Following fears in 2020 that downtowns would never recover from the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, downtown Milwaukee has rebounded greatly in recent years, according to a new study commissioned by the Milwaukee Downtown Business Improvement District.
The study's results were presented Tuesday evening at the BID's annual State of Downtown event, where BID officials touted the downtown's business, social and cultural strengths.
"Remember those headlines 'everyone's leaving the city, the city is dead.' That did not come true," said
David Downey, president and CEO of
International Downtown Association, in a keynote presentation. "We came through the pandemic. The market demand for strong urban environments is very strong."
Downtown Milwaukee is home to 84,900 jobs, including a significant portion of the city's high paying jobs.
"Comprising just under 3% of the city’s land area, downtown concentrates 31% of the city’s jobs — an impressive number, but a slightly smaller share than other established downtowns," the study says. "Still, while other downtowns struggle to fully recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, downtown (Milwaukee) is on track to welcome continued employment growth thanks to the addition of jobs from some of the region’s largest employers, including Northwestern Mutual, Milwaukee Tool and Fiserv. Data indicate that the downtown area has been recovering more quickly than other parts of the city."
Year to date, Milwaukee's central business district has seen about 145,000 square feet of positive office space absorption, according to the study.
Further, the downtown Milwaukee-area population increased by 35% between 2000 and 2021, to around 29,300 people, which is strong, Downey noted, but is behind other established downtowns that have seen upwards of 50% growth in the same time period, the study shows.
"The downtown Milwaukee study area contains sizeable pockets of desirable, well established neighborhoods, some in locally and nationally designated historic districts, which can limit growth and development potential," the study said.
BID officials noted that although downtown Milwaukee's income has not risen as fast or as high as other downtowns, it has kept inequalities in the city and region from expanding further.
"In another encouraging sign for downtown, it’s becoming more diverse, welcoming significant growth in the populations of Hispanic and Latino residents, Asian and Pacific Islanders, and those who identify as two or more races," the study said.
Of the BID's $4.7 million 2023-2024 budget, about 43% of it was spent on economic development, marketing, business retention and special projects. About 27% was spent on the Clean Sweep Ambassador program, which helps to clean sidewalks, street lights and fire hydrants, among other things, and helps with set-up and take-down for BID events like Employee Appreciation Week.
The remaining 30% of the BID's budget went to administrative costs and the Public Service Ambassador program, which made more than 110,000 hospitality contacts over the past year, according to BID documents.
