100 East Wisconsin

History

The location of 100 East Wisconsin at the northwest corner of East Wisconsin avenue and North Water Street has historically been viewed as the oldest building site within the city. This was the location of Milwaukee's first European settlement by Henry Vieau, the site of city founder Solomon Juneau's original cabin and trading post constructed in 1820 and the site of the 235 ft, 14-story Pabst Building constructed in 1891 and demolished in 1981.

After failing to develop a high-rise called River Place in the early 1980s, the owners of the property at 100 East Wisconsin sold the property to Charlotte developer Faison Associates in December 1987. Following the purchase, in January 1987 Faison released renderings of the tower designed by the Charlotte architecture firm of Clark, Tribble, Harris & Li. The tower was to rise as the second tallest building in the city, behind the U.S. Bank Center, contain 430000 sqft of office space and 410 parking spaces.

With plans in place, in March 1987 workers began deconstruct of the park in place at the location of the tower. The landscaping removed was relocated to Marquette University and the benches donated to the West End Community Center. Construction of the concrete framed structure began in mid-1987 with occupancy occurring in April 1989.

Between 2016 and 2023, several of the building's major tenants announced that they would be vacating their spaces. A number of these businesses moved up Water Street to the newly opened BMO Tower. In 2023, Klein Development and developer and investor John Vassalllo purchased the building and announced plans to convert the building into 350 luxury apartments by 2026. The buildings small floorplates make it unattractive to modern office use, but the high quality of construction, views and location make it appealing to residential conversion. As part of its plan to finance a conversion of the tower for residential uses, 100 East Wisconsin was granted a federal and state historic designation.

Architecture

Designed by Clark, Tribble, Harris & Li, the tower features a rectangular footprint and is topped with a crown similar to that of the former Pabst Building and the Milwaukee City Hall. Additionally, the arches at the base were designed also to pay homage to those at the base of the Pabst Building of the Flemish Renaissance style.

The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) on January 16, 2025.

References

before=Milwaukee Center| title=2nd Tallest building in Milwaukee | years=1989—2017 167m| after=Northwestern Mutual Tower and Commons}}

References

1. Bauer, Fran. (January 21, 1987). "New tower described as landmark". [[The Milwaukee Journal]].
2. "100 East Wisconsin". Emporis.com.
3. "Pabst Building". Emporis.com.
4. Collins, Thomas. (December 11, 1986). "Carleys sell downtown properties". [[The Milwaukee Sentinel]].
5. Bauer, Fran. (December 11, 1986). "Developers buy parcel, plan building". [[The Milwaukee Journal]].
6. Collins, Thomas. (January 20, 1987). "Plans set for 33-story office tower". [[The Milwaukee Sentinel]].
7. "100 East Wisconsin - The Skyscraper Center".
8. Staff Reporters. (March 30, 1987). "Workers prepare park site for building". [[The Milwaukee Journal]].
9. Krause, Joy. (March 23, 1989). "City's new skyscrapers fit in while lifting our sights and our hopes". [[The Milwaukee Journal]].
10. "One of downtown Milwaukee's biggest office towers is to become 350 high-end apartments by 2026".
11. "A 1989 Milwaukee office tower is historic, state board says. That means redevelopment tax credits".
12. Bauer, Fran. (July 5, 1988). "Tower makes bow to history: Arches on new building recall 1890s predecessor". [[The Milwaukee Journal]].
13. "WEEKLY LIST OF ACTIONS TAKEN ON PROPERTIES: 1/10/2025 THROUGH 1/17/2025". National Park Service.