A $6.5 million development comprising 31 condominiums is planned for a site along Commerce Street near the Milwaukee River.
The project, the latest in a series of condos and apartments developed in that neighborhood, would be built just west of Humboldt Avenue by Kenosha-based Legacy Real Estate Partners and Milwaukee-based Vetter-Denk Architects Inc.
Target is affordability
A portion of the development would be aimed at prospective condo buyers who have been unable to afford other units along Commerce, said Rod Engel, a Legacy partner.
“It’s kind of a different animal,” Engel said.
The development would have six condos priced at just under $100,000 each, he said, with 21 units priced at about $150,000 each. The four penthouse units would be priced at about $250,000 each, Engel said.
Most of the units would range from 650 to 1,300 square feet, he said.
That compares to units ranging from 1,500 to 2,500 square feet at River Homes, the development that Legacy and Vetter-Denk are creating along Commerce between Holton Street and Humboldt. The units at River Homes range in price from about $250,000 to $390,000, Engel said.
The condos within the new six-story development would be built in a loft style. The development would include a 48-space parking deck and 7,400 square feet of retail space.
The proposed development site, with just under 20,000 square feet, is owned by the city Redevelopment Authority, and has a listed sale price of just under $200,000. The authority will consider granting a purchase option to the developers at its meeting Thursday.
Mayor John O. Norquist praised plans for the new development. He said no city subsidies would be involved in the project.
Demand for downtown housing began improving in January after a lull in activity following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Engel said. The first phase of River Homes has sold all 20 of its units, with 14 of 22 units sold in the second phase, he said.
A planned third phase of River Homes, with 21 units, will be marketed soon.
Other housing projects along Commerce include Trostel Square, with 99 apartments and 27 condos, which Mandel Group Inc. is building north of Walnut Street.
Just across Commerce from Trostel Square is Commerce Bluff, which has sold all 12 condos in its first phase. Cornerstone Property Development will soon begin selling the 12 condos within the second phase, which is under construction.
Cornerstone owner Tim Dixon said Commerce Bluff was drawing little interest after Sept. 11. But activity began to improve after Jan. 1, which he attributed to news stories that indicate the economy is improving.
