Cardinal Corner Closes After 36 Years

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The Cardinal Corner backyard bird and gift store opened in West St. Paul in 1987. It will close on Sunday after 36 years in business.

Why?: Co-owners Le Braun and Pam Kaufenberg are retiring and will be closing both the West St. Paul and Newport locations.

Last day: The shop’s website says they’re closing on at the end of the day on December 31, but that’s a Sunday and they’re not usually open on Sunday, so expect Saturday to be their last day.

Awards: The shop garnered the Lillie Suburban Newspapers’ Reader’s Choice Award for “Best Gift Shop” for multiple years, including 2012, 2013, 2016, and 2017. They were also named “Small Business of the Year” by the Northern Dakota County Chamber of Commerce in 2000.

Getting Started With a Birdfeeder

For 36 years, Cardinal Corner has been a source of backyard birding knowledge, including how to get started:

“First get something that will feed many different kinds of birds, either a tray or a hopper feeder, since these have room for more than a few birds at a time,” Kaufenberg said in a Star Tribune article earlier this year. “And then they’ll want a seed that appeals to a wide variety of birds, so we usually recommend golden safflower.”

Now bird lovers in West St. Paul and surrounding communities will need to go elsewhere for bird feeders, supplies, and gifts.

“It’s really very easy to feed birds and it’s a pleasure, like giving yourself a gift every day,” Kaufenberg said.

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