For the first time in a decade, Minneapolis now has a visitor center in the heart of downtown.

Meet Minneapolis, the city’s marketing and tourism agency, opened its new visitor center and store Monday at the corner of Fifth Street and Nicollet Mall. The 5,000-square-foot facility is located in a corner of the CenterPoint Energy building, across the street from the Nicollet light-rail stop.

Officials said this winter that they wanted the new visitor’s center to be a space for musical performances, cooking demonstrations and other events, in addition to a place for people to get information about local happenings and pick up Minneapolis gear.

The shop offers clothing, jewelry and art by Minnesota artists, including a display of prints and pint glasses from artist Adam Turman, known for painting several murals around the city.

The visitor’s center is also the new home of Move Minneapolis, formerly known as the Commuter Connection. That operations provides information about commuting and carpooling, and offers transit passes and bicycling products.

Meet Minneapolis intends to eventually use the spot as a starting point for tours and as a “social media command center.”

A grand opening event will be scheduled for December.

Photo: Meet Minneapolis.