The Green Bay Packers today unveiled plans for the Titletown District, a 34-acre development that the team plans to build along Lombardi Avenue west of Lambeau Field.
The development will include a 150-room hotel developed by the Kohler Co., a Hinterland brewery and restaurant and a Bellin Health sports medicine clinic. Construction is expected to begin this fall and those businesses could be open in 2017.
The district will also have a 10-acre plaza that will be a park-like setting with space for game day festivities, art pieces including a gigantic replica of a Super Bowl I ring, and will have an ice skating rink in the winter. Click here to see renderings of the Titletown District.
“The public plaza, with its size and location near Lambeau Field, will be a draw that is very unique in our area and a wonderful public space for our community,” said Packers president and CEO Mark Murphy. The Packers will hold focus groups with community stakeholders to determine programming and activities for the public plaza.
The Packers plan to invest about $65 million in the Titletown District project and cumulative investment by all parties involved in the project is expected to be $120 million to $130 million.
The Kohler Co. hotel will be called Lodge Kohler and will be a high end four-diamond rating hotel. The hotel will have a panoramic bar and restaurant, an indoor/outdoor pool, a spa and fitness facility and an outdoor area with a tented event space. The hotel will be located on the east end of the district next to Lambeau Field.
“Kohler Co. is proud to collaborate with the Green Bay Packers to develop Lodge Kohler in the new Titletown,” said Kohler Co. executive chairman Herbert Kohler Jr. “We are committed to providing our guests who stay at Lodge Kohler with a level of enjoyment and comfort that matches our company’s mission of contributing to a higher level of gracious living for those who are touched by our products and services.”
Bellin Health will operate a 30,000-square-foot sports medicine facility in the Titletown District. It will be located just west of Lodge Kohler. The clinic will be staffed by longtime Packers team physician Dr. Patrick McKenzie.
“The proximity of this location to the team’s facilities certainly heightens the level of convenience for Dr. McKenzie and the players needing injury evaluation and treatment,” said George Kerwin, Bellin Health president and CEO. “That being said, the most prominent aspect of our relationship with the Packers has been our shared desire to elevate the health and wellness of the community. This facility is an opportunity to share a magnificent sports medicine facility with athletes of all abilities. Through our alignment with the Packers, we are creating a destination for those in need of excellence in sports medicine.”
Hinterland will open a new 20,000-square-foot facility in the Titletown District, which is nearly four times the size of its existing restaurant and brewery in downtown Green Bay. It will be located just west of Lambeau Field and north of Lodge Kohler. It will feature a main floor brew pub and restaurant experience that pairs farm-to-table culinary experiences with gameday specialties. To engage the Titletown District’s plaza, the exterior walls will be retractable for outdoor experiences – with heated concrete and heat lamps. The restaurant’s upper level will host a 50-75 seat restaurant with rooms for private events. The brewery will produce 20,000 bottles annually and have tours and tasting rooms.
“This is a big day for us,” said Bill Tressler, owner and creator of Hinterland restaurant and artisanal brewery. “My wife, Michelle, and I have been brewing for over 20 years and pairing our beer with exceptional food in our restaurant. This new location, across from Lambeau, will allow us to expand our brewing operation and create a craft beer experience that is unique to Hinterland and will wow our guests.”
The initial tenants announced by the Packers will take up about eight acres of land and the plaza will take up 10 acres of land. Future development of the remaining 16 acres in the district will include commercial and retail tenants and a residential component. Murphy said the team hopes to attract tenants to the Titletown District that normally would not consider the Green Bay market.
The northern side of the Titletown District will have 200,000 square feet of retail, dining and entertainment space. The south side of the Titletown District could have 30 to 50 two-story townhomes. The townhomes could provide a buffer between the commercial uses in the Titletown District and the adjacent single family home neighborhood.
The Packers have been working on plans for the Titletown District for years as they have acquired numerous properties, and demolished buildings, to assemble the site.
Working with the Packers on the Titletown District project are New York-based Sterling Project Development, a real estate advisory firm that provides project/development management services for developers; Detroit-based Rosetti, a global architectural design and planning firm with a portfolio of projects that includes sports and entertainment, interiors, hospitality and retail; and New York-based Biederman Redevelopment Ventures, a firm that creates, redevelops, and operates parks, public spaces, and neighborhood streetscapes.
“A tremendous amount of research and planning has gone into the development of the Titletown District and the Packers are appreciative of the excellent work our partners have provided,” said Murphy. “We’re looking forward to our vision becoming reality, as well as the valuable assistance we’ll continue to receive from these firms as the entire development is completed.”
