A $35.7 million redevelopment project is being proposed at the former Bucyrus International and Caterpillar campus in South Milwaukee. The project, called Bucyrus Community, calls for both residential units and some sort of restaurant at 1100 Milwaukee Ave.
According to documents submitted to the South Milwaukee Plan Commission,
Scott Crawford, Inc. (whose principal is
Que El-Amin) first approached the city in October 2020 with initial plans to redevelop portions of the campus. Since the Plan Commission last reviewed these plans, the developer has decided not to move forward with the construction of a building. Instead, they are seeking approval to convert three existing office buildings on the property into apartments. The Technical, Corporate and Heritage buildings are a part of this proposal.
The proposal from Scott Crawford, Inc. calls for 160 residential housing units to be built with a mix of one and two-bedroom apartments. Some of the apartments would qualify as affordable housing and market rate. The units would be spread out within the three existing buildings. There would be 306 residential parking spaces and 5,800 square feet of commercial space in the Heritage Building for a restaurant. 50 parking spaces would be allotted for the restaurant.
Plan Commission documents state a microbrewery is intended to move into the restaurant space. Documents also show that the exterior of the campus will include two art alleys, a dog park and increased green space.
Scott Crawford, Inc. is requesting tax incremental financing assistance for the project. The developer is seeking 85 to 90% of the increment generated over a 22-year period as a “paygo” arrangement.
“We anticipate the combined annual income of the residents to the proposed development to be over $10 (million),” according to an application for tax increment financing submitted to the city.
The developer is seeking an $8 million developer-funded TIF loan to help start the project. According to the application, a total TIF tax rebate of $12.8 million is expected over 20 years for the developer loan.
The estimated total project cost is $35.7 million. The total projected equalized value is $19.8 million.
Bucyrus Community would be located at the 76-acre campus, located west of Chicago Avenue between Rawson and Milwaukee avenues, formerly occupied by Bucyrus International and Caterpillar.
Bucyrus was
acquired by Caterpillar in 2011, and over time Caterpillar has dramatically reduced operations in South Milwaukee. Caterpillar Global Mining has operations in the portion of the former Bucyrus campus to the north of Rawson Avenue.
In addition to the new redevelopment plans for the former Bucyrus/Caterpillar campus south of Rawson Avenue,
Steele Solutions Inc., a manufacturer of steel mezzanines and work platforms,
is leasing the 209,675-square-foot “Big Muskie” building there.
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