Dec. 12, 2020 8:40p
(WGTD)---A downtown Kenosha redevelopment deal that's been in the works for some two years is to go before a city council committee for review and possible approval Monday night.
The basic parameters of the proposal have been known for many months. They include replacing the aging Municipal Building with a three-story structure to go up east of the courthouse, and construction of a new city park, performing arts center and a high-rise twin tower residential development.
But the proposed 100-page contract with the Milwaukee developer was released just last Friday.
The developer is identified as a Brookfield-based company that surfaced publicly earlier this year when city administration sought to clear the way for the high-rise by securing looser height restrictions on downtown buildings.
New Kenosha LLC is headed by Joseph Chrnelich, a former CEO of Wisconsin State Fair Park and a former UW-Madison basketball standout.
The deal up for formal consideration before the city's Public Works Committee Monday is worth $450 million. The agreement calls for the developer to build the new city hall and performing arts center. In exchange, the developer would gain land for the high-rise, and a series of other mixed-use developments that would be built at later dates within the eight-block redevelopment zone.
The city would build the proposed park on land where the Municipal Building now stands and on property adjacent to it. The park is expected to include an outdoor performance venue and a water feature. In addition, plans call for the possible relocation of the city's street car barn, with the existing building possibly turned into a permanent, indoor market. The city would also be responsible for infrastructure improvements to support the new developments.
Under the deal, New Kenosha agrees to secure a conditional use permit for the new city hall by March of next year. By the middle of 2022, the developer would be obligated to submit formal plans for the arts center.
The proposed contract includes various attachments, including a contract agreement between New Kenosha and the non-profit that would run the smaller of two theaters that are planned for the arts center.
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