New Deer District Construction Venue Takes Shape

FPC Live venue construction. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

A year after construction began, the final shape of a new concert venue across from Fiserv Forum is now clearly visible.

The 4,500-person venue is being developed by Madison-based FPC Live and is expected to open later this year. Affiliated with Live Nation, it is to host national touring acts with primarily standing crowds. The company said it will fill an underserved crowd size in the Milwaukee live music market with a high-quality offering and modern amenities.

The $70 million project went through several rounds of public review. It was first proposed as a two-venue complex in 2022 for a site in the Historic Third Ward in partnership with Summerfest-host Milwaukee World Festival, Inc., but then shifted to the Milwaukee Bucks‘ Deer District area later that year. It received design approval, despite objections, in late 2022, but cost increases forced it to be downsized to one larger venue in 2023, and a second design approval took place for an “inflation-adjusted” venue.

Without great fanfare, construction began in May 2024. Then the project had to endure an unusual event. Its location across Fiserv Forum required the construction to idle during the 2024 Republican National Convention. A “going vertical” ceremony was finally held in October.

Miron Construction is leading the general contracting with support from JCP Construction and several subcontractors. Eppstein Uhen Architects is leading the design.

At least publicly, FPC Live has not begun booking shows. Its website lists several upcoming Milwaukee shows, but none at the unnamed venue. FPC Live is a subsidiary of Frank Productions. Live Nation, which owns Ticketmaster, has a majority interest in Frank and a minority interest in FPC.

The new venue is being developed on a 53,326-square-foot site addressed as 1051 N. Vel R. Phillips Ave. The property is part of a larger site that was given to the Milwaukee Bucks as part of Fiserv Forum’s development in exchange for demolishing the Bradley Center arena that sat atop it.

The venue will be oriented to the north, with a large plaza connecting to the pedestrianized W. Highland Avenue and the plaza in front of Fiserv Forum. The building is being set back from N. Vel R. Phillips Avenue, with a 12,500-square-foot development site between it and the street.

The stage will be at the south end of the building. Building plans show two upper levels of seating with several hundred seats set far back from a large open floor.

To the south, NCG Hospitality is pursuing a 156-room, seven-story Moxy Hotel. NCG also owns a Moxy-branded hotel next to FPC’s The Sylvee venue in Madison. A zoning change to enable the hotel is currently being held by the Common Council.

A one-block private street will restore N. 5th Street to the city grid on the west side of the venue. The privately owned and constructed street is intended to be used for loading the venue. It has not existed since the Bradley Center’s 1980s construction. The western portion of the Bradley Center site, 520 W. State St., remains available for future development.

City property records indicate construction has largely gone as planned, except for the need to remove a 1,000-gallon underground storage tank on the east side of the site that was struck during construction. According to a removal permit, the incident was estimated to cost $11,800 to remedy. A state application says it was used to store diesel fuel and that the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources was notified. The site was a parking lot immediately preceding the Bradley Center’s construction, but previously housed a wide variety of buildings and uses.

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