Bear Development, a Kenosha-based developer known for low-income housing projects, plans to replace the Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce (WMC) headquarters at 501 E. Washington Ave. with a seven-story, 223-unit apartment building, according to the Wisconsin State Journal. The project, located just five blocks from the Capitol Square, will include studio to two-bedroom apartments and a 68-stall parking garage.
All units will be rent- and income-restricted, serving residents earning 50% to 80% of the area median income, according to project manager Nick Orthmann. In 2024, Dane County’s median income was $88,000 for a single person and $126,000 for a family of four. The developer aims to break ground by late 2025 or early 2026, with completion expected in 2027.
The site, which wraps around a neighboring lot, sits next to another redevelopment project by LZ Ventures — an eight-story, 70-unit building operated by Porchlight Inc. to provide housing for the homeless.
The planned Bear Development, designed to fit the property’s unique shape, will feature an open section, creating some room between the building and nearby historic homes. It will also sit along Madison’s new bus rapid transit Route A, which launched in September.
Bear Development has several other Madison projects, including a newly completed 52-unit building at 402 W. Wilson St. and a 192-unit development under construction at 808 Melvin Court.
WMC will relocate to a renovated building at 2 Buttonwood Court in the American Center Business Park later this year.
