The student news site of Marquette University

Marquette Wire

The student news site of Marquette University

Marquette Wire

The student news site of Marquette University

Marquette Wire

Bradley Center to expand

While no specific plans have been announced, the Bradley Center property could contain retail and mixed-use space similar to areas surrounding other basketball stadiums across the country.,”Plans are in the works to develop about 4.5 acres of land to the north of the Bradley Center in the hopes it will generate revenue for the building's tenants, including the Marquette basketball team.

While no specific plans have been announced, the Bradley Center property could contain retail and mixed-use space similar to areas surrounding other basketball stadiums across the country.

As many as 10 local and national developers were involved in either formal or informal discussions with Bradley Center officials, but that number has "boiled down to less than a handful," said Evan Zeppos, spokesman for the Bradley Center. He said officials are now "dotting the 'i's' and crossing the 't's' " with one of those developers to build on the vacant property, which is owned by the Bradley Center Sports and Entertainment Corporation.

The Bradley Center Board of Directors will decide what is developed on the property. It is unclear when the project will start or how much it will cost. But the project will be a "significant development," said Mike Parker, senior vice president of global corporate services at the Milwaukee office of CB Richard Ellis CBRE is an international real estate brokerage and management firm hired by the Bradley Center.

The development of the area around the stadium is part of an effort by Bradley Center owners to maintain and enhance the aging sports facility, which opened in 1988 and is considered one of the oldest in the NBA. Talk of building a new facility has surfaced before, but Zeppos said the building owners want to keep the Bradley Center open for "a couple more generations."

Officials want to see all Bradley Center tenants—Marquette, the Milwaukee Bucks and the Milwaukee Admirals—to generate as much revenue as they can, Zeppos said. And Marquette's participation in the Big East conference is even more reason to improve the Bradley Center, he said.

"It's a very prestigious conference, and in order for them to compete in a conference like that, we need to generate more revenue," Zeppos said.

Marquette generates revenue at basketball games from ticket sales, merchandise and sponsorship elements coordinated by the athletic department, said Mike Broeker, deputy athletic director.

The university has signed a four-year lease with the Bradley Center with two one-year extensions that should run through the 2010-2011 season, Broeker said.

The development north of the Bradley Center would be part of a larger trend of growth on the northern edge of downtown, Parker said. To the east of the stadium, developers are planning a hotel, housing and retail spaces in the city's Park East area. To the west, developer Joseph Zilber is converting the Pabst Brewery into a mixed-use space.

"We think the development in the area is all very synergistic," Parker said. "We believe that the developer chosen (for the Bradley Center) will do something that complements the rest of the development in the area."

Zeppos called the Bradley Center "the crown jewel of the entertainment area" in downtown Milwaukee. Because the stadium brings in 1.7 million people annually, area developers have an interest in the facility, he said.

"Anything that happens down there between our property or other properties is going to be related to the Bradley Center," Zeppos said.

In addition to development plans north of the stadium, improvements have been made to the inside of the facility during the past three years, Zeppos said. Club Cambria, a high-end restaurant and Courtside Club, a ground-floor restaurant in the premium seating area, were added to boost revenue. The Bradley Center hired Levy Restaurants to operate concessions and Event Merchandising Incorporated for retail operations in 2005.

The Bradley Center began charging a $1 facility fee on each ticket this year to generate additional revenue to maintain the building. Some have suggested replacing the scoreboard or reupholstering the seats—all things that cost money, Zeppos said.

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