One Mayfair Place/ Milwaukee, WI

Continuum developed 10 to 15 options for replacing three 50-year-old, outdated office buildings with a more contemporary retail center. The busy corridor has many city requirements to follow such as reducing the amount of driveways entering/exiting Highway 100, maximizing the amount of leasable area to offset high land and development cost, and working around an existing stormwater lateral that bisects the site.

The end result is a 46,000-square-foot, mixed-use development involving three new freestanding buildings. Two of the new buildings are pushed to the street edge creating a strong corner, while the third two-story building is positioned to hide the neighboring railroad tracks. The parking lot is heavily landscaped with native shrubs and perennials, creating a pleasant, functional courtyard between the buildings. Building materials are skillfully composed to create a sense of unity within the development, yet differentiate each building. Two colors of brick and variegated ceramic tile are used in different proportions on all buildings. Building heights, glass, awnings and sunshades create additional interest.