SoftwareONE Moving Office To Third Ward

In a big win for Historic Third Ward and the greater downtown office market, cloud technology provider SoftwareONE announced it was relocating its North American headquarters from Waukesha to the P.H. Dye House, 320 E. Buffalo St.

Using a hybrid arrangement, the company will relocate its 135 employees to the Historic Third Ward building. SoftwareONE is leasing approximately 20,000 square feet on the building’s second floor.

“We’re thrilled to be expanding our area operations into Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward,” said Ashley Gaare, President of SoftwareONE North America, in a statement. “The heart of downtown Milwaukee is a perfect fit for SoftwareONE’s innovative and flexible culture, and we look forward to playing a bigger role in the advancement of our people and the community at large.”

The publicly-traded company’s headquarters is located in Switzerland. In a press release, SoftwareONE said it has “around 8,300” employees, 65,000 business customers, and sales and service delivery capabilities in 90 countries.

The company provides end-to-end software and cloud technology solutions. “This is achieved by modernizing applications and migrating critical workloads on public clouds, while simultaneously managing and optimizing the related software and cloud assets and licensing,” the company said in a release.

“The pandemic has completely changed the commercial real estate market, both in how people work and where they work,” said Ned Purtell, founding partner of real estate brokerage Founders 3, who along with Bob Flood represented SoftwareONE. “The tenacity and persistence of all involved parties to bring a leading technology company like SoftwareONE to the downtown area is unmatched, but a true sign of the future of work in Milwaukee.”

The eight-story P.H. Dye House, constructed in 1922, is one of many Third Ward buildings originally occupied by the Phoenix Hosiery Co. The commercial portion was acquired by Singerman Real Estate in 2018 for $9.7 million. A series of residential condominiums are located on the eighth floor. A large mural by Case Maclaim depicts a faceless woman (Karen Bell) on the building’s north facade.

“We’re excited to welcome SoftwareONE as the newest tenant of the Dye House,” said Adam Parritz, Singerman asset manager. Parritz and Founders 3 office specialist John Davis represented Singerman on the transaction. “The effort that went into restoring the building to its fullest potential is paying off by bringing in high-caliber partners like SoftwareONE. It’s a true testament of Milwaukee’s growth potential.”

SoftwareONE’s new space was formerly occupied by the for-profit Art Institute of Wisconsin, which closed in 2015. The press release notes that the building will soon have a new indoor-outdoor rooftop deck as part of a multimillion-dollar renovation. Underground parking is included in the base of the building.

Architecture firm RINKA applied for a building permit to modify the second floor for SoftwareONE in January. The estimated job cost on the permit request is listed at $2.21 million.

SoftwareONE is the second technology firm to announce a move to the P.H. Dye House in the last two years. In February 2020, the Expert Institute announced a deal to lease 2,751 square feet of space in the building, then in December 2020 the company announced a plan to substantially scale up its operation. The company, which provides a platform to connect attorneys with subject matter experts, anticipates creating 75 jobs in three years as part of a $500,000 allocation of income tax credits from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation. SoftwareONE’s relocation announcement included no mention of a subsidy.