- Metcalfe Park Community Bridges, while opposing Mayor Johnson's Growing MKE plan, partners with Turner Community Partners to build single-family homes in Metcalfe Park.
- The homes will be sold at a subsidized price to low- to moderate-income, first-time homebuyers who live in Metcalfe Park.
- Funding for the project comes from LISC, a national nonprofit supporting affordable housing, with contributions from organizations like Northwestern Mutual Foundation.
- This project marks Turner Community Partners' first new construction venture and Metcalfe Park Community Bridges' first foray into building new homes.
Melody McCurtis is leading the opposition to Mayor Cavalier Johnson's plan to encourage housing development.
So, it might seem a surprise that her neighborhood group, Metcalfe Park Community Bridges, is partnering with a local firm to build homes on Milwaukee's north side — which includes buying city-owned lots.
McCurtis said the group's approach, which includes fighting Johnson's Growing MKE housing plan, is rooted in a belief that owning homes — not renting — helps build intergenerational wealth among Metcalfe Park residents.
"They want duplexes. They want single-family homes," said McCurtis, the group's deputy director and lead organizer. "They don't want eight-unit apartment buildings."
"They want an opportunity to buy," McCurtis told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Metcalfe Park Community Bridges is working with Turner Community Partners LLC, operated by real estate investor Keith Turner, to build four single-family homes on adjacent vacant lots in the 2600 block of North 35th Street.
Each house would have three bedrooms and two bathrooms, and be sold to first-time home buyers — with a requirement the owners live there, according to a Department of City Development report.
The houses would be sold at a subsidized price of $105,000 to low- to moderate-income Metcalfe Park residents, McCurtis said. The estimated building cost is $270,000 to $280,000, Turner said.
Affordable housing nonprofit helping with funding
Funding is being provided through Local Initiatives Support Corp., a national nonprofit group that supports affordable housing.
LISC's Milwaukee office has agreed to award $660,000 to cover the gap between the housing costs and sale prices, said Theo Lipscomb, executive director. Those funds are coming from private sources.
Northwestern Mutual Foundation is among the local philanthropies that have helped fund affordable housing in Metcalfe Park.
Those efforts are a critical part of neighborhood revitalization, said Steve Radke, foundation president.
Turner Community Partners would buy the vacant lots for $1 each — subject to the city's approval of house designs and site plans.
The lot sales require Common Council approval. The council's Zoning, Neighborhoods and Development Committee is to review the proposal at its April 15 meeting.
Turner making first move into new home construction in Metcalfe Park
Turner has bought and renovated duplexes and other small local rental properties since 2017. The Metcalfe Park development would be his first venture into building new houses.
There's "fairly low risk" in selling the city lots to the firm based on the experience of its community partners, according to the Department of City Development report.
Turner's firm is among three local developers Metcalfe Park Community Bridges is working with to build new homes in the neighborhood, McCurtis said.
The others are nonprofits: VIA Community Development Corp. and Milwaukee Christian Center.
The goal is to begin construction on 10 homes in 2025, she said, with the houses completed by spring 2026.
Metcalfe Park Community Bridges' other housing projects include buying three homes and renovating them for families to rent and eventually buy, McCurtis said.
The group's involvement with Turner Community Partners marks its first venture into building new houses, she said.
Johnson's Growing Milwaukee plan favors increased housing density
It comes as McCurtis is opposing Mayor Johnson's Growing MKE housing plan.
Growing MKE recommends zoning changes that favor increased housing density. It focuses on smaller scale housing such as duplexes, triplexes and apartment buildings with up to eight units.
Supporters say those changes would spur more housing construction, including affordable units. That greater supply would help battle rising housing costs, advocates say.
Opponents believe Growing MKE would encourage absentee investor landlords to increase their ownership of central city housing — driving up rents and displacing residents.
Plan Commission gives mixed signals to two proposals
The Plan Commission on April 7 reviewed two zoning proposals related to Growing MKE.
One would make it easier to buildaccessory dwelling units.Those are houses or apartments that share building lots of larger, primary homes — and tend to be smaller and less expensive than traditional single-family homes.
The Plan Commission recommended Common Council approval.
The other proposal would create a new zoning district for apartment and condominium buildings with up to eight units — expanding on a district allowing buildings with up to four units.
The commission recommended the council reject it.
Both proposals are to be reviewed at the zoning committee's April 15 meeting.
Metcalfe Park residents are concerned that increased development of small apartment buildings would raise property assessments for longtime homeowners — making neighborhood living less affordable, McCurtis said.
Her group's approach to development, she said, amounts to repairing the neighborhood, avoiding displacement, and responding to what residents want.
"We are prioritizing current residents and ensuring they have a pathway to homeownership," said McCurtis, who grew up in Metcalfe Park.
Department of City Development officials have been professional in their dealings with Metcalfe Park Community Bridges on the pending home construction projects — despite their passionate advocacy for Growing MKE, she said.
"We can be unaligned on this (Growing MKE) plan," McCurtis said, "but we can be aligned on other things.
"At the end of the day, we do our best to make things happen," she said.
Tom Daykin can be emailed attdaykin@jrn.comand followed onInstagram,Bluesky,XandFacebook.
