Photo via Friends of the Domes
Mitchell Park Domes
Mitchell Park Domes
For nearly a decade, the Mitchell Park Horticultural Conservatory, known as the Domes, faced uncertainty about its survival. Despite being a beloved community asset, long-term deferred maintenance, inertia and proposed demolition threatened the trio of glass domes that house an irreplaceable collection of tropical and arid plants.
Now, a new plan and partnership agreement between Milwaukee County and Friends of the Domes offers a path forward to preserve the “modernist marvel” and to care for the facility and Mitchell Park, where it is located. Officials from Milwaukee County Parks and Friends of the Domes presented the plan as an informational report at the September meeting of the County Board’s Committee on Parks, Recreation and Culture.
Here are some key takeaways about “The Domes Reimagined” effort and related issues.
Friends of the Domes is taking the lead. Founded in 1989, Friends of the Domes is the nonprofit support organization that currently manages half of the operations of the Mitchell Park Domes. The other half is managed by Milwaukee County Parks. The Friends’ organization “has experienced tremendous growth over the past few years, due to strategic investments in infrastructure and staff resources,” according to Christa Beall Diefenbach, executive director of Friends of the Domes.
Friends of the Domes has more than 25 staff, 250 volunteers and nearly 5,000 members. Their mission is to “promote and support the Mitchell Park Horticultural Conservatory (The Domes) and surrounding park by creating and enhancing the visitor experience of this globally significant urban destination.” Friends of the Domes provides educational and membership programming, retail services, funds for facility enhancements, and volunteer recruitment and management in support of the Mitchell Park Horticultural Conservatory. Revenues to support this mission come from fundraising, events, membership dues, and retail sales 9milwaukeedomes.org).
Improving the visitor experience and increasing revenue will inform all decision making. The total capital expenditures for the Domes Reimagined project are $134 million. This includes all aspects of the project, including restoring The Domes, adding a children’s garden and cafe, expanding the gift shop, and adding a new nature learning center and outdoor garden.
The new vision addresses the key challenges facing the Domes for decades:
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- The Domes’ will be repaired, renovated and enhanced. The physical layout and systems will be updated to improve the visitor experience and meet current operational needs.
- Additions will include a café and the creation of a “Little Sprouts” play area in an existing 5,000-square-foot space within the Domes complex. Additionally, a new educational center and an outdoor sustainable “rain garden” on the site of the park’s former sunken garden will be constructed in a second phase. These upgrades will support longer and more repeat visits, thus expanding ways for people to enjoy the Domes, and for the facility to generate revenue.
- Improvements to Mitchell Park will focus on making it more inviting and addressing safety issues and concerns through more amenities and activities. Beall Diefenbach said, “There are no vanity projects included in this plan. Every aspect achieves two goals: improved visitor experience and greater revenue.”
Funding will come from numerous sources. Proposed revenue sources include private philanthropy, tax credit financing, federal and state funding from grants, and an investment from Milwaukee County of about $30 million, which is proposed as $5 million allocations over six years.
Milwaukee County would support the nomination of the Domes to the National Register of Historic Places. This is required to become eligible for historic tax credits, a key funding tool used in historic preservation.
The plan honors the Domes’s architectural and experiential uniqueness and significance, which is valued by people locally, state, wide and nationally.Originally constructed in the early 1960s in what was, at the time, an industrial valley, the Domes are a vital architectural landmark and educational asset for Milwaukee County. They are unique in the world as the only beehive-shaped horticultural conservatory. The Domes remain deeply rooted in the memories of many Milwaukee County residents and are a popular tourist destination. “Rising from the smokestacks, these glorious glass bubbles were described at their inception as a ‘willful act of hope’,” said Beall Diefenbach. “Their daringly beautiful design is truly a mathematical marvel.”
An experienced preservation-focused developer will assist in the complex historic preservation and redevelopment process. The Alexander Company will consult with Friends of the Domes to bring this project to fruition. The Madison-based real estate development and management firm has over 40 years’ experience specializing in historic preservation and complex public-private partnerships entailing unique financial structures. The Alexander Company spearheaded the public-private partnership to restore Milwaukee Soldiers Home, an effort that has received extensive national and regional acclaim and was featured in the 2022 documentary A Place to Call Home. Although The Alexander Company will aid in historic preservation and arranging of financing, The Domes would be managed and operated by Friends of the Domes.
The plan reflects a “conservancy” approach, which preserves and protects a public asset for the greater good. Ownership of the horticultural facility would, over time, transfer to Friends of the Domes. Mitchell Park, however, would remain a part of the Milwaukee County Parks system in perpetuity. The Domes’ mission as a community horticultural community resource would continue. Beall Diefenbach said it will not involve “turning the Domes into a ballpark or a Disneyland…We will focus on connecting people to nature.” The county would also continue to support the operation by funding its horticultural staff.
Guy Smith, executive director of Milwaukee County Parks, told the county board committee, “The Friends of the Domes have an exciting vision. Together, we have the right team at the right time.”
The plan would also avert a costly demolition that would result in a barren site in the South Side park. As a 2024 article documented in the Shepherd Express, shepherdexpress.com/news/features/the-hidden-costs-of-demolishing-the-domes, demolishing the Domes would incur both actual and less tangible costs. The current estimated price for their demolition is $11.4 million, with the “true net cost or Milwaukee County” estimated at $18.6 million.
Sustainability and wellness are goals of the project. It “preserves the Domes’ historic past while creating a sustainable future that more fully supports its mission...This project supports the County’s wellness goals, ensuring that Milwaukee County continues to have an indoor horticultural oasis for generations to come,” Beall Deifenbach said.
Other partners are supporting the effort. We Energies and Johnson Controls have been enlisted to help make renovations that will decrease the Domes’ energy costs and make them more sustainable, Beal Diefenbach told the committee.
The board of the nonprofit Milwaukee Preservation Alliance also is enthusiastic about the plan. Executive director Emma Rudd said in an email, “With its commitment to the restoration of the irreplaceable landmark that is our Mitchell Park Domes, Milwaukee Preservation Alliance is proud to support the 'Domes Reimagined' plan. We believe in the integrity of the numbers presented and the clearly defined path forward. We trust wholeheartedly in the Friends of the Domes' vision and their commitment to preservation and look forward to seeing this incredible future for Mitchell Park and the Domes realized.”
The National Trust for Historic Preservation named the Mitchell Park Horticultural Conservatory a “National Treasure” in 2017 and continues to promote awareness (savingplaces.org/places/the-domes) about its significance and to advocate for a preservation solution. Other national organizations calling for the Domes’ restoration include The Cultural Landscape Foundation (tclf.org/demoting-domes), and DoCoMoMo, an advocacy organization focused on modernist legacies (docomomo-us.org/news/the-mitchell-park-domes-milwaukee-s-public-modernist-marvel).
