Chicago Firm Plans Downtown Project
Plus: Menomonee Valley building sold and a recap of the week's real estate news.
1333-1339 N. Milwaukee St. Photo by Mariiana Tzotcheva
A six-story apartment building is planned for the vacant lot at the southeast corner of N. Milwaukee St. and E. Ogden Ave.
According to a building permit application filed with the city, the development is being proposed by Chicago-based LG Group. It would contain 197 apartments.
The application was filed by Milwaukee design firm Korb + Associates Architects for the parcel at 1333-1339 N. Milwaukee St.
But the site wasn’t under the former freeway. The L-shaped lot, which slopes downhill towards N. Broadway, was occupied by a Gothic Revival style building for more than 100 years. That building, demolished in 2006, was last occupied by the Milwaukee Center for Independence.
Big Bend Development first proposed to develop The Terraces at River Bluff condominium complex at the site. It would have included two 13-story towers, an eight-story building and 10 townhomes. But like many early Park East proposals, it never moved forward.
In 2016, an affiliate of Roers Companies bought the site and planned an apartment building, The Skye Apartments, but financing for the development fell through.
Chicago-based Ravine Park Partners proposed to develop an approximately 200-unit development on the site in 2019.
A listing website from brokerage firm Berkadia, with a 2020 copyright date, touts the virtues of the property: shovel-ready, located in a federal Opportunity Zone, walking distance to many downtown attractions and an “opportunity to deliver high-rise design and amenities in mid-rise product – capturing unsatisfied segment of the downtown Milwaukee renter market in the mid-$2 [per square foot range.”
A rendering for the 2016 proposal is included. It was designed by Korb, who is leading the design on the new proposal according to building permits. That proposal called for 186 units above a 175-stall parking structure and 10,558 square feet of commercial space.
LG’s website touts the firm’s experience creating more than 2,000 housing units and $2 billion of development. The firm also offers design and contracting services.
Menomonee Valley Building Changes Hands
A factory and office complex in the Menomonee Valley was sold on Jan. 31 for $8.03 million to a Sheboygan investor according to state records.
Developed as a home for medical garment manufacturer Solaris in 2015, the 68,000-square-foot facility is one of many newer industrial facilities developed on what was long the primary railyard and shops for the Milwaukee Road.
A partnership of Interstate Partners and the Weatherly family, which founded Solaris, sold the property, 3880 W. Wheelhouse Rd. It was acquired by an affiliate of Gottsacker Commercial Real Estate.
Solaris was sold to Lohmann & Rauscher Group in 2014, before the new facility was completed. The new business owner continues to operate from the facility, though now using the L&R company brand. A sign on the building indicates contractor Nicholas & Associates also leases space in the facility.
Development costs for the facility were estimated at $5.3 million in 2013.
Weekly Recap
Construction Underway On $118 Million UW-Milwaukee Building
Construction is underway on a state-of-the-art facility for the UW-Milwaukee Chemistry Department.
The four-story, 163,400-square-foot building is being developed at approximately 2000 E. Kenwood Blvd. It is intended to serve as a gateway to all of the university’s science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) departments and buildings.
Design work on the new facility is being led by a partnership of CannonDesign and Kahler Slater. VJS Construction Services is leading the general contracting.
State Approves $96 Million Harbor Cleanup Facility
Governor Tony Evers signed legislation into law Friday that allows Milwaukee to move forward on a massive harbor cleanup effort. The overarching goal of which is to sufficiently clean up Milwaukee’s waterways so that the federal government removes its “area of concern” designation.
A key piece of the effort is a $96 million, 42-acre facility to collect all of the material collected during the cleanup effort. Senate Bill 425 provides the necessary authority for the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District to expand its capital budget through 2027 to finance the facility.
Known as the Dredged Material Management Facility (DMMF), the sediment facility will be constructed on the outer harbor just north of a prior facility at 2320 S. Lincoln Memorial Dr. It will be capable of storing up to 1.9 million cubic yards of sediment from the Milwaukee, Menomonee and Kinnickinnic rivers.
The Couture Completion Delayed Until End of 2023
Construction work is progressing on The Couture, a 44-story, 322-unit apartment building that will be the tallest residential building in Wisconsin when completed. But it’s not moving at the speed it was originally planned, and that is now imperiling another project.
“We are planning to be done right about the end of 2023,” said J.H. Findorff & Son senior project manager Eric Sadler during a tour of the site Thursday morning.
The expected completion date in 2023 has gone from August to fall to now “the end.”
And while losing a few months might not seem like a big deal for a $190 million project that was first proposed in 2012, it’s jeopardizing the financing of another project.
Port Building New Cruise Ship Dock
Milwaukee’s effort to become a leading cruise ship destination on the Great Lakes received a major boost Thursday.
Governor Tony Evers announced a $3.5 million grant for the city-owned port to build a new cruise ship dock capable of servicing the Viking Ocantis, a new 665-foot, 378-passenger ship that will enter service on the Great Lakes this year.
“If we want to continue the [tourism] industry’s great success, and all of the industries that come with it, we need to make long-term investments,” said Evers in announcing the award at Port Milwaukee’s office.
Bronzeville Center for the Arts Proposed
An emerging nonprofit arts organization is seeking to transform W. North Ave.
Bronzeville Center for the Arts (BCA) was revealed Wednesday as the winner of a competitive bidding process to purchase the former Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) facility at the busy intersection of N. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. and W. North Ave. It intends to develop a “world-class art and cultural center” at the 3.4-acre site.
BCA has conceptual plans to develop a 50,000-square-foot facility at the site, including an auditorium and exhibition space, as well as creating a green space with a sculpture walk.
City Needs Act of Congress Because of Couture-Streetcar Delay
Even after shovels went into the ground, The Couture is still causing headaches at City Hall.
The 44-story project, according to multiple city officials, is behind schedule. And as a result, the city won’t be able to put the lakefront line streetcar extension into service this summer as required by a $14.2 million federal grant agreement. Milwaukee will need another extension on the grant, but is running into a fixed deadline on the grant program.
Meaning Congress must take action to bail the city out. The 2015 grant program expires on Sep. 30.
Walker’s Point Buildings Could Become 182 Apartments
Two Cream City brick buildings just outside of downtown Milwaukee could soon be host to 182 apartments under a proposal from a Chicago development team.
The proposal calls for the redevelopment of the four-story Lindsay Brothers Building, 126 S. 2nd St., and the five-story Walsh Building, 160 S. 2nd St. The two buildings, which are primarily used for storage today, would be connected by a new structure built atop the alley that currently divides them.
The project is being led by developers Steve Blonsky and Aymin Khalil. It relies on the use of federal and state historic preservation tax credits, which require that many of the historic architectural elements either remain unchanged or be restored to their original condition.
Evolve Church Has Cafe, Bucks Cachet
A fast-growing church with connections to the Milwaukee Bucks is developing a new home on Milwaukee’s Northwest Side.
Evolve Church is transforming the aging shopping center at 6550 N. 76th St. into a modern church facility.
The church was launched in 2018 by pastor Kenneth Lock II, who also serves as the Bucks’ team chaplain and barber, and his wife Krystel Lock.
Hemp Store Buys Walker’s Point Building
The owners of Canni Hemp Company, Milwaukee’s first cannabidiol (CBD) and hemp specialty store, purchased the 142-year-old building in Walker’s Point that the business leases as part of a plan to create a community destination.
Canni (pronounced “can I”) was founded by Colin Plant in 2018 as a specialty store focused on serving Milwaukee’s creative community. Now Plant and his wife Megan Haug own the two-story, 2,558-square-foot building at 810 S. 5th St.
The store will begin to host live music and maker’s markets in the sizable outdoor space at the rear of the property. Plant, a musician and entrepreneur, envisions applying for a liquor license to facilitate his vision of developing a community destination.
Wangard Partners Extends Ownership To Key Employees
Wangard Partners, Inc. (Wangard), a Milwaukee-based full-service real estate fim recently extended ownership of the company to four key employees: Mark Lake, Vice President of Planning and Predevelopment; Megan Michuda, Development Manager; Julie Simcock, Vice President of Asset Management; and Landon Wirth, Director of Mortgage Finance.
The four new members of the Wangard ownership group were identified for their contributions to the company’s past success and their ability to move the company forward in future years. Lake, Michuda, Simcock and Wirth join the ownership group as minority shareholders – which currently includes majority shareholders Stu Wangard, Matt Moroney, Burton Metz and Kyle Dieringer – and will be responsible for providing input on the strategic direction of the company.
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