Talgo Open House

The elegant Talgo trainsets ordered by the Doyle administration for the Amtrak Hiawatha are nearly complete. But will they ever be used?

Alas, Sunday is quite possibly the only day you will ever get to go inside them. Tours, children’s activities, and refreshments will be available at the Talgo assembly facility from noon until 3 p.m. on Sunday, May 20th. The facility is located in the Century City redevelopment area at 3533 North 27th Street. Off-site parking is available, with MCTS Routes 27 and 80 getting you there as well.

If you can’t make it Sunday, the trainsets are also currently visible from south side of the facility on W. Townsend Avenue between 27th and the railroad bridge.

Strategically ordered before federal high speed rail grants were announced, the purchase contract pushed Wisconsin to the top of the list and netted Wisconsin $810 million to extend the Hiawatha to Madison and buy more trainsets. Governor Walker’s campaign against the poorly marketed train resulted in the federal government re-appropriating the funds to other states.

The trainsets face an uncertain future following the State Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee decision to cancel funding for a permanent maintenance base for the equipment. It remains unclear if the state will put the trainsets into service utilizing the temporary maintenance base (the assembly facility), or mothball the trainsets once they’re complete (potentially violating their contract with Talgo).

Hopefully someday the trainsets will be in use in Wisconsin. Until then I’ll just shake my head at the insane series of decisions taken merely to score political points. I do look forward to seeing our former high-speed rail funds at work when I take the Amtrak Lincoln Service, a corridor being upgraded to higher speed rail, to St. Louis this summer.

Downtown Block Party

The parking lot between 4th and 5th streets on the south side of Wisconsin Ave will finally see some activity this summer thanks to a handful of groups working to change the way Wisconsin Avenue is perceived (starting with rebranding it the WAM District). First up is a tailgate party hosted by Pabst Theater and NEWaukee on May 25th that includes the live broadcast of a Milwaukee Brewers game. The Downtown Baseball Block Party has live music starting at 6:30, a live broadcast by the FSN broadcasting team, food trucks for those that don’t bring their own grills, and a cash bar. The fun will go until midnight. There is a Facebook event with more information.

Another event is planned for June 14th in conjunction the Milwaukee IndyFest race. The Milwaukee IndyFest Street Party will kick off the three-day event that culminates in an internationally televised IndyCar race at the Milwaukee Mile. The kickoff event will include a car show, House of Harley-Davidson parade, driver appearances, food trucks, and beer stations.

While I would have rather seen the proposed Catalyst development by the Ghazi Company occupying this parking lot, I’m thrilled to see groups programming the space for more than just parking. NEWaukee and the Pabst Theater have a history of drawing thousands of people to their events (Young Professional Week, Fish Fry and a Flick). Hopefully this is just the start of good things to come for Wisconsin Avenue.

Bike Use on Buses Doubles

A press release by the Milwaukee County Transit System shows bike use is growing by leaps and bounds. County buses transported 95,000 bicycles in all of 2011, but through April 30th of this year, over 29,000 bicycles were transported, more than double last year’s numbers through the same period (12,695). Whether it’s this year’s mild weather or increased awareness that is driving the increased usage, it’s encouraging to see ever more cyclists take advantage of the racks.

For more information on how to put utilize the racks, see the MCTS webpage and video Bikes on Buses.

Explore the Historic Concordia Neighborhood with Historic Milwaukee, Inc. on Saturday

Historic Milwaukee’s annual Spaces & Traces event features the Historic Concordia neighborhood this Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with tours of 13 historically prominent residences and businesses in the near west side neighborhood. Tickets to the event are $25 , and $20 for HMI members and there’s a five dollar price increase if you wait till the the day of the event. Also included are a lecture by John Gurda about the architectural and cultural history of the neighborhood (at 11:00 a.m.), one by Alderman Bauman, a long-time neighborhood resident, on living in and representing the neighborhood (1 p.m.), and a special Miller Brewery tour (4 p.m.) More information is available on the Historic Milwaukee website.

HMI will also present Alderman Bob Bauman with the 31st annual Spaces & Traces Historic Preservation Award tonight at Fred’s Pub.

Kudos to HMI for their efforts in putting on the annual Spaces & Traces event, which allows for an up close look at Milwaukee’s history.

UWM Gains Zoning Approval for Columbia Hospital Redevelopment

The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee was granted a zoning change for the former Columbia Hospital that will allow the school to expand into the complex of buildings now known as the Northwest Quadrant (file #101472). The university acquired the complex in December 2010.  This change allows UWM to fully use the former hospital as part of the university campus. Various pieces of the complex are already in service given that they comply with existing zoning regulations (parking garage, coffee shop, and offices).

As part of the zoning change, UWM Chancellor Michael Lovell voluntarily agreed to cap the number of students living in the former Columbia College of Nursing building at 90 Honors students (UWM leased a portion of the building for student housing in the past). Should the university wish to expand the number of students living in the Honors College facility to 200 in the next ten years, the university will first seek a public hearing and advisory ruling by an appropriate City body. Prior to the end of the ten year period UWM will consult with the Mariner Neighborhood Association or any successor, and the appropriate City body to determine if the commitment should be extended. We have re-posted the statement from Chancellor Lovell for your convenience.

The only vote against the zoning change was cast by Alderman Bauman. Bauman wants to see UWM place student residences throughout the city instead of concentrating them on the Upper East Side campus.

I believe the growth of UWM as a top-tier university is good for the city as well as the school, and am happy to see a resolution was found to neighborhood concerns about the university’s expansion. If only this land could have been used for an engineering school, as opposed to a new campus being created in western Wauwatosa.

The Moderne Meeting Hiring Requirements

As part of the city financing package that went towards The Moderne, developer Rick Barrett (Barrett Visionary Development), general contractor J.H. Findorff & Son, and technical coordinator Prism Technical are required to meet certain Emerging Business Enterprise (EBE) and Residence Preference Program (RPP) requirements. To-date, The Moderne has complied with both. Through March 31st, EBE participants received 26 percent of the adjusted construction budget totaling approximately $4.5 million. Through February 29th, RPP participants logged 41,000 hours or 30.4 percent of on-site construction hours. Minimum requirements were 25 and 30 percent respectively.

This information was presented before the Zoning, Neighborhoods, & Development committee. Alderman Michael Murphy noted that “the project is ahead of schedule, under budget, and is a beautiful building.” Committee Chair Alderman Jim Bohl added “this has been a very big success, and we will continue to build off of it.”

More information is available in the report presented to the committee, or on the file in Legistar (#120016).

Kids Ride Free on Amtrak Hiawatha This Summer

Children ages 2 to 15 can ride free on the Amtrak Hiawatha on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays between June 1st and August 26th. Up to two children can receive free tickets when accompanied by a paid full fare adult. To claim the offer use discount code V813.

I’ve written a column in the past asking for more creative pricing for the Hiawatha (Amtrak Should Innovate with Hiawatha Service Pricing). This is a step in the right direction.

Openings and Closings

If you’re looking for the Openings and Closings section of Eyes on Milwaukee, you will need to hold off for a few days. We’re spinning the section off into its own piece to debut in the next week.

Eyes on Milwaukee

Welcome to the third installment of Eyes on Milwaukee. This week we take a look at Milwaukee’s sales tax rate compared to other major cities, the Bradley Center’s new transportation option, UWM’s continued insistence on growing parking subsidies, and a whole lot of development news.

The Tax Hell We Might Not Live In

Despite the public sentiment that the taxes are just too high in Wisconsin, it turns out that it’s quite cheap to eat out here when taxes are considered. The Tax Foundation has found that Milwaukee has the second cheapest “meal taxes” of the 50 largest cities in the country when the sales tax and any additional meal taxes are considered (Portland is first, or last depending on your position). Milwaukee weighs in at a combined tax of 5.65%, compared to first and second place Minneapolis and Chicago at 10.775% and 10.75%.

Yet another example of the odd tax distribution in Wisconsin. In a more logical world Milwaukee could leverage a higher sales tax (or even just a meal tax) to fund road repairs and other transportation needs as opposed to relying heavily on the property tax levy. This would do a better job of charging those that drive on local streets frequently, but aren’t residents of the city.

The Bradley Center and Transportation

The Bradley Center is set to unveil BC Easy Ride on April 19th. The program will provide round-trip service to the Miranda Lambert concert taking place on that day from Madison, Elkhorn, and Mukwonago.

Hopefully the service helps attract people to the city that are afraid, concerned or incapable of driving downtown. With any luck they’ll see what a nice place our fair city is and come back for a bit longer next time.

Worst case scenario, the program keeps a few drunk drivers off the road in Milwaukee. Though all bets are off on how they get home from the Park and Ride drop points.

Freeway Followup

Larry Sandler has more on the Lake Parkway extension following last week’s public hearing.

More UWM Parking Subsidies

In another example of mind-boggling policy at UWM, the Student Association is close to a deal for 200 more “free” parking spaces. Instead of sanely metering the spaces, the Student Association will raise the segregated fees of all 30,000+ students by $6.50 a year to pay for 200 students to park everyday.

For those keeping score at home, in the past two years the Student Association has managed to raise the annual cost of attending school by $26.60 on all 30,000+ student to pay for 900 parking spots.

The Moderne Tops Off

In case the cold weather has kept you from looking up recently (you have no excuse given today’s irregularly warm weather), there is a new tower west of the river. The Moderne topped off in the past week at 30 stories and expects to open to residents in September. The development is slated to have 203 apartments and 14 condominiums.

The Point on the River and Karl Kopp’s 106 Seeboth

The Point on the River, formerly First Place on the River before receivership, is very close to selling out with only 7 of the 147 units remaining further dispelling the misguided notion that Milwaukee is littered with hundreds of unsold, high-rise condos.

Next door to The Point on the River, Karl Kopp (of Kopp’s and Elsa’s on the Park fame, as well Arizona and New York restaurants) is finally poised to do something with 106 S. Seeboth. The building is currently an unintentional experiment in urban agriculture with a tree growing through the roof, leaving the new development to likely only retain the south and west facades.

Also of random Karl Kopp interest, he developed a townhouse at 277 Mott Street in Manhattan’s SOHO neighborhood. The Google Maps Streetview images clearly show an LLC as the owner located at 833 N. Jefferson Street – the home of Elsa’s on the Park. What will it take him to develop an infill townhouse at this Milwaukee location on Milwaukee Street?

Development News

The Italian Community Center is moving ahead with Marcus Corp. on a mixed-use development for their massive parking lot in the Historic Third Ward. Given the size of the lot, the development could redefine the size of the neighborhood. Here’s to hoping something positive happens there.

KBS Construction chairman Dennis Klein is looking to buy the city-owned block at the southeast corner of 27th and Wisconsin. Klein is also looking for additional public aid to help construct a 48,700 office building for the Wisconsin Bureau of Milwaukee Child Welfare.

Mary Louise Schumacher took a much more in-depth look at the proposed Potawatomi Hotel in her article “Can a slick Potawatomi hotel fit in with its industrial, kitschy neighbors?”

Rick Wiegand, owner of the Ambassador Hotel, bought the 19-unit apartment building at 2125 W Kilbourn Avenue near 21st Street. Wiegand owns approximately 12 apartment buildings.

The Best Western Inn Towne hotel on West Wisconsin Avenue is still for sale.

Things are moving forward on relocating bus operations from the Downtown Transit Center. We’ve endorsed this idea in the past.

RSC & Associates is back (sort of), looking quite promising this time to actually break ground on their Park East parcel.

There are plans coming together for a residential development project on the Gallun Tannery site.

Apparently some friction is developing between Joel Lee and Irgens Development over the plans for the Washington Square office project. No surprise given that Baker Tilly opted for the US Bank Center.

The Milwaukee Water Council closed on the purchase of 223 W. Pittsburgh Avenue. Renovation work will begin this summer.

Peter Sciortino’s Bakery is plotting an expansion that will require the demolition of an adjacent home.

Brandon Jennings Relocates

At some point Brandon Jennings relocated to the Mandel Group’s Marine Terminal Lofts in the Historic Third Ward from his previous residence in St. Francis. In his latest commercial for Under Armour, Jennings shows off what he did over the All-Star two weekends ago. One can only hope at some point he finds consistency with his jump shot.

Openings and Closings

Fast Foodie, the food truck (well more trailer), will be adding four electric bikes to its arsenal starting this summer.

Odd Duck – A new restaurant is coming to Bay View in the former Future Green space.

Schlitz Park will add a new cafe to the RiverCenter atrium space that will serve breakfast, lunch, and snacks replacing Elliot’s Off-Broadway Deli.

Fanatics Sports Central is closed for maintenance.

Photo of the Week

Late Winter Night on the River at Juneau Avenue by John December

The project has evolved multiple times since 2007. Early in 2011 RSC & Associates had planned to break ground on a 122-room Hyatt Place Hotel, a 108-room Hyatt Summerfields Suites Hotel, retail space, and a 121-unit resident apartment building with a 277 space parking garage.  Additionally, there was then an effort to work with CommonBond Communities to obtain 9% tax credits to develop the apartment building portion of the project.  The project got so far as receiving an allocation of Midwest Disaster Recovery Bonds from the City of Milwaukee, but RSC & Associates was unable to complete the rest of the financing to get the project off the ground at that time.

The current version of the project has been broken into phases.  The first phase, will include 85 market-rate apartments, 14,600 SF of retail, and 246 parking spaces.  RSC & Associates is currently working with the city on updated massing and elevations for the proposal, and have requested to appear before the Milwaukee County Community and Economic Development Committee.  According to a letter submitted to Milwaukee County, RSC & Associates has “entered into a partnership with a local Milwaukee developer who is a very strong, well respected real estate development firm headquartered in Milwaukee with experience in almost all types of real estate including multifamily”, which should help to move the project forward this year.  According to the letter they “expect to receive approval to move forward with the hopes of starting construction by mid-year.”

MSOE Soccer Parking Facility

MSOE’s $28 million, 750-stall parking garage proposal received approval at the February 22nd, 2012 meeting of the Zoning, Neighborhoods & Development Committee meeting.  In addition to the parking ramp, the building will include an athletic field that will be used by two soccer teams during the fall, a lacrosse team during the Spring, and will be available for community use similar to how the Kern Center is open to the community for basketball on the weekends.  The development will include first floor retail space, and 26,000 square feet of green space that MSOE will develop and maintain in perpetuity.

The parking garage is proposed to be used for a variety of parking needs.  In particular, Dr Viets, President of MSOE, explained that the garage is “not just for students that are commuters, it’s also for those that need to get home on the weekend”.  Additionally, Dr. Viets explained that “we could provide overflow parking” for a potential theater proposal, and events during the summer.  During the first first five years of operation MSOE has agreed to lease 200 parking spaces to BMO Harris, but it appears that after five years it is likely MSOE will fully utilize the garage.  Dr. Viets made this clear saying, “we want to develop the campus”, and “we anticipate there will be some motion from surface parking lots into this development”.

The committee’s questions indicated that the most problematic part of the deal for them to accept was BMO Harris’ requirement to replace their 220 slot surface parking lot, a portion of which MSOE is acquiring to construct the parking garage.  To replace the parking BMO Harris made it clear that they needed to acquire what is a prime piece of real estate from Milwaukee County located along Water St. for a potential surface parking lot if the deal was to happen.  As part of the deal BMO Harris did agree to not build the surface parking lot for at least five years, and instead will rent 200 stalls from MSOE. But as Vanesa Koster, Planning Director explained, after five years BMO Harris, “can construct the permanent parking area”.  Alderman Murphy expressed his view of the deal saying “to me this seems like a great deal for BMO”, and added that “they just won the lottery”.

As he has said multiple times in the past, Alderman Kovac stated, “if this lot get built, we’ve made a mistake“, and then he summed up the committee’s actions saying that “it does put us in an awkward position, voting to approve something [the surface parking lot], that we all hope doesn’t happen”.  All five files associated with the project were approved, with Alderman Murphy abstaining because he is a shareholder of BMO Harris.  These files will now go before the full Common Council.

Park East Redevelopment Area

For over a year the City of Milwaukee, Milwaukee County, and various regional entities worked together in attempt to bring Kohl’s corporate headquarters to downtown Milwaukee.  Unfortunately, they were unsuccessful.  Some have been quick to judge saying the moral of the story is, the city is a failure, and Mayor Barrett can’t get the job done.  Now, it is true the city didn’t win, this time, but is the moral of the story, failure?

For some, the standard being put forward would rate Ryan Braun, Brandon Jennings, and Aaron Rodgers as failures, because they don’t win or succeed 100% of the time.  The sports fan knows that in baseball All Stars fail nearly 70% of the time, in basketball All-Stars don’t even shoot 60% from the field and nobody hits 100% of their free-throws, and in football even Aaron Rodgers only connects with his receivers 68% of the time.

What’s worth noting here isn’t failure, it is that Milwaukee is no longer sitting on the sidelines.

Not in recent memory has a deal been so aggressively pushed by the City of Milwaukee and Milwaukee County.  Mayor Barrett, said it well,  “we worked more closely with the county and County Executive in the past nine months, than we have in the past nine years.”  It is this working together between the City of Milwaukee, and Milwaukee County that is to be remembered, because it puts Milwaukee in the game.

The game plan followed throughout this effort involved huge financial incentives, tax breaks, and other accommodations for Kohl’s.  The city was prepared to create a $100 million TIF district to develop two large parking garages for Kohl’s.  And if $100 million worth of parking wasn’t enough to satisfy Kohl’s mobility requirements,  Milwaukee County was going to offer thousands of free bus passes.  The City of Milwaukee working with partner entities had also put together $170 million in tax credits, and Milwaukee County was going to give Kohl’s the land for free to reduce the cost of development.  Finally, to sweeten the deal Milwaukee County was to provide numerous advertising opportunities for Kohl’s to cement their brand throughout Milwaukee.  It clearly wasn’t for the lack of effort, or value, that Kohl’s choose to pass.

Kohl’s, the City, and the County discussed the deal for months, going through over 20 iterations of the design, with the City and County exhausting nearly every financial incentive they had available to make the deal work. Well Kohl’s has yet to commit to a new location, it’s clear that a lack of effort didn’t prevent Milwaukee from landing Kohl’s.

The moral of the story isn’t that this was a failure.  The moral of the story is that for the first time in a long time, if you want to bring big business to the city, the City of Milwaukee and Milwaukee County together will leave it all out on the floor.

Alderman Nik Kovac, WHEDA Executive Director Wyman Winston, DCD Commissioner Rocky Marcoux, Mandel Group CEO Barry Mandel, Governor Scott Walker, Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago President Matthew Feldman, County Executive Chris Abele, and Mandel Group Senior Vice President Dick Lincoln

A ceremonial groundbreaking took place at the corner of Pleasant and Water streets today for the Portrait and Silhouette buildings at The North End, collectively known as Phase Two of The North End. A number of public officials were on hand representing the large number of public funding sources required to get the project off the ground (or more aptly, in the ground) with the state of private financing for development.

Offering remarks and wielding (painted) gold shovels were Alderman Nik Kovac, WHEDA Executive Director Wyman Winston, DCD Commissioner Rocky Marcoux, Mandel Group CEO Barry Mandel, Governor Scott Walker, Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago President Matthew Feldman, County Executive Chris Abele, and Mandel Group Senior Vice President Dick Lincoln. Other elected officials in attendance included were Alderman Bob Bauman, Alderwoman Milele Coggs, Alderman Willie Wade, Alderman Michael Murphy, and Comptroller Wally Morics.

Funding sources include a number of public funding sources. The largest is $26.2 million in “Midwest Disaster Area Bonds” issued by WHEDA and sold to private investors (increased from an initial $24 million to fill a funding gap), with support from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago. In addition, the City of Milwaukee is providing two funding sources, a $4.63 million loan put forth by the Redevelopment Authority of the City of Milwaukee (RACM), and a $2.2 million grant from the Park East TID (#48). The grant is for street work, riverwalk construction, and other public improvements on the site.

Governor Walker included a positive comment towards Milwaukee in his remarks, “For Wisconsin to succeed, we need a strong Milwaukee, and for Milwaukee to succeed we need investments like this.”

The North End Phase II, 100-unit Apartment Building

Mandel Group will be breaking ground on the second phase of The North End development project tomorrow.  In January financing for the project was finalized with the completion of a $54.6 million WHEDA bond sale, and the completion of a direct placement of $7.75 million in tax-exempt bonds by Mandel Group.

The North End Phase II, 55-unit Apartment Building

The second phase of the project builds upon the strength shown in the consistently high occupancy rates for the first phase of The North End, One.  While the first phase of The North End included 83 market rate apartments, the second phase will add 155 apartments, 31 of which will be affordable units per the WHEDA financing agreement, spread across two buildings.  Additionally, the project will add new retail space,  new streets, a new riverwalk segment, and a new public meeting and entertainment square to the Park East area.

MSOE Soccer Parking Facility

Milwaukee County and the City of Milwaukee City Plan Commission both unanimously recommended approval of the Milwaukee School of Engineering’s parking garage proposal in the Park East.  These approvals point out that City of Milwaukee and Milwaukee County politicians are anxious to see new development in the Park East. Unfortunately, as currently conceived this isn’t a project worthy of approval.

During the City Plan Commission hearing Dr. Viets, Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE) President, stated that “I view this request before you, as part of our commitment to downtown”,  and there is no doubt that MSOE is committed to and critical to downtown Milwaukee (note without MSOE there would likely not be an Urban Milwaukee), but this is not the right way to show MSOE’s commitment.

To quote Dr. Herman Viets, President MSOE, “…we could certainly do better”.  Yes, we, as in Milwaukee County, the City of Milwaukee, and MSOE can certainly do better.

Issues with the project

• Does not meet the requirements of the Park East Redevelopment Plan.  As Vanessa Koster, of the Department of City Development, explained during the City Plan Commission meeting, “since it does not comport to the design standards of the Park East Redevelopment Plan” action is needed to remove the parcel from the Redevelopment Area.  In this case the parking garage doesn’t meet the height requirements, the mixed-use requirement, won’t create any sort of terminating vista, and in fact deviates from the street design’s within the plan, as Ogden Avenue will not be put through if this project moves forward.  The plan for the Park East was worthy when originally developed, and this project doesn’t come close to offering benefits that exceed the design requirements.
• Does not maximize tax-base creation.  Although MSOE will pay property taxes on the 12,000 SF retail slot, and any parking spots leased out to non-MSOE users, it is possible that when the BMO Harris lease runs out the entire parking portion of the facility will become tax exempt. Discussions about this garage catalyzing future Park East development have taken place, and are flawed, MSOE has made it clear that in the long-run they intend to utilize the full garage, leaving no space for other regular users.
• Limits a large portion of the Park East to a single use – parking.  As part of the deal BMO Harris’ (M&I) is acquiring a key parcel of Park East property along Water St (in exchange for selling a parcel to MSOE).   The agreement specifies that BMO Harris won’t use the site as a surface parking lot for at least five years, but after that time period the possibility of that parcel becoming surface parking is high.  Bruce Westling, President of NAI MLG Commercial, who spoke in support of the project did so with a caveat, “I’d be very concerned that we get lulled into a green space for 5 years and then parking”.
• Design does not address the street.  Although the soccer field will be at ground level at Broadway and Knapp Street, there appears to be extremely minimal consideration for creating a public space that draws people into the field.  Much of the building will present itself to the street as a parking garage, which is not a use that will serve to activate the street.  Further, the proposal does include a park space along Water St., but seems to be of an more an afterthought than a key component of the design. In addition, as MSOE participates in Division 3 athletics it is likely that thousands of seats aren’t needed, but the current seating plans are underwhelming.
• Encourages driving.  Although the intention is for this to be used for long-term parking for students, the likely outcome will be more driving from students as a result hundreds of additional parking stalls being placed so near to campus.

How did we get here?

There’s a feeling in the community that the City of Milwaukee needs something, apparently anything, to be happening in the former right-of-way of the Park East freeway.  And apparently Milwaukee County simply needs funds. In particular the support for the project stems from the funds being earmarked to fund the Ready to Work program, a job skill training program for city youth.  Additionally, some members of the Milwaukee County Board were looking for a win for the Park East Redevelopment Compact, as made evident in a recent comment by Supervisor Dimitrijevic, “our standards to build sustainably, hire locally, and pay family- supporting wages will be met.”  For MSOE it is about replacing approximately 200 spaces that are rented across the river (and adding hundreds more spaces), so these spots will be closer for students to access.  Development in the Park East, and jobs for Milwaukee County residents are all laudable goals, but are they good enough reasons to forgo a good project down the line for this one?  No.

Despite supporting the project, Alderman Kovac summed up a key concern regarding this project, “if this lot ever becomes surface parking, this project will be a mistake”.  The alderman is right, if the adjacent lot does become a surface parking lot, the project is a clear failure, but we believe for the reasons listed above this project is already a failure.

The North End Phase II, 55-unit Apartment Building

Mandel Group will be moving forward with the second phase of The North End development project in February.  Financing for the project was finalized as WHEDA completed the sale of $54.6 million of tax-exempt Midwest Disaster Area bonds.  These funds will go to provide funding for The North End Phase II, as well as funding the “LightHorse | 4041″ mixed-use development in Shorewood.  Additionally, Mandel Group directly placed $7.75 million in tax-exempt bonds to complete the financing for the project.  “This was one of the more involved financings we’ve completed thus far, indicative of the challenges with capital formation in the real estate space” commented David A. Pavela, Chief Financial Officer for Mandel Group, Inc.

The North End Phase II, 100-unit Apartment Building

This phase will add 155 apartments, 20% of which will be affordable units per the WHEDA financing agreement, new retail space, and numerous public infrastructure improvements.  Richard W. Lincoln, senior vice president of Mandel Group, noted that “Significant investment by both the public sector and our development partnerships will add new streets, an extensive riverwalk and a new public meeting and entertainment square” to the North End development.

1601 N. Jackson St. Apartment Proposal

Dermond Property Investments’ request for a change in zoning for the properties 1601 N. Jackson and 522 E. Pleasant St. from Local Business (LB2) to a Detailed Planned Development (DPD) was held at today’s Zoning, Neighborhoods & Development Committee.   The change in zoning is needed to allow a 34-unit apartment building to be developed on the site.  The site’s current zoning would only allow for 12-units to be developed, though the massing and height of the proposal is consistent with the current zoning.

Max Dermond, principal of Dermond Property Investments, explained that each unit in the five-story apartment building would include balconies, underground heated parking, and in-unit washer and dryers.  Additionally, he recognized that residents had brought up a list of concerns including parking, height, architectural style, traffic, and density, but that they were working to alleviate many of these issues.

Alderman Bauman echoed the concerns regarding size saying “as an infill project this is totally out of scale.”  The Project Designer, Joel Agacki of Striegel-Agacki Studio, pointed out that “by right someone could even do something bigger”, and that “there are similar residences within eye-shot of the site”.  Also weighing in on the project, Alderman Murphy added “I’m a little concerned about the size of the building and the number of units.”  A few residents showed up to oppose the project, all echoing the same points “it doesn’t fit”, and it will create parking issues .

Alderman Kovac, who represents the area, explained that “this is certainly a completely unique street”, in that while it has a variety of single family homes and duplexes it is also just on short block away from the Park East redevelopment area.  And that depending on which way one is facing there are vastly different building styles and heights in the near neighborhood.  He summarized saying,  “there’s a mix”, and indicated that despite neighborhood opposition, which he pointed out was primarily about parking, that he believes this project “is right on the border”.

At Alderman Kovac’s sugestion, the request was held to allow for the developer to revise the design to make it more appealing to the neighborhood and the committee.

Proposal Links

• Five-Story Apartment Building Proposed on Jackson Street
• Map
• Description
• Drawings

Rendering of the Milwaukee Streetcar vehicle.

We kickoff 2012 with three predictions about how three projects, which have the potential to change Milwaukee’s landscape, will unfold in 2012.  The projects?  The reconfiguration of the Lake Interchange, the Milwaukee Streetcar, and Kohl’s potential re-location to downtown Milwaukee.

Will WisDOT approve re-configuring the Lake Interchange as per the Long-Range Lakefront Plan?  The Long-Range Lakefront Plan not only included the addition of a bike trail to the Hoan Bridge, but also included a new design for how downtown connects to the lakefront.  A key part of this plan is the reconfiguration of the Lake Interchange with the goal of creating a new boulevard and opening up new lakefront property to development.   WisDOT’s quick dismissal of the Hoan Bridge bike trail, combined with its less than stellar track record of working with the City of Milwaukee doesn’t give us much faith in cooperation.  In this light we believe WisDOT will argue they can’t make the changes requested due to ‘safety’ and ‘congestion’ concerns.   No, this project is not going to happen.

Will the Streetcar project begin construction in the Fall of 2012?  The project’s key hurdle to clear is the petitioning of the Public Service Commission, by Brett Healy of Oconomowoc, if construction is to begin as planned.  If a declaratory judgement were to rule in Healy’s favor it would force the City of Milwaukee to pay for We Energies’ equipment re-location costs, unlike other public works projects and despite local ordinance.  Although two of the three members of the PSC were appointed by Governor Walker, and are likely at be at odds with the City of Milwaukee and transit in general, they did drop AT&T and ATC from the original petition showing a small window of possibility. We believe the City of Milwaukee will find a solution even if concerns over setting a precedent that could raise the cost of public works projects in communities across Wisconsin and trampling local control are ignored by the PSC.  That solution might involve the City of Milwaukee using TIF to pick up these costs, albeit with the costs being significantly less than stated by We Energies (note the Marquette Interchange utility re-location cost estimates were vastly overestimated initially), or further legal action.  This one is clearly a close call, and construction will likely be delayed because of this legal fight, but the City of Milwaukee will find a way to advance the Streetcar in 2012.

Will Kohl’s choose to move its headquarters to the Park East in downtown Milwaukee?  The City of Milwaukee and Milwaukee County are working together (how about that), to bring Kohl’s to the Park East.  Working together the governmental entities have put together a proposal that would include more than $100 million in federal New Markets Tax Credits, potentially other incentives, and assistance far outweighing the $41 million TIF approved by the Village of Menomonee Valleys to entice Kohl’s to stay.  During Chris Abele’s acceptance speech he indicated his intent to work with the City of Milwaukee to develop the Park East land, and again during his and Mayor Barrett’s combined re-election announcement event he and Mayor Barrett reiterated this partnership, hinting at a possible deal.  Yes, Kohl’s will announce they are moving to the Park East as the deal the being putt together will be too good to pass on.

1601 N. Jackson St. Apartment Proposal

Dermond Property Investments’ request for a change in zoning for the properties 1601 N. Jackson and 522 E. Pleasant from Local Business (LB2) to a Detailed Planned Development (DPD) will go before the City Plan Commission on January 9th, 2012.  The developer plans to build a five-story 34-unit residential apartment building that will consist of one-bedroom apartments and studios.  Each unit will have a covered outdoor terrace. The project will be located at the intersection of Jackson St. and Pleasant, the former Joey’s Restaurant location.  In excess of the zoning requirement of 18 off-street parking spots the building will include 34 enclosed parking spaces, 24 in the basement and ten on the first floor.  The project will target young professionals that prefer to live in a high-end apartment building with easy access to shopping, dining, and entertainment.

• Public Hearing Notice
• Map
• Description
• Drawings

UPDATE The proposal was originally reported as a four-story apartment building, but including the party room it is a five-story building.