Omega Restaurant, a Greek diner that has anchored the southeast corner of Southgate Marketplace on South 27th Street for several decades, could soon be demolished to make way for a new Bank of America branch. Building permits indicate the restaurant would be torn down, and a zoning amendment now pending before the city would allow construction of a new bank in place of the existing restaurant on the site.
The proposal, first reported by Urban Milwaukee, calls for a new building costing at least $4 million, according to the permit request, that would clear space for a 3,500-square-foot structure at 3473 S. 27th St. The property carries a total city assessed value of $4,725,200 as of 2026 — $930,200 for land and $3,795,000 for building improvements. Project applicants have requested expedited zoning approval, and the City Plan Commission would hear the proposal first before making a recommendation to the Common Council.
A Bank of America spokesperson said the project remains in the planning stages and that the bank has no additional information about timing, construction plans or operational details, adding that development decisions cannot yet be finalized. The bank is working with Milrose Consultants, based in New York, and IA Interior Architects, based in Chicago, on the project, according to the Urban Milwaukee report.
A Longtime South Side Fixture
Omega Restaurant is co-owned by Gus Koutromanos and Debbie Koutromanos, who also serves as the restaurant's registered agent. The restaurant, which was once open 24 hours, sits on a parcel zoned under a detailed planned development designation, meaning planned development zoning governs the property's design and uses. Southgate Marketplace, which covers 4.6 acres and includes multiple outlot buildings, is owned by Midland Management of Fox Point.
Southgate Marketplace itself has deep roots in Milwaukee retail history. The site was originally developed in 1951 on 32 acres by Froedtert Enterprises as Southgate Center, Milwaukee's first suburban shopping center, before being largely demolished in 1999 and redeveloped into the current Southgate Marketplace, which opened in 2001 anchored by a Walmart, according to the Mall Hall of Fame blog.
A Corridor Already in Flux
The South 27th Street commercial strip has seen significant turnover in recent years. Marcus Theatres permanently closed its 10-screen Southgate Cinema complex in December 2023, ending three decades of movies at the location. It is not the first time a South Side restaurant has faced replacement by a national chain — Chick-fil-A filed initial plans in 2023 to replace Zebb's Family Restaurant on West Morgan Avenue with a double drive-thru location, but that proposal did not move forward after Zebb's operators said they were not leaving.
Whether Omega Restaurant will relocate or close for good remains unclear, as its ownership has not publicly commented on the zoning request pending before the city.
Bank of America's Wisconsin Push
The Omega site is one piece of a broader expansion. Bank of America, the nation's second-largest bank and based in Charlotte, officially announced in June 2023 that it would enter Wisconsin for the first time, with plans to open five financial centers in Milwaukee and three in Madison by 2026. If the South 27th Street project moves forward, Bank of America would have seven branches in the Milwaukee area, including four in Milwaukee proper, as it builds out its network across the region.
The bank's closest current branch sits in northern Illinois, underscoring how new this market is for the company. Bank of America expects to open its first three Milwaukee-area branches in the third quarter of 2026, including suburban locations in Greendale and Oak Creek and a location at 7630 W. Good Hope Rd. in Milwaukee. That Good Hope Road site follows a similar pattern: the bank's initial plan, presented to the local Granville Advisory Committee in September 2023, called for a 4,320-square-foot financial center on the site of the former Yen Ching restaurant, which had sat closed since 2020.
Bank of America appointed Drew Slocum as President of Bank of America Wisconsin in August 2024 to lead the market entry and oversee regional growth across the bank's business lines, according to Equipment Finance Advisor. The Milwaukee rollout fits into a much larger national campaign: Bank of America has announced plans to open more than 165 new branches across 63 markets nationwide between 2023 and the end of 2026, per Banking Dive.
Why a National Bank Wants a Piece of Milwaukee
The push into Milwaukee comes even though the city's deposit market is dominated by an entrenched rival. U.S. Bank holds roughly 41% of total local deposits, followed by regional institutions like JPMorgan Chase and BMO, according to American Banker. Industry consultants cited in that report note that digital banking now lets national lenders enter new markets with a smaller physical footprint than in years past, which helps explain why Bank of America can compete with a handful of financial centers rather than a sprawling branch network.
Nationally, Bank of America's retail strategy pairs new financial centers in expansion markets like Wisconsin with an overall pace of closing roughly two traditional branches elsewhere for every new center it opens, Banking Dive has reported. The approach reflects a broader shift among major banks toward consult-focused branch layouts while pushing routine transactions to digital channels, even as the physical building at 3473 S. 27th St. remains, for now, a Greek restaurant awaiting the outcome of a zoning vote.
