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A $35 million development that would bring 275 apartments to Milwaukee's Riverwest neighborhood is being proposed by a firm that specializes in building rental units for college students.

Trinitas Ventures LLC, based in West Lafayette, Ind., wants to construct the four-story building on part of a parcel now occupied by a warehouse at 634 E. Keefe Ave.

The warehouse would be demolished to make way for the apartments, which would house about 600 people, said Travis Vencel, Trinitas director of site acquisition and planning. The firm is still working on the project's design.

Trinitas would market the apartments primarily to University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee students, Vencel said. The proposed site is about 2 miles from campus, and Trinitas would provide a shuttle service to UWM and other locations, he said.

The development would include a fitness center, Internet cafe and swimming pool for its residents, Vencel said. He said the project would be privately financed.

The site is zoned for industrial use, and the project would need approval from the Common Council and Mayor Tom Barrett. Trinitas will likely file a proposal with the Plan Commission in January, Vencel said.

Projects like the one proposed by Trinitas have raised concerns from neighborhood residents about the effects on traffic and parking.

Vencel said the development would include surface parking, but the firm expects a lot of residents to rely on the shuttle service instead of using cars. He said residents would be required to either lease a parking spot from Trinitas or have a leased parking space at another off-street lot.

"We do not expect the community to absorb the parking," Vencel said.

Ald. Milele Coggs, whose district includes the proposed development site, said she wants to hear from nearby residents before making any judgments on the plan.

"Anytime there is a project of this size," Coggs said, "one must pay special attention to how it would integrate into the existing neighborhood."

UWM's increased enrollment, including students from beyond metro Milwaukee, has raised the demand for more student apartments, Vencel said. He said the university is no longer a commuter campus, and compared it to Virginia Commonwealth University, which has undergone similar changes.

Trinitas in June started construction of a 269-unit apartment building, for 690 residents, near that university's campus in Richmond, Va. That project was financed through a construction loan from PNC Bank and equity capital from a joint venture between Trinitas and Harrison Street Real Estate Capital LLC.

Trinitas also operates apartments near Purdue University, University of Illinois, Indiana University, University of Indianapolis and Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.