New distribution center in works for BBC Lighting
Company affiliate buys part of historic complex
Tom Daykin can be emailed at tdaykin@jrn.com and followed on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
BBC Lighting is expanding its operations with a new distribution center — the latest in a series of home improvement-related business developments in Milwaukee’s Menomonee Valley.
An affiliate of BBC Lighting, which sells lights for homes and businesses, has bought part of a historic industrial building complex at 1741-1825 W. St. Paul Ave. 1825 W. St. Paul LLC, led by BBC Lighting owner Henry “Hank” Albert, paid $1.4 million for the western portion of that property, according to state real estate records posted online Monday.
That space, at 1825 W. St. Paul Ave., will serve as a wholesale distribution facility, with accessory storage, for BBC Lighting Enterprises Inc., according to city building permits. It was previously used for light manufacturing.
BBC Lighting’s headquarters, including its showroom with thousands of lighting fixtures, is just two blocks away, at 2015 W. St. Paul Ave.
Neither Albert nor David Winograd, whose LCM Funds 30 St. Paul LLC sold the property, could be immediately reached for more information.
Meanwhile, the property’s eastern portion, at 1741 W. St. Paul Ave., is being remodeled into the new home of Bachman Furniture Gallery.
Bachman Furniture announced in August it was closing its store, at 6800 W. Capitol Drive, and moving to the Menomonee Valley.
The new store, to open in early 2019, will better showcase its European-designed items, according to Bachman Furniture owner Joe Bachman.
Along with Bachman Furniture and BBC Lighting, other nearby home decor businesses include Brass Light Gallery, House of Stone, ProStar Surfaces, Riverview Antique Market and Guardian Fine Art Services.
Also, street-level retail space at Guardian Fine Art’s building is being remodeled for a future art gallery.
All those businesses are located on a 10-block stretch of West St. Paul Avenue, west of I-94’s High Rise Bridge.
That area features 22 buildings that are part of the St. Paul Avenue Industrial Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places.