The status of Unity Church's longtime occupancy of the northwest corner of Milwaukee Avenue and 73rd Street is settled. The congregation has decided to wind down its use of the building, and by this time next year, the church and its preschool tenant, the Children's Workshop, will have moved to new homes elsewhere.
The future of the church's three-quarter-acre property, on the other hand, is up in the air after the City of Wauwatosa's Community Development Authority closed on a purchase of 1717 N. 73rd St. on June 30. A news release from the city said it had no redevelopment proposals yet and was focused on supporting Unity Church and the Children's Workshop as they vacate the space over the next year.
"Once the building is vacated by current tenants, the city may seek development proposals that align with the long-term needs of the Wauwatosa area," the city said. "Both the city and Unity Church leadership view this transition as a thoughtful approach to long-term community growth."
The Community Development Authority has purchased other prominent properties in the past to help facilitate redevelopment, such as the former Boston Store at Mayfair Mall that is being turned into a SCHEELS sporting goods store. The authority also oversaw the yearslong effort to find a new use for 6330 W. North Ave., a former office building that eventually was transformed into Idyll Coffee Roasters.
If the city's purchase of the Unity Church property seems like it came out of nowhere, that's because it kind of did.