Milwaukee

From the Article:

A critical section of the Oak Leaf Trail running along the Root River Line has been temporarily closed.

The trail runs underneath Highway 100 in Wauwatosa, offering bicyclists and pedestrians a safe crossing underneath the six-lane state trunk highway.

Milwaukee County Parks closed the trail under Highway 100 to perform maintenance on a bridge, but the closure was recently extended into the “foreseeable future” as engineering crews “inspect and repair structural concerns” along the bridge.

There’s a metal cover over the bridge, but Parks doesn’t want Oak Leaf Trail users crossing the bridge right now “out of an abundance of caution,” Peter Bratt, director of skilled trades and operations told Urban Milwaukee.

Parks has suggested a detour on its interactive Oak Leaf Trail map, with trail users crossing Highway 100 along W. Watertown Plank Road.

The Root River Line, which is now cut off at Highway 100, runs north and south through the southwestern quarter of the county. It offers connections to other sections of the more than 135-mile trail network.

From the Article:

Urban Ecology Center in Riverside Park has partnered with Two Birds Event Group to operate its new 300-person Prairie Springs on Park event hall, 1420 E. Park Pl., that’s part of the $8.2 million Riverland Project.

You can read more about the project, including an in-depth look at the history of the cream city brick former industrial building that is being renovated into the hall, in this Urban Spelunking article.

“We are thrilled to partner with Two Birds to bring the Urban Ecology Center's vision for Prairie Springs on Park to life in the spring of 2025,” says UEC Executive Director Jen Hense.

“We admire Ramsey (Renno), Tyler (Curran) and their team's approach to creating memorable spaces and events across Milwaukee and look forward to working together."

Two Birds operates The Ivy House, The Starling and The Society venues as well as a number of events-related businesses. It recently announced another riverside events space called The Rivulet.

From the Article:

The first indoor pickleball facility in the city of South Milwaukee's could open in October after the Common Council approved the transformation of a former team soccer venue.

The plan to bring the $2.5 million Premier Pickleball Center to 305 N. Chicago Ave. will come after conditions imposed by the Common Council have been met, according to Patrick Brever, city administrator for South Milwaukee.

"I think the applicant has expressed agreement and understanding of the conditions imposed by our Plan Commission and Common Council. The applicant has what they need to move forward in order to open," Brever said.

Franklin businessman Guriqbal Sra owns the property. R.H. Chou & Associates will serve as the architect and designer for the project.

The facility has been planned to feature 12 pickleball courts inside the 40,000-square-foot space. The building would also include an event space, a 100-seat restaurant opened daily and a 10-piece gym and locker rooms, according to city documents.

Brever said the city has been told that the facility will open in October to capture high interest in the indoor pickleball season with the aim to open a third-party restaurant with a supper club concept within the facility by Nov. 1.

From the Article:

Changes could be coming soon to more than one White House.

Milwaukee’s own White House, located at 2900 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., is on the market.

The 4,800-square-foot building has been a presence in Bay View for more than 130 years. Now, owner and proprietor Allison Meinhardt is seeking a new leader to take the helm. The property is listed for $1.6 million.

That price tag includes all commercial restaurant equipment on the premises, including a walk-in cooler, stove, 50 antique chairs, antique sofas, glassware and more, according to the listing.

The development comes less than a year after Meinhardt announced significant changes to the venue, which transitioned to hosting events exclusively in early 2024. The move also brought changes to The White House’s eponymous restaurant, which was remodeled and replaced by SAGE, a modern American concept, in February.

The restaurant, opened in partnership with Alexander Stewart, emphasizes vegetable-forward dishes made with seasonal ingredients and colorful presentation. As of Friday afternoon, SAGE had not announced any upcoming changes to its operation.

From the Article:

Milwaukee’s streetcar system, The Hop, recorded 49,573 rides in August 2024. That works out to an average of 1,599 rides per day. August 2024 ridership was up slightly from August 2023, when 47,552 rides were recorded.

The Hop recorded 63,383 trips in July 2024—the highest monthly ridership of the year. That number was down slightly from previous Julys, however, thanks to low ridership during the Republican National Convention.

Prepare to argue.

From the Article:

Remember when Milwaukee pizza stalwart Pizza Man left its 10-year Downer Avenue home in March 2023? Remember when it then moved to the former Stubby’s Gastrogrub space on Humboldt Avenue/Boulevard? Remember when that location closed after only one year? Remember when it was then revealed that Pizza Man was coming back to its old location on Downer Avenue? Weird!

Anyway, Pizza Man’s “back-to-Downer” story is nearly complete. According to signs posted on the business’ windows, a grand opening is set for Friday, September 27. That’s tomorrow!

“Our remodeled space is almost ready, and we can’t wait to show you what’s in store!” reads a social media post from three days ago. “Stay tuned for a sneak peek of the new Pizza Man Downer look—it’s going to be better than ever!”

So there you go! Pizza Man is opening on Downer! Again! Under new ownership, apparently, so, um, let’s hope it lasts more than a year? (Pizza Man’s Wauwatosa location remains open.)

From the Article:

One of the great local losses of recent years is the loss of the Milwaukee PBS Great TV Auction. A hypnotically watchable and delightfully homegrown staple since 1969, the Great TV Auction was put out to pasture by Milwaukee PBS in 2019. No more overbids. No more table captains. No more handsomely framed photos of Brett Favre and Bart Starr. Boo.

Happily, old auctions in all their live-local-TV glory can be found on YouTube. One recently caught our eye: Behold, a Great TV Auction from 1987, featuring the usual assortment of donated goodies (Summerfest stuff, Wisconsin Dells stuff, a handsomely framed photo of Gorman Thomas and Pete Vuckovich), plus a Waukesha “dream home”!

From the Article:

A coalition of local officials and business leaders gathered at Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport Friday to stump for federal funding for a new international terminal.

Airport officials have been working on a new international terminal project for years, initially securing funding in 2017. But the project was paused when the COVID-19 pandemic devastated air travel, and the ensuing inflationary pressures pushed the estimated project cost beyond the previously secured funding award. The estimated cost was approximately $53 million in 2017. Now that number is closer to $80 million, said Airport Director Brian Dranzik.

The airport and Milwaukee County are working with federal officials and powerful local business interests to revive the project with federal funding made available through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The airport has applied for a competitive grant from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that could help close the approximately $30 million budget gap, Dranzik said at a press conference Friday.

The project is expected to boost travel in and out of Milwaukee Mitchell, leading to more flight options for leisure and business travelers alike; and boosting the local economy through increased tourism and efficiency for local companies doing business internationally.

“The real message that we want folks to understand is that in order to redevelop this particular concourse, Concourse E, it’s going to take the federal funds to do it,” County Executive David Crowley said. The county’s already troubling financial position has worsened over the past year, as a confluence of factors — including poor sales tax returns — have widened budget gaps in this year and next.

If funding is secured, the airport will redevelop Concourse E, shuttered in 2017, into a new two-gate facility for both domestic and international travel. The current international terminal is small, outdated and disconnected from the airport’s main building complex, presenting logistical challenges for international travelers and airlines alike. It was built in 1975 and has a capacity of 140 passengers, which is lower than the 200-person capacity of larger Boeing 767 and 787 aircraft used for long flights.

From the Article:

Even though she’s a Shorewood mom who loves reading to her two children, and is a bibliophile herself, Courtney Hyzer never planned – until recently – on opening a bookshop four blocks from her home.

But now, as she’s a few months away from debuting Wonderland Bookshop in Shorewood, Hyzer is sure this is her dream job and the perfect next chapter. The bookshop will open around Oct. 1 in the former Hayek’s Pharmacy building, on Capitol and Downer.

From the Article:

Democratic vice presidential candidate Gov. Tim Walz will deliver remarks in Milwaukee on Labor Day.

The Harris-Walz campaign confirmed that the Minnesota governor will speak at Laborfest, hosted by the Milwaukee Area Labor Council. The event is held annually at Henry Maier Festival Park, also known as the Summerfest grounds. His wife, first lady Gwen Walz, will also be in attendance.

The event runs from 11am until 5pm, but the campaign has not said what time the governor will be speaking.

This will be Gov. Walz’s first solo visit to the state on the campaign trail. He joined Vice President Kamala Harris at a rally at Fiserv Forum during the Democratic National Convention on July 20.

From the Article:

Backed by a federal grant, the City of Milwaukee intends to install publicly-accessible electric vehicle (EV) charging stations at 53 locations with 228 total ports.

Senator Tammy Baldwin announced the $14.9 million Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) grant Friday.

“This grant announcement is wonderful news for the people of Milwaukee. It is a big stride forward in achieving our city’s climate and equity goals,” said Mayor Cavalier Johnson in an announcement distributed by Baldwin’s office. “I am extremely grateful to Senator Baldwin for her work and her guidance that led to this award. And I am similarly grateful to the Biden-Harris administration for prioritizing investments to reduce our reliance on fuels with the greatest climate impacts.”

City officials, during the 2023 adoption of the Climate and Equity Plan, said they were pursuing a grant to fund charging stations. The city, in early 2023, also adopted an electric vehicle purchasing plan for its own fleet.

In August 2023, President Joe Biden visited Milwaukee to tour Ingeteam, which is assembling EV chargers in its Menomonee Valley facility. The company added the line to the facility due to expected business originating from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

“The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is investing in Wisconsin’s future, creating countless good-paying jobs upgrading the infrastructure that families rely on to get to work and school. I am proud to have secured strong Buy America standards to ensure that we are using American workers and American products while we build out the infrastructure to give people more ways to travel around our state,” said Baldwin. “I worked hard to deliver this funding which invests in emission-free vehicle infrastructure, helping to improve the air our children breathe and creating more opportunities for Wisconsin workers to break into a family-supporting career that will only grow in the coming years.”

From the Article:

Last call! As folks in and around Milwaukee are getting ready to celebrate Labor Day this weekend, Milwaukee County Parks is preparing to close some of its beer gardens for the season. On Friday, Milwaukee County Parks officially announced the closing dates for its beer gardens—including the ending date for its Traveling Beer Garden series—as well as some modified fall hours for the few places that will remain in operation after Labor Day. Here are those closing dates and/or modified hours.

From the Article:

The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee is spearheading an effort to help more workers in the upper Midwest gain skills for green jobs that support manufacturing.

UW-Milwaukee will assist nine community colleges in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa and Illinois to establish Industrial Training Assessment Centers — places where workers can develop energy assessment skills. Those skills can then be used to help manufacturers reduce energy consumption and cut carbon emissions, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.

The Energy Department selected UW-Milwaukee to lead one of its Clean Energy and Manufacturing Workforce Consortia, with the goal of helping companies be more competitive while addressing climate change. The university received a $5.7 million federal grant to assist in the effort, the college announced this week.

From the Article:

The 19th annual Downtown Employee Appreciation Week kicks off Monday, Aug. 19 and runs through Friday, Aug. 23 in Downtown Milwaukee.

Downtown Employee Appreciation Week's mission is to reward Downtown Milwaukee’s dedicated workforce with a week of incentives, including daily giveaways, office challenge games, employee discounts and more.

Monday’s highlights start with free coffee at “The Morning Jolt with Levy Restaurants” located at Baird Community Commons, 799 N. Vel R. Phillips Ave. from 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. – while supplies last.

An opening day ribbon-cutting ceremony will take place at 11:45 a.m. in Red Arrow Park, complete with live music from KOJO, Office Challenge Games sponsored by Educators Credit Union, a Milwaukee Bucks Basketball Shootout, an appearance from the Milwaukee Brewers Street Team, 1,000 sandwiches from Downtown Kitchen and 300K Café and free cookies from Davians.

In the evening, a Moment of Meditation wellness session will be held at Sampson Square in Schlitz Park from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.

From the Article:

The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee announced plans to lay off 32 tenured faculty members.

Chancellor Mark Mone revealed the layoffs in a letter sent Monday to faculty and staff.

The job cuts come after the UW System said it will close its campuses in Waukesha and Washington counties.

In addition to the layoffs, Mone recommended shutting down UW-Milwaukee's College of General Studies and its three academic departments: Arts & Humanities, Math & Natural Sciences, and Social Sciences & Business.

"I am deeply saddened by this scenario and wish it were not occurring. However, proceeding with the proposal is aligned with our mission and is the most responsible decision for UWM’s future," Mone said in the letter.

The UW Board of Regents must approve the cuts.

From the Article:

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee rejected this week a proposal to lay off 35 tenured faculty after the closing of two suburban branch campuses.

The university’s faculty senate voted 24-11 Wednesday in opposition to the plan that had been advanced by UWM Chancellor Mark Mone earlier this year.

The next step for the controversial is not clear. The plan must be approved by the Universities of Wisconsin Board of Regents. In a statement reported by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, a UWM spokesperson said that the process was still underway.

The Wisconsin conference of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) on Friday called on Mone and the UWM administration to change course.

“We call on the chancellor to slow the process down and reconsider his proposal in light of the serious reservations that led the Faculty Senate to reject it,” AAUP-Wisconsin President Nick Fleisher, who teaches at UWM, wrote in a statement posted on the group’s website. “Under no circumstances should the current proposal be submitted to the Board of Regents at its August meeting.”

The board’s next scheduled meeting is August 22. Meeting materials have not yet been posted.

From the Article:

A long-awaited Oak Leaf Trail project may finally move forward.

Milwaukee County Parks is seeking funding in the 2025 county budget for a new access ramp connecting the Oak Leaf Trail directly to E. Hampshire Street on Milwaukee’s East Side. The project would create a safer, more direct commute for bicyclists and pedestrians traveling to UW-Milwaukee and it would fix a tunnel causing sinkholes along the trail.

The department has gone after funding at the state and federal level for the project, estimated to cost approximately $1.85 million. In 2022, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) awarded the county a $1.3 million Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) grant for the project. Now the Parks is asking county policymakers for the 20% matching cost (approximately $540,000) so it can use the grant and move the project forward.

A 2025 county budget won’t be finalized and signed until November, but the project was ranked as a priority by the parks department for 2025 and it is currently scoring high on the county’s list of infrastructure projects for 2025, based on criteria used by the county’s ad-hoc Capital Improvements Committee (CIC).

“A new trail access ramp at Hampshire Avenue would provide a much safer and direct connection to the campus of the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee and the 135-mile Oak Leaf Trail system while also addressing an old tunnel that threatens the existing trail,” according to a project summary from Parks. “This ramp would increase bicycle and walking commute rates to campus for students, staff, and the community; improve safety; and reduce driving rates.”

Residents of the local neighborhood and the university have been requesting a trail ramp at this location for about a decade, according to the department.

From the Article:

There was a time when Milwaukee was awash in great bookshops. This is not that time. But don’t fret because there is still a range of great booksellers purveying everything from fine literature to kids classics to cutting edge poetry to political works and more.

Though there are a number of chain shops, I have not included those, nor have I dwelled too heavily on used books, though I have included a few. After you visit these, you might want to delve deeper into some of the other shops – offering mostly pre-owned books.

From the Article:

Milwaukee voters have a good chance of finding a contested primary, potentially with high stakes, on their ballot Tuesday.

There are 10 state-level partisan primaries on city of Milwaukee ballots Tuesday.

While candidates are technically running for the party’s nomination, a handful of primary races will actually determine who wins the seat come November. With few Republicans running for office in a Democratic stronghold like Milwaukee, some winners will coast into the general election unopposed.

Our candidate guide notes which races will be determined by the outcome of Tuesday’s partisan primaries. Uncontested races are not included.

The majority of the races on the ballot are for seats in the Assembly, where representatives serve two-year terms. The only Senate race is a rematch of the special election held in District 4 last month.

From the Article:

After nearly eight decades of family ownership, Glorioso’s Italian Market is being sold.

Brothers Carmine, Dominic and Paolo Presta, an Illinois-based family, are preparing to take over the specialty grocer, 1011 E. Brady St., with plans to honor and continue the store’s neighborhood legacy.

Carmine, who will serve as president of the new ownership group, said the transition will commence as soon as the licensing process is finalized.

“Our thing is to keep everything the same,” he said. “Same staff, same chef, same recipes.”

The brothers plan to work closely with the current general manager and registered agent, Michael Glorioso, who will act as an ambassador and adviser moving forward.

“We’re kind of like Michael’s younger generation that he’s always wanted, to see what he’s done with Glorioso’s, and to see it keep going forward and expanding,” Carmine said. “We thought it was a great opportunity.”

From the Article:

There are 100 new foods in which you can indulge at the 2024 Wisconsin State Fair. But which ones are worth trying?

For the eighth year, I spent a good portion of opening day at the Fair working my way through a list of reader-suggested foods, tasting every single one. I've ranked 16 of them from worst to best (16 being the worst). I’ve also included my tasting notes and candid thoughts for your reading enjoyment.

From the Article:

The Hop, presented by Potawatomi Casino Hotel, will return to regular M-Line and L-Line service beginning Sunday, Aug. 11. The streetcar system had been operating its combined “Festivals Line” throughout the summer months to better accommodate passengers accessing the multitude of summer events held along Milwaukee’s lakefront.

“The combined Festivals Line was a wonderful pilot program that brought a number of benefits to our riders, particularly with so many new riders looking to access the Lakefront and not being familiar with the newer L-Line and need to transfer,” Milwaukee Commissioner of Public Works Jerrel Kruschke said. “We’ve learned a lot over the last few months and will continue to evaluate how we can best serve our riders during peak times, whether they are looking to access the Lakefront or not.”

Beginning Aug. 11, The Hop will once again operate the M-Line and L-Line independently, with three cars serving the M-Line during peak hours and one car dedicated to the L-Line. Service will continue to be provided during the system’s regular hours of operation from 5 a.m. to midnight Monday-Friday, 7 a.m. to midnight Saturday, and 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday.

From the Article:

Major cleanup is about to get underway on the expansive campus of the Milwaukee VA Soldiers Home. The work on three buildings, to the tune of $25 million, is expected to benefit, not just the veterans who live here, but the entire Milwaukee area. Michele Fiore reports.

"It is a real win for the veteran community and really everyone in Milwaukee and the state to see this transformed again to what it once was," said Jonathan Beck, Development Project Manager, The Alexander Company.

Three solid structures, rich in Milwaukee history…

"You have people that actually fought in Gettysburg sitting in these seats at one point in time," said Beck.

…about to be brought back to life after sitting vacant for some 40 years.

"So where are we standing right now? -35 Jonathan: We are standing in the Ward Memorial Theatre," said Beck.

In the 1880s, a number of soldiers called this home. Now, some buildings that had fallen into disrepair, will be making a full return.

From the Article:

Motorcycles are all over Milwaukee this weekend, but a different kind of bike is taking over the Riverwest neighborhood.

We're now three hours into the Riverwest24.

The 24-hour bike race started as a community block watches in the neighborhood, giving people a way to welcome new people and strengthen the community together.

Some people try to do the while 24 hours, but others form teams to break it up into shorter segments.

Either way, it's always a popular event every year.