Third Ward Tower Site Sells For $6 Million

The development firm behind a proposed 31-story tower for the Historic Third Ward purchased the surface parking lot Tuesday on which the luxury apartment building will be built.

An affiliate of Hines, the building’s developer, paid $6 million for the 0.79-acre parcel at 333 N. Water St. according to state real estate transfer records. The riverside site is located kitty-corner from the Milwaukee Public Market. The new building would include a tower along E. St. Paul Ave., a seven-story parking structure with approximately 400 spaces and restaurant-targeted commercial space along the riverwalk.

The lot was sold by an affiliate of Interstate Parking Services, which acquired the property in 2018 for $5.6 million from its longtime owners, the Iannelli family. Interstate, led by Tony Janowiec, was considering developing its own apartment or hotel tower on the site, but those plans never publicly advanced.

The property was already fenced off earlier this summer. Test piles, used to confirm soil conditions, have been driven into the site in recent months. Formal foundation work is expected to begin shortly. It will create a base of steel piles on which the structure will sit. The building is expected to be completed in 2024.

Hines’ building, according to a June commercial construction permit request, would stand 342 feet tall. Including the parking structure, planned at approximately 400 spaces, it would be a 542,285-square-foot building. The structure, based on permit requests, will be built by Chicago-based general contractor W.E. O’Neil Construction.

The roof of the parking structure and the eighth floor of the tower would be an amenity area for residents. It would include an outdoor swimming pool, coworking space, two lounges and fitness center.

A new connection to the Milwaukee RiverWalk would stretch from the corner of N. Water St. and E. St. Paul Ave., under the edge of the tower, to the Milwaukee River. The existing riverwalk, currently disconnected from the property, would remain.

The Third Ward Architectural Review Board approved the building’s design in March. After first securing approval in 2021 for the building, Hines had come back to the board in February with a building that was wider and a floor shorter. The changes, which included increasing the number of units, were a response to the challenges of growing construction costs and market demand.

A 2005 neighborhood plan for the Third Ward identified the site as suited for a “landmark” building. The planning document includes images of taller, glassy buildings.

The building is being designed by Chicago-based Solomon Cordwell Buenz (SCB). Hines and SCB previously represented Northwestern Mutual in developing the 7Seventy7 luxury apartment tower as an investment property for the insurance company.

The new Third Ward building will now compete with NM’s apartment tower as well two other new luxury apartment towers: Ascent and The Couture. Ascent, the tallest mass timber tower in the world, was recently completed and contains 259 units. The Couture is expected to contain 312 units when it is completed. Construction on The Couture is now climbing above the construction fence after delays and a substantial amount of below-grade work. Developers of each of the buildings have told Urban Milwaukee that they believe their property will stand out in the market, and that the number of towers is proof of the demand.

Rents for 333 N. Water St. are expected to be approximately $3 per square foot per month (a 1,000-square-foot apartment would be $3,000 per month). There are 333 units planned.

The Common Council unanimously approved a public financing plan in July that would pay for the 210-foot riverwalk connection and 195 feet of dockwall improvements. Adhering to the Department of City Development‘s standard formula for paying 70% of the costs for riverwalk extensions and 50% of the cost of dockwall repairs, the city would allocate $903,000 to the construction. In exchange for the funding, the developer needs to provide a permanent public easement to the riverwalk and connector segments. The funding would be paid back not through incremental property taxes on the new building, but from the tax incremental financing district created for the CityCenter at 735 N Water Street complex. That district has paid off all of its original expenses and, as allowed by state statute, is now being utilized to pay for other riverwalk improvements within a half-mile of its boundaries.

There is no public subsidy proposed to support the Third Ward tower, and, in 2021, the development team credited The Hop streetcar system as part of the reason for selecting the site. Area Alderman Robert Bauman has championed that fact. “To those who say the streetcar doesn’t pay for itself, this is a $140 million investment that is a result of our investment in the streetcar itself,” the streetcar proponent said in September 2021. If the project were ultimately assessed at $100 million, it would net local governments more than $3 million in new property tax revenue annually. That includes more than $1 million to the City of Milwaukee or almost 25% of The Hop’s annual budget.

February 2022 Renderings

March 2022 Design Adjustments

August 2021 Renderings and Site Plan

Pre-Construction Site Photos