Grafton looks to transform brewery from the 1800s into a mixed-use, creative center

Claudia Levens, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
·3 min read
The main building, located at 1032-1038 12th Ave, has thick stone walls and caves in the basement for lagering.
The main building, located at 1032-1038 12th Ave, has thick stone walls and caves in the basement for lagering.

Milwaukee developer Dieter Wegner is moving forward with plans to transform a former brewery on 12th Avenue in Grafton into a community art hub full of creative businesses and residential spaces to be known as Grafton Creative.

At its meeting Tuesday night, the village’s plan commission recommended the Grafton Village Board renew the planned unit development for the property at 1032-1038 12th Ave., a few blocks north of downtown Grafton and west of the Milwaukee River.

The property, which has been vacant for decades, has thick stone walls and basement caves for lagering. As a mixed-use development, Grafton Creative would house a variety of creative businesses and live/work spaces that would resemble the Grafton Arts Mill, according to a village staff report on the proposal submitted by Community Development Director Jessica Wolff.

The Arts Mill is located in the historic Grafton Mill and houses more than fourteen artists’ studios.

Milwaukee developer Dieter Wegner will transform the former brewery on 12th Avenue into a community art hub. The space will be filled with creative businesses and residential spaces to be known as Grafton Creative.
Milwaukee developer Dieter Wegner will transform the former brewery on 12th Avenue into a community art hub. The space will be filled with creative businesses and residential spaces to be known as Grafton Creative.

Development would be reminiscent of Walker’s Point in Milwaukee

Wegner has been rehabbing industrial, commercial buildings and industrial loft conversions for mixed-use tenants since the early '90s. He hopes to make the space in Grafton reminiscent of the commercial, industrial district Walker’s Point in Milwaukee, where Wegner worked on six buildings and has lived for over 30 years.

Currently under Wegner’s LLC, Walker’s Point Creative, is a live music club, a music studio, an art studio, spa and salon businesses, a tattoo shop, a record store, a café and various other creative endeavors he hopes to take inspiration from in Grafton under Grafton Creative, LLC.

Permitted uses for the property are office, personal and professional service, physical activity studios, artist studios and makers spaces, according to the proposal. Art galleries, coffee shops and live/work units and apartments are approved as conditional uses.

The property that will soon be Grafton Creative is located at 1032-1038 12th Avenue, a few blocks north of downtown Grafton and west of the Milwaukee River.
The property that will soon be Grafton Creative is located at 1032-1038 12th Avenue, a few blocks north of downtown Grafton and west of the Milwaukee River.

“We’re looking for individuals and businesses who can thrive off of each other's creativity,” Wegner said.

The first proposed tenant is BSL Studios, a Cedarburg architecture and interior design firm that would occupy the northern portion of the building.

Wegner, originally from Mequon, was visiting a friend when he first saw the property. “I said, ‘Cool building over there,’ and he told me it was for sale. That was three and a half years ago.”

'You couldn't build a building like this today'

Wegner purchased the historic property six months ago. While discussing with the previous owners, he discovered the original owners went out of business during the prohibition.

The property for Grafton Creative is permitted for offices, personal and professional services, physical activity studios, artist studios and makers spaces, according to the plan commission proposal.
The property for Grafton Creative is permitted for offices, personal and professional services, physical activity studios, artist studios and makers spaces, according to the plan commission proposal.

“It needs a lot of updating to make it usable for modern purposes other than just warehousing, but it’s been really well maintained, especially the architecture,” he said.

“You couldn’t build a building like this today. You’d be looking at a prohibitive amount of money," Wegner said. "The scale, workmanship, materials would be extremely expensive today. Thankfully, the village of Grafton seems to be on board with the vision of respecting the beautiful architecture and construction, while upgrading the mechanicals and utilities.”

Plan would include a paved parking lot

In the plan commission proposal, Wolff said that while the development would not alter pedestrian or traffic patterns in the area, there are limited off-street parking options nearby. As a result, staff recommended Wegner create a paved parking lot with lighting on the vacant land on the north side of the building.

“Reusing the building and addressing a currently blighted site is a benefit to the community,” Wolff said.

The village board will review the proposal and consider taking action to rezone and approve any amendments in December.

Contact Claudia Levens at clevens@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @levensc13.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Historic Grafton brewery could turn into a community art hub