The City of Milwaukee has named The Neutral Project, LLC as the developer for the site of the Marcus Performing Arts Center parking garage, 1001 N. Water St., which could get not only the tallest building in Wisconsin but the tallest mass timber tower in the world.
The Neutral Project plans a mixed-use, three-building development designed by Vancouver-based MGA | Michael Green Architecture, which specializes in mass timber buildings, for the 106,432-square-foot site.
The more than $700 million plan includes what could be the tallest mass timber in the world and the tallest building in Wisconsin.
Planned to be constructed in stages, the project calls for up to 750 residential units, 190,000 square feet of office space, 40,000 square feet of retail space, 300 hotel rooms, 1,100 structured parking spaces, and public plazas and walkways.
Based on a site plan, two of the three buildings would have retail spaces, including one that would include a parking structure on the north end of the site and another building, on the Edison Street side, would house a hotel.
The tallest of the structures would be at the Highland Avenue side of the site.
The MGA is team is expected to include HGA, Gehl People, C.D. Smith and Thornton Tomasetti.
The Neutral Project is also the developer of the 32-story mass timber Edison tower going up across the street on the riverfront site on Edison Street, between State and Highland. That structure is expected to be the tallest mass timber structure in the world when it is completed ... for now.
Milwaukee's Ascent on Kilbourn and Van Buren was the world's largest timber tower when it was completed in 2022.
“As mayor, I have not been shy about my goal to grow our city’s population to one million Milwaukeeans,” said Mayor Cavalier Johnson. “To do that, we need to be aggressive and reach for new heights. This project will help us do just that, literally aiming to set local and global records, but just as importantly add density and activity to an underutilized city-controlled parcel in Downtown Milwaukee.
"It also represents a forward-thinking Milwaukee, open to outside investment and ideas, and I thank The Neutral Project for their confidence in Milwaukee’s future.”
After the Connec+ing MKE Downtown Plan 2040 – which included redevelopment of the Marcus Center garage site as a catalytic project for the future of Downtown – was approved last year an RFP was issued seeking proposals for the site, bounded by Water, Edison and Edison Streets and Highland Avenue.
According to the city, the proposal from The Neutral Project, LLC was selected because it "best (met) the goals and criteria of the RFP."
“The design of this project encapsulates the goals set out in the Connec+ing MKE Downtown Plan 2040 and the RFP issued by the city by bringing a landmark mixed-use building to the site, activating the Water Street corridor, and enhancing pedestrian connections between the east and west sides of the Milwaukee River, including a reimagined Red Arrow Park and Pere Marquette Park,” said Department of City Development Commissioner Lafayette L. Crump.
The city is seeking a one-year exclusive right to negotiation, with potential extensions, from the Common Council, which would allow the developers a window in which to secure financing, woo potential tenants and solidify its plans for the site.
“Neutral is thrilled to embark on exclusive negotiations with the City of Milwaukee,” said CPO Daniel Glaessl and CEO Nate Helbach of The Neutral Project in a statement. “We’ve meticulously assembled a team of international design leaders paired with local specialist consultants. This collaborative approach ensures we deliver an exceptional community-focused urban experience for this pivotal site in Downtown Milwaukee.
"Our focus on vibrant urban activation aligns seamlessly with achieving internationally recognized sustainability certification Passive House and ILFI core, resulting in a low-carbon building. This project has the potential to position the Marcus Center as a groundbreaking model for sustainable development, not just in the United States, but on a global scale.”
MGA Architect Michael Green added, “This project is an opportunity to create a meaningful and valuable new center in Milwaukee that also advances important proven building technologies and designs for the future of humanity and our planet.
“It sets a benchmark for achieving urban density and affordability while aligning with our common goal of low-carbon solutions to reduce the significant impacts of our changing climate.”
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
