Tosa apartments win high LEED sustainability score
Dean Larkin and his partners had to find a new use for their obsolete Wauwatosa office building.
Built in 1966, it was looking as tired as you’d expect — especially compared with newer, better-designed buildings. Meanwhile, the building’s direct access to North Mayfair Road was eliminated when a neighboring Highway 45 off-ramp was redesigned.
“It was functionally obsolete,” Larkin said. The building’s owners could have tried to land a call center as a possible tenant. They instead chose a more drastic approach: The two-story building was demolished and replaced by a five-story, 97-unit apartment development.
Known as The 2100, it recently landed gold certification — the second-highest level — from the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program.
Larkin said the $18 million development, at 2100 N. Mayfair Road, is the only suburban Milwaukee apartment building to receive such a high LEED rating.
A search of the building council’s LEED database finds two Milwaukee-area market-rate apartment developments with platinum certification, and none with the gold rating. The two platinum-rated buildings, Sage on Jackson and Sage on Prospect, were both developed on Milwaukee’s east side by Dominion Properties.
The 2100’s gold rating shows that the green building trend “has the ability to get some legs” and spread from traditional urban strongholds to communities like Wauwatosa, Larkin said.
“I think it’s very exciting that other developers are getting on the bandwagon,” said Mike O’Connor, Dominion principal. “It really does lead to a better product.”
Sustainability starts at the top
Factors that helped The 2100 win gold status include its location near Milwaukee County Transit System bus stops, lights and appliances with high energy efficiency ratings, and plumbing fixtures that help conserve water.
The 2100 also was built with materials, including its windows, that feature high levels of insulation, Larkin said.
That not only conserves energy, he said, it also deadens traffic noise — a key selling point for apartments that overlook busy Mayfair Road.
But the most visible sustainable feature is the green roof.
Using sedum and other native plants, it covers part of the roof of the two-level parking structure — on top of which are four stories of apartments.
The green roof is next to The 2100’s outdoor patio, which includes a grilling area.
It helps soak up stormwater that would otherwise run into the sewer system. The green roof was funded in part with a $50,000 grant from the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District.
The green roof also creates a more pleasant view for people renting apartments on the first floor, said Jack Hoffman, a co-owner of The 2100.
“Imagine if you were just looking at concrete,” Hoffman said. “It would be drab and sterile.”
Said Larkin, “It’s like a green carpet.”
Challenging site and skeptics
The 2100, designed by AG Architecture, includes a bioswale and permeable paving to help reduce stormwater runoff.
Larkin, Hoffman and their partners, John Czarnecki and Doug Heston, initially didn’t plan for so many sustainable features.
But they discovered their construction loan’s interest rate would be reduced under a federal loan guarantee if The 2100 gained LEED certification.
“It’s a big inducement,” Hoffman said.
The loan guarantee is provided through a program operated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and is financed by fees paid by developers.
Another factor in obtaining LEED status was the ability to create a new use at a challenging site, Larkin said.
That involved a city approval process, including $2 million in financing help, which lasted about a year.
“This wasn’t a sprint,” Larkin said. “It was a marathon.”
City development officials were initially skeptical about the idea of developing a high-end apartment building on Mayfair Road, he said.
But the building’s east side overlooks a residential neighborhood that is separated from The 2100 by an alley.
The 2100 also is just a few blocks from Underwood Creek, where a restoration project has removed concrete and re-created much of the stream’s natural habitat.
“It’s urban, but it’s green,” Larkin said about the neighborhood.
The initial proposal for The 2100, which landed in late 2013, called for a taller building with 134 apartments.
The Plan Commission in February 2014 recommended approval over the objections of neighborhood residents.
Opponents had concerns about increased traffic, blocked sunlight and a changing character for their neighborhood.
In response, the developers lowered the building height and reduced the number of apartments to 97 units. They also widened the alley separating the apartments from the single-family homes.
The Common Council, in October 2014, approved the development proposal on a 13-3 vote.
A vote by the council on whether to provide city funds for the project through a tax incremental financing district resulted in a tie. Mayor Kathy Ehley cast the deciding vote in favor of that proposal.
The financing proposal allows for for the developers to obtain rebates of 70 percent of The 2100’s annual property taxes until that amount totals nearly $2 million.
Once the developers have recovered that amount, all of the apartment development’s property taxes will go to the city, its school district and other local governments.
Ald. Kathleen Causier, whose district includes The 2100, was among the council members who opposed the project.
Causier said she heard complaints from nearby residents about noise and alley traffic during the construction, but nothing since The 2100 opened.
Durability is factor
Construction began in late 2016. The 2100 opened in March. About half of its units have been leased, many of them to people who work or study at the nearby Milwaukee County Research Park and Medical College of Wisconsin.
The monthly rents start at around $1,000 for studio units, $1,250 for onebedroom apartments and $1,825 for two bedrooms. Residents pay separately for heat and electricity, with that use reduced by the building’s efficiencies.
Landing LEED gold status was definitely worth the additional time and money, Hoffman and Larkin said.
Along with giving The 2100 a marketing boost, the sustainability measures resulted in a building that is more durable, they said.
“We intend to own this project for a long time,” Hoffman said.
Tom Daykin can be emailed at tdaykin@jrn.com and followed on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.