Gruber Law Makes The Call, Moving Office Towers
Law firm trading 100 East for 411 East Wisconsin Center.
411 East Wisconsin Center. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.
One of Milwaukee’s highest-profile law firms is on the move.
According to a newly-filed building permit, Gruber Law Offices is leasing much of the 19th floor of the 30-story 411 East Wisconsin Center.
The personal injury law firm, famous for its “one call, that’s all” slogan, reports on its website that it has 25 attorneys and approximately 130 total employees.
The permit request indicates Gruber is leasing 22,490 square feet of space in the 654,000-square-foot tower.
It was known that Gruber was in the market for new space. Its current home, the 35-story 100 East tower, went into foreclosure as a result of falling occupancy rates and a development group purchased it in 2023 with the intent of converting it into apartments.
Gruber, which uses a 28th-floor address, previously reported leasing approximately 18,000 square feet of space across multiple floors.
The firm is following another personal injury firm, Sperling Law Offices, in making the jump from 100 East to the 411 building. Sperling leased 2,324 square feet of space earlier this year, half the space a 2019 building permit said it occupied in 100 East.
And despite the fact that Gruber is virtually ubiquitous because of its advertising, it won’t be the highest-profile firm in its new home.
Quarles, formerly known as Quarles & Brady LLP, has its name written atop the tower in a 56.5-foot-wide sign. The law firm, which has been based in the building since 1986, reports more than 550 attorneys across 13 offices.
Halfway up the building, a sign highlights the building’s other well-known law tenant: von Briesen & Roper, s.c. The firm’s website says it has more than 200 employees spread across several offices. Its headquarters are on the 10th floor.
The 411 East Wisconsin Center, which includes a skywalk-connected parking structure a block to the south, is one of the city’s most valuable properties with a $112.3 million assessed value.
Illinois-based Middleton Partners acquired the property in 2017 for $124.6 million. The occupancy rate at the time of the last sale was reported at 89%, but has more recently been reported closer to 80%. Colliers International‘s leasing website lists approximately 180,000 square feet as available, but doesn’t indicate if all that space is vacant.
The building was completed in 1985. It is the second-largest multi-tenant office building in Wisconsin.
Gruber Law Offices is led by the highly-visible David Gruber, as well as his wife Nancy and son Steven.
According to a building permit, in. studio architecture is leading the design of the space. The general contractor is listed as “to be determined.”
A pivotal vote on the future of the 100 East building is scheduled for Friday. The Wisconsin Historic Preservation Review Board will decide whether to grant the building state historic designation, making the property eligible for historic preservation tax credits. The board rejected the application earlier this year, citing that the 1989 building was not old enough.
Other tenants to vacate 100 East in recent months include Marcus Corp., which relocated to the Associated Bank River Center, Marietta Investment Partners (833 East) and law firm Hinshaw & Culbertson (BMO Tower). Grant Thornton is the largest remaining tenant not to announce a relocation.
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Gosh, we sure are living in interesting times for downtowns across the country. Milwaukee’s innate caution in not over building—in this case, downtown commercial development—has provided it a soft landing compared to bigger cities that overbuilt pre-COVID.
There’s been a spate of commercial signage going up on downtown towers recently: Associated Bank building, US Bank/Baird, Reinhart at 1000 N. Water. (And, of course, lower buildings like Fiserv and Milwaukee Tool.) The renderings for redevelopment of the old Johnson Controls complex prominently shows at least four “signage” opportunities, all facing the freeway, natch. For years, Planet Fitness has had its logo *on top* of the ASQ building simply because it has a gym there. There was even that matter of Kohl’s getting its logo on top of a building it has no investment in simply because it was promised signage in the same building where Fiserv moved its headquarters. Folks, most downtowns don’t have top of building signage for a company simply because it has a retail location there. That’s typically reserved for HQs or another major presence. If Kohl’s wants that kind of signage on the skyline, it should move its HQ downtown from Menomonee Falls. (Well, I guess before it becomes the next retail casualty.)
I bring this up because I think 411 East looks kind of tacky, especially with the vonBriesen signage pasted on the side midway up, along with Quarles. I’m hoping the building isn’t going to offer Gruber logo placement, too. 411 is already one of downtown’s least attractive towers. Putting logos on it isn’t helping.
While signage is to be expected, I believe it’s time for officials to consider a bit of regulation to protect downtown’s skyline. With this signage, these towers and their large tenants (and even retail outlets, apparently) are making decisions that impact everyone’s experience of downtown. Associated Bank went about as far as I think any company should be allowed to go in pasting its logo to a building that can be seen far away.
The skyline belongs to everyone. As we approach the holidays, what does Milwaukee want: Bedford Falls or Pottersville?