It stood from 1890 until it was torn down starting in 1961 as part of major urban renewal efforts in the city that saw about 40% of the downtown district razed and replaced with new structures.

At the time, the pending destruction of the Richardsonian Romanesque building provided a catalyst for historic preservation movements in the city and across the state.

Thomas Lowry, another major real estate speculator and the owner of the area's streetcar network, purchased the building but only held onto it for a little more than a decade before selling it to the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company in 1905.

[5] The Ice House Plaza, which opened in May 2012, includes several blocks of stone salvaged from the Metropolitan Building.

Located at 26th Street and Nicollet Avenue in South Minneapolis, the public square has a fountain and benches made from remnants of the historic structure.