Major affordable-housing moves in Milwaukee: building conversions, new mixed-income project, and state bills

Milwaukee, Wisconsin, September 28, 2025

News Summary

Milwaukee is seeing a multi-pronged push to expand affordable housing: a developer is nearing a deal to convert the vacant former human services building at 1220 W. Vliet St. into 66 affordable apartments with ground-floor commercial space and a county behavioral health clinic; an Indiana-based developer has broken ground on Union at Rose Park, a 75-unit mixed-income project with family townhomes, rooftop solar and resident services; and state lawmakers have advanced a package of bills offering homebuyer assistance, ADU rules, funding tools and permitting reforms to spur more housing production statewide.

Milwaukee area housing projects advance as county building conversion nears deal and a new mixed-income complex breaks ground; state lawmakers unveil housing bill package

Developers and lawmakers moved forward this month on separate fronts aimed at increasing affordable housing across the Milwaukee region and statewide. At the top of the agenda: a near-term deal to convert a downtown county building into 66 affordable apartments, a ceremonial groundbreaking for a 75-unit mixed-income project on North King Drive, and a multi-bill legislative effort aimed at expanding tools for affordable and workforce housing.

Deal near completion to redevelop former county services building into apartments

A private developer is close to finalizing a sale and redevelopment agreement with the county for the former human services building at 1220 W. Vliet St. The plan would turn the early 20th century structure into 66 affordable housing units and add street-level commercial space plus a county-run Behavioral Health Services clinic on the first floor.

Construction is estimated to take about 18 months. If the agreement closes by December, occupancy could begin as early as July 2027. The redevelopment team has assembled most of the financing for the roughly $32.3 million project, including multiple public and private sources. The project relies on $13.9 million in low-income housing tax credits and about $7.2 million in historic preservation tax credits. The remaining financing hinge is the sale of the low-income housing tax credits to investors, a market that has cooled amid economic uncertainty.

Planned apartment layouts include one- and three-bedroom units ranging roughly from 740 to 1,740 square feet. Monthly rents will be set to meet U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development definitions of affordability, with proposed rents in the range of about $823 to $1,576 per month.

Groundbreaking for 75-unit Union at Rose Park on Martin Luther King Drive

On a nearby corridor, an Indiana-based developer held a ceremonial groundbreaking for a new project at 3040 N. King Drive. The development will contain 75 one-, two- and three-bedroom units arranged in a four- to five-story building on roughly 1.39 acres. Most units are reserved as affordable housing, with 70 allocated under an Affordable Housing Program and five offered at market rate.

The project includes specific affordability tiers targeting households at 30%, 50% and 60% of area median income, and includes nine units targeted to veterans with an initial 30-day hold before those units are offered to other qualifying renters. The building will include 12 three-bedroom townhome-style units geared toward larger families and will offer on-site amenities such as a community room, fitness center and business center. The design seeks to meet green building standards and will include rooftop solar panels.

Project financing blends federal equity, state tax credits, tax-exempt bonds and construction lending. Reported total project costs sit in the roughly $25 million to $25.8 million range. The development is expected to be complete in the winter of 2026 and represents the developer’s first project in the state.

State lawmakers push a package of bills to spur affordable and workforce housing

A group of state legislators introduced a package of bills targeting different parts of the housing pipeline. The measures advance a mix of new loan programs, tax and zoning tools, and regulatory changes intended to speed construction, reduce costs and encourage conversions and small-home building.

Key proposals include a bipartisan workforce home loan program offering first-time buyers access to second mortgages up to $60,000 at 0% interest for down payments and closing costs, and a grant program to help developers convert multifamily buildings to condominiums by covering attorney and permitting costs. Other measures would create “pay-as-you-go” residential tax increment districts to help fund subdivision infrastructure, set a statewide framework for accessory dwelling unit rules, and require clearer alignments between municipal comprehensive plans and zoning rules to reduce uncertainty for builders.

Additional proposed changes would delay the effective date for newly updated commercial and multifamily building codes to give municipalities and businesses more time to adapt. Lawmakers describe the package as building on prior state investments and as aimed at homes typically built a generation or two ago, such as small ranch-style starter homes.

Local context, funding and community response

The downtown conversion adds to other county-backed housing efforts nearby, where federal American Rescue Plan funds supported new-home construction for first-time buyers and duplex developments. On North King Drive, recent public investments in streetscape improvements have attracted several new residential projects, though some neighborhood residents say rising development still leaves gaps in daily services like pharmacies and retail.

Both projects include community-facing elements: a county behavioral health clinic in the converted downtown building and on-site social services at the King Drive project to offer financial coaching, nutrition and education supports. City policies for anti-displacement preferences will give qualifying local residents priority for some new units in developments that participate in those programs.

What to watch next

• Whether the downtown sale and redevelopment agreement closes as expected by December and whether the low-income tax credits can be sold to investors in the current market.
• Progress on construction timelines: roughly 18 months for the downtown conversion and completion of the King Drive project by winter 2026.
• How the proposed state bills move through hearings and whether funding and program details change during committee review.
• Community feedback on whether new housing projects meet broader neighborhood needs for services and retail.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Additional Resources

• Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee affordable housing development would add life to North King Drive lot
• Wikipedia: Marcia P. Coggs Human Services Center
• Urban Milwaukee: Assembly Republicans announce bills to support affordable housing
• Google Search: Assembly Republicans affordable housing Wisconsin 2025
• REBusiness Online: Annex Group breaks ground on $25.8M affordable housing community in Milwaukee
• Google Scholar: Union at Rose Park Milwaukee affordable housing
• Spectrum News1: Milwaukee affordable housing investment — King Park
• Encyclopedia Britannica: Affordable housing
• WISN-TV: Milwaukee apartments open as city seeks to address affordable housing shortage
• Google News: Milwaukee affordable housing Coggs Union at Rose Park 2025

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