In 1857, a new harbor entrance from Lake Michigan was constructed to allow ships to travel north up the Milwaukee River. This simple piece of engineering forever changed Downtown Milwaukee and the Beerline B Neighborhood. An ambitious canal project financed by Byron Kilbourn once split the neighborhood, only to be filled back in by 1884. The canal became Commerce Street and the “Beerline B” railroad line was born. The Beerline served the breweries, tanneries and mills in the area. Up until the 1920’s, the neighborhood was a lively industrial valley, with much of its success tied to rail and water transportation. With the advent of highways and truck transportation, however, most industry moved out.
But the city is a dynamic place. Where industry fell fallow, new opportunities rose. The Beerline B Neighborhood is perfectly located as an urban residential enclave in close proximity to Downtown Milwaukee. Access to jobs, shopping, culture and entertainment was appealing and new residential development started taking off in the mid-1990’s. In 1999, the City of Milwaukee published the Beerline B Master Plan and Neighborhood Code to guide the development of the neighborhood in a coherent way. The Beerline B Apartments is the latest addition to the neighborhood. While most of developments in the area are condos, the Beerline B Apartments offers an affordable alternative with all the benefits the location has to offer.