Sean Pavone Getty Images/iStockphoto
Visitors to Milwaukee’s Downtown lakefront will see multiple improvements this spring and summer; others are on the drawing board.
One project under construction is a redo of the parking lot north of the Milwaukee County War Memorial Center. The landmark modernist building was designed by renowned architect Eero Saarinen and dedicated in 1957. Recent exterior refurbishments included restorations of the facade and “birdcage stairs,” restoration of the deck area, the addition of a granite monument ring and green-roof plantings, as well as replacement of the “eternal flame” sculpture with upgrades to the reflecting-pond monument. Now, the building’s surroundings are getting attention.
What began as a routine resurfacing project evolved into a more comprehensive and transformative undertaking according to the project’s manager, Julie Bastin, a Milwaukee County senior architect and engineer. Planners decided this was a “perfect opportunity for Milwaukee to feature the lakefront with a high-profile ‘green infrastructure’ project” to address multiple needs, said Bastin. Through extensive collaboration and planning, the county leveraged $500,000 allocated for the overlay project into improvements that will total about $3 million. The expanded project received funding support from the Fund for Lake Michigan, Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) and National Fish and Wildlife Foundation–Save Our Great Lakes. UW-Milwaukee's School of Architecture and Urban Planning also consulted on the project.
The War Memorial upgrade is a central component of Greenprint: Milwaukee Shoreline Vision Plan, which incorporates numerous strategies to promote the lakefront’s long-term health. Stormwater management techniques include permeable pavers that decrease runoff, a system of bioswales to capture rainwater, native landscaping and a dry-rock channel that conveys stormwater during rain events. These enhancements will help capture, slow and filter water from surrounding pavements before it drains into Lake Michigan, according to a description by The Sigma Group, the project’s designer. The prairie plantings will also enhance the lakefront’s ecological habitat and serve as a scenic buffer between the parking lot and the lakewalk, which is part of the Oak Leaf Trail.
This project builds upon Milwaukee’s role as a national leader in green infrastructure, an approach originally initiated by Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District to reduce reliance on costly sewer expansions. Green infrastructure economically manages stormwater while also improving water quality and habitats. Projects often create more green space to serve community needs. Phase one should be complete by early summer, said Bastin.
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Phase two of the project, still being designed, will add other improvements to War Memorial and Veterans Park entrances, including more pedestrian-friendly walkways and a renovation of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial plaza.
Courtesy of Friends of Lakeshore State Park
Plans for Lakeshore State Park
Attracting more visitors than ever is Wisconsin’s only state park located in the heart of a downtown urban environment. Attendance at Lakeshore State Park, which is always free of charge, rose from 405,000 in 2019 to 418,000 in 2020. Angela Vickio, the park manager and naturalist who also manages the adjacent Hank Aaron State Trail, said attendance rose despite the pandemic-related cancellation of all educational tours and special events.
On a recent walk along the 1.7-mile paved trail through the 22-acre park, Vickio pointed out places where projects are underway or planned. The park’s fishing pier, which juts into the lagoon between the park and the Summerfest grounds, will be repaired this spring. Two new native-plant prairies have been installed near the park’s south entrance. Demonstration gardens at the north end serve as models for home gardeners.
In February, the Friends of Lakeshore State Park (FLSP) publicly launched a request for proposal (RFP) for a capital campaign consultant to raise funds for the park’s Visitor and Education Center. Kubala Washatko Architects’ “high-yield, low-impact design” for the 2,500 square-foot center is “the culmination of several years of planning for a much-needed building to complete the park’s master plan,” a friends-group brochure says. “The park lacks any indoor amenities; an abrupt change of weather or the need for facilities can significantly alter educational programming and limit usage of the park during Wisconsin’s long winter.”
The exceptionally green building may include solar-energy panels mounted on a shade structure over an outdoor plaza with room for 300 visitors. Other exterior features could include a fireplace, stormwater green infrastructure and native agricultural gardens. The interior elements are preliminarily set to include restrooms that are open year-round, an atrium gathering area, a meeting room, interactive educational displays, an office and showers for boaters docking overnight at the marina's reservable slips.
Vickio said that early conceptual plans for the one-story building have been vetted through various review processes. The design has been developed collaboratively and is compliant with the existing property master plan. She said that the site for the center, in the middle of the park, will make it more accommodating for all visitors, including school children and those wishing to experience the park year-round.
A longtime board member of FLSP also shared one of his dreams for the center. David Holmes, an environmental scientist and the national brownfield technical leader for Stantec, hopes to “bring more awareness of the underwater portion of Milwaukee’s lakefront,” not just its onshore life. “I’m hoping we can figure out how to install some underwater cameras in the lagoons—perhaps near fish nests or other habitat attractions—which could then potentially be viewed on display screens inside the center. Making the underwater habitat more visible could help promote its importance and result in a more holistic appreciation of the lakefront.” He said it could also support ongoing efforts by Wisconsin’s Department of Natural Resources and others to enhance ecological habitats in the park’s lagoons.
New Mini Park at Summerfest and Calatrava Repairs
The former children’s stage at Henry W. Maier Festival Park (Summerfest grounds) is being transformed into the Northwestern Mutual Community Park. To be completed by June, the children’s playground and theater area will welcome all families year-round, whenever the grounds are not hosting a festival, according to a statement by the Northwestern Mutual Foundation. Project planners intend to make it one of Wisconsin's most accessible playgrounds.
The playground will serve multiple age groups and include soft-surface flooring for safer play, recycled materials and shaded seating for parents. More than 4,000 square feet will be devoted to flexible spaces available for nonprofit organizations to produce interactive programming. The performance area will feature a permanent covered stage, accessible seating and a viewing area for 500 people.
An 1,800-square foot, air-conditioned family services building will include a quiet space where mothers can nurse their children. Three wheelchair-accessible, air-conditioned quiet rooms will offer a calm environment for children who may be overstimulated from the noise and environment of the festival grounds. Other renovations to the grounds will support the reconfigured Summerfest, now scheduled for three weekends in September, as well as ethnic fests and other events.
North of the Summerfest grounds, the Milwaukee Art Museum (MAM) completed updates to its Santiago Calatrava-designed Quadracci Pavilion. Thanks to Donna and Donald Baumgartner, Joel and Caran Quadracci and the Windhover Foundation, the museum made renovations throughout the pavilion. Completed projects include refinishing the marble floors in Windhover Hall and the wood floors in the Baker/Rowland Galleries. The hydraulic cylinders that help operate the Museum’s Burke Brise Soleil (the exterior “wings”) were also recently repaired, according to Josh Depenbrok, MAM's public relations manager.
In the Works?
Something significant is not coming to Milwaukee’s lakefront—so far. Milwaukee County Parks is reviewing proposals for small-cell wireless facilities (SWFs), which can be visually intrusive within a scenic landscape such as the lakefront. Three recent applications have been rejected for such towers to be placed within Milwaukee's northern lakefront, in Veterans and McKinley parks and along Lincoln Memorial Drive at the north end of Bradford Beach. Nonetheless, applications for 5G technology have been approved for installation along other county parkways.
Milwaukee County Park’s planning page says, “The streamlined application process allows the department to ensure limited negative impact to parklands.” A county workgroup was formed last fall to develop guidelines. As defined by a county board resolution, guidelines will seek to limit SWFs to areas that “do not impede upon historically designated locations, do not interfere with aesthetics in highly valued park spaces, do not obstruct views, are as minimally invasive as possible and result in the highest revenues possible to the county.”
A transit concourse north of the lakefront along Lincoln Memorial Drive is still on the drawing board. “The City of Milwaukee continues to work with the other stakeholders… regarding the future of this project,” said Brian DeNeve, marketing and communications officer for the City of Milwaukee’s Department of Public Works. Collaborators include Milwaukee County, the Federal Transportation Administration and the developer of a planned tower with luxury rental units. “We look forward to The Couture development so we can connect our existing tracks on Michigan and Clybourn streets to the planned transit concourse. Providing streetcar service to the lakefront will further enhance the overall connectivity of the downtown and its many amenities for all of the city’s residents and visitors to enjoy,” said DeNeve.
