The Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce announced that it will move its headquarters from downtown’s East Town neighborhood to The Avenue development in the burgeoning Westown neighborhood of downtown.
In a news release, MMAC said its office has been located at 756 N. Milwaukee Ave. for 40 years. It will by late summer or early fall move into its new digs across downtown to The Avenue, the redeveloped former Grand Avenue mall at 275 W. Wisconsin Ave.
MMAc will join fellow office tenants Graef-USA Inc. and Milwaukee Downtown Business Improvement District No. 21 at The Avenue.
This will mark the first time in the chamber’s 159-history that it will be headquartered west of the Milwaukee River, the latest sign of the Westown neighborhood’s revitalization.
“The Milwaukee region has been experiencing unprecedented growth over the past decade, and MMAC is excited to relocate its headquarters to an area where much of that energy is focused. This move allows us to use space more efficiently and take advantage of The Avenue’s impressive offering of amenities,” MMAC president Tim Sheehy said in a statement. “While the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted our economy significantly, it has not shaken our long-term belief in the future of Milwaukee. The relaunch of innovative developments such as The Avenue will help lead the way to our region’s recovery. Now we’ll be a part of this success story.”
MMAC said it looked at several spaces before deciding on The Avenue.
The move will include MMAC affiliate organizations such as the Milwaukee 7 Economic Development Partnership, Milwaukee Development Corp., the Food and Beverage cluster (FaB), FUEL Milwaukee and the MMAC’s World Trade Association. It also will house partnering entities such as The Business Council, Hispanic Collaborative, and African American Leadership Alliance Milwaukee. Milwaukee Development Corp. helped provide some of the funding for The Avenue project.
Westown is indeed undergoing significant change.
The Avenue project, led by Milwaukee-based Interstate Development Partners and Minneapolis-based Hempel Cos., involves conversion of the former Grand Avenue mall into a mixed-use building featuring offices, apartments and a first-floor food hall.
Across Wisconsin Avenue, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra is redeveloping the Warner Grand Theatre into its new home, the Bradley Symphony Center.
Adjacent to The Avenue, there’s the redevelopment of the former Boston Store, now known as HUB640. That project has first-floor retail and offices on its upper floors, and recently named Glendale-based North Shore Healthcare as its first tenant.
Also north of Wisconsin Avenue is 310W, the former Henry S. Reuss Federal Plaza that’s undergoing $30 million in renovations.
The operators of the Wisconsin Center, meanwhile, have a $420 million plan to more than double the convention center space.
Further north is the Milwaukee Bucks’ Deer District development area, with the Fiserv Forum at its center.
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