Key Oak Leaf Trail Link With Downtown Will Be Rebuilt

The Oak Leaf Trail rises out of Juneau Park to meet Mason Street and abruptly terminates. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

The sloping trail connecting Juneau Park to Lincoln Memorial Drive and the Oak Leaf Trail will be rebuilt this fall.

The trail is one of several pedestrian and bicycle trails in poor condition around the Milwaukee County Parks system that will be reconstructed this year, according to a project page maintained by Parks.

The Juneau Park trail, which runs through the park from E. Mason Street down Lincoln Memorial Drive, provides a direct connection between Downtown and the Oak Leaf Trail. From there, cyclists can connect to the trail network’s Milwaukee River Line and Zip Line without ever leaving the off-street trail.

The asphalt surface on the sloped trail has heavily degraded in recent years, leading to a bumpy ride at high speeds for cyclists going downhill.

Demolition will begin in October, according to Parks. The project is funded with $250,000 from a tax incremental financing district created in 2023 to support Northwestern Mutual‘s $500 million redevelopment of its 18-story North Office Building. Incremental property tax revenue from the development is funding a number of nearby public infrastructure projects.

During construction, Parks plans to detour riders and pedestrians along Lincoln Memorial Drive and the Mason Street Bridge while the trail is out.

Parks is currently working on adding more mileage to the Oak Leaf Trail, with a new trail running through Kohl Park and another providing a connection to Bender Park. The department is also updating its long-range trail plan, which was last updated in 2007.

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