By Melanie Boyung
Special to the News Graphic
SAUKVILLE — A local charity and a developer are working together on a “gamechanger” multi-use project, which hopes to create a multigenerational community with all manner of resources and amenities within the village of Saukville.
Concept plans have come out for Northern Gateway, a mixed-use living community that would integrate living units, business, youth sports, community gathering spaces, and entertainment in a single development area. “It’s a gamechanger,” Tom Stanton of Mel’s Charities said.
Mel’s Charities is a nonprofit with the mission statement “Great times for great causes,” which fundraises and supports other nonprofits throughout Ozaukee County, emphasizing human services, special needs, and memorial scholarships. It is the charity working with Ansay Development to create Northern Gateway.
Tom Meaux, president of Ansay Development, said the development would be a destination for the Saukville community and beyond and a community for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The housing in the development will have units for all types of people from all demographics, Meaux said, with about a quarter of the units being targeted and designated for people functioning with disabilities.
This is one possible entrance to Northern Gateway, looking north.
Submitted renderings
This map shows the proposed site of Northern Gateway in relation to I-43 and Highway 33.
This rendering shows an aerial view of the Northern Gateway from the northwest corner of the plaza.
“It’s all about serving the IDD community and also providing a really fun environment for the whole community,” Meaux said.
Meaux said the planned community development would add great value to Saukville and Ozaukee County.
Stanton said many of the businesses and organizations becoming involved in Northern Gateway also plan on having employment opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, making the development a place they can live, work and play.
Meaux said that the Northern Gateway development has gone to the village of Saukville’s Plan Commission once already, months ago in 2020, and received support from the initial plans commission. He said they hope to have more detailed plans to bring back to the village in the next 30 to 60 days.
There are about 100 acres of available land owned by Ansay Development at the location, north of Camping World in Saukville, north of Highway 33, and just east of Interstate 43. Stanton said the land was originally planned for a superstore, but that fell through years back during the recession.
Phase one of the project will be “Mel’s Village,” a town center space for Northern Gateway, which will include business space, community spaces, apartments, and recreation resources, according to a presentation given recently to Ozaukee Master Gardeners.
That presentation listed Wayne’s Drive-In, AMRAP Method, Stix Golf Bar, Glaze, Balance, Inc., Grafton Girls Club Volleyball, North Shore United Soccer, Bader Foundation Concordia University as businesses and organizations involved in the town center plans.
Concept plans for the full development show open green spaces, public plazas, an indoor sports building, biking, and walking paths in addition to commercial and community buildings. Future phases include additional housing as well.
“It’s going to be a really amazing thing,” Stanton said. “This will sustain Mel’s Charities’ mission well past me.”
Information from the development’s concept plans stated the plaza and open spaces in Northern Gateway could also be used for all manner of events in the Saukville community, such as farmer’s markets, cookouts, run-walk events, evening concerts, corporate events, informal outdoor games, and other gatherings.