Whitney Gould Day (May 29th, 2008)

Mayor Tom Barrett today utilized his power of mayoral proclamation to declare it Whitney M. Gould Day in honor of the long-time Milwaukee Journal Sentinel urban landscape and architecture columnist who recently accepted a buy-out from Journal Communications and now serves as a Commissioner on the Historic Preservation Committee.

Milwaukee Post Office To Move Next Door To Airport

In one of the worst kept secrets surrounding the future of downtown Milwaukee, an announcement finally arrived today that the out-of-place and severely dated United States Post Office located on St. Paul Ave, next to the brand spanking new, gorgeous Milwaukee Intermodal Station, is moving south to be closer to the airport in a new, more efficient facility. This is a huge win-win for both areas. First, this should increase commerce surrounding the airport by adding a labor-intensive business near a large retail stretch. Second, it’s obviously going to be a boost for efficiency for moving mail in-and-out of Milwaukee. With a significant amount of mail moving through the air, this should get it sorted and on-and-off planes faster and reduce costs for USPS. In regards to downtown Milwaukee, the Third Ward, and the Menomonee Valley, this is the start of a huge boost that has been a long time coming. The new Milwaukee Intermodal Station that is quickly becoming a well-known gateway to Milwaukee is in a terribly misused and underused area. Eliminating the Post Office and replacing it with nearly any mixed-use building would be a huge boost for the area and trigger development in underused buildings and surface parking lots across the street. The land that Milwaukee’s Central Processing Facility for USPS currently occupies is not only in a great location because of the proximity to the train station, but it sits on the Menomonee River immediately adjacent to where it merges with the Milwaukee River. Any development on the site will certainly seek to reconnect the neighborhood with the river and further foster urban Milwaukee’s image as an area that is increasingly connected with its natural capital. If you want to consider the kind of visual impact replacing the Post Office will have, consider the Harley Museum set to open soon just across the river. Not only has that development triggered another development in the Iron Horse Hotel, but it’s taken a long underused property and made it a legitimate piece of the city again. Replacing the Post Office will not only trigger development north across St. Paul Ave, but will increase the value of the Harley Museum and all of the land along that stretch of the rivers.

Committee Approves Appointments

The items that stood out the most on the agenda were resolution 071355 and 071358. These resolutions would appoint Joel Lee and Boris Gokhman respectively to the Business Improvement District Board #41. This BID represents Downer Avenue which has been at the center of a continuous development project by New Land Enterprises. These appointments were approved but at May 20th Common Council meeting because the BID intends to rework some details and BID boundaries.

Zoning Committee Halts Empowerment Village

Although, this Zoning, Neighborhoods & Development Committee meeting had a light schedule it did have one item of significance. Resolution 071292 and resolution 071181 made up the proposal for the re-zoning and sale of the city owned land located at the intersection of South Fifth Court and West Rosedale Avenue. This project which is better known as Empowerment Village pitted members in support of affordable housing versus environmental groups over a piece of city owned land. The environmental groups challenged the city’s right to sell the land and argued that during the Southeast Side Planning process this land had always been planned as a green space that would include a bike trail along the Kinnickinnic River. Alderman Michael Murphy pointed out that “we have to balance the needs”. But despite his words and Cardinal Capital‘s efforts to work with the environmental groups to alleviate their concerns by decreasing the size of the building, by paying for the bike trail to be built and by putting a conservation easement in place to protect much of the land as open space a compromise couldn’t be found. The committee voted to place on file these resolutions essentially denying this project from moving forward. The site location is pictured below via Google Maps Street View. View Larger Map

Commission Approves Vacating ‘Paper’ Alleys

This was one of the shorter and less volatile City Plan Commission meetings in recent times. Resolution 071564 proposed vacating two alleys in the Park East redevelopment area to allow for construction of the Palomar. These alleys were referred to as “paper” alleys indicating that they had been plotted but never actually constructed. The commission unanimously approved this resolution and forwarded it on to the Zoning, Neighborhoods & Development Committee.

Pabst Brewery Redevelopment Update

Over the past couple of years I have followed the redevelopment of the former Pabst Brewery intently.

Public Works Committee Holds Registration Fee Resolution

The most significant item to come out of this Public Works Committee meeting wasn’t even heard. Resolution 080034 was held to the next committee meeting because Alderman Willie Wade was unavailable for this meeting and Alderman Robert Bauman wanted the entire committee to hear the item. The goal of the resolution is to resolve an ongoing problem with the payment breakdown for city street repairs. Regularly the city proposes the reconstruction of a specific street but the property owners turn down the project because of how the cost is shifted onto the property owners. The intent of this resolution would be to move the burden of street repair from property owners to automobile users allowing for more street repair projects to move forward. This resolution should come up again at the next Public Works Committee meeting on May 29th, 2008.

The Residences Above? Nope

Rumors had circulated for weeks regarding the demise of The Residences Above portion of Ruvin Developments’ Aloft hotel project. Indications such as the website for The Residences Above being down for weeks and their sales sign coming down in record time combined with the market’s downturn made it appear likely that a change in the project was coming. As of last week the final decision hadn’t been made regarding the status of the condominiums. At the time Rob Ruvin had indicated that they would “most likely eliminate the condos” and that they would “possibly increase the size” of the hotel but they were still working it out. It appears now that decisions have been made and The Residences Above have been eliminated from the project.

East Side Apartment Building to be Built Within Existing Zoning

Wangard Properties LLC is in the process of demolishing a vacant nursing home at 1824 E. Park Pl. and plans to build a 61-unit four-story apartment building in its place. Although this development seems fairly minor in comparison to many larger projects it is a great example of building by right. This is a case where the developer recognized that the East Side has seen its share of battles between developers and homeowners. For example in recent years homeowner’s have fought against the re-development of Downer Avenue, the Park Lafayette project, UWM RiverView Hall and the Hillel Student Center arguing “it’s too dense, too tall, it will impact parking, and it doesn’t fit the neighborhood”. The net result of these arguments have been, reduced tax base, less residents to support local business and slowed development. How this project fits into this discussion is that by legal right Wangard Properties LLC can build to their intended height and density according to their existing zoning and stay outside of the public planning process. Although this may concern some, it is important to note that this is the intention of zoning regulation and it is good to see smart developers continuing to develop projects despite the growing difficulties presented by this ever present NIMBY attitude on the East Side.

Bike To Work Week

Bike to Work Week runs from Sunday, May 11th to Friday, May 16th.  If you’re not already biking to work, here is a great chance to give it a go.  If you haven’t experienced urban biking in Milwaukee before, I suggest you take a look at the city-provided map indicating the good streets to ride on. There are a lot of great activities planned.  You’ll be able to find me on my bike downtown everyday as usual, and I’m also planning to attend the Bike-In Movie on Friday night. Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin is coordinating everything, and would greatly appreciate it if you registered and took their 30 second survey so they can improve biking in Wisconsin. Sunday, May 11th 2:00 pm, Mother’s Day Bike Ride Along the Lake Join the Pedal Pusher Society for a Mother’s Day bike ride along the lakefront. Location: Alterra by the Lake Requirement: Bring a Mom Monday, May 12th 7:00 – 9:00 am, Daily free coffee, bakery and bicycle commuting information will be available for bike commuters. Alterra Foundry, 170 S. 1st Street Sigma Environmental Group, 1300 W. Canal Street, on the Hank Aaron State Trail Urban Ecology Center, 1500 E. Park Place, on the Oak Leah Trail 8:30 am, Bike to Work with Mayor Barrett Location: 51st and Washington Blvd. 9:00 am, Press Conference, followed by Bicycle Tour of Milwaukee’s new and planned bicycle and pedestrian facilities. Location: 841 N. Broadway Tuesday, May 13th 7:00 – 9:00 am, Daily free coffee, bakery and bicycle commuting information will be available for bike commuters. Alterra Foundry, 170 S. 1st Street Sigma Environmental Group, 1300 W. Canal Street, on the Hank Aaron State Trail Urban Ecology Center, 1500 E. Park Place, on the Oak Leaf Trail 6:00 – 10:00 pm, Bike Trivia Night. Awesome prizes and sweet drink specials for only $5.00 Location: Stonefly Brewing, 735 E. Center St. Wednesday, May 14th 7:00 – 9:00 am, Daily free coffee, bakery and bicycle commuting information will be available for bike commuters. Alterra Foundry, 170 S. 1st Street Sigma Environmental Group, 1300 W. Canal Street, on the Hank Aaron State Trail Urban Ecology Center, 1500 E. Park Place, on the Oak Leah Trail 5:30 pm, Bike to the Brewers Game! Location: Meet up at either 6th and Canal Street or The Outpost, 7000 W. State Street. Auto parking for Canal Street meet-up located at Sigma Environmental Group, 1300 W. Canal St Thursday, May 15th 7:00 – 9:00 am, Daily free coffee, bakery and bicycle commuting information will be available for bike commuters. Alterra Foundry, 170 S. 1st Street Sigma Environmental Group, 1300 W. Canal Street, on the Hank Aaron State Trail Urban Ecology Center, 1500 E. Park Place, on the Oak Leah Trail Bike to School Day! – Roughly one-third of all traffic congestion is related to dropping kids off at school! Friday, May 16th 7:00 – 9:00 am, Daily free coffee, bakery and bicycle commuting information will be available for bike commuters. Alterra Foundry, 170 S. 1st […]

Third Ward Construction Continues

Breaking Down the 2008-2012 Zoning, Neighborhoods & Development Committee

The 2008-2012 Common Council committee appointments were announced this week and it appears Common Council President Willie Hines, Jr. put together a qualified group to sit on the Zoning, Neighborhoods & Development Committee. Alderman James Witkowiak, Chair Alderman Willie Wade, V-C Alderman Michael Murphy Alderman Robert Bauman Alderman T. Anthony Zielinski The biggest change comes at the top of the committee where Alderman Witkowiak will be replacing out going Alderman D’Amato as the committee chairman. Alderman Witkowiak is a good choice for this role because the 5th Ward is starting to take off and the new Chairman will play a large role in shaping future development in the district. Additionally he has extensive experience working on neighborhood issues, from his time as Chairman of the License Committee, that should translate well to ZND. This ability to work with neighborhoods will be critical to the success of the committee due to the consistent need to work on neighborhood complaints surrounding development projects. Returning members Alderman Wade, Alderman Murphy, and Alderman Bauman have not necessarily always agreed on issues but generally work well together and come at an issue with solid arguments. Alderman Wade has shown he understand the value of density and of growing the city through development. Alderman Murphy’s knowledge of passed Common Council actions and his work on water related issues makes him a vital member of this committee. As the City of Milwaukee moves forward on mass transit efforts such as the KRM project, BRT, or the downtown streetcar effort Alderman Bauman’s history with mass transit issues should also be invaluable. Although Alderman Zielinski is new to ZND he brings a background in environmental efforts that could lead the committee to explore more green based zoning initiatives. As a group it will be interesting to watch their handling of projects as they have the characteristics to continue the steady march of redevelopment the City of Milwaukee has seen in recent years.