North Wells Capital, the investment management affiliate of Urban Innovations Ltd., has purchased 331 W. Wisconsin, a 428,652-square-foot mixed-use building in the heart of the Downtown West Milwaukee Business District.
The building is home to Boston Store and its corporate offices, The Bon-Ton Stores Inc., and also includes Boston Lofts apartments. The sale price was $25 million.
The building was acquired from WISPARK LLC, represented by Patrick Gallagher of CBRE Milwaukee. Urban Innovations will provide property management services for the building, including leasing and construction.
Built in the late 1800s, 331 W. Wisconsin is a highly recognizable building in the heart of Milwaukee’s Westown neighborhood, where the new Milwaukee Bucks arena is under construction and the relocation of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra is under consideration.
Boston Store has occupied the building for nearly 100 years. The retail store occupies 123,434 square feet on the first and second floors, and Bon-Ton’s corporate headquarters occupies 170,358 square feet of office space on floors 3 through 5.
Boston Lofts, a 74-unit apartment complex, totals 134,860 square feet on floors 6 through 9, plus 56,785 square feet devoted to a 129-stall underground parking garage.
The Mandel Group will continue to manage the Boston Lofts.
This acquisition increases Urban Innovation’s owned portfolio by more than 70 percent, bringing its total to 10 properties of nearly 1.03 million square feet.