Milwaukee-based development firm
Three Leaf Partners is planning its latest apartment project for a prominent property in Wauwatosa's village area.
The development will take the place of St. Bernard Congregation and Wauwatosa Catholic School, which sit on a 2.8-acre lot near the intersection of Wauwatosa and Hardwood Avenues.
Wauwatosa Catholic School closed down at the end of last school year and St. Bernard, which was the first Catholic church in Wauwatosa, recently announced that it would be closing to consolidate with its sister parish, Christ King.
"We really pride ourselves on working with religious organizations, nonprofits, mission-oriented organizations to help them — through the power of real estate — solve perhaps some issues they may be having," said
John Ford, Three Leaf's chief development officer.
Three Leaf plans to demolish the site's existing buildings and replace them with a new 163-unit apartment building.
The three-story building will include mostly one-bedroom units, with some junior one-bedroom and two-bedroom units as well. The building will include one level of underground parking, plus surface parking spaces, as well as amenities including a fitness center, community room and a courtyard with things like a basketball court and grilling area.
"The location of this project is phenomenal," said
Jordan Michalkiewicz, vice president of development and acqusiiton for Three Leaf. "It's surrounded by all the amenities and shops and retail that a tenant would like."
"We looked at a retail component and evaluated that in conjunction with the city, but if you look at the site from a topography standpoint, traffic flow, from a visitor perspective, the site doesn't really allow for retail use," Ford added.
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With a price tag of $46 million, Three Leaf is not planning on seeking tax incremental financing from the City of Wauwatosa.
"With the density that we're able to get on this site, the market rents that are in line with existing class A apartments in the area and a highly efficient design, we've been able to get to a return that is acceptable to make the project go forward without public assistance," Michalkiewicz said.
Three Leaf has control of the project site and plans to purchase it as its development plans move ahead, project leaders said, and the company is hoping to break ground yet this year.
The project was designed to comply with the site's zoning requirements as to not require any rezoning, just design approvals. The project's architect is Milwaukee-based
Korb + Associates and its engineer is Brookfield-based
Trio Engineering.
"From a business standpoint there's a lot of history at the site and there's a lot of long-term experiences and relationships, and we understand that," Ford said. "What we're trying to do is help the church in their mission to move forward."
Three Leaf Partners, co-founded by Milwaukee Bucks player
Pat Connaughton, has completed projects throughout Wisconsin and northern Indiana. The firm
recently broke ground on a $68 million apartment project in West Allis and also
received final approvals for a multifamily project in Hartland.
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St. Bernard Congregation in Wauwatosa. Image from Google Maps[/caption]
