Construction has stalled for several months on The Edison, a $230 million, 32-story concrete-wood hybrid tower in downtown Milwaukee. Now, the project’s general contractor has filed more than $14 million in construction liens against the developer for unpaid work at The Edison and a second project in Madison, Wisconsin.
CD Smith Construction, based in Fond du Lac, Wis., filed a $10.15 million construction lien against The Edison SPE LLC, a subsidiary of Madison-based Neutral, for work at The Edison. When announced in 2024, the 378-unit tower was expected to become the tallest solid wood building in North America, surpassing the 25-story rise in Milwaukee.
The second lien, totaling $4.1 million, was filed against Baker’s Place, a 13-story, 206-unit apartment building in Madison that was completed in May.
Neutral halted construction at The Edison in September, citing tariffs and inflation, and described the pause as temporary. Although the foundations had been poured, the tower crane and other equipment were removed from the site in November.
Concerns about Neutral’s performance at The Edison led Milwaukee officials in November to withdraw the company as the preferred developer for a planned $750 million redevelopment of the Marcus Performing Arts Center parking structure across the street. The proposal had called for up to 750 residential units, 190,000 square meters of offices, 300 hotel rooms, structured parking and public plazas.
There is no reliable independent confirmation of Neutral’s performance or status, but some in Milwaukee were not impressed.
“They were totally inept. They had no financial track record. They had no development track record [other than the Baker Apartments] and they’re kaput,” Councilman Bob Bauman said during a recent Milwaukee Common Council committee meeting.
He said the city’s preference for Neutral in the parking center project “was a bad decision driven by beautiful renderings and nice ideas.”
“Hindsight is 20/20,” said Lafayette Crump, commissioner of the Department of City Development. “It makes sense that we take a fresh look at what’s possible in the parking center.”
Neutral did not respond to a request for comment. In January, the company said it had secured $133.3 million in financing for The Edison. CD Smith declined to comment on the embargoes.
As for the future of The Edison, Bauman noted that Neutral owns the land and the city has little role until another developer steps in. He believes a new proposal could differ significantly from the original tower.
“The entire project will be redesigned using most of the work that has already been completed,” he predicts.
