NWSCDC

Due to a tight city budget, the Villard Avenue Library was targeted to be closed in 2009 because the building needs costly repairs, is inefficient, and is expensive to operate. It was the second time this decade that the Villard Library faced closure. The library survived this year, but the city budget will be even tougher next year.

The Northwest Side Community Development Corporation has a 25-year history of working on Villard and is committed to finding a long-term solution to save this valuable neighborhood asset. We are helping to build a new, more efficient library on Villard that still offers vital services such as the popular community room, children’s books, and computer access.

That building plan has come to fruition as Villard Square, an innovative mixed-used residential real-estate project with a “21st Century” library on the first floor and apartments above designed for families with grandparents that are the full-time parents. By sharing in building and maintenance costs and with new energy-saving “green building” concepts, Villard Square will save the city significant operating costs.

The Villard Square project is a first for the City of Milwaukee, and a new model for development that could be replicated for other neighborhood libraries and public buildings throughout the city. The project will be partially financed by Low-Income Housing and New Market Tax Credit investors.