David Tomblin, founder of Highgrove Holdings Management LLC, stands to lose control of about one-third of his Milwaukee properties after a judge ordered a receiver in a lawsuit brought by U.S. Bank, one of Tomblin’s biggest lenders.
As WUWM previously reported, Highgrove and about 12 related LLCs own over 200 rental properties in Milwaukee, many of which are in disrepair.
Following a year-long campaign by the advocacy organization Common Ground, tenants in these properties organized to document code violations and allied with the Milwaukee City Attorney to bring a lawsuit alleging the properties and Highgrove’s business model is a public nuisance. When the lawsuit was filed, Tomblin owed over $300,000 in property taxes and had over 4,000 DNS violations.
At the same time, U.S. Bank filed suit against Highgrove in January 2025, alleging it owed over $8 million after not paying towards a $6.8 million loan for over a year.
The city’s nuisance lawsuit deals with 138 of Highgrove’s properties, or about two-thirds of the portfolio. U.S. Bank’s lawsuit involves an additional 86 properties. Both suits asked the court to appoint a third-party receiver, which would take over property management duties from Highgrove and cut the company off from rental income.
On Wednesday, a judge in Milwaukee County Circuit Court ruled that the 86 properties involved in the U.S. Bank lawsuit should be appointed to a receiver. This came after Highgrove missed another payment deadline in late May.
Tomblin’s defense has 24 hours to file an objection. In Wednesday’s hearing, Tomblin’s defense argued that Highgrove had trouble securing new funding after the City of Milwaukee filed its lawsuit against Highgrove in March.
“Why are we sitting here today? Well, the City of Milwaukee filed two lawsuits,” Tomblin’s attorney argued. “So where’d the investors go? Well, they got a little bit shaky.”
Tomblin did not immediately respond for comment.
Milwaukee City Attorney Evan Goyke declined comment on Tomblin’s assertion that the City’s lawsuit affected his ability to raise funding, but said his office is “hopeful that working with the receiver will make it more likely that the property taxes and unpaid municipal court judgments are paid to the City and the problematic property conditions are abated.”
‘This is step one’
Kevin Solomon, senior associate organizer for Common Ground, helped organize Highgrove tenants to document unreported code violations and provide data for the City of Milwaukee to build its receivership case.
After Wednesday’s hearing, he noted Tomblin has promised new funding to fix properties for over a year and never delivered.
“Tomblin always has an excuse,” Solomon said. “He’s always said money’s coming. But rather than going out and fixing the properties, he decided Monday to come to City Hall and smile in front of cameras,” referring to Tomblin’s presence at Monday’s Steering and Rules Committee meeting.
Deshawn Harris, a former Highgrove tenant whose home Tomblin transferred to new ownership as part of a mortgage foreclosure, said Wednesday’s decision was a win for Highgrove’s tenants. For the six years as Tomblin’s tenant, issues in Harris’ home included a five-foot-deep hole underneath her porch, backyard overgrowth, an unusable bath and shower and a bullet lodged in her dining room wall since last summer.
“I feel so great, so overwhelmed,” she said. “For all the tenants he’s hurt, and put through hell and back, this is the result.”
Though Wednesday’s decision will not directly impact the City of Milwaukee’s lawsuit, Solomon sees it as momentum for remaining Highgrove tenants.
“It’s a new day for tenants. We’re evicting David Tomblin. This is step one, stay tuned for step two,” Solomon said.
