Milwaukee County puts out RFP for Park East parcel

Milwaukee County has sent out a request for proposal (RFP) for the last open plot land left behind by the Park East freeway removal nearly two decades ago.

The county is looking for a buyer and developer for a 2.3-acre property known as “Block 22” of the Park East Development Plat. Multiple developers have offered to build there since the early 2000s but none of the plans carried momentum. The lot is between North Broadway, North Milwaukee, North Water and East Lyon streets and Ogden Avenue.

No asking price is included in the RFP but the company with the successful proposal will have to make a $50,000 deposit. Contractors are also required to follow the county’s goals for disadvantaged, minority-owned or women-owned business enterprises. The RFP is due on Oct. 6.

The grassy lot was the northernmost leg of the former Park East Freeway Corridor, which was razed and replaced with an at-grade six lane boulevard known as West McKinley Avenue, according to county officials.

“Removal of the freeway structure allowed for the reestablishment of the city street grid and opened up the land beneath and around the freeway corridor for redevelopment as a high quality residential, commercial and entertainment area. These properties were formerly under the jurisdiction of the State of Wisconsin, Department of Transportation,” according to the RFP document.

Milwaukee officials said removing the freeway left behind 24 acres of downtown development, and new apartment development has taken place around the Block 22 parcel since.

In 2004, the city adopted a redevelopment plan for the park east space. The city is seeking development of a residential, office, retail, entertainment or institutional building, according to the plan.

Since the freeway was torn down in 2002, there has been a revolving door of developers and proposals for the final parcel. Previous suitors included Milwaukee-based Wangard Partners, Minnesota-based Opus Development and Waukesha-based HSI Properties.

According to multiple reports, McClendon Capital Group in 2021 revealed plans to build on the parcel, but those plans fell through two years later.

Several architects, property managers and developers, including Emem Group and Horizon Development Group, have downloaded copies of the RFP from the county’s web portal.