Press Release
June 2, 2024

Construction starts on FPC Live venue in Milwaukee

Daily Reporter

Construction started on Thursday for the 4500-person FPC Live venue in Milwaukee’s Deer District.

The project at 1051 N. Vel R. Phillips, next door to the Fiserv Forum, has been approved twice. The city approved the first iteration of the venue in 2023, but the owners had to rework the original plan to keep up with rising construction costs. In November 2023, the Common Council approved the final proposal. Joel Plant, the CEO of Madison-based Frank Productions, said construction is budgeted at $65 million.

Crews have started driving piles for footings and foundations and will prepare concrete pile caps after around five weeks, Plant said. A “going vertical” celebration is slated after the Republican National Convention in late July as concrete and steel panels are placed upright. The outer shell of the venue will take form in August, he added.

Neenah-based Miron Construction is the project general contractor. FPC Live is in a labor agreement with Miron, Milwaukee-based JCP Construction, Milwaukee Building and Construction Trades Council and the area hospitality workers union.

The owner has been working closely with the Milwaukee 2024 Host Committee, the Secret Service and the Milwaukee Bucks and will pause construction a week before and during the convention.

“Our objective is to play our small part and make sure the convention is successful and Milwaukee gets to shine on the international stage,” Plant remarked.

Plant said his goals were to have the building as enclosed as possible and finish concrete work by winter, with possibility for winterization as construction goes on. After the outside is enclosed, crews will get to work with interior buildouts and install seating, mezzanines, bars and more. The promoter has an aggressive goal to complete the project in early fall of 2025.

Project completion will tie in with timing for booking music acts. Preliminary bookings could happen as soon as early or mid-2025 as the completion date closes in, Plant explained.

Frank Production has also been in talks with different companies for naming opportunities for several years, Plant said. The owner will likely have a name ready before the first lineup is announced.

The contractor will have monitoring equipment at nearby Turner Hall before, during and after construction of the new venue after the nonprofit that owns the building reached out with concerns.

Piles being driven are intentionally placed as close to Turner Hall as possible so the construction team can get an idea of potential effects on the Turner Hall building. Plant noted the building survived significant construction close to the recently completed Baird Center.

The CEO said it was his company’s goal to be “great neighbors, and that starts during the construction process itself.”