Developers and partners in city, county and state government celebrated the groundbreaking for the Community within the Corridor development on June 18.
Located in the former Briggs & Stratton complex on Milwaukee’s Northwest Side, the new Community within the Corridor project is the largest privately owned affordable housing development in Wisconsin.
The project recently broke ground, and once finished, will offer 197 housing units, as well as a community service facility containing a child care center; science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics (STEAM) education resources; a food hall; laundry facilities and more.
“Affordable housing is critically important to people’s economic well-being,” says Missy Hughes, WEDC secretary and CEO. “As we noted in our report Wisconsin Tomorrow: Building an Economy for All, a lack of affordable housing is a challenge many of Wisconsin’s urban and rural communities share.”
The nonprofits and businesses that will occupy the community service facility are intended to improve the lives of residents and the surrounding community, with a goal of spurring additional commercial development and investment. The child care facility will be managed by New Horizon Center Inc., which has provided social services to the City of Milwaukee for over 30 years. The project is being developed by Scott Crawford Inc. and Roers Companies on 32nd and Center.
WEDC is supporting the $66 million redevelopment with a $250,000 Community Development Investment (CDI) Grant to Milwaukee County, as well as a $500,000 Brownfields Redevelopment Grant and up to $12.4 million in Historic Preservation Tax Credits.
This project is one of the latest examples of an investment that will help remove barriers to achieving economic well-being. WEDC’s report identified community infrastructure, which includes access to affordable housing and child care, as a key priority for investment.
By supporting a range of housing developments across Wisconsin, WEDC is taking steps to grow community infrastructure. Especially in rural areas, a small project can make a big difference for stimulating community growth and workforce development.
In the Village of Argyle, a $250,000 CDI Grant earlier this year helped support the renovation of a vacant auto dealership downtown into a commercial space that holds a fitness center with four apartments above.
In Sheboygan Falls, WEDC awarded $2.7 million in Historic Preservation Tax Credits in 2019 to support the renovation of the former Sheboygan Falls Middle School into 65 apartments, including nine townhomes and 56 independent senior units.
And in Milwaukee, WEDC awarded $3.3 million in Historic Preservation Tax Credits to the National Soldiers Home Residences III LLC in 2019 to assist in redeveloping a historic facility into 125 units of supportive housing for homeless and at-risk military veterans and their families.
From the second half of 2018 through the second quarter of 2021, WEDC has supported 46 projects that include a housing component, with a total capital investment of $39.7 million in these projects.
By supporting a range of projects throughout Wisconsin, WEDC is working to ensure families and workers throughout the state have access to quality housing.
