Portland, Ore.-based Benson Industries Inc. will lease a 83,000-square-foot space in the Century City complex, located at North 27th and Townsend streets in Milwaukee, to assemble the curtain wall for the Northwestern Mutual Tower and Commons project.
The space was formerly occupied by train manufacturer Talgo Inc., which closed the facility last year after the state refused to pay for trains the company had built for the state under a deal with previous Gov. Jim Doyle.
The Century City complex is the former A.O. Smith and Tower Automotive complex that city officials are working to redevelop and attract new businesses to the central city area.
Benson Industries will lease 83,000 square feet of space to assemble the curtain wall for the 32-story, $450 million Northwestern Mutual Tower and Commons project, which is under construction at the firm’s downtown headquarters campus. The lease term will be 15 months beginning April 1, 2015, with the option of a six month extension on a month-to-month basis. The lease rate will be $2.50 per square foot, plus additional monthly charges for the use of common areas. Benson will also pay for the entire cost of a new loading dock, which will cost $100,000.
Benson will have more than 40 employees working in the building.
“The benefits of constructing the Northwestern Mutual Tower are reverberating throughout the city,” Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said today in his State of the City Address. “Northwestern Mutual uses 20 different Milwaukee-based certified small businesses, and the company is on track to meet its employment goals for city residents.”
