Research Park plans proceed for apartments, hotel

Plans for apartments, a hotel and an office building at Wauwatosa’s Milwaukee County Research park are proceeding with approvals Thursday from research park officials.

Mandel Group Inc. plans to develop the four-story, 105-unit Crescent Apartments at 10430 W. Innovation Drive, just a few blocks south of the research park entrance on W. Watertown Plank Road, west of U.S. Highway 45.

Mandel Group also wants to convert the neighboring onestory former powerhouse, at 10450 W. Innovation Drive, into a cafe and fitness center.

Both projects first surfaced a year ago.

In addition, HKS Holdings LLC plans to develop a six-story, 119-room SpringHill Suites Hotel at W. Watertown Plank Road and W. Innovation Drive, north of the Mandel Group developments.

Those plans were unveiled in March.

Finally, the Irgens firm plans to build a four-story, 85,000-square-foot office building, Muir Woods Resarch and Technology Center, at 10415 W. Innovation Drive. That site is just south of the research park’s Technology Innovation Center, a business incubator.

Irgens has been marketing Muir Woods for around two years.

All four projects were approved by the Project and Architectural Review Committee of Milwaukee Regional Innovation Center Inc., the nonprofit group that operates the business incubator.

That organization also owns the last remaining parcels at the research park, which would be sold to Mandel Group, HKS Holdings and Irgens for their projects.

The apartments, cafe/fitness center, hotel and office building would largely complete the development of the research park.

It is home to businesses that house over 4,600 employees. That includes 45 small businesses, employing over 300 people, at the incubator.