St. Rita Church to be replaced with six-story senior housing development, new worship space

An east side Milwaukee church would be demolished and replaced with a new building that would provide senior housing, as well as worship space, under terms of a new proposal.

St. Rita Catholic Church, 1601 N. Cass St., would be purchased by developer James Tarantino, according to a $20 million proposal announced Monday.

Tarantino, who operates Tarantino & Co. and Capri Senior Communities, plans to develop St. Rita's Square, a six-story building that would feature 103 apartments for older people, according to a statement from the firm.

Those apartments would be for both people who can live independently, as well as people who need assisted living services. Some apartments would be available for people who need memory care.

St. Rita's Square would include 2,800 square feet of street-level retail space at the corner of E. Pleasant and N. Van Buren streets, as well as enclosed parking.

The development also would provide a new church, to be connected by a walkway to the apartment building. Three Holy Women Parish, which includes St. Rita, would buy the church for $1, according to the statement.

The new St. Rita church "will blend that church’s rich history with that of its predecessor, the Blessed Virgin of Pompeii, which served as the religious, social and cultural center of Milwaukee’s Italian-American community until it was demolished to make way for freeway construction in 1967," according to the statement.

It would preserve art, stained glass and other artifacts from St. Rita, which was was built in 1939, and Blessed Virgin of Pompeii Church, which was in the Historic Third Ward.

Parishioners are "generally favorable, even enthused" about the proposal, said the Rev. Tim Kitzke, St. Rita co-pastor.

The project would require Milwaukee Common Council and mayoral zoning approval.

The area on the Cass St. side of the development site is is characterized mainly by two-story homes. But the neighborhood also includes the three-story Cass Street Elementary School and multistory apartment buildings on Van Buren St.

"Some people might think it'll overwhelm the neighborhood," said Ald. Nik Kovac, whose district includes the site. He is reserving judgment for now.

The proposed development "reflects all that is good about our city," Mayor Tom Barrett said in a statement.

“We have an individual with strong Milwaukee roots who is not only investing and creating economic development in the neighborhood where he grew up, but he’s also honoring his heritage and the church he loves," Barrett said. "Projects like this make Milwaukee a better place.”

Tarantino has developed other senior apartment communities throughout the Milwaukee area, including the 227-unit Village Pointe Commons, which opened last year in Grafton.

Tarantino has two other pending projects: an expansion of Gables of Germantown and another major expansion of Port Washington's Harbor Campus.

Capri Senior Communities operates one other east side Milwaukee apartment building: Hedwig House, 1724 N. Humboldt Ave. It is next to St. Hedwig Catholic Church, which is part of Three Holy Women Parish.

Tom Daykin can be reached attdaykin@jrn.com