The city of Milwaukee is pressing pause on its plans to raze the former Boston Store building connected to the long vacant Northridge Mall.
The city owns the former Boston Store building, but is temporarily halting its efforts to raze the structure, a city spokesperson said, to leave room for developer Phoenix Investors to continue conversations with mall owner, U.S. Black Spruce Enterprises Group of China, and city officials about a potential redevelopment of the entire mall, including the 153,000-square foot Boston Store.
According to city officials, Milwaukee-based Phoenix Investors wants to turn the mall into an industrial storage and warehousing facility, but the city is eager to see the site redeveloped in a way that will not only fit into the site’s current zoning, but also better serve the surrounding community by creating more jobs.
“The purchase and sale agreement between Phoenix Investors and Black Spruce is a private transaction, to which the City of Milwaukee is not a party. However, Phoenix Investors has requested several concessions from the city as part of their proposed development plan for the site, including keeping the former Boston Store in place,” a city spokesperson stated by email this week. “We have paused the demolition of the Boston Store while conversations about their proposed plan take place. Ultimately, we want to see a positive outcome for the former mall that is both consistent with the city’s comprehensive plan goals and beneficial for the community.”
The statement came on the same day that Milwaukee city attorneys were in court for another status hearing in U.S. Black Spruce’s continued efforts to fight a 2019 raze order issued by the city.
That raze order, which was appealed in 2020, was sent back to Milwaukee County Circuit Court for review, and then re-ordered by Milwaukee County Circuit Judge William Sosnay in October 2022, is once again being appealed.
Tuesday’s hearing
As attorneys for both the city and U.S. Black Spruce gathered in court on Tuesday morning, discussions ultimately turned to the status of conversations between the city and Phoenix Investors.
“What’s going on (with the negotiations)?” Sosnay asked Assistant City Attorney Theresa Montag. “This isn’t exactly national security.”
Addressing Sosnay and the court, Vanessa Koster, deputy commissioner for the Department of City Development, stated that department staff had met twice with Phoenix Investors, but the developers and were still interested in turning the mall into a “mega, indoors storage/warehousing facility.”
“Like with any developer who is interested in developing within the city, we do host meetings. Nothing has changed in terms of Phoenix Investors’ proposal,” Koster said, adding that the firm is also requesting that the city wave $1.1 million in outstanding property taxes owed on the property.
What’s next?
The city asked Sosnay in January to award the municipality title to the entire mall property, but the judge indicated that he will not rule on that request until appellate judges issue a ruling on the matter.
He did, however, note that the state appeals court had not yet stayed his order asking U.S. Black Spruce to raze the mall.
“My raze order is still in effect, which your client is ignoring,” Sosnay said, addressing Black Spruce attorney Christopher Kloth. “The green light is still green, and I still got my foot on the gas pedal. I may be going 20 miles hour, but I am going to keep my foot on the gas pedal, because things are going to move once I get a determination from the Court of Appeals.”
That determination could come sometime later this summer.
In the meantime, the parties will prepare to meet back in local court on Sept. 29.
