City Selling Commercial Buildings

Have a vision to launch a new business? Want to move an existing one? The City of Milwaukee has just the place for you to do so.

The Department of City Development recently listed three properties for sale via a request for proposals process.

The properties, all acquired via property tax foreclosure, range from two-story, mixed-use commercial buildings to vacant lots suited for industrial firms. They include:

1937-1939 N. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr.

Located just north of W. Reservoir Ave. and the YWCA of Southeast Wisconsin, DCD is marketing a two-story building at 1937-1939 N. Martin Luther King Dr.

The building is ideally suited for a “restaurant, catering, office, retail, medical, live-work, recording/art/photography studio or service business” according to DCD’s request for proposals.

Built in 1895, the brick building contains 2,640 square feet of space. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, but is not locally historically protected. The former makes repair work eligible for historic preservation tax credits, while the latter avoids the need for detailed city approvals on any exterior modifications.

A historic use report from the city indicates the building’s first floor has been host to a wide variety of uses. It was home to a radio shop in 1935, a restaurant in 1948, a soap company in 1955, a church in 1965 and a men’s clothing store in 2005. Most recently it was used as an office, but has been vacant since 2016. Today it is largely stripped to the studs.

An apartment with two floors is located on the second floor.

The city acquired the building in November 2019 through property tax foreclosure. It was the second time the city took the building in property tax foreclosure from the same owner.

Want to see inside? The city has produced a video highlighting the property.

Two vacant lots immediately north of the building, 1941 and 1945 Martin Luther King Jr. Dr., are owned by New Innovations, LLC, the owner of the two-story buildings at 1947-1949 and 1951 N. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr.

• Asking Price: $80,000
• Due Date: May 19th

3610-3616 W. Vliet St.

This two-property package includes a vacant lot at 3610 W. Vliet St. and a two-story building at 3616 W. Vliet St.

Built in 1911, the two-story building includes 3,858 square feet of space. A water-damaged apartment is located on the second floor, while the first floor has historically been used by commercial tenants.

The city’s preferred redevelopment plan, according to the request for proposals, is to see a live-work configuration. To the west of the building is a growing commercial corridor and the Martin Drive neighborhood.

The building, according to a city directory report, was used for a series of bakeries before becoming a water pump dealer’s shop in the 1960s. The first floor has been vacant for much of the past few decades.

The city took possession of the vacant lot in 2006 and the building in 2017. The vacant lot had a building on it until it was damaged by a fire in the 1990s.

An environmental assessment of both properties and associated historical records did not turn up any potential issues worthy of further assessment according to DCD’s listing.

And while the Assessor’s Office gives a 1911 construction date, a 1910 Sanborn fire insurance map already shows a building on the 3616 site. Which is it? Good question for the new owner, as with virtually all city sales the building is being sold “as is.”

• Asking Price: $5,000
• Due Date: March 31st

4132 N. Holton St.

Once the site of Milwaukee Die Casting Co., the 3.71-acre property is now a vacant lot.

The city acquired the property in 2012, demolishing the one-story building on the site in 2014. Located just north of E. Capitol Dr., the rear of the site overlooks N. Humboldt Blvd. and the Milwaukee River.

The property, according to an Environmental Protection Agency report, has been remediated, but is only suited for industrial uses in its current state. As is common in brownfield remediation, the site has a clay cap.

Located in the Riverworks business park, the city’s request for proposals calls for a use involving light manufacturing, an office, contractor’s shop or distribution facility.

• Asking Price: $163,000
• Due Date: April 21st

What happens if a property doesn’t draw a qualified bid? It will, like a handful of others, be available on a rolling basis. DCD maintains a list of commercial properties for sale on its website.