What Should Be Built in the Former Cannery Property?

For Sussex Patch’s second  column, let’s turn our attention toward the former .

Located at the corner of Main Street and Waukesha Avenue, the 10-acre plot has been in negotiations for over a year, mainly due to the location of the . One-eighth of an acre needs to be moved to develop on the land.

, a Brookfield man who purchased the property in Jan. 2010, has been working with the village to get federal permission to move the trail from the center of the property to the outskirts.

Because the former Bugline Railroad provided drop-offs and pick-ups of railroad freight cars to the sprawling cannery factory, the rails ran essentially right through the center of the parcel, as does the Bugline trail today.

Once the Bugline trail is approved for relocation, Sawall envisions five buildings, either three or four stories high, comprised of roughly 135 units of "high-end housing." They would have underground parking.

He also envisions two retail and commercial-use buildings of either one or two stories, each with easy-access surface parking and filled with retail stores, offices and a coffee shop or restaurant.

He has his ideas, and we have ours.

Considering very little progress has been made on the site, there’s still time to feed Sawall ideas as to what Sussex residents would like to see occupy that space. And with a 10-acre canvas, let your imaginations run wild.

Tell us in the comments below: What would you like to see built at this massive, centrally located and corner property?