JSOnline: Consultant favors Park East condos - Area's best suited for them, he says
A recent report from a real estate consultant gives poor grades to the Park East Redevelopment Project. The report suggests that this area would benefit more by the development of condominium units rather than mixed-use projects that are currently under proposal with the Department of City Development. According to the report, condominiums remain the most lucrative form of downtown development projects as they do not require financial assistance from the city. According to the consultant who published his findings, "The downtown condo market remains strong."If the downtown condo market remains strong, then what's the issue? The downtown office market has leveled off. This report suggests that the Park East project should focus less on hotels, retail, and office buildings and focus more on condominium units. The report argues that downtown retail space would only create relatively low-paying jobs. Additional hotel rooms would only compete with other hotels; thus, shifting business from existing hotels.
I know I'm not a consultant, but I do not completely agree with these findings. I agree that the office market remains a weak link to our economy. We need more high-paying jobs in this region to enhance our economy. I wish Milwaukee would do more to invite global firms to visit our great city and bring jobs to this region.
On the other hand, we need more retail outlets in the downtown area. Other larger cities have large box stores for those who live in these urban settings. Our downtown is one of the fastest growing areas in Southeastern Wisconsin. Why is it that we have to drive outside of this market to shop at Best Buy, Target, and Kohls? The Shops of Grand Avenue has not met the expectations of those who live in this market. Why can't we encourage retailers to consider our market as a profitable market?
We need more hotel rooms. We have an incredible convention center at Midwest Airlines Center. How can we compete with other cities our size for convention opportunities? More hotel rooms would mean more conventions. More conventions will improve our economy. I don't see how additional hotel rooms could hurt our economy.
I do appreciate that this report emphasizes the importance of not producing too much supply for any one type of real estate development. However, I do not think that more condo-only developments are necessary. We have seen non-stop growth of condo-only developments for the past ten years. I feel that it is time to mix it up and bring retail, office, and hotel opportunities to this market.
What do you think?
Tom Daykin, writer for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, discloses the findings of this consultant's report. Click here to read the entire article>>>
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Labels: Economy
posted by David Ray @ 10:42 PM
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