Attorney William Ryan Drew was recently honored by the members of the Milwaukee County Board for his 30 years of service to the residents of the city of Milwaukee and Milwaukee County. Drew’s commitment to the residents of Milwaukee County began in 1985 when he recommended the creation of the Research Park and served on the Park’s Board of Directors as the Personal Representative of former County Executive Tom Ament.
In 1998, he was appointed as Executive Director of the Research Park and coordinated the Park’s high-technology development on the approximately 150 acres of Milwaukee County-owned land in Wauwatosa. The Research Park is currently the largest Milwaukee-area office complex with 14 buildings and over 5,000 employees. The Technology Incubator, which is located within the Research Park, serves as a business incubator for start-up technology companies. To date over 1,100 jobs have been created.
Drew’s service to the Milwaukee community also involved several other appointments and elected positions. These include: Director of Administration for Milwaukee County, Commissioner of City Development for the City of Milwaukee, Treasurer of the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission, President of the Milwaukee Common Council, and Fourth District Milwaukee Alderman. In addition, he served as President of the Board of Directors for the City of Milwaukee Retiree’s Association, Board of Directors for the National Center for Housing Management, and is on the Board of Visitors for the Les Aspin Center for Government at Marquette University.
Drew began his Real Estate and Construction practice at the downtown law firm of O’Neil, Cannon, Hollman, DeJong & Laing in 1988. He uses his extensive background in city, county, and state government to help clients resolve municipal and real estate development issues they encounter when dealing with government agencies.
Company:
O’Neil, Cannon, Hollman, DeJong & Laing S.C.
111 E. Wisconsin Ave., Suite 1400
Milwaukee, WI 53202
