2023 Fall Issue of Urban Land - 118

PROJECT INFORMATION: Three Bridges Park
DEVELOPMENT TIMELINE
Planning started (international design competition)
Site purchased
Construction started
Phase I completed - Valley Passage Bridge opened
Phase II completed - Urban Ecology Center - Menomonee Valley Branch opened
Phase III completed - Three Bridges Park opened to the public
LAND USE PLAN
Buildings
Streets/surface parking
Open space/landscaping
VISITORS/SERVICE AREA
Annual visitors since opening
Number of people served within a half mile
SOURCE: MENOMONEE VALLEY INDUSTRIAL CENTER AND THREE BRIDGES PARK (ULI CASE STUDY)
which makes loans to and investments in businesses
in underserved areas.
The predevelopment fund allowed MVP to
purchase land in various parts of the valley
that, while not always directly related to the
subject site, nevertheless allowed the partnership
to keep potentially catalytic sites from
remaining undeveloped or being underdeveloped
and to build the connection between
the Valley and the neighborhood. The predevelopment
fund became a circulating fund for
strategic purchases and sales. For example,
after MVP used its initial $750,000 predevelopment
funds to purchase the former Morton
Salt parcel, proceeds from sale of the same
parcel to Harley-Davidson allowed the partnership
to continue to purchase and consolidate
properties in the valley and resell to parties
that would develop consistent with the vision.
Observations and lessons learned
What sets the Menomonee Valley Industrial
Center and Three Bridges Park development
apart from others is the evolution of a culture
that sought cooperation to solve problems.
Leaders were brought in specifically for their
ability to get things done, and when discussions
inevitably became mired in the listing
of endless obstacles, leaders could stop the
meeting until the focus returned to overcoming
those challenges. This solution-oriented
culture became baked into all planning and
discussions.
118
URBAN LAND FALL 2023
The establishment of the public/private/
nonprofit partnership, MVP, was key to driving
this culture through 20 years of accomplishment.
Along with its close partner, the
city, MVP served as the master planner and
upholder of the vision. It spent years bringing
all stakeholders together to orchestrate
detailed plans and common end goals that
everyone agreed to. These included interviews,
workshops, and surveys of community groups
and valley businesses, control agencies, and
municipal and state government. The vision
that emerged from years of brainstorming,
planning, and consensus building was ambitious.
It was a brownfield development that
envisioned a triple bottom line that results
equally in delivering economic prosperity
to the city, social and physical health to the
community, and environmental restoration to
as close to a natural state as possible. MVP
was the conductor that kept the multitude
of players in concert and working toward the
common goal.
MVP remained highly disciplined, consistent,
and open in its dealings. This allowed it
to become a trusted broker in all its dealings
with multiple government agencies, the public,
developers, consultants, potential buyers, and
everyone else involved. It also acted as an
independent intermediary between the diverse
stakeholders.
MVP was willing to purchase strategic
properties outside the project to maintain the
Site area (acres)
24
Percent of site
100%
2002
2003
2010
2010
2012
2013
30,000
8,500
ULI
2023 Fall Issue of Urban Land

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of 2023 Fall Issue of Urban Land
