Gebhardt Expands Scope of $65M Madison Mixed-Use Plan; Bear Eyes 150 M-F Rental Units in Kenosha

by Adriana Pop, Associate Editor

Gebhardt Development is planning  a $65 million mixed-use project on the 800 block of East Washington Avenue in Madison. According to the Wisconsin State Journal, the developer intends to add three more floors to the initially proposed 10-story tower.

Phase one  is slated to bring a 50,000-square-foot grocery store,  175 to 240 apartments and a 350-space parking garage. The second stage  calls for 22 condominiums, 65,000 square feet of commercial space and parking for 173 vehicles.  

In July, Gebhardt signed a purchase agreement with the city to acquire the development site, a 4.5-acre parcel that was formerly part of the Don Miller auto dealership. Gebhardt’s proposal will be reviewed by the city’s urban design and planning commissions and by the city council, which must sign off on changes to building height or zoning.

In multi-family development news, The Business Journal reports that Bear Development L.L.C. is proposing to build 150 apartments at the site of a vacant industrial building on Fifth Avenue in Kenosha.

Dubbed 5th Avenue Lofts, the project would be developed in two phases. First to rise would be a five-story, 60-unit building, 40 of them built with the help of state affordable housing tax credits. Bear Development would follow that with 90 market-rate apartments, Brian Wilke, Kenosha’s development coordinator, told the newspaper.

According to Mayor Keith Bosman, Kenosha is considering a tax incremental financing district to support the project. The developer could recover up to $1.5 million of its investment through refunds of property taxes over several years.  

Photo credits: Bard Design, Gebhardt Development