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Kenosha Public Market seeks to restore JCPenney as downtown grocery, offices and training kitchen
Summary
The Kenosha Public Market presented a conceptual plan to rehabilitate the city-owned JCPenney/Alford Building into an 18,000-square-foot grocery, mezzanine market space, offices and a basement commercial kitchen aimed at addressing a downtown food desert; commissioners gave conceptual approval to proceed with design and financing work.
Mike McTernan, president of the Kenosha Public Market, told the City Plan Commission the group has a contract with the city and has spent the last year on engineering and cost estimates for rehabilitating the city-owned former JCPenney/Alford Building into a grocery-focused public market. "This project is to build a site that would house a grocery store in Downtown Kenosha," McTernan said, describing roughly 18,000 square feet for a grocer, a 7,500-square-foot mezzanine for food-service and flexible retail uses, and basement space for a commercial teaching kitchen.
The nut graf: proponents said the redevelopment would fill a major gap in food access downtown, where McTernan described the area as "a food desert" more than three miles from the nearest grocery. He said the project would also preserve the historic building and create office space and other uses that could animate the block.
City staff noted the site is zoned B-3 (central business) and that the uses proposed are permitted; exterior changes would still require historic-preservation review. A staff representative told the commission the concept plan is being presented for review and comment and that exterior materials and historic review will be addressed at later steps.
Speakers at the public hearing offered mixed context: a representative for a prior developer said his company has an ongoing lawsuit related to an earlier project and cautioned about equitable treatment; other residents and Alderman Bill Seal praised the market concept. "It would, click off a lot of good boxes," one supporter said, calling out reuse and food access benefits.
Commissioners commended the proposal and asked for detail on operations, parking and elevator access to upper floors; McTernan said the team is pursuing financing, has engagement from a grocer and hopes to return with final plans in six to eight months if the commission allows the project to move forward. The commission voted to receive the conceptual plan and encouraged staff and the applicant to continue design and financing work.
The commission's action does not grant final approvals; the project will return for subsequent historic-preservation review, final plan review and conditional permits once financing and architectural details are complete.
The commission received the file and directed staff to work with the applicant on material and historic-review issues and on any necessary parking arrangements.
