deal smells to high heaven.” Mr. Meyers revealed that four Councilmen were told of plans to erect an office building on the site before the drive-in permit was granted, and implied that the Council approved the drive-in to stave off the office building.

Nearby residents also protested, and Superintendent of Schools Harold Enestvedt wrote a letter to the Council, stating his concerns about students at the nearby high school, who already congregated at the corner.

Because of the protest, the City Council temporarily suspended the building permit on November 5, 1957, ordered the builder to stop, referred the matter back to the Planning Commission and the City Attorney, and ordered a traffic study, which was presented to the Council on December 23, 1957.

At the January 13, 1958 meeting, the Council heard from angry residents, including “vociferous objector” Mrs. Howard George, who spoke on “Antisocial Behavior and its Control in Minnesota.”

Speaking for the restaurant was Don Conelly representing McDonald’s in Chicago. He pointed out that the drive-in would not employ women, would have no car hops, no outside facilities conducive to loitering, no alcohol, cigarettes, or pin ball machines. Owner James Zein testified as to how much money he projected to make at the site, and the businessmen on the City Council were in awe.

New Mayor Herbert Loeffler had to break a tie vote, voting not to rescind the permit even though the Planning Commission recommended revocation. At stake for the Council was setting a precedent of revoking permits that were perfectly legal.

Before Ronald McDonald there was Spee-Dee, who promised hamburgers for 15 cents (normally 25 cents at other venues), cheeseburgers for 19 cents, fries and drinks for a dime, and malts for 20 cents. Competition for the drive-in business was scarce: Henry's, a local hamburger chain, had locations in Crystal, Bloomington, and Richfield in 1961, but apparently not in the Park. Porky’s had locations by Lake Calhoun and St. Paul.

Ray Kroc and his associate (store manager?) Fred Turner were present on opening day, along with 20 employees (one account cites 40). Many of them were announcers-in-training from Brown Institute and they would practice their radio voices.  Women were not allowed in the building.  To discourage loitering, there was no seating.  On weekends, the lines would be two deep, a block long, for hours at a time.  The weekend take was about $23,000.  Zein spent a purported $12,000 for his sign (x million sold), more than most houses cost in 1958. 

The picture below is from 1969 - note that it appears to be nestled into the high school.

The building was remodeled several times over the years, and in October 2000 it was razed by owner Ken Darula in order to build a larger facility. At one time there were pictures of the restaurant from the fifties, sixties, and seventies on the walls, but it is a mystery as to what happened to them.

A second McDonald’s opened in Park Village, 5200 Excelsior Blvd. on Friday, October 14, 1994.

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This information comes from a variety of sources: newspapers, books, yearbooks, phone directories, interviews, etc. Given the varied sources, we cannot guarantee that all of this information is correct, and welcome any additions and corrections. Please contact us with your contributions and comments.