Milwaukee central city school to be converted to affordable apartments under new proposal

A former school on Milwaukee's north side would be converted into 82 affordable apartments under a new development proposal.

Royal Capital Group LLC would buy and redevelop the former Phillis Wheatley Elementary School, 2442 N. 20th St., according to a Common Council resolution posted Wednesday.

Royal Capital would renovate the building into a 44-unit apartment building for families, and also construct 38 new town homes on the site, the resolution said.

The development would cost an estimated $19.9 million.

A proposed purchase price for the city-owned property wasn't immediately available.

That sale will need Common Council approval, with the council's Zoning, Neighborhoods and Development Committee to review the proposal in November.

The Milwaukee firm plans to seek federal affordable housing tax credits, which are provided through an annual competition.

Developers that receive those credits must provide apartments at below-market rents to people earning no more than 60 percent of the area median income.

The Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority usually announces the annual tax credit awards by April. The credits are usually sold to raise equity capital.

Royal Capital also plans to use state and federal historic preservation tax credits.

The school was built in 1902 in the Italianate architectural style, according to the Wisconsin Historical Society.

Several other former Milwaukee central city schools have been converted to affordable apartments.

The most recent such development was Fifth Street School Apartments, which Gorman & Co. opened in August at 2770 N. 5th St. It has 48 units for seniors.

Meanwhile, there's a recently revised proposal pending to convert the former 37th Street School, 1715 N. 37th St., into 50 apartments for seniors.

Tom Daykin can be emailed at tdaykin@jrn.com and followed on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.