CEO
Barrett Lo Visionary Development | Milwaukee
Developer Rick Barrett is credited with helping to spearhead downtown Milwaukee’s revitalization through a number of residential and mixed-use projects. A crowning achievement in the past year, Barrett Lo completed work on The Couture, a 44-story apartment tower near downtown Milwaukee’s lakefront. Looking forward, the firm has plans to redevelop the former Boston Store at Southridge Mall into apartments and retail space and is working on a $400 million, multi-building apartment development near the former Boston Store at Mayfair Mall.
Education: Bachelor’s, Marquette University
Highlights from the past 12 months: “Getting The Couture done. We now have a community full of residents at the tallest residential building in Wisconsin. Pushing that rock up the hill on a daily basis over the last 12 months has been really challenging, but also fulfilling, because I think it’s a game changer for our city.”
What would you like to change about Wisconsin: “It’s a dream I have that we would build high-speed rail to connect Wisconsin and the rest of the Midwest. Imagine routes from Milwaukee to Chicago, Detroit, St. Louis, Kansas City and Minneapolis, and from Milwaukee to the Northwoods.”
If you could time travel: “I would want to go back to the Green Bay Packers of the 1960s and just listen to Vince Lombardi speak and hear how this man could inspire people to be so extraordinary.”
Favorite Wisconsin destination: “There is no better place on Earth than Minocqua, Wisconsin. You have the chance to be one with nature, and it’s just a very special place. I’ve been all over the world, and it’s still my favorite place to go.”
2022 Wisconsin 275 Profile
Real Estate and Development | Real Estate
Chief executive officer
Barrett Lo Visionary Development | Milwaukee
Rick Barrett is the man behind a number of high-profile developments in the Milwaukee area, including The Moderne, a 30-story apartment tower in downtown Milwaukee, and Emerald Row, an apartment development at Drexel Town Square in Oak Creek. Drawing more attention and anticipation than the rest is The Couture, a 44-story luxury apartment tower that is now under construction near the downtown Milwaukee lakefront. After many setbacks, Barrett Lo secured the needed financing and broke ground on The Couture last year.
Education: Bachelor’s, Marquette University
Fun fact: “I used to play professional baseball and was a minor league pitcher in the Baltimore Orioles organization.”
Toughest business challenge you’ve ever faced: “Getting (The Moderne) into the ground during the height of a recession, on the west side of the (Milwaukee) river, with no other development surrounding the project, was truly a herculean effort but also one of the most rewarding.”
Why you’re excited for the future: “I have five children. Watching them grow up, coming into adulthood and seeing the impact the younger generation is going to have on the world has me excited about the future and what it holds.”
What would make Wisconsin better: “High-speed rail. Finding a way to bring people to and from Wisconsin quickly and safely. Connecting up with our neighbors in Minnesota, Illinois and Michigan would be a boom to our economy and tourism and help show everyone what Wisconsin has to offer.”
