Chairman Lipscomb Critical of Administration Response to Domes Closure
We are just receiving initial details of their short-term plan to re-open one dome, and the administration’s long-term plan for all three still is unclear.
The Domes. Photo by Dave Reid.
The Committee of the Whole of the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors will hold a public hearing on the future of the Domes at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, February 24th at the annex greenhouse adjacent to the Domes.
“We want to engage the community in a conversation on the closure of the Domes, and we invite County Executive Chris Abele and Parks Director John Dargle to the table to present their views on the immediate and long-term future of these Milwaukee County treasures,” said Milwaukee County Board Chairman Theodore Lipscomb, Sr. “We want to have an open and transparent discussion on the future of the Domes.”
We are just receiving initial details of their short-term plan to re-open one dome, and the administration’s long-term plan for all three still is unclear.
Lipscomb invites the public to hear directly from the County Executive on his calculation that rehabilitation of the Domes could cost $70 million.
Lipscomb said the Domes are the most demonstrable current example of the effects of deferred maintenance on our parks. He added that the Board acted to provide $500,000 in 2015 for netting for public safety.
“The Administration did not act, and now we have chunks of concrete falling from the structures,” Lipscomb said. “This Administration has shown a callous disregard of our parks, and the Domes are just one example.”
In addition, the Board in July of 2015 authorized an expenditure of $5 million for parks infrastructure projects not eligible for general obligation bond funding. The Executive vetoed the measure, calling the expenditure “flippant and irresponsible.” The Board overrode the veto and in a subsequent September action allocated $500,000 from that appropriation to the Domes. The County Executive refused to sign that measure.
“The Executive apparently thinks it is ‘flippant and irresponsible’ to protect our parks,” Lipscomb said. “It will be interesting to hear from the public whether they agree.”
Subsequent to the public hearing, the Board’s Committee on Parks, Energy and the Environment will meet on March 8 in order to receive an action report from the Administration on the Domes.
The Domes
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
Mentioned in This Press Release
Recent Press Releases by County Board Chairman Theodore Lipscomb, Sr.
It makes more sense to fix these all year attractions then dump 500 million into the losing Bucks for some billionaires.
Come on Chairman Lipscomb, apply that old political pressure on Johnson Controls, Milwaukee’s own climate control company, to fund refurbishment or replacement of the Mitchell Park Domes. That would be a drop in the bucket for them. You could even sell them naming rights.