MILWAUKEE – The City of Milwaukee has chosen The Neutral Project, LLC as the developer for a planned project on the site of the current Marcus Performing Arts Center garage that, if completed, would include both the tallest mass timber building in the world and the new tallest building in the state of Wisconsin.
The plans also include a new hotel and retail space on the Water-State-Edison-Highland block downtown, with an estimated price tag of 700 million dollars.
“As Mayor, I have not been shy about my goal to grow our city’s population to one million Milwaukeeans,” said Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson Wednesday. “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.”
Over several phases, the project could include 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/walkways.
“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.
“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. “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.”
“We are incredibly excited about The Neutral Project’s transformative development of the Marcus Performing Arts Center parking garage,” said President and CEO of MPAC Kevin Giglinto. “This project will not only activate this section of Water Street, but will also create a vibrant, dynamic neighborhood that benefits our patrons and the entire City of Milwaukee.”
Milwaukee is home to the current tallest mass timber building in the world: the 25-story Ascent tower which opened in July of 2022. An official height estimate of the building that would replace the U.S. Bank building as Wisconsin’s tallest has not yet been released.
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