Proposed Third Ward Tower Gets Shorter, Wider

A proposed apartment tower for the north end of the Historic Third Ward is now a floor shorter. But the project is still moving forward, construction is expected to begin in August, according to developer Hines.

Hines and architecture firm Solomon Cordwell Buenz first unveiled plans in May 2021 for a 32-floor, 295-unit building at the corner of N. Water St. and E. St. Paul Ave. By September the design, particularly the eight-level parking structure at its base, had been refined and the unit count grew to 323.

This week, the firm revealed a design that pushes the unit count even higher, to 333, even as the building gets shorter, 31 floors. The parking structure in the building, planned to accommodate 375 cars, would now be eight feet shorter.

The expanded unit count is being accomplished by enlarging the size of the building’s floor plates, reconfiguring floor plans and eliminating corner balconies in favor of enclosed floor space. It reflects sustained construction cost increases and the national firm’s analysis of the Milwaukee market. The average unit size would be 946 square feet.

The top residential floor of the building, according to a document submitted to the Historic Third Ward Architectural Review Board, would reach nearly 323 feet, down from 348. A mechanical, electrical and plumbing service structure would protrude from the top of the building, giving it extra height.

The commercial space on the first floor of the building remains virtually unchanged with minor updates made to the riverwalk design.

A 5,120-square-foot commercial space would be located along the riverwalk, with an outdoor patio. It would be connected to a 1,760-square-foot space at the tower’s northeast corner, facing the Milwaukee Public Market. A 4,870-square-foot street-facing space would be located at the southeastern corner of the building. Floor-to-ceiling, first-floor windows would measure 18 feet on the street-facing facade and 23 feet on the river facade.

The portion of the parking structure facing the public market and Downtown would be shielded by apartment units, visually extending the tower to the ground. The roof of the parking structure would be used for a tenant amenity deck, complete with outdoor pool. The adjoining eighth floor of the tower would be a resident amenity level with fitness center, lounge, game room, party room and co-working space.

On Wednesday the architectural review board endorsed the revised design, but requested the developer and architect come back at a future meeting with revised designs regarding the parking structure entrance.

Hines and SCB previously served as the development team for Northwestern Mutual‘s 7Seventy7 apartment tower. The new building would compete with that project, as well as The Couture and Ascent, both of which are under construction.

No public subsidy for the building has been proposed. It was granted a zoning change in September. “We are very keen on Milwaukee,” said Hines’ Tom D’Arcy at the time. “We think it is one of the most vibrant cities in the Midwest.”

The number of units in the building matches the 0.79-acre site’s current address, 333 N. Water St. Hines will need to close on the purchase of the site from an affiliate of Interstate Parking Services, which acquired the lot in 2018 for $5.6 million.

The new building would take approximately two years to construct.

Hines’ website says that the company has 171 developments currently underway and has redeveloped or acquired 492 million square feet of real estate. It currently owns 634 properties totaling 243 million square feet as part of a $83.6 billion portfolio of assets under management.

Revised Renderings

August 2021 Renderings and Site Plan

Site