Work Starts on Mayfair Collection; Summer 2014 Opening Planned

A new and long-awaited chapter in the story of the Burleigh Triangle opened last week with the official groundbreaking leading to its new life as The Mayfair Collection.

While the work is only beginning, the course is set for an opening of the upscale retail center in the summer of 2014, said Tim Blum, executive vice president of HSA Commercial, developer of the project.

The first, $47 million phase of a redevelopment of about 70 vacated acres at Burleigh Street and U.S. Hwy 45, will create 270,000 square feet of retail space.

Already on board and "in store" for shoppers are Nordstrom Rack, Dick's Sporting Goods and ULTA, a cosmetics outlet. Blum said HSA has several more tenants lined up but not quite ready for prime time.

"Within the next several weeks, we should have a few more announcements," Blum said.

Adaptive reuse a challenging propostion

Blum did say, though, that HSA has about 60 percent of the Mayfair Collection space committed to tenants now – and that's about right where he wants it.

"You don't want to be 100 percent at this point. We still need the food component," Blum said, along with the type of specialty shops drawn into the right mix as they see what's taking shape.

The total number of stores is not final either, Blum said.

"We're dividing as we go. We might have one 50,000-square-foot store that we can find space for, or we might have two 25,000-square-foot stores."

The bricks and mortar aspect of the project is a major challenge for HSA on a couple of levels, because it isn't quite new construction and it isn't quite reconstruction. It's both – an "adaptive reuse" of existing structures built for a completely different purpose.

One is utilities – the electricity, heating and cooling, plumbing and so forth.

"There are enormous challenges there," Blum said. "The capacity is either inadequate or in the wrong place, and it's all out of date. The infrastructure all has to be replaced."

Then there's the totality of the concept of turning warehouses into retail stores.

"The most difficult thing to do is educating tenants and city inspectors on just what's being done here," Blum said. "The building division has a set of standards for new construction and another for existing structures.

"Well, in this case, half the construction in new and half is existing. If it's a hybrid, where does the new building code apply and when does the existing-structure code apply?

"Tenants don't necessarily understand that either."

But, Blum said, for readers – potentially, shoppers – all that matters is the outcome.

"They won't know the difference when they walk in the door," he said, between HSA's redevelopment and a brand new, shiny retail shopping center.

"The experience will be that of an all-new place," Blum said. "They won't stand for anything less. It will be like a facelift. You cover up the skin, but the bones are still there. And the bones – the core structure – are still good. It's just the shell."

Enough talk, time for action

For about a decade, the property as it stands has been considered a blemish on the good name of Wauwatosa enterprise. When Roundy's Foods left behind a huge distribution warehouse center and other tenants also abandoned the 70-acre site, it left the city with a highly visible void.

It's been two years since HSA and Wauwatosa first announced the Mayfair Collection project, longer since negotiations began. During the past two years, there has been much wrangling and debate about the makeup, scope and financing of the project.

Blum said that's all behind him now, and he hopes – and believes – residents feel the same.

"People are tired of hearing talk about it," he said. "They want to see action. They want to see shovels in the ground, and not just the ceremonial ones."