The state of Wisconsin's Building Commission on Thursday approved the purchase and site development for a planned new Milwaukee State Office Building, which will be built southwest of 27th Street and Wisconsin Avenue on the city's Near West Side.
It is hoped the state's selection of the mostly vacant site will spur neighborhood revitalization and create job opportunities along a key Milwaukee commercial corridor, according to the non-profit organization Near West Side Partners Inc.
State records indicate the approximately 2.6-acre site will be purchased for $2 million. The state will spend another $2 million to prepare the site for the construction of the new office building.
The development site specifically consists of the properties at 2701-2733 W. Wisconsin Ave., 605-325 N. 27th St. and 2716-2720 W. Michigan St. The site is located across North 27th Street from a state Department of Children & Families office building.
The new Milwaukee State Office Building would replace the existing 58-year-old, 9-story, 201,200-square-foot state office building at 819 N. 6th St. downtown.
The $4 million for site acquisition and prep work was approved in the 2017-19 state budget. However, construction of the office itself still needs funding. Gov. Evers proposed in his 2019-2021 capital budget plan to
spend $98.5 million for a 200,000-square-foot office building. However, that proposal was removed by the state Legislature.
"On behalf of Near West Side Partners and each of our anchor institutions, residents, local businesses and neighborhood assets, I want to sincerely thank Governor Evers, the Department of Administration and the State Building Commission for the commitment they have made to our community," Keith Stanley, executive director of NWSP, said in a statement. "We welcome continued investment in our neighborhood by the state of Wisconsin, and we look forward to working with the state and other stakeholders to bring further economic development to Milwaukee’s Near West Side."
The land acquisition was one of $69 million worth of state projects that Building Commission members approved.
“Ensuring our state’s public infrastructure is strong and ready to carry our communities and campuses into the future is critically important,” Gov. Evers said in a statement following the commission meeting. “From new projects at our state parks, to the development of the new state office building in Milwaukee, to sustainable, renewable energy sources at UW-Platteville, we are investing in Wisconsin’s future.”
NWSP has for several years worked to assemble and prepare the development site, which it says provides "an ideal location for the State Office Building."
