The Agricultural Maritime Export Facility. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

A $45 million port export facility, which only opened in July, is already slated for expansion.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) announced a $9.3 million grant Friday to fund an expansion for a facility frequently described during its three-year development as the largest investment in Milwaukee’s port since the Saint Lawrence Seaway opened in the 1950s.

The $15.8 million project would add two grain silos to DeLong Company‘s Agricultural Maritime Export Facility (AMEF), allowing the facility to handle two commodity types simultaneously and more efficiently load large vessels. Additional funding for the project, according to port director Jackie Q. Carter, will come from DeLong and a state Harbor Assistance Program grant.

The AMEF’s primary function is to support exporting an ethanol byproduct, dry distillers grain with solubles (DDGS), to Europe and northern Africa. It’s the first port facility on the Great Lakes capable of handling DDGS, which is moisture-laden and poorly suited for shipping containers. DDGS is used as a nutrient-rich feed to supplement animal diets.

In July, a well-attended ribbon cutting was held for the facility, located on the west side of Jones Island along the Inner Harbor, with an emphasis placed on the symbiotic partnership between the city and state the project enables.

Farmers in Wisconsin and other upper Midwest states are expected to see higher prices for corn as a result of ethanol plants being able to more efficiently export DDGS.

“Port Milwaukee plays a critical role in connecting our Wisconsin farmers and businesses to markets across the world,” said Senator Tammy Baldwin in a statement announcing the grant. Baldwin submitted a letter of support in April. “I’m proud to help deliver this next investment to strengthen our maritime commerce, create jobs in Milwaukee, and grow Made in Wisconsin economy.”

The $9.3 million award was part of $172.8 million in awards announced Friday by the USDOT’s maritime Administration as part of its Port Infrastructure Timeline. Twenty-six ports received grants.

“Everything from the food we eat to the cars we drive to the lumber and steel used to build our homes passes through America’s ports, making them some of the most critical links in our nation’s supply chain,” said U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg. “These investments will help expand capacity and speed up the movement of goods through our ports, contributing to cleaner air and more good-paying jobs as we go.

Carter told Urban Milwaukee the construction timeline is “as soon as possible.”

“This grant further cements Port Milwaukee as a vital hub for international agricultural commerce, which benefits not only the City of Milwaukee but the entire State of Wisconsin,” said Mayor Cavalier Johnson in a statement. “Once again, Sen. Baldwin has been the City of Milwaukee’s champion on bringing more federal dollars to support essential projects in Milwaukee.”

In addition to the two new silos, the expansion project calls for the acquisition of related handling equipment.

The initial project was funded by a $15.9 million grant awarded in 2020.

“Port Milwaukee is grateful for the continued support of both Senator Baldwin and the U.S. Dept. of Transportation – Maritime Administration (MARAD), and this second Port Infrastructure Development Program (PIDP) grant award for the Agricultural Maritime Export Facility (AMEF) Phase 2 project,” said Carter in a statement.

For additional details on the AMEF, see our July coverage of the ribbon cutting.

July Photos

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Pre-Expansion Renderings

New Car and Pet Wash Coming to Midtown Center

A maze of city building permits indicate a new location for Tsunami Express Carwash is coming to 5209 W. Fond du Lac Ave.

The nearest Tsunami location is at 5520 W. Layton Ave. in Greenfield. The Tsunami website lists eight locations, with five in Wisconsin and three in Indiana. The website gives a corporate address in Oregon, but says the company is focused on the Midwest.

As part of Tsunami’s differentiation in the market, it also offers pet washes at its facility.

The new Milwaukee location isn’t the only under development in the area. A Tsunami Express is also being constructed in Waukesha.

Demolition was completed on two one-story buildings to create the 0.9-acre development site. A 2,800-square-foot structure that most recently housed an H&R Block office and a 10,000-square-foot structure that most recently housed a Beauty Island store were razed by New Berlin Grading.

An affiliate of Tsunami acquired the two underlying parcels, 5209 and 5225 W. Fond du Lac Ave., in August for $1.4 million from Libertyville, IL-based Park & Park Property LLC.

A rectangular building will be constructed on the property, with its longer side paralleling W. Fond du Lac Avenue.

The property is just east of the formal Midtown Center shopping complex that was recently sold to Laureate Capital. It’s part of a collection of commercial properties that form a triangle bordered by W. Fond du Lac Avenue, W. Capitol Drive and N. 60th Street.

Weekly Recap

Milwaukee Auto Plant To Close Following End of UAW Strike

The United Auto Workers might have scored a win on the national level in reaching agreements in recent weeks with General Motors, Ford and Stellantis, but it’s poised to be a loss for Milwaukee.

Stellantis, best known in the United States for its Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep brands, would close its distribution facility at 3280 S. Clement Ave., and others nationwide as part of an agreement with the labor union.

Mopar, as the Milwaukee plant has long been branded, is the parts distribution arm of the company. The Mopar plant is the last automotive facility in the city.

The agreement calls for a “Mopar Mega Hub” in Belvidere, IL and the elimination of smaller distribution facilities in Milwaukee, Chicago and Marysville, MI.

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Declining Household Size Creates ‘Mismatch’ Says New Report

The average household size in Wisconsin, like the country overall, has been falling for decades, creating a mismatch between the types of housing available and what’s needed to meet shifting demographics.

That’s according to a new report by the Wisconsin Policy Forum, which found the state’s decline in household size has been more pronounced than the nation as a whole.

In 1970, an average 3.22 people lived in each Wisconsin home, while the country’s average was 3.11. By 2020, Wisconsin’s average household size was 2.36 people and the nation’s was 2.55.

Longer life expectancies and declining marriage rates fueled the decline, according to the report.

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MFD Says There Were At Least 7 Recent Fires At Abandoned Northridge Mall

The Milwaukee Fire Department (MFD) put out a fire Thursday morning inside the long-vacant Northridge Mall. And in doing so, department officials said they encountered “indications of as many as six other recently set fires.”

“I cannot overstate my frustration. This property remains inherently dangerous to Milwaukee firefighters who are repeatedly called to reports of fires at this location. It is also extremely dangerous to trespassers and vandals at the site,” said Fire Chief Aaron Lipski in a statement. “This morning is at least the seventh time firefighters have been called to the Northridge property in the last fifteen months. Action must be taken promptly to end this dangerous situation before people are severely injured or killed at this vacant and neglected site.”

Lipski, in prior court testimony and public statements, has said the fires appear to have been intentionally set given the property’s lack of electrical or gas service.

The latest fire comes after the mall lost its temporary security presence. The city continues to seek ownership of the blighted property, with the next court hearing scheduled for Dec. 1.

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Gov. Evers Funds Iron District Stadium, Bronzeville Arts Center

Governor Tony Evers will use the state’s American Rescue Plan Act to bypass Republican opposition to funding five cultural and sports venues across the state.

In Milwaukee, the proposed Iron District soccer stadium will receive $9.3 million and the Bronzeville Center for the Arts (BCA) will receive $5 million under a unilateral proposal announced Thursday. Evers has full discretion on where to allocate the state’s portion of the federal grant.

The 8,000-seat soccer stadium is to be home to a new professional men’s soccer team owned by Jim Kacmarcik. Marquette University‘s men’s and women’s soccer and lacrosse teams would also play in the building. The new soccer team would play in the USL Championship League, a fully-professional league one level below Major League Soccer.

The development team, according to a February proposal, would provide $35.7 million to advance the stadium. It is part of a larger $220 million mixed-use complex. Urban Milwaukee, in June 2022, was the first to report that the stadium would need a public subsidy. The larger development project includes a hotel, two apartment buildings and other commercial development. The first apartment building is under construction.

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Mill Road Library For Sale

The Mill Road Library is for sale.

But that doesn’t include any of the Milwaukee Public Library‘s books or computers. Those migrated north to the Good Hope Library when the new branch opened in 2020.

Now, the City of Milwaukee is looking to sell the former library, 6431 N. 76th St., for $500,000.

The listing includes the 15,061-square-foot library building, which has a circular shape, and the rectangular 37,155-square-foot site.

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Mostly Vacant Downtown Office Building Sold

A downtown office building has a new owner, again.

The Sentinel Building, 225 E. Mason St., is now owned by a Florida-based real estate investment firm. An affiliate of the MAQ Group acquired the property for $1.20 million on Oct. 27.

As of 2021, an investment group led by Adam Gollatz intended to convert the slender 10-story building, just east of N. Water Street into 33 apartments. But those plans didn’t advance and it was transferred back to prior owner Doug Young in lieu of foreclosure in January. Initially relisted for sale for $2 million, it was placed on the auction block in September with a starting bid of $500,000.

Constructed in 1892 and home to the namesake newspaper until 1930, the building was 70% vacant when Gollatz’s Mason Street Ventures LLC acquired it for $2.1 million in February 2021 as part of a land contract.

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More Market Rate Apartments Proposed Near 76th and Brown Deer

A new market-rate housing proposal has emerged for Milwaukee’s Far Northwest Side.

Highland Park, Illinois-based Eagle Management RE intends to construct a six-building, 78-unit apartment complex on a vacant site at N. 72nd Street and W. Dean Rd. It’s the second market-rate proposal announced this year for the area.

The development, which is still in its early stages according to the project team, would serve as an extension of The Villas at Granville. That project, formerly a condominium complex known as Trinity Court, is a 123-unit development that Eagle acquired in 2012 for $5.33 million. It is located along N. 72nd Street, just south of W. Brown Deer Rd.

“The current community has a long waiting list,” said Eagle President Jim Glikin in presenting the vision to the Granville Advisory Committee on Wednesday morning. He said the underutilized amenities in the existing complex, including a swimming pool, fitness center and club room, could be shared with the new development. Outdoor amenities would be added for all residents in the new complex.

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