Veteran housing community on Milwaukee's near west side to expand with $19 million project.
A housing community for homeless veterans on Milwaukee's near west side is planning a $19 million expansion.
Vets Place Central, 3330 W. Wells St., provides housing for 74 people, with much of that in rooms where veterans double up.
The development plans call for a four-story addition to the three-story building, and extensive renovations to the existing site.
That would create space for 81 veterans − all of whom would have private rooms, said Eduardo Garza Jr., president and chief executive officer of Center for Veterans Issues Inc., the nonprofit group which operates Vets Place Central.
He said 60 rooms would be considered transitional housing, where the veterans could live for up to two years. The remaining 21 apartments would be for long-term stays.
Developing individual apartments provides more privacy and dignity for the residents, Garza told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Also, private rooms create a healthier environment, he said, including combatting the spread of illnesses.
That's something that has acquired more urgency in the wake of the COVID-19, Garza said, with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs providing grants to help vet housing providers create more private apartments throughout the nation.
The $19 million project has received a $4.55 million VA grant, Garza said. Center for Veterans Issues also is doing a private fundraising campaign and has applied for federal affordable housing tax credits, he said.
Those tax credits, which are provided through an annual competition, typically require developers to provide at least 85% of a development's apartments to people earning no higher than 60% of the local median income.
If the project obtains financing, and approvals from the Milwaukee Board of Zoning Appeals, construction could begin in July, Garza said. The new apartments could open by the end of 2024.
Center for Veterans Issues is working with Madison-based Alexander Co. on the development, with Kelly Construction serving as general contractor and Galbraith Carnahan Architects as project architect.
Alexander Co. and the center worked on converting Milwaukee's historic Soldiers Home into modern veteran housing, a project that was completed in 2021. That's located on the grounds of the Zablocki VA Medical Center on the city's west side.
Meanwhile, a project that would build at least 24 tiny homes and a community building for homeless vets is still in the works for a site at 6767 N. 60th St., on Milwaukee's northwest side. Veterans Community Project Inc., a Kansas City-based nonprofit group, is the developer.
Tom Daykin can be emailed at tdaykin@jrn.com and followed on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
Our subscribers make this reporting possible. Please consider supporting local journalism by subscribing to the Journal Sentinel at jsonline.com/deal.
DOWNLOAD THE APP: Get the latest news, sports and more
Subscribe to get the BusinessWatch email newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee veterans housing community plans $19 million expansion
