Located just west of downtown Milwaukee, the Avenues West neighborhood is home to several institutions, light industrial and retail businesses, churches, schools and residential areas. Just a short drive or walk away, you can reach downtown attractions, sports and convention venues and major highways.

The Avenues West Association is a not-for-profit neighborhood association that advocates for development and revitalization, aesthetic enhancement, cooperative marketing and planning, networking and safety throughout the Avenues West neighborhood.

Along with its partner — Business Improvement District (BID) #10 — the association leads the way in promoting community stability, land balance and economic development.

In the 1870s, Avenues West emerged as a neighborhood for Milwaukee’s wealthier set. Patrick Cudahy and Frederick Pabst were among the many well-known business owners in the city who owned mansions on Grand Avenue. It was a popular place for the elite to be. Residents worshiped at Protestant churches, including St. James Episcopal and Calvary Presbyterian. For those Irish Catholics who made Tory Hill home, an industrial working class neighborhood that bordered Avenues West, St. Gall’s and Holy Name were primary worship sites. Both of these churches were run by Jesuits of the Society of Jesus who founded Marquette College (now University) in 1881 on 10th and State Streets.

If Grand Avenue mansions did not disappear during the Great Depression, many were remodeled into multi-family units or replaced by apartment buildings. Several hospitals, the Ambassador Hotel, and the Milwaukee Courthouse would come to support the changing residential landscape of Avenues West.

The neighborhood of Avenues West is now known for its affordable housing and rich demographic diversity. This blend of both residential and commercial areas in an urban setting makes Avenues West a distinct and unique neighborhood in Milwaukee.