Rule Enterprises and Movin’ Out will hold a groundbreaking event at the corner of South Park Street and Cedar Street in the City of Madison on Monday, October 25, at 9:00 am. Speakers will include Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway, Kathryne Auerback, executive director of Movin’ Out, and Brandon Rule, president of Rule Enterprises.
Brandon Rule’s first Madison project is a $43 million mixed-use project on Madison’s Southside on land referred to as the Truman Olson property. In addition to 150 mixed-income apartments, this development will include a 24,000 square foot grocery store. It is the result of a collaboration between Rule Enterprises and Movin’ Out, with the support of the City of Madison and many other funders.
Entrepreneur Brandon Rule grew up in the Clarke Square neighborhood on the near south side of Milwaukee and has watched as gentrification has displaced residents. Preserving affordable housing is important to him, and in his role as founder of Rule Enterprises, he works to include affordable options in his developments.
“Everything we do at Rule Enterprises is rooted in equity, equality, and dignity,” says Rule. “Quality housing for the working class at an affordable rate is a key component to economic mobility and opportunity, and as an African American developer I feel a particular responsibility to create that opportunity.”
While at Marquette University, Rule joined the Associates in Commercial Real Estate (ACRE) Program. Marquette University created the industry-supported initiative that is now run by LISC Milwaukee to recruit and retain people of color for careers in the commercial real estate fields of development, property management, and construction management. Rule worked as Regional Director of Business Development at the CDFI’s Community Reinvestment Fund and Forward Community Investments, and immersed himself in the field before he was awarded his first tax credit development in 2016. He has projects underway in Milwaukee and Madison, and is working on other areas throughout the country, with mixed-income housing as a major component in each.
Situated on Madison’s Southside, this project combines 150 affordable housing units with a 24,000 square foot space for a grocery store. The neighborhood was at risk of losing a major grocery store and becoming a food desert. The initial grocer selected chose not to go forward, and the City of Madison will select a new grocer tenant in the coming months.
The apartments will include 30 supportive units, the most affordable and most accessible apartments designated for people with disabilities or veterans. In addition, the project will include 161 structured parking spaces, and amenities for tenants including a community room, fitness center, and areas for youth to play and study.
The project is at the corner of South Park Street and the newly extended Cedar Street. The land, which has long been vacant, is owned by the City of Madison which donated it for the project.
