Taxco Apartment Complex Nears Completion

Taxco Apartments. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

The Taxco Apartments building, the largest new building constructed in Walker’s Point in several years, is scheduled to open in December.

It will fill a half block of S. 5th St. between W. Bruce St. and W. Pierce St., replacing a series of smaller buildings including the former home of La Fuente restaurant.

What could have been an underwhelming alley at the back of a modern building will be a detour worth taking, at least once general contractor Catalyst Construction and the several subcontractors working on the project no longer have their equipment parked along it.

The Mandel Group and project partner Catalyst Partners are developing the project. JLA Architects is leading the complex’s design.

According to building plans submitted to the city, the market-rate apartment complex will include a fitness center with yoga, spin and fitness rooms, a game room, dog wash room and rooftop deck and club room. Unit layouts include a mix of studio, one, two and three-bedroom options, most of which will have balconies.

“Each apartment will feature designer kitchens, stainless steel appliances, hard surface flooring, luxurious carpet in the bedrooms, abundant storage space, in-unit washers and dryers, bright windows, and excellent Milwaukee views. Some of Milwaukee’s best restaurants, bars, and nightlife are just a walk away from your new home,” says a leasing listing. But unlike many other buildings on S. 5th St., you will never find one of those bars or restaurants on the first floor. The building was constructed without first-floor commercial space, and instead includes a number of townhomes and tenant spaces on the first floor.

In addition to the Selena mural building, a series of other buildings were demolished to create the development site. That includes the former La Fuente building at 625-645 S. 5th St. The oldest portion of the Cream City brick building dated back to 1890, according to city assessment records. But Mandel president Ian Martin told Urban Milwaukee in a September 2020 interview that the La Fuente building had a “nice facade” but the structure behind the building was made of cinder blocks and “there [was] nothing of note about it.” Demolition work, which substantially ramped up last August, revealed the multiple cinderblock additions behind the facade.

The leasing website shows that prices start at $1,150 for a one-bedroom apartment, $1,660 for a two-bedroom apartment and $2,195 for a three-bedroom apartment.

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Renderings

2020 Pre-Demolition Photos