City approves closure of street for Bucks' 'Live Block'
A public plaza connecting the new Milwaukee Bucks arena to an entertainment center — closing one block of N. 4th St. — was recommended for approval Friday by a Common Council committee.
The plaza will use the block between W. Highland and W. Juneau avenues. The city will lease that space to the Wisconsin Center District at no cost, with the district then subleasing that space to the basketball club.
The district, a state-created agency that operates the Wisconsin Center convention facility and other downtown venues, will own the new arena and lease it to the Bucks.
The 30-year plaza lease, which has three five-year optional extensions, was endorsed on a 3-0 vote by the Public Works Committee. The lease keeps the city's right to use the block as part of a transit corridor, allowing a possible future expansion of the downtown streetcar.
It features an easement guaranteeing public access to the plaza, including political protests, said Mary Schanning, assistant city attorney. The city will not be responsible for the plaza's maintenance, and the plaza's design will need Common Council approval, she told committee members.
Also, the council has the right to reopen that block of N. 4th St. if city officials eventually determine that the plaza doesn't have enough activity to justify closing the street, Schanning said.
"The criteria in that is really up to the city," she said.
During last year's debate over the arena plans, and the city's role in helping finance that $500 million project, opponents said closing N. 4th St. would hurt downtown traffic flow, and create a possible "dead zone" when events aren't happening at the arena.
They said the Bucks should instead be allowed to close the block only during basketball games and other arena events.
Department of City Development officials and the Bucks said closing the block permanently is needed to better connect the arena with the entertainment center, and with N. Old World 3rd St. restaurants and taverns.
Mayor Tom Barrett's administration also said N. 4th St. traffic can be easily diverted to N. Old World 3rd St. and N. 6th St.
Ald. Robert Bauman, who initially opposed the street closing, later supported it after the basketball club agreed to maintain a transit corridor.
Bauman, Public Works Committee chair, said the lease provision allowing a possible reopening of N. 4th St. is "a fair resolution" of the issue.
If N. 4th St. reopened, the lease requires the city to close the block during basketball games and other events, Schanning said.
The plaza is a key part of the overall arena project, tying the arena to the entertainment center.
The entertainment center will replace a city-owned parking structure east of N. 4th St., between W. Highland and W. Juneau avenues. The arena will be built west of N. 4th St., just north of the BMO Harris Bradley Center.
Also known as the Live Block, the entertainment development will feature restaurants, taverns and possible retail space.
The Bucks announced Friday that the Live Block will be designed by two firms: Gensler and Milwaukee-based Rinka Chung Architecture.
Gensler is a global architecture, design and planning firm with 46 locations and more than 5,000 employees.
Rinka Chung has 30 design professionals. Its local projects include the Couture, a planned apartment high-rise on downtown's lakefront, and the Moderne, an apartment and condo tower at 1141 N. Old World 3rd St., just east of the Live Block.
"We couldn't be more pleased to welcome these two cutting-edge firms to our team as we continue to transform this portion of downtown Milwaukee and create a community gathering space that will attract year-round activity to the city," Bucks President Peter Feigin said in a statement.
Facebook: facebook.com/JSBusiness
Twitter: twitter.com/TomDaykin