Northwest Side Tower Changes Hands
Seller and buyer of office tower both from the East Coast. Plus: A recap of week's real estate news.
One Park Plaza. Image from JLL.
A highly-visible office tower on Milwaukee’s far northwest side has a new East Coast owner.
New York City-based Sovereign Partners sold the 12-story One Park Plaza building and another Park Place office park building earlier this month to an affiliate of New Jersey investor Lawrence Solomon.
Sovereign, which specializes in turning around distressed properties, purchased the 199,326-square-foot office building in 2020 for $5.75 million and renovated its common spaces. It attracted a number of new tenants including the executive suite of Douglas Dynamics, and offices for Action Coach, Burbach and Stansbury, Cleaver-Brooks and Sentinel Technologies. Other firms in the building include A.O. Smith and The Manitowoc Company. State records give an August 2022 sale price of $21.9 million for the property, addressed as 11200-11270 W. Park Pl.
The Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) listing website indicates the building currently has 35,048 square feet of available space, down approximately 5,000 square feet from when we last reported on the property in January. Sovereign’s renovations included a new fitness center, training facility, tenant lounge, renovated common areas and a year-round golf simulator. A parking garage and surface lot included with the property together have more than 600 spaces.
Solomon also acquired the three-story, 91,084-square-foot Liberty 1 building at 11414 W. Park Pl. for $4.4 million. Sovereign paid $1.4 million for the property in 2020, when it was reportedly 27% occupied after losing anchor tenants HNTB and Schneck SC.
The Liberty 1 building is located immediately north of One Park Plaza. The Liberty 1 transaction also included a 3.65-acre site at 11225 W. Liberty Dr. located directly east of the Liberty office building. Sovereign previously paid $200,000 for that site. The three properties all directly border a central pond in the business park.
One Park Plaza’s twin office tower, Two Park Plaza, has long been owned by Waukesha-based Interstate Partners. A number of other smaller office buildings dot the office park.
Photos
Weekly Recap
BRT Stations Reshape Wisconsin Avenue
Have you encountered a sizable sidewalk or lane closure along Wisconsin Avenue in the past year? If so, it was likely for the construction of the Milwaukee County East-West Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line.
The nine-mile BRT line aims to move passengers quickly between Downtown, the near West Side, Wauwatosa and the Milwaukee County Regional Medical Center. But to do so, the system involves substantially more infrastructure than a traditional bus line.
Contractor Zenith Tech is constructing 33 stations for the Milwaukee County Transit System line. As opposed to the conventional concrete rectangle and pole next to the sidewalk, the BRT stations have raised concrete platforms, large glass shelters, real-time arrival clocks and fare equipment. They also often project further into the street, eliminating the uncomfortable and speed-reducing need to pull out of traffic to board passengers.
The first stations were constructed in Wauwatosa last year, with construction substantially ramping up in Milwaukee this year.
FPC Seeks Design Approval For Deer District Concert Complex
The proposal to develop two concert venues adjacent to Fiserv Forum is moving forward, despite a new opposition campaign and a warning from a nearby venue that is expected to negatively impact concert bookers.
FPC Live submitted a request Thursday to the Department of City Development for the necessary design approvals to develop its two-venue complex on land once occupied by the Bradley Center. Focused on live music acts with primarily standing crowds, the complex would have halls with capacities of 800 and 4,000 people.
“Our proposal will draw more shows from top-tier talent, adding more entertainment options to residents and visitors alike. Our venues, which will be privately financed with a $50 million investment, will help spark additional economic activity in downtown Milwaukee, give people more reasons to come Downtown and create continuing excitement in and around Deer District,” said FPC co-president Charlie Goldstone in a statement. It would include elevated seating and at least one VIP area.
The larger room would have four levels. A first floor would be primarily a standing-room only hall. The second floor would have balcony seating on three sides and a VIP area with a private outdoor balcony. A mezzanine level would be even higher, with seating but no bars or outdoor decks. At the top of the structure would be a suite level with private suite boxes overlooking the concert hall and a large outdoor deck to the north.
Convention Center Expansion Costs Grow By $36 Million
Milwaukee’s $420 million convention center expansion is now a $456 million expansion project.
There aren’t any new bells or whistles (or waterfalls), but a number of elements are more expensive than originally projected. That includes the cost of concrete work, steel erection, plumbing and electrical services.
The Wisconsin Center District is covering the cost increases with $20 million in new long-term borrowing, $7 million from a short-term bond that will be paid back this year from a restricted reserve account, $5 million from a grant from concessionaire Levy Premium Foodservice and $4 million in excess interest income.
The district board unanimously approved the plan on Friday after a closed-session discussion. It also unanimously approved extending a concession agreement with Levy through 2033.
MKE Brewing Selling 9th Street Brewery
Milwaukee Brewing Company will soon lack a physical presence, but its beer is expected to live on.
The company announced Tuesday that it is selling its physical brewery and taproom inside The Forty Two, 1128 N. 9th St. Last week the company announced that it was closing the Milwaukee Ale House because it wasn’t able to reach an agreement on renewing the lease.
Both announcements follow the company publicly being listed for sale with New Mill Capital in March. A last call for prospective buyers was issued in May.
“While we can’t share who the brewery is just yet, we’d love to share that their innovation in the craft brewing industry, passion for sharing with others and creativity make them the perfect brewery to take over this space,” the company said in a statement.
Commission Approves Controversial Church Apartment Plan
A proposal to develop a 55-unit apartment building and replace a church’s parish hall gained the second of three key approvals Monday, but not before the City Plan Commission spent nearly five hours reviewing the multi-faceted project.
The project, from St. Mark’s Episcopal Church and developer Michael DeMichele, would replace a failing 1940s addition to the 111-year-old church, 2604-2644 N. Hackett Ave., and be financed in part by selling vacant land and a small parking lot to DeMichele so he can develop a four-story, market-rate apartment building.
Opponents raised concerns about perceived traffic jams and parking issues, while proponents talked about the need to grow the city’s population, support area businesses and increase the supply of housing to reduce price increases on other properties.
The commission ultimately unanimously recommended the Common Council approve the zoning change, but not before adding a requirement that a traffic study is conducted to confirm the project would have a negligible impact.
The 1500s Development May Be Nixed
A proposal to develop a three-story office building and four high-end townhomes just north of Downtown might not happen, at least not under the owner who first proposed the development.
Entrepreneur Josh Delaney listed the land and development plan, known as The 1500s, for sale for $1.5 million in late July.
“Reason for sale is the owner was going to develop and occupy but is moving business out of state,” says a Loopnet listing from Delaney. The three-property, 24,912-square-foot site covers much of the east side of N. Jefferson St. between E. Plesant St. and E. Lyon St.
Delaney’s umbrella firm SnackTime Capital was to occupy the 10,500-square-foot office building as well as his cannabidiol company, FABCBD. The entrepreneur was to live in one of the townhomes with his family and rent out the remaining three for up to $10,000 per month.
‘100,000 Parts’ Complex Listed For Sale
Have a vision for a new business or building on Milwaukee’s South Side?
Following the closure of a more than 70-year-old store, a “prime Bay View redevelopment opportunity” is now available.
The former “100,000 Parts” store complex on the 2300 block of S. Kinnickinnic Ave. is listed for sale for $1.9 million with Anderson Commercial Group. It includes three buildings along the Bay View main street and a fourth across an alley to the west.
The appliance repair store closed following the May 2021 passing of owner Dan Wiken. A daily presence in the store, Wiken was 92 years old and had operated the store for almost all of its history.
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