The new luxury apartment tower under construction in Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward is nearing completion. Construction crews are enclosing the building’s 31st floor this week, leasing agents have started tours of the building’s 333 apartment units and brokers are eyeing the first tenants for the building’s 10,000 square feet of retail space. Leasing opened up
The new luxury apartment tower under construction in Milwaukee's Historic Third Ward is nearing completion.
Construction crews are enclosing the building's 31st floor this week, leasing agents have started tours of the building's 333 apartment units and brokers are eyeing the first tenants for the building's 10,000 square feet of retail space.
Leasing opened up at the tower at 333 N. Water St. about two weeks ago, revealing that the building is Milwaukee's most expensive on a price per square foot basis at $3.99.
Since then, the 333 Water building's leasing team has given about 45 tours of the building and have received the first applications from residents, according to Rikki Miner, associate at Houston-based developer Hines. Hines is anticipating a 16-month lease up period of the building.
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The first residents of the tower, which broke ground in December 2022, will be moving in June 8, with residents of the building’s upper floors moving in starting Aug. 28.
The building’s 77 studio apartments will range in size from 561 square feet to 715 square feet. Rents for those units will range from $2,175 to $2,844 per month, depending on size and location in the building.
There will be 113 one-bedroom units ranging in size from 721 square feet to 894 square feet, with rents between $2,423 and $3,490 per month; 83 two-bedroom units ranging in size from 1,057 square feet to 1,422 square feet, with rents between $3,644 and $5,239 per month; and 18 three-bedroom units at 1,541 square feet, with rents between $7,520 and $7,905 per month.
All of the two- and three-bedroom units have two bathrooms.
There are 32 units on the building’s top four floors being marketed as penthouse units. Those range from a 993-square-foot one bedroom unit at $4,165 to a 1,810-square-foot three bedroom unit for $9,425. Those units will have slightly nicer finishes like a wet bar, waterfall countertop and paneled appliances.
Tom D'Arcy, senior managing director of Hines's Chicago office, said with the building's proximity to Milwaukee Intermodal Station and the popularity of remote and hybrid work, some of 333 Water's residents could be professionals that work in Chicago but live in Milwaukee to take advantage of lower costs and less traffic.
"I think Milwaukee will benefit from options like this and people really finding out what a jewel Milwaukee is," D'Arcy said.
Hines, which has $94.6 billion in assets under management and 197 projects currently underway worldwide, was the development manager on Northwestern Mutual's Tower and Commons office building project and 7Seventy7, Northwestern Mutual's luxury apartment tower, both in downtown Milwaukee.
D'Arcy said that when 7Seventy7 began leasing units in 2018, Hines saw a significant percentage of its renters coming from out of town.
When asked if Hines would consider developing in Milwaukee again, D'Arcy said, "Oh yeah. We've got to see how the leasing goes, but we're always looking at projects. We're big believers in Milwaukee."
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333 Water will have a lot of its amenities on the ninth floor, including a resort-style pool and deck with grilling areas and a hammock garden. Inside, there will be a fitness center with indoor and outdoor space, sports lounge with golf simulator and billiards and a clubroom.
In addition to the building's amenities and finishes, D'Arcy and Miner said that 333 Water's location in the Third Ward is it's primary selling point with several stores and restaurants within walking distance and the building's connection to the RiverWalk.
333 Water is leasing units at the same time as The Couture, the new 46-story luxury apartment tower nearing completion on downtown Milwaukee's lakefront, which is also boasting some of the city's highest rents.
"Occupancy is so high in Milwaukee, there's such a need for housing to begin with that both of these buildings we believe are going to be absorbed into the market very quickly," Miner said. Milwaukee was recently ranked as the second-most competitive apartment market in the nation by RentCafe.
"I think both (333 Water and The Couture) validate each other in terms of there being a market," D'Arcy said. "But we're very differentiated. I think The Couture is a beautiful project, but we're really selling a neighborhood and a lifestyle."
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333 Water's apartment units will be accompanied with three new retail spaces including a 1,600-square-foot space at the corner of Water Street and St. Paul Avenue that will most likely be used as a coffee shop. There's also a 5,100-square-foot restaurant space along the Milwaukee River and a 3,200-square-foot retail space along Water Street.
D'Arcy said that Hines and its retail brokerage team at CBRE are primarily targeting local retailers for the coffee shop and restaurant space.
"Which makes it a little more challenging," D'Arcy said. "I think if we wanted to pivot and go with national retailers, we'd lease sooner."
"This retail space isn't paying for the building, it's such a de minimis part of the overall operation that we really want all three of these spaces to be amenities for our residents," Miner said. "We want the restaurant to be somewhere that they can go grab a drink or pick up dinner a couple nights a week, not somewhere that's super high end where they only eat for special occasions. We've been really picky with the tenants that have come to us."
[caption id="attachment_586528" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] The coffee shop and restaurant space at 333 Water.[/caption]
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