Mark Attanasio’s Palatial Penthouse

The air is rarefied when you live at the level of Milwaukee Brewers owner Mark Attanasio.

Make that “levels,” since the Attanasio residence in Milwaukee’s University Club Tower occupies half of the 29th floor and all of the 30th floor of the 34-story tower, built in 2007.

The value of the property is stratospheric as well. Attanasio’s 4.75% slice of the .95 acre lot upon which his home is perched is valued at $284,300, while the improvements to his whopping 9,173 square foot crib are valued at $6,745,700 for a total assessed valuation of $7,030,000.

These improvements include 4 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, 4 half-baths and 4 storage lockers, perhaps an unconscious tribute to Paul Molitor, whose #4 jersey has been retired by the team. In addition to the dizzying variety of plumbing fixtures in the apartment, property improvements include six parking spaces in the building’s structure, and “Wine Room 329,” perhaps to cellar the cheap champagne that his players will pour on Attanasio’s head when they win the World Series this year.

Attanasio pays taxes of $210,502.29, another out-of-the-ballpark number. Attanasio renders Caesar his due on the installment basis, after taking the $80.66 lottery tax credit. (Order another case of champagne for Wine Room 329!)

Another thing that sets this Brewers baseball billionaire’s lair apart from those of mere mortal millionaires is its ownership structure.

Instead of owning it outright, Attanasio has placed the residence in a holding company of his. Why not? As an out-of-town owner of a team that plays 80-some home games, it would seem that Attanasio could make a good case for lodging in Milwaukee at company expense.

His University Club unit belongs to an outfit called MLA Sports LLC, and the tax bills are mailed to its office at 11100 Santa Monica Boulevard, Los Angeles.

That address is also home to Crescent Capital Group, LLC, where Mark Attanasio is a co-founder and Managing Partner of the firm that specializes in investing in “senior bank loans, high yield bonds, mezzanine debt and distressed debt securities.” [A more down-to-earth term would be “Junk Bonds.” — Ed.]

Some might have argued the Brewers franchise that Attanasio bought in 2005 was also a distressed property. Fans were increasingly disenchanted with the leadership of the team by the Selig family. Attanasio paid $223 million for the team and its value has doubled since then: Forbes estimates the team is now worth $448 million, so score another victory for investor Attanasio!  Attendance has been good and fans have appreciated the fact that the team’s payroll has risen under the new owner. Last year set a record for the team, with a $101 million payroll, but this year looks leaner: the payroll is down to about $84 million, putting the Brewers around the middle of major league teams in such spending.

THE RUNDOWN

• Style: High Rise
• Subdivision: East Side Original Town of Milwaukee
• Neighborhood: Juneau Town
• Walkscore: 89 out of 100, “Very Walkable.” Most errands can be accomplished on foot. Attanasio’s home comes with membership in the University Club, which is attached to the building via the Wine Room corridor, where you can actually look at other people’s wines through a window. Peer pressure is intense.
• Transit Score: 65 out of 100, “Good Transit.” The Milwaukee Brewers Shuttle, Route 90 of the Milwaukee County Transit System is just three blocks away, ready to whisk Attanasio to Miller Park every thirty minutes on game days.
• Commute: It is about 5 miles to Miller Park, but less than one mile from where Miller Park should have been built, downtown.
• Street Smart Walkscore: 93 out of 100, “Walker’s Paradise.” “PeekaBoos Ponytail Hats by d. Moss LLC.” is just .1 mile away, Monica’s on Astor is .4 miles away.
• Size: 9,173 square feet
• Year Built: 2007
• Assessed Value: $7,030,000
• Property Taxes: $210,502.29

How Milwaukee Is It? The University Club Tower is less than a mile from City Hall.

Photo Gallery

Fun Fact: The University Club Tower is so popular, yet its owners so wealthy, that most of them, like Attanasio, live elsewhere for at least part of the year. Attanasio’s main residence is in the Brentwood section of Los Angeles. In 2008 he put his Malibu beach home on the market for $22 million dollars, but later withdrew it, it appears. You can rent it for $100,000 per month. Help this poor man afford his fancy Milwaukee lifestyle!

EDITOR’S NOTE

This is the second House Confidential visit to the University Club Tower. The first, in July 2012, was the residence of Barry Mandel. Since that time the Walk Score of the building improved from 88 to 89, the Transit Score declined to 65 from 66 and the Street Smart Walk Score increased from 87 to 93. More proof of  what a complex, ever-changing city this is.