A heavy industry that helped fuel Milwaukee's early growth, and has since seen a long decline, is behind a new development coming to the city's near south side.
Law Tanning Co., which converts the hides of cows, bison and other animals into leather parts for boots, handbags and other products, is planning an expansion into a redeveloped historic building near its headquarters.
That $2.5 million investment is expected to create jobs as Law Tanning obtains more space to continue growing.
The project also illustrates how one of Milwaukee's oldest industries has adapted to change.
Founded in 1936, Law Tanning’s offices and manufacturing operations are at 1616 and 1638 W. Pierce St., in the Clark Square neighborhood.
Company President Ryan Law, in a partnership with architect, commercial real estate broker and developer John Raettig, plans to buy a historic 21,000-square-foot warehouse at 1875 W. Bruce St., about two blocks west of the tannery's headquarters.
That brick building, constructed in 1949 with a Neoclassical design style, was for several years home to International Harvester Co.'s heating plant, according to the Wisconsin Historical Society.
The new investment group formed by Raettig and Law plans to renovate the long-vacant, dilapidated building and lease it to Law Tanning.
The company will use the renovated building as a warehouse, according to a Department of City Development report.
"This will allow (Law) Tanning to free up some of its cramped main plant space so that (Law) Tanning can expand its manufacturing capacity," the report said.
The company, which has 76 employees, has been looking for an expansion site so it can increase production, Law said at a Tuesday meeting of the Common Council's Zoning, Neighborhoods and Development Committee.
"We're limited to what we can do" in the current space, Law told committee members.
With a new warehouse, and more production space, Law Tanning can add 10 to 15 jobs over the next year, the city report said.
Law Tanning in 2019 added new equipment, and recently committed to a complete rebuild of its on-site water treatment facility, according to the company.
Law told committee members the company portfolio has expanded from industrial products to "finer products," including those made from kangaroo hides.
The U.S. leather industry "has undergone a great contraction over the last 40 years," with commodity tanneries moving to China, India and other countries with lower wages and fewer environmental regulations, Law wrote in a recent testimonial for consulting firm Cogent Analytics.
Tanneries that still operate in the United States "have catered to customers that want highly specialized products that are unique, fashion/color focused, and need a quick turn-around in both R&D and production quantities alike," Law wrote.
"Law Tanning cannot be the least expensive, but we are one of the highest quality and product-diverse leather makers in the world," he wrote. "This diversified market strategy keeps us in business and growing."
The city is getting involved in Law Tanning's expansion project by acquiring the vacant building from its current owner, BCMR Development LLC, which owes around $102,000 in overdue property taxes, said Matt Haessly, a Department of City Development real estate specialist.
With the Common Council's approval, the city will foreclose on the property and then sell it to the new owner for $5,000, Haessly said.
The zoning committee unanimously recommended the sale.
Law Tanning is part of an industry that once provided thousands of jobs to people living in Milwaukee and other Wisconsin communities.
Starting in the mid-19th century, Milwaukee tanneries operated throughout the Menomonee Valley and north of downtown.
By around 1900, Wisconsin's tanning industry was producing about 15% of the nation's raw leather, according to the Wisconsin Historical Society.
"Wisconsin's abundant forests proved ideal territory for the development of the tanning industry in the 19th century which relied on tanning agents derived from tree bark," according to a society essay.
"Leather tanneries were located along streams or lakes to take advantage of the water needed to process hides. Unfortunately, the byproducts of tanning had a detrimental effect on the environment, polluting waterways and producing harmful odors," it said.
Ryan Law's great-grandfather, William Bancroft Law, started Law Tanning in 1936.
The business operated at South Sixth and West Virginia streets until moving to its current location in 1993.
That move occurred as the former Virginia Street complex, along the Menomonee River, was redeveloped into The Tannery business park as well as apartments.
Other former Milwaukee tannery sites were redeveloped over the past three decades as tanneries shut down.
Those included the sites near the Milwaukee River which are now River House Apartments, 1785 N. Water St.; Gallun Tannery Row Condos, which Raettig developed at 1818 N. Water St.; Trostel Square Apartments, 1818 N. Commerce St., and The North End apartments and retail development, 1551 N. Water St.
Law Tanning isn't the only Milwaukee tannery still in business.
Along with Seidel Tanning Corp., at 1306 E. Meinecke Ave., in the Riverwest neighborhood, the Menomonee Valley is home to two such operations: Thiele Tanning Co., 123 N. 27th St., and D.R. Diedrich & Co., 2615 W. Greves St.
"It's generally surprising that we still have some here" given the industry's broader decline, said Corey Zetts, executive director of Menomonee Valley Partners Inc.
But those family-supporting jobs are appreciated, said Zetts, whose group leads valley redevelopment efforts.
Indeed, Law Tanning wants to stay within the Clark Square neighborhood in part because all of its production and manufacturing employees live within 2.5 miles of the business, according to the company.
Law Tanning's former employees include Ald. Jose Perez's 96-year-old grandmother.
The tannery provided one of the first jobs she found after moving decades ago to Milwaukee from Puerto Rico, Perez said at the zoning committee meeting.
Tom Daykin can be emailed at tdaykin@jrn.com and followed on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
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Leather tanning helped fuel Milwaukee's growth. Despite an industry decline, one near south side firm is expanding. - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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