The 19-acre site at the northwest corner of Flint Drive and Good Hope Road in Menomonee Falls, where Leonardo DRS Inc. plans to build a 350,000-square-foot, high-tech industrial building, has been acquired by the project’s developer, an affiliate of Weas Development, for nearly $2.2 million, according to state records.
In December, the defense contractor announced it would move its operations in Milwaukee at 4265 N. 30th St. to a new facility in the Woodland Prime business park. The planned move is to accommodate its growing Naval Power Systems line of business, the company and other stakeholders said in a news release. The project is expected to cost $56 million.
Additionally, the company will occupy an existing 120,000-square-foot office building, which will be remodeled as part of the overall project.
The Menomonee Falls property was purchased by WP Walleye LLC, which is registered to Doug Weas of Weas Development Co. The entity’s name is in reference to the DRS proposal, called Project Walleye. Weas Development and Briohn Building Corp. had initially submitted conceptual development plans to the village for an unnamed user, which was eventually identified as Leonardo DRS.
The Weas affiliate purchased the land from TI Investors of Menomonee Falls II LLC, an affiliate of Zilber Ltd. The land has an assessed value of nearly $2.5 million.
The new Leonardo DRS facility, expected to open in 2020, will house the design, test and manufacturing facilities for naval and marine power distribution, power conversion, motor controls, drives and automation/control equipment for the U.S. Navy, commercial and international customers.
It will also be the home to the company’s Naval Power Systems headquarters housing leadership, management and a centralized back office functionality.
The project is being supported with up to $18.5 million in state income tax credits from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. as well as about $6.4 million in tax increment financing from the village, which includes a $4.4 million development incentive and $2 million for infrastructure to provide power to the site.
