Crowley Approves $30 Million for Domes

County Executive David Crowley holds Domes funding resolution, Chairwoman Marcelia Nicholson seated to his right. Photo taken July 30, 2025 by Graham Kilmer.

Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley signed a resolution Wednesday committing $30 million over the next six years for the Mitchell Park Domes.

The funding represents the county’s contribution to a $133 million redevelopment and restoration of the Domes, being led by the Milwaukee Domes Alliance in partnership with Milwaukee County Parks. The taxpayer funding will supplement private fundraising and tax credits for the project.

During a signing ceremony Wednesday, it was clear all involved viewed the project as a new chapter for the Domes. If the Milwaukee Domes Alliance plan works, it will create a sustainable future, saving taxpayer funds in the long-term, it will revitalize the aging structures and it will end a decade of questions and concerns about what happens next.

The primary goal of the project is to address the Domes major maintenance needs, create a self-sustaining business model for the structures and to transfer financial responsibility for the community asset from the county parks department to the non-profit Milwaukee Domes Alliance. Because of limited funding, the county has not kept up with maintenance. In 2015, pieces of concrete began falling from the structures, creating urgency to develop a plan for them, though the issue became a complicated one.

Following the work of a Domes Task Force, the Milwaukee Domes Alliance has spent the past few years working on the plan. It pitched the project in 2024, receiving tentative approval from policymakers. With the funding commitment from the county signed, the non-profit is expected to finish negotiating and sign a long-term lease agreement with the parks department in the coming months.

“For years, Milwaukee County has been considering options and staring down a huge price tag to create a sustainable future for the Domes.…it became clear that this proposal was the most realistic path forward for restoring the Domes for families to enjoy for decades to come,” Crowley said during a signing ceremony Wednesday

Crowley said the structure of the deal with the Milwaukee Domes Alliance will also “protect” taxpayers by requiring the non-profit to meet fundraising goals before any county funds are released.

Crowley has often said the county’s future will require greater partnerships with other levels of government, as well as the private sector. The project with the Domes fits into that mold, providing a plan for the Domes at a much lower cost to the taxpayer than if the county was footing the entire bill, he said.

If the project did not move forward, taxpayers would still be on the hook for operations costs until the structures needed to be demolished. Cost estimates for demolition suggested it would cost more than $11 million.

The resolution he signed Wednesday was passed unanimously by the Milwaukee County Board during its final July meeting.

“This has not been an easy road,” said Sup. Juan Miguel Martinez, whose district includes Mitchell Park. “I knew when I became county supervisor, my main focus was Mitchell Park and the Domes.”

The park and its green space are “the life, the lungs, the beating heart” of the community, and their redevelopment and the investment in Mitchell Park will be a “win” for the local community and his district, he said.

The Domes have been an issue for county supervisors the entire time Chairwoman Marcelia Nicholson has served on the board, having been first elected in 2016. “This has been a long time coming, and I’m so grateful to everyone who helped us get to this milestone,” she said, adding that the new plan follows years of studies, reports, debates and a task force. 

Nicholson celebrated the fact that the Domes will continue to provide a unique, educational experience for Milwaukee’s children and students. “This is more than a construction project,” she said. “It’s an investment in our values.”

Milwaukee County Parks Director Guy Smith called the county’s funding commitment a “turning point” for both the Domes and the entire parks system.

“It signals shared belief that our parks, our public spaces and our cultural landmarks are worth fighting for, not just for today’s visitors, but for the generations to come.”

Once the project is completed and the six years of county funding come to an end, the parks department will be freed to invest more funds in other parks across the county. Parks will save millions in the long-run once all the maintenance and operations costs are transitioned to the Milwaukee Domes Alliance.

Christa Beall Diefenbach, Executive Director of the Milwaukee Domes Alliance, said the project won’t just revitalize the built environment of the Domes or the green space of the park. The organization will prioritize programming that positively impacts the nearby community, she said.

“We’ll be able to do new programming and really invest in this facility in a way that we haven’t been able to do in the past, and that’s really exciting,” she said. “And we see that ability to take over those operations as a privilege.”

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