Two long-delayed apartment developments in the Walker’s Point neighborhood would receive $6.7 million in city financing under a pair of new proposals.
New Land Enterprises LLC wants to develop the 82-unit VIA, at 1000-1010 S. Fifth St., and the 65-unit Forma, at 412 and 418 S. Fourth St.
The property tax revenue generated by each development would help finance the apartments, which would have units targeting mid-tier renters.
That’s under two proposals from Mayor Cavalier Johnson’s Department of City Development to create tax incremental financing districts for the developments – which need Common Council approval.
Those financing districts reflect the city’s commitment to expanded housing choices, including workforce housing, according to a Feb. 4 department statement.
Workforce housing targets renters earning up to 100% of the local median income, under a department policy created in 2025.
VIA’s project costs are estimated at $23.7 million – with the city to provide $3.8 million. Forma’s $17.9 million costs would include $2.9 million in city financing.
Workforce housing helps ensure “the people who keep our city running, such as teachers and healthcare workers, can have a place to call home,” Johnson said, in a statement.
“Our goal is to grow Milwaukee in a way that keeps it affordable and accessible to all,” Development Commissioner Lafayette L. Crump said, in a statement.
Via and Forma received initial city design approvals in 2023.
But New Land didn’t proceed with construction as rising interest rates and inflated construction costs made the developments unfeasible.
The proposed tax financing districts would help New Land “deliver a housing type and price point that is significantly undersupplied in Milwaukee,” said Managing Director Tim Gokhman, in a statement.
The Redevelopment Authority board will review the financing proposals on Feb. 19. That will be followed by a Common Council review.
“I am pleased to support projects that invest in workforce housing in our neighborhood,” said council President José G. Pérez, whose district includes Walker’s Point. “Our community remains strong and connected when workers and families across all income levels can afford to live here.”
Both VIA and Forma would feature a mix of studio, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom apartments targeted to households earning less than 80%, 90%, and 100% of the area median income.
Meanwhile, New Land has preliminary plans for a much larger workforce housing development in Milwaukee’s Harbor District.
That calls for 500 apartments at a 5.1-acre site at 2252 S. First St.
It would be just west of Bear Development LLC’s new Filer & Stowell Lofts, 123 and 147 E. Becher St.
Filer & Stowell has 576 apartments, with most of those units set aside at below-market rents for people earning up to 60% of the area median income. Its financing included federal affordable housing tax credits and a tax financing district.
Tom Daykin can be emailed at tdaykin@jrn.com and followed on Instagram, Bluesky, X and Facebook.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: City financing proposed for Walker’s Point workforce housing projects
Reporting by Tom Daykin, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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