County Announces $9.5M In Affordable Housing Contracts — At The Former Bucyrus Complex In South Milwaukee

From Urban Milwaukee …

Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley signed contracts Tuesday providing $9.5 million for four affordable housing projects in suburban communities.

The funds will go towards projects in Brown Deer, Wauwatosa and South Milwaukee. The county executive and the county’s Housing Division made it a goal in 2022 to diversify the affordable housing available in metro Milwaukee by backing developments in communities that have historically been resistant to such projects.

“This is another huge step forward for the county, particularly in our work as we continue to increase the amount of safe and affordable housing in all neighborhoods throughout the county,” Crowley said.

Funding for the projects comes out of the county’s $185 million allocation of Affordable Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. In 2022, the county set aside $15 million in ARPA funding to support affordable suburban housing projects. The county worked with the Community Development Alliance to find projects to back and in January awarded funding to the first four projects Crowley signed off on Tuesday.

The projects include: $2 million for a project with 56 affordable units being developed by Jewish Family Services at 4114 W. Woodale Ave. in Brown Deer; $2.48 million for 56 units being developed by MSP Real Estate Inc. at 11500 W. Burleigh St. in the Mayfair Collection in Wauwatosa; $2.5 million for 82 affordable units to be incorporated into Scott Crawford Inc. and J. Jeffers & Co’s redevelopment of the former Bucyrus Plant, 1100 Milwaukee Ave., in South Milwaukee; and $2.5 million for 17 units at 7501 W. North Ave. in Wauwatosa being developed by Luther Group.

“Currently, in Milwaukee County, we have about 70,000 families who earn $15 an hour or less, but there’s only about 30,000 rentals that are available for them,” Crowley said, dramatizing the need for CDA’s affordable housing plan.

Also check out coverage from Fox 6, CBS 58, and Spectrum News.

Mayor Jim Shelenske’s comment via the city Facebook page: “Much like the Bucyrus campus through the Scott Crawford and J. Jeffers & Co. proposal, South Milwaukee is seeing new energy and momentum.”

More on the proposed Bucyrus development here, here and in Alderman Backes’ recent update.