Bronzeville ThriveOn King project gets Versiti site
The ThriveOn King mixed-use development coming to Milwaukee's Bronzeville area will include a blood donation center.
Versiti Blood Center of Wisconsin plans to open the 3,500 square-foot facility in 2023 at ThriveOn King, 2153 N. King Drive.
It will help address neighborhood healthcare disparities through training and employment, education and blood donation, according to the announcement from Versiti.
“Versiti has proudly been part of the Milwaukee community for 75 years. While we have made great strides to address racial disparities in blood and organ donation, we know there is much work yet to do,” said Chris Miskel, president and chief executive officer.
“Through advocacy and community outreach, Versiti hopes to further establish itself as a trusted resource and agent of change for the donors and patients we serve," Miskel said, in a statement.
ThriveOn King is to convert the long-closed historic former Schuster's department store into apartments, offices and other new uses — including a food hall and an early childhood education center.
The project is named for the ThriveOn Collaboration, which will focus on education, health, housing and other issues within 100,000 square feet of offices and research space.
That partnership will include Wauwatosa-based Medical College of Wisconsin's community engagement programs and a new home for Greater Milwaukee Foundation's offices.
“Versiti's commitment to health equity and resources for the community aligns with the dedication of ThriveOn Collaboration to make generational investments in the well-being of Milwaukee communities aimed at eliminating racial, health, economic and social disparities,” said Greg Wesley, coleader of the ThriveOn Collaboration.
“Offering new resources and opportunity to the community, based on their feedback and collaboration, is a key goal coming to fruition," Wesley said, in a statement.
Construction work for the project was initially to begin in spring 2021 but was delayed by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and construction cost increases.
It was then to begin in February. But renovations have yet to start.
Meanwhile, Dr. Howard Fuller Collegiate Academy, a charter school, has filed plans with city officials to develop a four-story high school at 2212-2218 N. Phillips Ave. — a site next to the ThriveOn project now occupied by a vacant lot and warehouse.