The sale of the Milwaukee County City Campus, an outdated and vacant facility located on 27th and Wells St., will result in $80,000 per year in savings for county taxpayers in reduced maintenance costs and will allow the county to invest $800,000 in an economic development fund that will finance community development projects that strengthen the Near West Side.

Near West Side Partners, Inc., a nonprofit coalition of business leaders, community advocates, residents and anchor institutions – including Aurora Health Care, Harley-Davidson, Marquette University, MillerCoors and Potawatomi Business Development Corporation, will match Milwaukee County’s investment for a total of at least $1.6 million in economic development.

Representatives from Near West Side Partners, including executive director Keith Stanley and board president Rana Altenburg of Marquette University, will join County Executive Abele at the event, which will take place at the City Campus grounds.

"This is another example of how Milwaukee County is working to leverage our assets into savings for the taxpayers, economic development opportunities for local businesses, and partnerships that help neighborhoods like the Near West Side thrive," County Executive Abele said. "Rick Wiegand and the Near West Side Partners have been instrumental in revitalizing this important part of our community and the County is happy to join them in financing projects that will make the Near West Side an even more vibrant community."

"On behalf of Near West Side Partners, we thank the County Executive and the County Board for their leadership in proposing and approving the Near West Side Economic Development Fund," said Keith Stanley, executive director of Near West Side Partners, Inc. "This new public-private partnership will help attract new private sector investment into Milwaukee’s Near West Side and be a real game changer for our community."  

"The great businesses and organizations that make up the Near West Side believe in our neighborhood and know that it has tremendous assets that rival any other part of our City," said Rana Altenburg, vice president of public affairs at Marquette University and president of the Near West Side Partners, Inc. Board of Directors. "This fund is another major signal of confidence to the investment community, existing residents and businesses that the Near West Side is a neighborhood on the rise – inspiring unprecedented collaboration among businesses, government and residents."  

The City Campus facility is located at 2711 W. Wells St. The event will take place across the street at the corner of 28th and Wells.