Depending on which news sources you follow, Milwaukee is going through either a “renaissance” or a “reinvention.” However you want to define it, it’s safe to say that Milwaukee is currently building a lot of new and wonderful things! Here are some of them, brought to you by GTG Home Buyers!
• Back in 2020, developer Zuwena Cotton purchased the former Grand department store at 1101-1113 W. Historic Mitchell St. for $350,000. At the time, Cotton planned to demolish the thing and build a new affordable apartment complex there. But now, plans have changed. Instead of knocking down the old Grand, Cotton wants to keep it and redevelop it. What’s more, she wants to build a five-story, 51-unit apartment building on one existing nearby parking lot, and build eight two-story townhomes on another existing nearby parking lot. Oh, and the whole project will be called [throws dart at “Typical Names For These Sorts Of Things” dartboard] The Encore. [Urban Milwaukee]
• A new outdoor skate park! Coming to an “underused city-owned surface parking lot at the southwest corner of South Fifth and West Rogers streets”! Pending Common Council approval! [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]
• A new bus rapid transit (BRT) line! Covering an 18-mile route “from Bayshore Town Center in Glendale to the Ikea store in Franklin.” Pending federal funding! [Urban Milwaukee]
• Some “new Milwaukee Public Museum” updates: the museum still needs to come up with $35 million in donations before it breaks ground on the new location, and the opening of the new museum has been pushed back to early 2027. [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]
• Reminder: East Side cat cafe Sip & Purr will soon leave its home on Ivanhoe Place and move into a new building it purchased on Brady Street. That latter building, officially located at 1697-1699 N. Marshall St., was developed during the pandemic by “a real estate firm led by Milwaukee Bucks player Pat Connaughton.” [Urban Milwaukee]
• A former Milwaukee Public Library branch in Bay View—the former Llewellyn Library at 907 E. Russell Ave., to be exact—is expected to be put up for sale by the city and eventually redeveloped into housing. [Urban Milwaukee]
• How it started: “Highway 100 Project Could Include New Bike Trail.” [Urban Milwaukee]
• How it’s going: “So Much for That Free Bike Trail.” [Urban Milwaukee]
• How it started: “Milwaukee’s Northridge redevelopment gets $15 million grant. But court battle isn’t over.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]
• How it’s going: “Northridge Mall listed for sale at $2 million. That comes after city wins demolition grant.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]
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• Full “New And Wonderful Things” (formerly called “New Sh*t”) archives