Fortress Apartments

Rick Wiegand, the owner of the Ambassador Hotel and the Ambassador Inn, plans to redevelop the former F. Mayer Boot and Shoe Co. building into a 176-unit apartment complex. The building, constructed in 1892, is located at 100 E. Pleasant St. by the Schlitz Park complex near downtown Milwaukee. The six-story, 193,988-square-foot red brick building is known as the Milwaukee Fortress Building. The cost of the redevelopment project is estimated at $52.7 million. The Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. agreed to provide up to $9.15 million in historic preservation tax credits for the project. Work is expected to begin this year and be completed by 2019.