State Incentives Help Develop Milwaukee's North Side

New Community Center Will Provide 74 Affordable Housing Units for Seniors in the Metcalfe Park Neighborhood

Milwaukee - At an event in Milwaukee today, Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA®) Executive Director Antonio Riley joined with city officials, business representatives, and neighborhood families to lay the cornerstone for the new Dr. Wesley L. Scott Senior Living Community Center.

The new facility, located at 2802 W. Wright Street in Milwaukee, will provide 74 new, affordable housing units for seniors in the Metcalfe Park neighborhood. The project combines new construction and adaptive reuse of the Milwaukee Urban League building.

"When completed, this new facility will be a model for quality senior living in the Metcalfe Park neighborhood," Riley said. "We at WHEDA are proud to be part of a project that is helping bring this area back from economic stagnation to renewed spirit and vitality."

The new development was made possible through $7.5 million in affordable housing tax credits from WHEDA to the Milwaukee Urban League, plus the efforts of many public and private partners, including Gorman & Company, a co-developer of the project.

At the event, Riley also highlighted the importance of WHEDA's Emerging Business Program to the success of the project. The program, created by Governor Jim Doyle in January of 2005, is designed to encourage the involvement of economically-disadvantaged small businesses in the renovation and construction of residential and commercial projects funded through affordable housing tax credits.

In support of the Emerging Business Program, Gorman & Company has awarded $3 million in construction contract work for the Dr. Wesley L. Scott Senior Center to emerging businesses. Gorman's minority participation in this development represents 52 percent of its overall costs.

"One of the reasons this project has been so successful is because Gorman & Company worked hard to increase minority participation through the Emerging Business Program," Riley said. "This program gives minority businesses the opportunity to demonstrate their craftsmanship and foster relationships for continued contracts. But more importantly, it is a great opportunity for communities to build economic capacity, stimulate growth, and create family-supporting jobs."

Riley was joined at the event by Mayor Tom Barrett, City Council President Willie Hines, Jr., Gorman & Company President Gary Gorman, and Ralph Hollmon, President of the Milwaukee Urban League.

WHEDA is Wisconsin's state housing authority. WHEDA serves Wisconsin residents and communities by working with other organizations to provide creative financing resources and information. Its goal is to stimulate and preserve affordable housing, small business, and agribusiness. WHEDA's housing programs receive no state tax revenue assistance.