Beerline B Apartments Riverwalk Proposed
Drawing of the proposed riverwalk segment
The riverwalk segment for the proposed Beerline B Apartments will go before the Milwaukee City Plan Commission on August 23rd. General Capital Group is bringing the riverwalk segment forward for approval before the entire project. The 140-unit project, which recently was awarded $2,345,310 in WHEDA tax credits for 119 low-income units, will occupy the corner of Commerce St and Pleasant St. The site was one-time the location of the proposed Pleasant Street Market anchored around a grocery store, which appeared to halt after the anchor tenant signed a deal on the other side of the river.
The Beerline B Apartments riverwalk segment is the missing piece that will connect all of the Beerline B neighborhood with Schlitz Park and the rest of Westown, East Town, and the Historic Third Ward via the Milwaukee Riverwalk.
Just what the owners of nearby condos who are trying to sell need – even MORE condos to compete with on price. Not to mention nearby Park Lafayette is hemorrhaging $1.1 million a month while they look for a new buyer. Still the overbuilding continues… These moron developers and the city council apparently haven’t learned a damn thing. I expect the stupidity will continue until their financing fails to come through or is yanked mid-project.
Who in their right mind would actually buy a condo this area unless it is being subsidized? It’s the worst investment of a lifetime unless you have a 10-15+ year time horizon. The bulk of people moving into existing units now are renters. What we need at this site is either retail as was proposed originally WITH parking or green space, not more condos.
Pretty sure the project is called Beerline B Apartments because they are apartments, not condos. Might also be why the article used the word “apartment” three times and never used the word “condo.”
I’m very happy they’ll close this gap in the Riverwalk system and to finally develop this eyesore of a property. This is an especially prominent location and could really tie together what is essentially the meeting point of 3 neighborhoods.
It’s too bad the first comment is some crackpot that can’t tell the difference between an apartment building and a condo.
Nice post and an accurately written article Jeramey! The 119 units are partially subsidized rental units, the balance of the units are market rate.
As a historic home owner in Brewer’s Hill (and a participant in the project team) I’m looking forward to the Riverwalk closure on the Beerline and this site development.
Since this is an apartment project not a condo project it won’t compete with the condos, instead it will be competing with One at The North End which is right across the river. Now from what I remember about One is that it filled up within a matter of weeks of opening thus proving there is a demand for apartments in this area. In addition this development will add significant value to the existing Beerline Condos because it will extend the riverwalk to a major street instead of being a dead end segment so it become more marketable for the neighbors around it. Thus this can serve as a positive project.
I think it’s great and I also think it’s great some apartments are set aside for low income!
The one problem I see with the proposal is that it has too much parking visible off of Commerce Street, I would really like if they could wrap the building around the site a bit more, and make the parking lot appear smaller.
@Matthew Yes, that is my primary concern with the project. It’s early so hopefully that can be improved.
While I understand that now is not a good time for retail development (to say the least), I’m saddened that there will be no retail at this very busy corner. (Maybe it’s a possibility? As I read this piece, it doesn’t seem retail is a component but maybe [I hope!] I’m wrong!) The economy will not always be in the dumps…but once that apartment complex goes in, there will be absolutely no possibility for retail/hospitality business there. None. Never. Gone forever unless they tear down the building. And what a shame….
@Nancy I’d of like to see some retail mix in there as well, but well that project never seemed to have any legs. That said I think the site plan might actually allow for more development in the future, but I’d have to double check that.
As for retail, I would like to think that the NE corner of Water/Pleasant or the Schlitz Park parking lots on the river could accommodate some neighborhood level retail. However, that’s not grounded in anything…
The largest of the three buildings on the site, on the end closet to the intersection of Pleasant and Commerce has nearly 6,000 s.f. of retail space set aside. Complementing that space is an outdoor public pedestrian plaza. The plaza is landscaped with a seat wall buffering it from the streets. Bring on one of my two Milwaukee favorites, a small Sendik’s or Alterra Coffee!
@Gregg I’m glad to hear there will be a retail slot. My biggest question is aorund if the parking will be visible from the street, and how does the building address Commerce street in particular.
PS Isn’t City Plan fun:)
The project exceeds the “build to” percentage requirements along both Pleasant and Commerce Street regarding urban street frontage as prescribed in the Beerline Master Plan & Code. The majority of parking is underneath both apartment buildings, with some surface parking in the court between all three. The surface parking is primarily for guests of the apartments and retail customers. Hardscape and intensive landscaping occur along Commerce Street.
@Gregg Please don’t get me wrong, I’m happy to see new housing at this site, the riverwalk addition is long overdue, the affordable housing element is welcome, and I was happy to hear about the use of brick as a key material (not a fan of the use of EIFS but I guess everybody is doing it). Just that from the designs it seems to me there will be a lot of parking visible from Commerce St., and personally I’d rather see buildings used to hide the parking more so than landscaping as this is an urban lot. I’m not an architect, or a trained planner:), but well that’s my 2 cents:)