Community-engaged plan could transform 1,000 urban acres, nine miles of waterfront.
Community-engaged plan could transform 1,000 urban acres, nine miles of waterfront. Back to the full article.
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A large, permeable surfaced community parking lot ‘experience’ equipped with MCTS bus stop and architecturally significant bus shelter and trash recepticals, Newaukee furniture (from their downtown installation), Bubbler Bike station, Uber and Zipcar kiosk, public WIFI, ground murals, sponsored by all of the above would cover all the salient points:
Transportation
Improving the Environment
Open Space and Public Access
Land Use
Working Together
It could also be marketed as the first designated Uber Drivers’ Rally site.
I’ve heard that much of this land will need to be remediated? Michael, was that part of the presentation–what it will involve and likely cost?
Michael, thanks for stopping in at our event and for the great summary.
For people who couldn’t make it to the evening workshops but would still like to share thoughts or get more information, we will have an online survey version of the event up on our website www. harbordistrict.org by Wednesday 11-2.
Virginia, you are correct that much of the land will require remediation. All of the land in this part of town was once marsh that was filled in with a variety of materials – from clean dirt to household waste to foundry sand. Subsequent to that, much of it was in industrial uses that resulted in additional contamination. Costs of clean-up vary widely, depending on individual site conditions and intended future uses. Luckily, Milwaukee has a lot of experience and know-how when it comes to cleaning up these kinds of sites, so environmental contamination is no longer the showstopper that it used to be.
– Lilith Fowler, Harbor District
Has there been any discussion about the hundreds of cormorants who summer on the vacant land at 1st and the KK river? I do not bring this up to stifle development. This is a unique situation that speaks to what makes the ecosystem of the harbor unique and an asset to our quality of life.
The cormorants to my understanding stick by the water so you will not see them in urban areas like you do gulls so people may not know about them. They get their food by diving into the water. Some can dive to 45 meters. Anyone interested in this would be wise to have a beer at Barnacle Bud’s this summer and watch them return at dusk from a day out on the lake.
Let’s try and come up with a development plan that works to keep this unique and amazing ecosystem thriving.
The Harbor District Water and Land Use Plan (WaLUP) survey is live at https://goo.gl/amUrah .
Thanks, Lillith. It’s great that Milwaukee has done so much reclamation, including in the Menonomee Valley.
Minneapolis is working on a major series of parks along the Mississippi River on the site of mill ruins.
https://mplsparksfoundation.org/projects/water-works/
https://mplsparksfoundation.org/2016/03/10/news-release-mpf-and-mprb-seek-water-works-final-design-and-cultural-resource-consultants/
And a massive park called Fresh Kills is being atop a dump site on Staten Island. They’re doing innovative work to regenerate soil and natural growth, rather than traditional remediation.
Good luck with all this.
If I understand this correctly, this seems like a once-in-a-generation opportunity. When you say 1,000 acres, is this the cumulative total throughout the area that can be developed or is this a contiguous piece of land? Is this similar in footprint and size to the area the Bucks are trying to develop? I would think some nationally reputable consultant would have examples of what other cities have done and could share that with the community groups? Regardless, fingers crossed that we do something spectacular.
Having just watched an awesome World Series, I still can’t believe the Brewers built a dome in a middle of a parking lot. Was this land in the harbor area not available 15-years ago and the Brewers were the victim of bad timing or was it that we turned the decision on the design and site over to a 70-year old guy with no moxie or vision? I know none of the background because I was living on the West Coast at the time and it’s still a mystery to me why they paved a cow path. This is a franchise with no “it” factor; would have been awesome to do something along the line of SD, PIT, SF, etc. I’m hopeful the area around the new arena wows us.