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.

The Moderne

As the US economy continued its slow recovery from the Great Recession, Milwaukee was left with a couple of failed development projects to complete, a changing real estate market, the opportunity to make small infrastructure changes, and questions about the future of transit.  In 2011, some of these ‘failed projects’ moved towards becoming successes, while the developers in town shifted from condominium development to apartments and hotels.  Small changes to the built environment came in the form of new bike infrastructure, and the conversion of streets to two-way traffic.  Although the Milwaukee County Transit System once again faced budget cuts, there was movement in bringing new modern transit service to Milwaukee in the form of express busing.

First Place on the River, Park Lafayette, and The Residences on Water all ended up in serious financial trouble, and in some cases in drawn out legal battles.  Park Lafayette, which had been considered by many a failure, became a turnaround success under the guidance of the Mandel Group in 2011 as it was converted from high-end condos to luxury apartments, and today it is 93% occupied.  Equally as impressive of a turnaround story is The Point on the River (formally First Place on the River).  The developer had run out of funding, and once the lending bank took over they brought in the  Mandel Group to complete the project.  Ever since, Mandel Group and Garrison Partners have been steadily selling units in the project, and while there were over 45 units available this time last year there are only 11 available for sale today.  The one significant project that has yet to be resolved is The Residences on Water, but signs indicate that the drawn out legal battle surrounding it is coming to a close.

The apartment market saw continued development through a strong reliance on WHEDA tax credits and other forms of  government financing (due to the weakened financial industry).  The construction of the Beerline B Apartments, which is being funded with WHEDA tax credits, nears completion.  Another WHEDA funded project, the 73-unit National City Lofts in Walker’s Point, began accepting tenants in October.  Although Mercy Housing Lakefront’s East Side apartment proposal received various city approvals, and appeared on the verge of moving forward, it failed to obtain WHEDA tax credits to support the funding of the project.  The second phase of The North End development, which will include two buildings and 155-units, gained approval for a $4.6 million loan from the City of Milwaukee and will utilize $26.9 million in WHEDA bonding to construct the project.  The most visible development in 2011 has been the construction of  the 30-story 203-unit apartment building, The Moderne.  It was financed with a $42.4 million loan from the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust (HIT), a $9.3 million loan by the City of Milwaukee, and $5 million private equity, and expects to be topping off in early 2012.

Hotel development became a hot area of development and controversy in 2011.  The controversial Marriott Hotel project was approved by the city, and in part because of the debate more of the historic buildings than originally proposed will be saved.  Unlike the Marriott project, two other downtown hotels are being developed within historic structures without significant demolition.  A proposal that would develop a Hilton Gardens Hotel within the Historic Loyalty Building in downtown Milwaukee worked through legal issues allowing for construction to get underway.  At The Brewery, Gorman & Company has started the redevelopment of the former brewhouse building into a boutique hotel.

Alterra's On-Street Bicycle Corral

The built environment saw small, but important improvements in 2011.  Wells Street was finally converted to two-way traffic and carmaggedon didn’t follow.  The streetscaping of Broadway in the Historic Third Ward, which will tie the district together, is finally being completed.  Bay View saw Milwaukee’s first raised bike lane built, and on-street bike corrals began popping up on streets around the East Side.  S. 2nd Street, in Walker’s Point, re-opened with the new street redesign, and quickly saw numerous establishments add cafe seating, and a the construction of a new building, the Milwaukee Fix, get underway.

Transit both made steps forward and steps backwards in 2011.  As we believed would happen, cuts to mass transit funding were deep at the state level, and threatened to push MCTS off the cliff.  Although new County Executive Chris Abele worked to maintain transit service by converting some routes to express routes to save money, this still represented a net reduction in service.  At the same time, the Milwaukee Streetcar project was approved by the Common Council on a 10-5 vote this year and has now proceeded into final engineering.  Though as we feared a challenge is being made to Milwaukee’s local control.  Brett Healy, of Oconomowoc, has petitioned the Public Service Commission to rule that, despite local ordinance, the City of Milwaukee must pay the cost to re-locate utilities operating in the public rights-of-way necessitated by the streetcar construction.

In 2011 Milwaukee continued to face a difficult financial and political environment, but managed to move forward on improvements to the built environment, transit, and many significant development projects.

The streetcar as it meets Broadway in the Third Ward.

On Wednesday, November 16th, from 5:30 p.m. to 8:00, there will be a Public Hearing on the Draft Environmental Assessment Document for the Milwaukee Streetcar. During this meeting attendees will be able to provide a comment on the record regarding the Milwaukee Streetcar project. The meeting is being held at the Frontier Airlines Center on Wisconsin Avenue.

A formal presentation on the document begins at 6:00 p.m.

A public notice for the hearing can be found at MilwaukeeStreetcar.com.

The draft Environmental Assessment document is available in PDF format.

UrbanMilwaukee.com has long supported the Milwaukee Streetcar Project, and hopes the public comes out to show their support for this project.

Rendering of the Milwaukee Streetcar vehicle.

This week there are two important public meetings regarding the future of Milwaukee’s built environment.

Today there will be a meeting hosted by the Department of Transportation which will give residents a chance to ask questions and share opinions about the proposal to add a bike and pedestrian lane on the Daniel Hoan Memorial Bridge.  The meeting will be held in the DOT offices, 1001 W. St. Paul Ave., and starts at 5 p.m. The DOT planners presentation will begin at 5:15.

On Wednesday the 16th, the Federal Government will hold a Public Hearing on the Draft Environmental Assessment for the Milwaukee Streetcar Project.  The meeting will be held in the Frontier Airlines Center, 410 West Wisconsin Avenue, Milwaukee First Floor, Room 101A-D (closest entrance is 4th Street & Wisconsin Avenue) and starts at 5:30 p.m.  The formal presentation will begin at 6:00 pm.

UrbanMilwaukee.com has long supported both of these projects (Bike the Hoan / Milwaukee Streetcar Project), and hopes the public comes out to show their support for these improvements to Milwaukee.

The streetcar as it meets Broadway in the Third Ward.

The Milwaukee Common Council voted to approved the Milwaukee Streetcar today, moving it forward to Final Engineering. The Common Council will have to approve operating funding as construction draws to a close. The streetcar is expected to begin operating in late 2014.

The project passed on a 10 to 5 vote with Alderman Bohl, Donovan, Davis, Dudzik, and Murphy voting against.

A rendering of the streetcar at the intersection of Van Buren and Wells in downtown Milwaukee.

Yesterday, Alderman Donovan called for a referendum to be held before moving forward with the Milwaukee Streetcar project.  A referendum that wouldn’t be held until the Spring primaries on February 21st, 2012.  Making a proposal such as this reminds us that there wasn’t a referendum for the Hoan Bridge reconstruction, the I-94 expansion, or the $810 million (not including utility relocation costs) Marquette Interchange project.  Locally in Alderman Donovan’s district, there wasn’t a referendum for National Avenue’s recent streetscaping project between S. 27th St. (Layton Blvd.) and S. 35th St.  Finally, when the $300 Milwaukee Connector guided bus proposal came up for a vote there were no calls for referendum from Alderman Donovan, in fact he voted  in a straight up and down vote, on the losing side.  But now a smaller, $64 million project, is too big to vote on?  It appears that the standard for its approval is being set higher than for other infrastructure projects, and that the only criteria being used to call for a referendum is that the Milwaukee Streetcar project just might have support of the majority of the Common Council and the Mayor’s office.

Despite Alderman Donovan’s claim that this is about ‘letting the voters decide’, that isn’t the impact his proposal will have.  Citizens may argue that we should have our own vote, and there is certainly a time and place for referendums, while other members of the Common Council may see this as a way to avoid voting on a difficult issue.  Other citizens and maybe even some elected officials might see this as a way to change the route to an inner-city location or to use the money to improve bus service.  But that isn’t what this vote is about.  It is about derailing the Milwaukee Streetcar.

Holding this vote, next year, would jeopardized the current funding.  Milwaukee has had these funds available for transit improvements since 1991, but never before has the potential for the funds to be rescinding been any higher.  It would also insure that Milwaukee misses out on its chance to obtaining TIGER 3 funding and possibly a Livability grant that could become available later this year.  These funds could pay for route extensions to the North, South, and West.  Moving the Milwaukee Streetcar project forward this month is Milwaukee’s best chance to see this kind of service expanded throughout the city.  Waiting until next year serves only one purpose, to derail the Milwaukee Streetcar.

So if you want to see the Milwaukee Streetcar come to Bay View, Bronzeville, Sherman Park, or Lindsay Heights now is the time to support the effort.  Please once again use the form below to pledge your support for the Milwaukee Streetcar Project.

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A rendering of the streetcar at the intersection of Van Buren and Wells in downtown Milwaukee.

George H. Bush was President, Robin Yount was roaming centerfield, and Milwaukee was being allocated funds that were to be dedicated for the development of a new mass transit mode. The funds, $289 million worth, represented a substantial amount of purchasing power in 1991. But the transit improvements never came. Some of the funds ultimately went to tear down the Park East, some for of the funds were used by the freeway system, and some were sent to Milwaukee County to implement a bus rapid transit system that has yet materialize. Today the city’s share is only $54.9 million. Over the years there was talk of the Canal Street Connector and a guided bus system, but with yesterday’s action by the Steering & Rules Committee it looks like the Milwaukee Streetcar is moving Milwaukee forward.

At yesterday’s Steering & Rules Committee Meeting, the Committee on a vote of 5-2, with Alderman Davis, Hamilton, Bauman, Witkowiak, and Hines in support, voted to approve the Milwaukee Streetcar legislation. Aldermen Bohl and Murphy voted in opposition, and both raised legitimate issues, though not insurmountable ones. The plan includes $9.7 million in TIF dollars that will be used to help fund the construction of the project.  Despite the project touching the TID and the funds being used for public infrastructure, two key requirements of TIF funding, Alderman Bohl questioned whether or not TIF funds could be used for the project. Both members in opposition were concerned with the potential cost to move utilities, and if that would be the City of Milwaukee’s responsibility or the utility companies. We Energies and AT&T recently (AT&T oddly – or possibly strategically – waited until the day before the meeting to unveil their concerns) put out estimates suggesting the cost to move their utilities could be as high as $50 million.  Department of Public Works Commissioner Ghassan Korban explained that it is common when utilities in the public rights-of-way are needed to be moved the cost generally falls on the utility (the Marquette Interchange project required $32 million in adjustments, an amount far below initial estimates). He went on to explain that after the approval of this legislation the engineering will move beyond the 30% phase, and that the department will be working closely with the utilities to bring these costs down and find workable solutions.  It was apparent that the City of Milwaukee will make adjustment to the alignment or location in the street of the system to dramatically reduce these cost if the estimates are close to being accurate.

The next step is for the file to go before the full Common Council on July 26th, 2011. If approved it would be expected that Mayor Barrett would sign it shortly thereafter and the City of Milwaukee would truly be on the way to building a modern mass transit system helping to move Milwaukee forward.

And we’d like to give a quick thanks to the UrbanMilwaukee.com readers, as you helped move Milwaukee Forward!

Milwaukee Streetcar Route Extensions

The Milwaukee Streetcar is projected to go before the Steering & Rules Committee of the Milwaukee Common Council next week. If the project is able to pass the Steering & Rules Committee it is widely believed that it will pass the Common Council as a whole. However, passage by the Steering & Rules Committee is far from a sure thing, and now is a critical time to make your voice heard so that the project can move forward.

The next meeting of the committee is scheduled for July 14th, 2:30 p.m. at Milwaukee City Hall in Room 301-B. The committee, which is made up of the Council President and the chairs of the other standing committees, includes President Hines, Jr. as well as Representatives Bauman, Bohl, Davis, Donovan, Hamilton, Murphy, and Witkowiak.

A public information open house is being held Monday, July 11th, at the Milwaukee Public Market from 4 to 6 p.m. for the community to review and comment on the Milwaukee Streetcar. According to the event flyer “information will be available on economic development, route, technology, costs and financing, impacts, timeline, and more.”

Previously we asked that you contact your Common Council representative via a form on our last article, and we had a fantastic response rate, but this time we want to let the entire Common Council and Mayor hear our support for getting the Milwaukee Streetcar in the ground.

Please take a moment to fill out the form below to let the Common Council and Mayor know your feelings on the streetcar project, even if you filled out the form last time.

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Milwaukee Streetcar Route

The route selected will connect the Lower East Side, East Town,  Historic Third Ward, and the Milwaukee Intermodal Station. Designed as a starter system, it is a variation on Alignment 1 originally presented in September 2009, and reflects the restraints of available funding (the city’s 60% share of the $91.5 million designated for new transit capital projects by the federal government), jobs and residential populations, and development opportunities.

The route connects the region’s densest jobs area (downtown) and densest residential area (the Lower East Side). A testament to the connections the route provides.  Additionally, despite being within a quarter-mile of only 2% of the city’s land area, the route connects with 13% of the city’s tax base.

Milwaukee Streetcar Route Extensions

Additional extensions are planned (and are much more likely to be funded once the starter system is in the ground) to Brady Street, UWM and the rest of the East Side, Marquette and the west side, The Brewery project and the city’s northwest side, and Walker’s Point, Bay View, and the south side.

Initial route extensions will target connecting the route to Brady Street on the northeast end, and the Bradley Center, Park East, and The Brewery on the northwest end. With those two initial extensions in place, within a quarter-mile of the route will be 100% of the area’s hotels, 91% of the area’s occupied street-level retail space, 90% of the area’s office space, and 77% of the area’s housing.

While it is expected that everyone would like the route to pass by their own front door, the annual Milwaukee Trolley Loop proves the folly of such an idea with a route that serves everyone and no one at the same time. The rubber-tired trolley buses have a different route year-after-year, delivering neither the ride quality that modern streetcars provide nor the development opportunities that well-planned modern streetcar systems have shown to generate (Portland alone generating $3.5 billion in development within two blocks of the route from their 4-mile system since 1997, a system that the Milwaukee Streetcar is patterned after). The downtown summer trolley serves to promote the businesses that pay to be along its route, the Milwaukee Streetcar is a starter system designed to connect residents and visitors to jobs and entertainment, while at the same time generating new development along the route.

Neither Rome, nor Portland, were built in a day, each had to start somewhere. This is Milwaukee’s chance to start. This is a public investment that will lead to substantially more private investment.

To ensure this is the beginning, not the end of the line email your Milwaukee Common Council representative using the form below to express your support for the Milwaukee Streetcar on what is likely to be a close vote.

cforms contact form by delicious:days

“That’s our story. Now it’s probably not the one you have been reading in the papers, the one being written by folks who’ve never even been here.”

The Chrysler 200 Super Bowl commercial resonated with urbanists from Cinncinati to Chicago, no doubt an odd event for a car commercial.  But it was because it exhibited the pride, spirit, and toughness that Detroit and our cities have in common. The imagery from the commercial shows steam pouring through the vents on a cold winter evening, moments of ruin porn contrasted with upscale neighborhoods, stark imagery of Detroit’s industrial history, and all set to Eminem’s workman like march “Lose Yourself”.  These contrasts made the cold, hard, rough edge of Detroit look desirable, if not noble.  Clearly the commercial wasn’t as much about the Chrysler 200, as it was about the branding of Detroit as a tough, imperfect city with a rebellious attitude, and most importantly one that hasn’t given up. But more than just Detroit, this was a rallying call for our post-industrial cities, to push on because our place, our history, and our future matters.

(if the video doesn’t show in your browser it is available here)

It is not to say Detroit, or any Rust Belt city for that matter, doesn’t have its fair share of problems, they do. Further, this commercial isn’t the silver bullet that is going to bring Detroit back, and quite frankly the automobile industry both built and destroyed Detroit, but it should act as a reminder to those who’ve never even been here that our cities matter.

What does this say about Milwaukee? We know our roads aren’t great, our schools are in desperate need of improvement, and that we have a divided region.  But for those of us who’ve been here we know that we have amazing parks, diverse neighborhoods, a built environment prime for continued development, and even a little history in adventurous public policy. Unfortunately, in recent years all too often when an adventurous idea, such as the proposed streetcar system or commuter rail connecting our region together, is proposed we hear “we can’t do that, we’re not Chicago.”  So it is our turn to remind those who’ve never even been here that although we are not the Windy City, we are the Brew City and quite frankly Milwaukee matters.

The Moderne Construction Site

Numerous signs point to a national economy that is recovering.  Hiring has started to pick up, banks are starting to lend again, and locally ‘failed’ projects are slowly filling up.  But everything isn’t great just yet, as here in Wisconsin there is a 14 month supply of homes available on the market, and nationally unemployment sits at 9.4%.  With these factors in place, what can we look forward to for Milwaukee in 2011?

A couple of what many consider ‘failed’ projects are poised to make successful turnarounds this year.  Despite legal battles and bankruptcy Park Lafayette could fill with renters in 2011, as it is currently more than half full.  And with only about 30 units left the Point on the River has a chance of moving from the failure column into a resounding win for downtown Milwaukee.  Due to the continuing legal battle involving the near complete Residences on Water, it isn’t likely this will be completed in 2011, but if it does it will change from being the most visible sign of the economic downturn in Milwaukee, to a sign of Milwaukee’s future growth.

On the development side, a handful of projects in the downtown and near downtown area will be underway this year.  First and foremost we will see the long awaited construction of The Moderne begin to rise up on the edge of the Park East.  The Jackson Square Apartments project in the Third Ward, which seemingly has been under construction for years, should open in 2011, and if it follows the path of Corcoran Lofts it has a strong possibility of renting up.  Two quick moving projects that we’ll be following in 2011, the Beerline B Apartments and National Lofts obtained WHEDA tax credits and began work in late 2010.  Mercy Housing Lakefront’s East Side apartment proposal will go before the Zoning, Neighborhoods & Development Committee this week, and because of the numerous design changes that the project team made to accommodate the neighborhood it is likely this project break ground in 2011.  The controversial Marriott Hotel project will probably get denied at today’s Historic Preservation Commission meeting as it is unclear if the project meets the legal requirements for a Certificate of Appropriateness, but it appears the Common Council is poised to over rule the commission, so it is possible demolition could start this year.  In addition to the Marriott Hotel, two other hotel projects are ready to move forward.  At The Brewery, Gorman & Company is redeveloping a building into a boutique hotel, and the Loyalty building in downtown Milwaukee is to be converted into a hotel as well.  Development may not be as strong as during the boom, but is clearly poised to pick up in 2011.

In regards to transit we know the high-speed rail project is done in Wisconsin, but the repercussions of the election impact transit far beyond just that one project.  Now that the Governor’s race is over an opportunity exists for Mayor Barrett to get back to focusing on Milwaukee, and in turn move the streetcar project forward, assuming Milwaukee is able to maintain local control over the project.  And with new leadership at Milwaukee County, it is possible more of a priority could be placed on transit service, and Milwaukee County could actually move forward on the proposed express bus (it to-date isn’t true BRT) service, but that depends on who becomes the next County Executive.  Unfortunately, it is very likely that Milwaukee County and the City of Milwaukee will face a cut in shared revenue, which could lead to many services being cut and in regards to transit, force the further decline of the Milwaukee County Transit system.  The picture for transit improvements in 2011 is as murky as it has ever been.

In summary, development, primarily of apartments and hotels, will continue to pick up in 2011, but the direction transit will go is unclear and troubling.

A rendering of the streetcar coming up Broadway out of the Historic Third Ward.

The Milwaukee Streetcar project was approved for further study this morning by the Milwaukee Connector Study Group. The approval will allow preliminary engineering to begin for the proposed streetcar starter system.

The Milwaukee Connector Study Group is the federally designated body that oversees the early 1990′s allocated $289 million for transit in Milwaukee (which has only $91.5 million remaining). The group consists of a single voting member each from the City of Milwaukee, Milwaukee County, MMAC, and the Wisconsin Center District. The study group approved the Milwaukee Streetcar for further study on a 3-1 vote with Milwaukee County casting the lone dissenting vote.

The Milwaukee Streetcar will need approval from the Milwaukee Common Council and the Mayor before construction can begin. The Common Council is likely to vote on the streetcar in early 2011, when the preliminary engineering work will be available that provides better estimates of financial and operating details.

As has been discussed previously, the streetcar will not compete with the existing MCTS system for future federal dollars, as the FTA has funds set aside for fixed-guideway systems under which the streetcar would fall. Also, implementation of a regional transit authority is still extremely important, so that the existing bus system does not see severe cuts.

As planned, the streetcar would be a key piece of the backbone for a truly regional transit system serving as a vital link between the Milwaukee Intermodal Station (stop on route of Madison-Milwaukee-Chicago high-speed rail and KRM commuter rail system), existing MCTS bus routes, and Milwaukee’s densest neighborhoods including the East Side, East Town, the Historic Third Ward, and Westown.

Please take time to look at the photo gallery to get a sense of what the streetcar would look like on Milwaukee streets, and how it might interface with traffic and existing buildings.

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