Fred Astaire Moving Its Studio

1661 N. Water St. Photo by Mariiana Tzotcheva.

Milwaukee dance groups are playing musical chairs.

In October, Danceworks sashayed across the river from its longtime home on the Lower East Side to the Milwaukee Youth Arts Center, 325 W. Walnut St.

Now, Fred Astaire Dance Studios is waltzing over to its new home in the former Danceworks space at 1661 N. Water St. from its longtime home in the Historic Third Ward.

The dance studio is leasing approximately 6,000 square feet of space in the Northern Light Buildings.

“We’re excited to welcome Fred Astaire Dance Studios to the Northern Lights Building,” said Luke Fehrenbach, assistant vice president of Ogden & Company’s commercial brokerage team, in a statement. “This use will bring positive energy and activity to the building, while serving as an amenity to the surrounding neighborhood.”

Ogden said Fred Astaire will be located in an “anchor retail suite.” The real estate company is also located in the building, and an affiliate of the company owns the riverfront property.

Fred Astaire, according to a Dec. 29 permit request, is working with Brookfield-based Patera on the facility’s design. Ogden Construction Group is serving as the general contractor.

The five-story, 42,000-square-foot building houses a number of tenants, including Zenith Tech, Dove Hydration and Wellness, Nolan Defense Alliance, Grieve Law and Divergent Family Law. The structure was built in 1885 as part of the sprawling Albert Trostel & Sons tannery. It later housed the Northern Light Co.

A building permit indicates that Patera is also working with professional counselor Darcy Mason to open an office on the fourth floor.

The dance studio is part of a national chain that reports 246 locations. The Connecticut-based company has 14 Wisconsin locations, including Milwaukee-area studios in Brookfield, Greenfield, Menomonee Falls, Mequon, New Berlin, Oak Creek, Oconomowoc and Pewaukee. The Milwaukee and Brookfield franchises are owned by Feather Step Milwaukee and Feather Step Brookfield, both of which list Anna Tomasini as the registered agent.

The Milwaukee location was previously in a two-story office building at 625 E. St. Paul Ave. A handful of other tenants, including Affiliated Medical Services, are located in the 13,387-square-foot building.  The property is owned by Alpha Realty, an affiliate of prior Feather Step owner and accomplished dancer Albina Habrle.

Joe Carollo of JLL represented Feather Step in the lease. Ogden was represented by Fehrenbach and Richard Reinders.

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