Today’s opening of the Harley-Davidson Museum is a truly great day for the City of Milwaukee. The $75 million, 130,000 square foot complex, which was designed by James Biber of Pentagram Architects, celebrates the 105 year history of Harley-Davidson. The complex references both Milwaukee’s industrial past and Harley-Davidson’s motorcycle style by mixing modern elements and simple lines with an exposed I-Beam skeleton.

The grounds consist of three buildings situated on a urban street grid which allows the facility to support bike rallys and outdoor entertainment. The streets include a strip of orange concrete running down the middle which draws a direct connection to the rallys of Sturgis, South Dakota by indicating this area is for motorcycle parking. The riverwalk has two green pathways that act as an oasis among the heavy iron and roaring engines. The final section of the riverwalk gives you access to view along Canal St. that takes your vision past the bronze statue of a hill climbing motorcyclist through the museum complex into the Menomonee Valley. The years of planning and working towards the opening of this museum show through in its success at showcasing the history of an American icon and Milwaukee institution.

For more information on the Harley-Davidson Museum, Pentagram Architects has a good article on it here.

Oconomowoc-based Pabst Farms, yet another development named after what the bulldozers destroy, is not limiting itself to simply encouraging commercial and residential sprawl anymore. In a move that I can only interpret as desperation (in the face of the growing trend of industrial firms relocating to the Menomonee Valley), Pabst Farms developers Developers Diversified Realty Corp of Cleveland is set to begin the construction on the first of three speculative industrial buildings. The only tenant so-far (and you think they would be rumoring them if there were others) is Fastenal Corp building a distribution that will occupy almost 25% of a 30,000 square-feet building.

Speculative industrial buildings being built in what is supposed to be a “high-end” mixed-use development? The developers behind Pabst Farms are looking like they simply wish to make a quick buck with no-thought to the long-term viability of the neighborhood with more buildings surrounded by parking lots.

Logically, pedestrian-friendly, mixed-use neighborhood design is extremely efficient because it requires fewer roads and parking stalls, requires residents to use less gas, leaves more true “green space” (untouched forests and fields, not mowed grass), and allows space to be more rapidly and creatively redeveloped in the wake of a business closing because of its proximity to other businesses and people (it’s easier to open a restaurant on a busy street, etc). It’s good for business and good for residents.

Pabst Farms seems to wish to fight this logic, take what used to be a space of large undeveloped land, claim…

Our philosophy is to build to the land, not on the land, carrying on the spirit of conservation begun by Fred Pabst back in 1906″

… and then build parking-lot-centric developments. To give you an idea of their thinking, examine this photo of their “Commerce Centre.” Judging by the developments in place already, the area has yet to become a commerce center and is simply a distribution center. A distribution center gives you images of 18-wheelers rolling in-and-out at all hours of the day though, and that’s certainly not as attractive as the wealth-generation implied by the word “commerce.”

Now picture three more buildings that will be smaller (in square-footage), but similar to the Roundy’s Distribution Center. Even more attractive, right?

Is this your vision of high-end? Certainly not mine.

That’s the industrial space. How about the commercial development?

Again, clearly designed around the automobile, not conservation.

The Staybridge Suites that will begin construction shortly at Pabst Farms will certainly more closely resemble the Hilton Garden Inn pictured above, than it will the mixed-use, parking-lot-free (uses a hidden garage) Staybridge Suites nearing completion in downtown Milwaukee. Pabst Farms adds a parking lot, downtown Milwaukee builds over one, and hides one inside the building. Not to mention that long-term construction in the Park East area will further diminish the need for parking garages, while building parking lots only encourages more parking lots in the future.

Residential space? Largely the same story.

Again, all this is done under the name of conservation and high-end development.

Interestingly enough, as Pabst Farms positions itself as a new neighborhood on former farm/green space land, a similar “Neighborhood by Design” development is going on in downtown Milwaukee. The Mandel Group is developing The North End on what used to be an abandoned factory in downtown Milwaukee. The Mandel development will include condos, apartments, retail, and office space.

The difference between the two? The Pabst Farms development decreases the amount of green space and encourages driving through natural assets. The North End encourages public, pedestrian access to natural assets and actually increases the amount of green space. Not to mention extending the phenomenally successful Milwaukee Riverwalk yet further north.

Unlike the photos above, that show parking lot and after parking lot, The North End places buildings close together, and makes them multi-level. It also mixes uses within a building, instead of across main traffic arteries.

Thankfully for the Pabst Farms development, there is still time to turn things around. If the developers choose to do so, they can build a legitimate mixed-use community, instead of building sprawling, parking lot encircled buildings that are single-use and only next to buildings used for the same purpose.

There isn’t anything wrong with the idea of Pabst Farms on paper. It’s proposed as “the conveniences and amenities of an urban area in a breathtaking Lake Country setting. Pabst Farms offers a complete living experience by integrating residential, retail, and commercial environments into one thoughtfully developed master-planned community.” The unfortunate thing is that this isn’t how it’s being built to-date. Industrial, commercial, and residential land is separated, pedestrian access within even the different single-use areas is discouraged by using long, winding roads instead of short, interconnected streets that make pedestrian travel easy, and the beauty of Lake Country is turning into the beauty of grass yards.

Thanks to our friends at Ocono.com who asked for our input on the latest news at Pabst Farms. Here’s to hoping they get it right in the future.

Resolution 080183 was brought forward to authorize a land sale of approximately 7.8 acres in the Menomonee Valley to Charter Wire for their future relocation. Charter Wire which has been located in the Third Ward for the past seventy-two years made the decision to move to the Menomonee Valley because their lease expires in 2009 and the Menomonee Valley offers a better opportunity for expansion. Charter Wire intends to build a 160,000 square feet facility that could grow to over 200,000 square feet. Not only does this re-location further the rebirth of the Menomonee Valley but it opens up a significant area of the Third Ward to re-development. This resolution was approved and will now go before the full Common Council.

The title of this post is purely fiction at this point, but is what this writer believes should happen.

Undoubtedly you’ve heard by now that the General Motors factory in my hometown of Janesville is closing. What many (politicians and residents alike) are not considering is the massive trickle down effect this is going to have on the rest of Janesville as a large source literally abandons the city. Sure the UAW has ensured that many of the employees at General Motors are not going to feel any financial pain for a long-time, but thousands of others are not as fortunate. Employees of Janesville-based GM part suppliers (of which there are many) are going to receive next to nothing as they lose their jobs in coming years.  And that’s just the start

This massive unemployment will have the effect of putting the hurt on numerous other local companies and institutions. The School District of Janesville will be faced to downsize in the face of falling property tax values (despite just having passed the largest referendum in Wisconsin history). Mercy Health System will certainly feel some pain as the number of patients remains largely steady, but their ability to pay diminishes. Oh, and the massive number of chain food choices (both fast and sit-down) that exist along Milton Avenue, look for their numbers to greatly diminish.

Assuming nothing drastic happens (read: no large employers opens shop in town or there is no mass migration from the city) Janesville residents are largely looking at a future of under-and-un-employment. Many of the GM employees will be offered jobs at other plants, but that doesn’t include suppliers and those who relied on serving them (the service industry the city seems to want to tout now).

To make matters worse, long-time Janesville employer Gilman (now split into two companies ThyssenKrupp Krause Inc. and ThyssenKrupp Drauz Nothelfer) announced they were closing and eliminating all 140 jobs. This was a local employer that at one time not too long ago employed nearly 500 people in Janesville, my father included.

Politicians, including Janesville-natives Senator Russ Feingold and Representative Paul Ryan, are already calling for aid packages or more money to be sunk into the city to encourage new employers in Janesville. Most of the companies that have recently opened (or considered opening) shop in Janesville are in the warehousing and distribution industry, an industry highly susceptible to losses from rising fuel costs (much like the SUV’s made in Janesville are). Spending money on tax breaks and credits to attract industry to Janesville seems like a losing battle does it not? Especially since they did just that a few years ago, and now are asking General Motors to pay the state back.

The fact is that companies will either consistently search for the best tax deal (leading to a long-term losing game for cities) or for the best existing environment. Beloit largely has Janesville beat on location in the wake of soaring fuel costs. Beloit is located at the intersection of Interstate’s 43 and 39/90 and is closer to Milwaukee, Rockford, and Chicago. Why would the state look to continue to pour money into Janesville then? Good question.

The state should instead take a radical approach. Jim Doyle and company should largely encourage the unemployed in Janesville to move to Milwaukee (or Madison). Why? There are more jobs in the Milwaukee area, and Milwaukee certainly has the capacity to create more jobs (look no further than the redevelopment occurring Menomonee Valley and soon the 30th Street Corridor). The old adage of “it takes money to make money” holds true in the globalization era. The big cities like Chicago are getting bigger and stronger, while the stagnant towns like Janesville and many other manufacturing towns are getting smaller.

The ironic fact is that a migration of residents to Milwaukee could actually reduce the unemployment in Milwaukee. Creating a larger base of skilled/trained individuals for jobs should only attract more companies to the region, or to expand operations in the case of existing ones.

How do we achieve this migration? Create marketing plans for Milwaukee, bring in relocation specialists to help the unemployed find work in Milwaukee, and offer tax incentives for relocating families.

While Wisconsin politicians for obvious reasons can not advocate residents to move to Chicago, the Windy City offers a substantial number of opportunities, arguably more than Milwaukee.

How do we preserve home values in Janesville and help Janesville adjust structurally? Implement an aggressive urban growth boundary that prevents building outside of designated areas to preserve the value of existing homes. This will not only limit of the dilution of home values, but encourage urban infill (through the redevelopment of existing properties) and encourage Janesville to kick to structurally kick its oil habit through reduced drive distances.

The City Council of Janesville must also actively seek to make opening businesses in Janesville as easy a process as possible. They should also seek to improve the efficiency of existing employers.

Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Department of Highways (formerly Transportation) should also implement a legitimate mass-transit from Janesville to Milwaukee. While Van Galder/Coach USA provides a route to Madison, and Chicago, there is not a mass-transit to Milwaukee. In fact when I go to visit my parent’s house, I must first take a bus to Madison, then transfer to another to Janesville.

Janesville has a substantial agricultural base on which it can seek to orient itself around in the “ethanol era” where food prices currently only go up.

The most difficult thing that must be done in Janesville is to redevelop the Delevan Drive Industrial Corridor, for as it turns out Gilman and General Motors were not only in the same city, but next-door neighbors. This will likely mean dividing those properties into smaller units so businesses can locate there.

Wisconsin needs to do everything in its power to avoid Janesville becoming like Flint and so many other towns that have lost their largest employer. That starts with not pouring money into Janesville to give residents false hope.

In one of the worst kept secrets surrounding the future of downtown Milwaukee, an announcement finally arrived today that the out-of-place and severely dated United States Post Office located on St. Paul Ave, next to the brand spanking new, gorgeous Milwaukee Intermodal Station, is moving south to be closer to the airport in a new, more efficient facility.

This is a huge win-win for both areas. First, this should increase commerce surrounding the airport by adding a labor-intensive business near a large retail stretch. Second, it’s obviously going to be a boost for efficiency for moving mail in-and-out of Milwaukee. With a significant amount of mail moving through the air, this should get it sorted and on-and-off planes faster and reduce costs for USPS.

In regards to downtown Milwaukee, the Third Ward, and the Menomonee Valley, this is the start of a huge boost that has been a long time coming. The new Milwaukee Intermodal Station that is quickly becoming a well-known gateway to Milwaukee is in a terribly misused and underused area. Eliminating the Post Office and replacing it with nearly any mixed-use building would be a huge boost for the area and trigger development in underused buildings and surface parking lots across the street.

The land that Milwaukee’s Central Processing Facility for USPS currently occupies is not only in a great location because of the proximity to the train station, but it sits on the Menomonee River immediately adjacent to where it merges with the Milwaukee River. Any development on the site will certainly seek to reconnect the neighborhood with the river and further foster urban Milwaukee’s image as an area that is increasingly connected with its natural capital.

If you want to consider the kind of visual impact replacing the Post Office will have, consider the Harley Museum set to open soon just across the river. Not only has that development triggered another development in the Iron Horse Hotel, but it’s taken a long underused property and made it a legitimate piece of the city again. Replacing the Post Office will not only trigger development north across St. Paul Ave, but will increase the value of the Harley Museum and all of the land along that stretch of the rivers.

When new stadiums are built we hear rumors of all these jobs they’re going to bring to a community.  Often enough it’s hard to tell if those jobs are actually created.

On Friday afternoon, you’ll be able to actually apply for those jobs in a job fair at Miller Park from 4 - 7.  They’ll be doing it again on Saturday morning.  And if you can’t make either of those days, it looks like the Brewers will allow you to apply online.  OnMilwaukee.com has all the details.

The United States Bowling Congress (USBC) is leaving Greendale for Texas, so that it can be next to the Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America (BPAA).

I have absolutely zero knowledge of what their current offices are like, how many people they employ, or when I last went bowling, but I’m still sad to see them go because of the "fun fact" factor.

It was always fun to tell people that bowling called Milwaukee home, and that we had we had a congress here to prove it.

Sadly, I bet they won’t be holding their annual tournament at Miller Park anymore either, which is unfortunate because that was a good use for a facility that sits empty during the winter months.

Anyway, back to news about urban Milwaukee.

Kinnickinnic River Spillway
Originally uploaded by Retinal Fetish

Julie Lawrence at OnMilwaukee.com drew my attention to this excellent community development taking place along the Kinnickinnic River on the south side of urban Milwaukee, the Kinnickinnic River Trail. The trail is in the early stages of development and will have a southern terminus at the river and 6th Street (near its intersection with Cleveland St) and at Water St and 1st Street on the northern end.

The trail, while still in its infancy, will hopefully include a restoration of the river to a more natural state with the removal of the concrete channeling.

Like many other developments occurring in Milwaukee (the Riverwalk, Menomonee Valley restoration, and the Beerline neighborhood come to mind), the KK River Trail is just one of many ways in which Milwaukee is learning to embrace its natural assets. The developments are all the more special because they’re actual functional ways to move around the city without a car, which is due in large part to the dense development surrounding the rivers.

Groundwork Milwaukee has provided a PDF with all you could ever want to know about what was discussed in planning for the trail.

I’ll try to learn more over the next few days as to what the actual status of the trail is (it’s a little bit hard to figure out with the information online).

I took the map out of the PDF and put it online as a JPG image in case you wanted to see the proposed route.

Hank Aaron State Trail 5K Run/Walk
Originally uploaded by carrier

Yet another sign that logic is prevailing and the city of Milwaukee is improving, the Menomonee Valley Partners have announced the construction of a pedestrian tunnel and bridge to link up the Menomonee Valley with the bordering Silver City neighborhood to the south.

While the sides of the valley are not unreasonably steep, they’re lined with pedestrian barriers. On the north side of the valley you have Interstate 94 blocking access for pedestrians, and on the south side you have the Menomonee River and railroad tracks. Jobs exist in the valley and more are coming, but getting people that don’t own cars to the jobs has been a challenge so far.

Previous attempts included the idea of attaching an elevator to the 35th Street viaduct that crosses the valley and having people use the small staircases attached to the 35th and 27th Street viaducts.

While the idea of a massive elevator sounds exciting, it doesn’t seem logical to have people standing out on the middle of a bridge in the winter waiting for an elevator when they could be walking along a path on the valley floor.

In short, this is the information you need to know about why this development makes sense…

“For the people who are living in the neighborhood right around the (Menomonee) Valley to access the jobs or recreational value of the valley, it’s about a three-mile walk,” said Menomonee Valley Partners Executive Director Laura Bray. “This will make it less than two blocks.”

Linking central city residents with jobs through public/private development partnerships is just one of the many reasons that I believe that urban Milwaukee is on the right track.

You can see this kind of "intelligent design" with developments like the 6th Street Viaduct, the Canal Street extension, and perhaps most impressively the Marsupial Bridge under the Holton Ave Viaduct.

Construction won’t actually start until 2009, which is unfortunate, but the connection will undoubtedly be of benefit to both ends of the connection. CSA Commercial is renovating a building on the Silver City neighborhood-side of the tunnel to be turned into an office building, which will help kick-start development in the area.

My new Palace Expansion
Originally uploaded by marcosparco

Here’s a radical thought, let’s leverage casinos to build a transit system in Milwaukee.

According to the Philadelphia Inquirer (as reposted by the biglittler blog here), Atlantic City casinos are getting together to fund the operating deficit of express train service between New York City and their boardwalk to appeal to 25-34 year olds who don’t like sitting in traffic. The casinos are contracting with NJ Transit to operate the trains. Read more…

Could Milwaukee leverage the Potawatomi Casino in the Menomonee Valley to grease the wheels on funding for a light rail system? Connecting the casino with the new Milwaukee Intermodal Station, Miller Park, the companies in the Menomonee Valley, State Fair Park, and the new UWM campus on the County Grounds (along with the Zoo) would provide a smooth route that connects many major landmarks and a decent amount of jobs.

The rest of the central city (the folks who need the system the most) should still be connected with a route that runs up Fond du Lac Avenue from the Intermodal Station (thereby linking up almost all of downtown). Much like Michael Cudahy’s vision.