Tom Daykin, and Mary Spicuzza

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

A developer proposing an apartment tower on Milwaukee's east side made a surprise unsuccessful bid for Common Council approval Tuesday — three months after the council rejected the proposal.

The council on a 10-4-1 vote, with one abstention, rejected a proposal Tuesday to reconsider a 27-story, 192-unit apartment tower that Madison developer Chris Houden wants to build at the current site of the Goll House, 1550 N. Prospect Ave. Under council rules, that reconsideration proposal needed 12 votes.

The council on July 26 voted 10-5 to support the project, falling two votes short of the supermajority needed for approval. The zoning change in July needed 12 votes because a protest petition was signed by enough adjacent property owners.

On Tuesday, Ald. Mark Borkowski, who voted in July to oppose the apartment tower, moved to reconsider the proposal.

Asked by Ald. Milele Coggs why he was changing his position, Borkowski replied, "Alderwoman Coggs, I've seen the light." He declined to elaborate.

Borkowski's reconsideration proposal drew objections from Ald. Robert Bauman, whose district includes the Goll House.

Bauman said neighboring condo residents who are concerned about the development had a right to be given notice of the project's reconsideration.

If Borkowski's motion had been successful, Houden's proposed high-rise would have again undergone Plan Commission and Common Council review. That would have happened in December.

Borkowski's motion to reconsider got 10 of the 12 votes needed. Those voting against it were Bauman and Aldermen Tony Zielinski, Russell Stamper II, and Jose Perez. Coggs abstained.

Houden wants to move the Goll House about 30 feet closer to the street and then develop a 27-story, 192-unit apartment tower on the parcel.

East side Goll House sold to high-rise developer

Supporters say the $55 million project would create construction jobs and property tax revenue, and help restore the Goll House, which Houden would convert from office space to a few additional apartments. The high-rise's upscale apartments would have monthly rents starting at around $1,800 for one-bedroom units.

Residents from the neighboring condo tower, at 1522 N. Prospect Ave., say the proposed high-rise would be too large for its lot and create traffic congestion and parking problems for the neighborhood.

Several condominium residents signed a petition protesting the proposed zoning change. A council supermajority is required for zoning changes if a petition is signed by the owners of at least 20% of adjacent properties.

The property's underlying zoning allows a high-rise with 186 apartments without council approval.

But the zoning caps the building's square footage at about 111,000 square feet, compared with about 260,000 square feet proposed by Houden. The proposed building's parking structure would add another 100,000 square feet.

A building developed under the current zoning would not have enough space to be economically feasible, according to Houden, who operates Palisade Property Management LLC

His plans called for 212 parking spaces, more than the minimum required by zoning regulations. A city Department of Public Works study concluded the high-rise wouldn't have a significant negative effect on Prospect Ave. traffic.

Despite the July vote, it appeared that Houden was still pursuing his plans after his investment group, Goll Mansion LLC, bought the property in October for $1.6 million.