Milwaukee apartment complex at center of arson investigation had recent fire code violation
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Police say they’re investigating it as arson, and the fire started inside an apartment unit.
MPD is seeking a known suspect, and as of Wednesday, no one has been arrested.
One resident said he heard that it was started over an argument.
"A gentleman filed a police report on his daughter that allegedly set his couch on fire. So, we'll see how it turns out," said Duncan Mason, who lives at the New Hampton Gardens apartments.
The Milwaukee Police Department has not confirmed if that is what happened.
The fire affected 50 apartment units, according to the Department of Neighborhood Services (DNS). Nine of those units were seriously damaged.
DNS expects it to take several days before any displaced tenants can return to the building.
The American Red Cross of Wisconsin established a shelter at the old McNair Elementary School next door to the building, and 76 people and one dog spent Tuesday night there.
"The shelter will be open until all those people find an alternate housing solution," said their communications director, Jennifer Warren.
According to the Milwaukee Fire Department, the large apartment complex did not have sprinklers.
While a sprinkler system would be required by today's standards, the City of Milwaukee Department of Neighborhood Services confirmed it was not required at the time of the building's construction due to its height. The code at the time applied to buildings with a minimum height of 60 ft.
Despite that, Mayor Cavalier Johnson said Wednesday that property owners in large buildings should alert DNS if they don't have sprinklers and should actively work to get them.
"Our firefighters should not be running into buildings without the knowledge about whether or not it's sprinkled or not. They have the power, they have the information to give that over to us," Mayor Johnson explained. "I'm disappointed by that, and I want that to change."
According to DNS records, the owner of the building is set to appear in court in February due to a failed fire inspection.
The report shows several fire extinguishers were missing from their boxes during an inspection on Nov. 26, 2025.
Records show the property owner did not fix the violation by the time of re-inspection on Dec. 30, 2025.
According to DNS, the building did a fire inspection in September, indicating the extinguishers were removed afterward.
Records also show an advisory violation filed on Nov. 26, in which inspectors heard several smoke detectors beeping from residential units, indicating they had low battery and/or were out of date.