A high-profile commercial project on Kenosha’s west side has stalled out over who would foot the bill for new roads.
St. John Properties has pulled out of the planned $45 million Kenosha Midpoint Center, a 25-acre office and retail development, after a dispute over roughly $4.2 million in road work and related costs. The project had been pitched as a shiny new hub for national and regional tenants, but the company said the infrastructure tab pushed the deal past its breaking point.
In a statement to the Milwaukee Business Journal, St. John Properties said negotiations over about $4.2 million in off-site road improvements broke down and that it would not move forward, as reported by Milwaukee Business Journal. The firm had previously pegged the overall development cost at about $45 million.
Project plan and site
The Kenosha Midpoint Center was mapped out as a 25-acre complex with a five-building first phase. That opening phase called for two 26,240-square-foot office buildings plus several additional office and retail structures, totaling roughly 108,000 square feet to start, according to the Kenosha Area Business Alliance.
The site sits northwest of 71st Street and 122nd Avenue, just west of I-94 and north of Highway 50, and was included in the City of Kenosha’s adopted development plans. Local economic development listings had framed the parcel as a future home for restaurants, service businesses and national-brand tenants.
Road costs derailed the deal
St. John told the Milwaukee Business Journal that the breaking point was responsibility for about $4.2 million in roadway and related site work, an expense the company said made the expected returns unworkable, as reported by Milwaukee Business Journal. Off-site improvements such as new turn lanes, utility extensions and signal upgrades can reshape the math on a project, especially on largely undeveloped sites that need new access and infrastructure.
With St. John out, the property is effectively back on the market, and the question hanging over the corridor is who, if anyone, will pick up that infrastructure bill.
What this means for city finances
Kenosha’s adopted capital plan and budget documents show the city frequently leans on tax-increment financing districts and capital funds to cover public improvements that support private development, according to the City of Kenosha’s materials. Those tools, however, need council sign-off and compete with other priorities already in the pipeline.
The city’s planning and finance documents list multiple active TID districts and capital projects that have helped underpin private investment in recent years. For the Midpoint parcel, though, no replacement developer has stepped forward publicly, and officials have not detailed next steps for the site.
For now, the Kenosha Midpoint Center is off the table for St. John Properties. The next move will hinge on whether the city reshapes its approach to the road work or a new buyer decides the $4.2 million bet is worth making. Updates will depend on what city leaders or prospective developers are willing to say out loud.
