Aurora Health Care will spend nearly $50 million to open The Beacon, a collaborative health and wellness center, in the former Wisconsin Avenue School on Milwaukee’s Near West Side.
The 92,600-square foot building on two acres of land at 2708 W. Wisconsin Ave. was closed in 2007 and used as storage and, for a time, by Highland Community School before being declared surplus by Milwaukee Public Schools in 2015.
In 2017, Ambassador Hotel owner Rick Wiegand purchased the former school, built in 1919 to plans by Van Ryn & DeGelleke, with a plan to convert it into a suites hotel.
"(Aurora) Health expressed interest in the property and after learning more about its health and wellness center, the neighborhood stakeholders determined that the services it would bring to the Near West Side would be a significantly better use than another hotel," Wiegand said.
"With Concordia 27 at the Wells intersection and The Beacon at the Wisconsin intersection, this visually prominent portion of 27th Street is well on its way to having decades of blighted historic buildings returned to positive uses for the community."
Aurora spokesperson Cheri Mantz said that the company is currently working to acquire the building from Wiegand.
According to Aurora, The Beacon – named for its symbolism as a guiding light – was developed after 14 community listening sessions held in recent months. More sessions are scheduled for the future, the company said.
Aurora will partner with others to provide programming that includes prenatal and postnatal virtual care, violence prevention, eviction support and housing assistance, fresh food access, chronic disease prevention, early childhood education programming and more.
“Everybody deserves the opportunity to achieve physical, mental and social wellness, and have the resources available in their own neighborhood,” said Rayna Andrews, managing director of The Beacon. “In Milwaukee, there is a 13-year life expectancy gap between those in the near west side and the northeast side – two communities located just five miles apart. We are committed to changing that.
"The Beacon will help further address our neighbors’ most pressing needs under one roof, removing barriers to care by creating pathways for individuals and families to improve their lives.”
The news comes as the State of Wisconsin continues to envision a new state office building directly across Wisconsin Avenue on land it cleared in 2022.
“Investment from Aurora in this prime location will not only transform the vacant building into a space where Milwaukeeans can improve their lives, it will also further momentum on 27th Street to continue revitalization of the Near West Side,” said Ald. Robert Bauman, who represents the neighborhood.
“I am pleased this project is moving forward. It will add vitality to the neighborhood and renewed activity at this important intersection,” added Mayor Cavalier Johnson.
“Just as importantly, the work taking place here will improve the wellbeing of individuals on the Near West Side – and throughout the city.”
The school was built to replace an earlier Victorian schoolhouse designed by Ferry & Clas on the site that burned in a 1918 fire.
Aurora said it plans to, “maintain the historic integrity of the building while redeveloping the interior into a reimagined space where neighbors can access life-improving programs and services.”
Aurora plans to begin work on the project in spring 2026 and complete it the following spring.
Hopefully that includes key interior features like the woodwork and tile, and kindergarten room fireplace.
"Regarding the interior," Mantz said, "Aurora plans to maintain the historic integrity of the building while redeveloping the interior into a reimagined space where neighbors can access life-improving programs and services. Plans are still being developed."
Read a history of the building in this Urban Spelunking story.
“As one of our five founding anchor institutions, Aurora Health Care understands our vision for the Near West Side and the transformational and catalytic effect this development will have on the surrounding neighborhood,” said Lindsey St Arnold Bell, executive director of Near West Side Partners.
“This mixed-use, community wellness-focused development would continue the momentum generated by Concordia 27, furthering NWSP’s plans for 27th Street to become a collaborative Health and Wellness Corridor and advance the Near West Side Comprehensive Plan.”
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.
