Major Westside ‘Art Intersection’ Project Advancing
Derrick Cainion draws praise for his perseverance.
Art Intersection MKE conceptual rendering. Rendering by KCB Buildings.
The intersection of W. Vliet Street and N. 35th Street could soon look a lot different.
Derrick Cainion is advancing his Art Intersection MKE project, a phased placemaking effort that will turn a series of vacant lots into a primarily outdoor arts and community hub.
“Placemaking is a collaborative process of planning, designing and managing spaces to improve the lives of people who use them and live in the area,” said Cainion in presenting his plan to the Zoning, Neighborhoods & Development Committee Tuesday.
Cainion said he started the project more than four years ago and has already been doing pop-up events on the vacant lots for three years.
Now he’s ready for an $800,000 first phase that includes construction of a large bioswale that can retain up to 65,000 gallons of stormwater and a pavilion with solar panels. He would buy eight lots from the city and merge them with privately acquired parcels to form a 37,000-square-foot site.
“Within that area, we’re going to have sculptures placed in there, an accessible path for peoples of all ages and abilities to have access to the space, having programming such as sensory gardens and sensory sculptures and things of that nature, so that we have inclusion for people with development disabilities or who are visually impaired,” said Cainion. “It’s the idea that art is intersected with everything we do as humans. So we are building a space that is fully environmentally sustainable and self sustaining.”
A Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) program is funding the green infrastructure program, and a grant from LISC Milwaukee‘s Brew City Match program is backing the solar pavilion’s development. Cainion said he is pursuing additional funding from community-focused lending institutions and grant providers.
“Right now, we have raised well over [$500,000],” he said.
The MMSD Fresh Coast Green Communities grant will reduce stormwater flow into the combined sewer system and will also provide Cainion with the capital to landscape the site. Bioswales are small ponds or channels that collect and filter stormwater before allowing it to evaporate, infililtrate the ground or slowly discharge into the sewer system.
“With the land sale, we’re going to be able to break ground straight away to build our green infrastructure project,” he told the committee.
The pavilion, Cainion hopes, will be a gathering place. The solar panels will also bring power to the site and could, he said, be used during an emergency to provide a small power source to area residents or service providers.
The second phase would include a white-box gallery space and, possibly, a commercial kitchen for events. A single-family home could also be constructed. Cainion said utilization of the first phase would guide the development of the second phase.
“It’s an amazing use of space, and we’re really looking forward to it,” said committee chair Ald. Jonathan Brostoff. He praised Cainion for his dedication.
“Mr. Cainion has been consistent with his vision, sheer will and determination,” said area Alderman Russell W. Stamper, II. “I’m very proud of his hard work, his ability to raise money, and what this project will mean to the area and how creative and innovative it will be for the surrounding area.”
The committee unanimously endorsed the proposal, including an associated rezoning to unify the property’s designations and allow them to be legally combined. The full council must still approve the package.
Cainion, who also has a career as a sign-language interpreter, secured approval in 2023 for an exclusive negotiation period to purchase the properties.
He intends to purchase the parcels at 3510, 3514, 3516-3518, 3526, 3534, 3538 and 3602 W. Vliet St. and 1415 N. 35th St. for $1 each. The city acquired the parcels through property tax foreclosure between 1997 and 2017.
KCB Buildings has created conceptual architectural renderings for the site.
2023 Photos
2023 Renderings
UPDATE: An earlier version of this article gave a different name for the MMSD grant program.
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Related Legislation: File 230377, File 240660
This is so exciting and thoughtful and it comes from a beautiful place of action wrapped in empathy. I love when art is expansive like this.