Centerpiece athletic stadium will be home to professional soccer, and serve as a competition venue for Marquette men’s and women’s soccer and men’s and women’s lacrosse. (Submitted photos)
Marquette University has sold an 11-acre parcel of land it purchased in 2014 and 2015, located to the northeast of the Marquette Interchange, to Bear Development who, together with Kacmarcik Enterprises, plans to develop the area into a sports and entertainment district. The land, which will be master developed by Bear, is bordered by North Sixth Street to the east, Michigan Street to the north, and the Marquette Interchange to the west and south.
As Marquette considered potential buyers for this parcel, it was important that any development add value and economic growth to the community.
Plans for the comprehensive district include the development of a stadium, which will be home to a professional soccer club, an indoor concert venue, a full-service hotel, multi-family residential housing, retail, and food and beverage elements. The centerpiece of the proposed district is the 8,000-seat-stadium, which will serve as the home to the highest level of professional soccer in the state of Wisconsin and as the home competition field for Marquette men’s and women’s soccer and men’s and women’s lacrosse teams. The Marquette teams will continue to practice at the Valley Fields facility.
The development will serve as a catalyst for the region and will play a pivotal role in linking downtown Milwaukee, the Menomonee Valley, the Near West Side neighborhood and Marquette University. The sports and entertainment district is projected to create hundreds of new jobs in the community and draw 1 million visitors annually, many of whom will be new to the city.
