The
Wisconsin Humane Society is planning to build a 14,010-square-foot addition to its Milwaukee campus at 4500 W. Wisconsin Ave. on the city’s west side.
According to documents submitted to the city of Milwaukee, the addition would be to the nonprofit’s existing 40,450-square-foot building and be spread across two floors. The first-floor addition would be 7,610 square feet in size, and the second-floor addition 6,400 square feet in size. The project could also include the addition of another 5,400 square feet of basement, according to the documentation.
Documents do not indicate what the additional space would be used for, but the campus serves as WHS’s headquarters for southeastern Wisconsin and includes administrative offices as well as space for sheltering a variety of domestic animals.
While WHS is still in the very early stages of exploring a possible expansion of its Milwaukee campus, Alison Fotsch Kleibor, the nonprofits president & CEO, explained that the organization is facing space constraints at its current building.
"The WHS Milwaukee Campus opened in 1999, and in 2011, we had about 70 staff members; today, we have more than 240 employees. Although that includes staff at our Racine, Ozaukee, Green Bay, and Door County Campuses, as well as our Spay/Neuter Clinic in West Allis, we have clearly outgrown our headquarters at the Milwaukee Campus," Fotsch Klieber wrote in an email. "With the assistance of The Kubala Washatko Architects, we are exploring various options to (address) our space issue, one of which would be expanding the existing structure to better meet the needs of our staff and the animals we serve."
Fotsch Kleiber added that the nonprofit is still looking at different solutions to address the Milwaukee campus' needs, including examining whether expanding the building would be financially feasible, and determining if the land itself is actually buildable.
"At this point in time, all the plans are conceptual, but we’re excited to start exploring better ways to support our awesome team," she said.
