After officially exiting Chapter 11 bankruptcy during a Jan. 30 hearing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, the YMCA of Metropolitan Milwaukee sold its downtown headquarters to developer Kendall Breunig, principal of Franklin-based Sunset Investors.
Breunig purchased the fourth floor downtown space, located in the Plankinton Building at 161 W. Wisconsin Ave., for an undisclosed price. The sale closed during the first week of February.
Breunig already owns the third floor and most of the fifth floor in the same building and has 46 apartment units in the building. Through an arrangement with Breunig, the Milwaukee YMCA will continue to lease the space it has occupied. The organization has established a three-year lease with Breunig but will have additional options, he said.
Sale proceeds will be used to repay the Milwaukee YMCA’s creditors in line with its restructuring plan, according to the organization. The nonprofit’s leadership team plans to begin looking for a new space to house its downtown programming and will vacate its leased space upon the move. The organization has not started looking for a new location but will put priority on the search moving forward.
The Milwaukee YMCA filed for Chapter 11 in June after announcing a debt in excess of $30 million in April. The organization has since been focused on creating a restructuring plan and shrinking the scope of its mission in order to pay off its debt while building long-term sustainability.
Julie Tolan, president and chief executive officer of the YMCA of Metropolitan Milwaukee, expressed an overwhelming sense of relief upon the court’s decision to confirm the plan of reorganization. Tolan said she is “grateful” that no claims objections were made to the case.
Tolan also said that the day of the hearing marked an “important moment” for the Y, the greater community and all stakeholders involved in the months of reconfiguring.
The organization is “so appreciative of the community coming together and demonstrating in a myriad of ways that the Y needed to be saved,” Tolan said.
Under the Y’s new plan, it will provide its education, health and wellness and childcare services at sites in urban communities and at sites that are mainly leased, restricted or gifted.
The organization has sold or secured sales for more than 70 percent of its owned properties and has contributed the majority of sale proceeds toward debt reduction.
Breunig said he will likely build more apartments in his newly acquired space if the Milwaukee YMCA finds a new home.
