List of tallest buildings in Milwaukee

The Pabst Building, Milwaukee's first skyscraper

The city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin is home to 114 high-rise buildings,^[1] 33 of which stand taller than 230 ft (70 m). The majority of the city's high-rises are located between Interstate 94, the Milwaukee River, and Lake Michigan, with an additional string of high-rises extending north along the lake. The tallest building in Milwaukee, and Wisconsin, is the 42-story, 601 ft (183 m) tall, U.S. Bank Center, which was completed in 1973.^[2] The second-tallest is the 37-story, 549 ft (167 m) tall, 100 East Wisconsin Ave. building, completed in 1989.^[3]

The history of skyscrapers in Milwaukee begins with the Pabst Building. Completed in 1891, and standing 235 ft (72 m) tall, it was Milwaukee's first skyscraper. It was the tallest building in the city until City Hall was completed four years later.^[4] The Pabst Building was demolished in 1981, and 100 East Wisconsin now stands on the site. For nearly eighty years, from 1895 to 1973, the Milwaukee City Hall dominated the skyline, and was at the time of its completion, the tallest habitable building in the United States.^[5] The city experienced a building boom in the mid- to late-1980s. Five of the eleven tallest buildings in the city were constructed between 1985 and 1991. Including two Northwestern Mutual buildings under construction and The Couture, seven of the thirteen tallest buildings will have been constructed since 2005.^[6]

Since 2013, downtown Milwaukee has seen the construction of the Moderne, a skyscraper with luxury condominiums, the 833 East Michigan office building, and the Potawatomi Hotel and tower. Future skyscrapers include the 44-story Couture, a 34-story^[7] mixed-use tower with high-end residential apartments and retail space by Northwestern Mutual, and the 32-story Northwestern Mutual Tower and Commons.^{[8][9][10][11]}

Tallest buildings

Panoramic view of the Milwaukee skyline

This lists ranks Milwaukee skyscrapers that stand at least 230 ft (70 m) tall, based on standard height measurement. This includes spires and architectural details but does not include antenna masts. The "Year" column indicates the year in which a building was completed.

Rank	Name	Image	Height ft / m	Floors	Year	Note
1	U.S. Bank Center		601 / 183.0	42	1973	Tallest building in the state; previously called the First Wisconsin Center (1973–92) and the Firstar Center (1992–2002). The building won a Distinguished Building Award from the Chicago Chapter of the American Institute of Architects in 1974.[12][13][14][15]
2	100 East Wisconsin		549 / 167.3	37	1989	Second-tallest building in the state; designed as a postmodern version of old German vernacular architecture; built on the site of the former 14-story Pabst skyscraper.[16][17][18]
3	University Club Tower		446 / 135.9	36	2007	Tallest building constructed in the 21st century.[19][20]
4	Milwaukee Center		426 / 129.8	28	1988	Second-tallest building in Milwaukee at the time it was completed.[21]
5	411 East Wisconsin Center		408 / 124.4	30	1985	Constructed with 1,200 eight-ton, pre-cast concrete panels in a modern architectural style.[22]
6	Northwestern Mutual North Tower		395 / 120.4	19	1990	The light blue pyramid at the top is lit at night.[23]
7	Kilbourn Tower		380 / 115.8	33	2005	[24]
8	Milwaukee City Hall		353 / 107.6	15	1895	Tallest habitable building in the world for more than four years after completion (1895–99); tallest building in Milwaukee for nearly 80 years.[5]
9	The Moderne		348 / 106.1	31	2012	Tallest building in Wisconsin west of the Milwaukee River.[25][26]
10	AT&T Building		317 / 96.6	16	1917	The tower on top was an addition built in 1924
11	The Potawatomi Casino Hotel		307 / 93.6	21	2014	It is the tallest building in the city south of Interstate 94.
12	1000 North Water Street		296 / 90.2	16	1991	The light pink facade and windows give it a unique appearance in Milwaukee's skyline.[23]
13	Chase Tower		288 / 87.8	22	1961	Second-tallest building in Milwaukee at the time it was completed. Once the site of Maritime Bank, it was known as Bank One Plaza before Bank One's merger with Chase. Contains 480,000 square feet of Class A office space and houses Milwaukee Public Radio.[27][28]
14	Allen-Bradley Clock Tower		283 / 86.3	17	1962	The world's second-largest four-sided clock sits atop this tower.[29][30][31]
15	Wisconsin Tower		280 / 85.3	22	1930	Second-tallest building in Milwaukee at the time of its completion; converted into 74 condominiums in 2006.[32]
16	BMO Harris Bank Building		277 / 84.4	21	1969	Former headquarters of M&I Bank, the largest bank based in Wisconsin.[33][34]
17	Bay View Terrace		275 / 83.8	25	1964	Tallest building on Milwaukee's south side. The north and south facades have no windows, save for the balcony doors.[35]
18	Hilton Milwaukee City Center		274 / 83.5	25	1927	The antenna on top makes the total height of the building 630 feet (192m).[36]
19	Regency House		265 / 80.8	27	1969	[37]
20	Juneau Village		264 / 80.5	27	1965	[38]
21	Yankee Hill Apartments 1		261 / 79.6	23	1987	[39]
22	The BreakWater		260 / 79.2	21	2009	[40]
23	833 East Michigan		258 / 78.7	17	2016	[41]
24	633 Building		252 / 76.8	20	1962	[42]
25	Wisconsin Gas Building		250 / 76.2	20	1930	[43]
	Locust Court Apartments		250 / 76.2	24	1969	[44][45]
	Arlington Court Apartments		250 / 76.2	24	1969	[44][46]
	The Pfister Hotel		250 / 76.2	21	1965	Hotel dates back to the late 19th century. Visitors have claimed it is haunted.[47] The tower was added to the hotel in 1965.[48]
	Basilica of St. Josaphat		250 / 76.2	1	1901	[49]
30	Landmark on the Lake		248 / 75.6	27	1991	The building is 248 feet tall from the Prospect Avenue entrance; the building is 350 feet tall at the rear.[50]
31	Cathedral Place		244 / 74.4	19	2004	A mixed-use tower where the 27 residential units are on the lower floors, and the 200,000 square feet of office space is on the upper floors. The building won a Distinguished Building Award from the Chicago Chapter of the American Institute of Architects in 2005.[51]
32	Sandburg Residence Hall, North Tower		243 / 74.1	27	1971	The North Tower's height reaches 482 feet (147m) with the antenna.[52][53][54]
33	Diamond Tower		238 / 72.5	21	1982	Contains 113 condos.[55][56]
34	Hyatt Regency		234 / 71.3	18	1980	[57]

Tallest under construction, approved, and proposed

This lists buildings that are under construction, approved, or proposed in Milwaukee.

Timeline of tallest buildings

References

General

• Emporis.com - Milwaukee

Specific

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Buildings in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

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