MILWAUKEE — As development ramps up in Milwaukee's Harbor District, locals are excited about the possibility of a riverwalk taking shape along the Kinnickinnic River.
Officials with Milwaukee's Department of City Development said properties through the Harbor District, along the river, are zoned so that new or substantial construction will include the installation of a riverwalk.
The riverwalk must be constantly accessible to the public, which is why the city's Riverwalk Funding Policy states Milwaukee pays for a portion of the cost.
The city's contribution, which was originally capped at $2,000 per linear foot, is adjusted each year by the RS Means Index. In 2018, the cap was $2,664 per linear foot.
It's the same funding model used to create the riverwalk through portions of Milwaukee such as downtown and the Third Ward.
Some sections of the riverwalk can be pricey to construct.
As an example, the first stretch of riverwalk through the Harbor District will be part of the R1VER development at First and Becher.
The project will receive up to $3,365,069 in public money to build the 1,030 linear-foot-long riverwalk area.
The Department of City Development noted developers are reimbursed based on the actual cost of construction of a riverwalk and the necessary public access connections.
"Therefore, we anticipate the highest possible cost to construct within the agreement, but often distribute less in instances of favorable conditions and bids," the Department of City Development said.
City officials said the only other definitively planned stretch of riverwalk through the Harbor District will be at the new Komatsu facility at the end of Greenfield Avenue. The city will own that portion of the riverwalk.
According to the Department of City Development, Milwaukee is working with a Chicago-based design firm to develop a set of standards about how the riverwalk through the Harbor District will look.
City planning indicates the riverwalk in the Harbor District will be built with a consistent aesthetic — much like the riverwalk through the Third Ward is characterized by the color of its wood and its blue lighting.
The Department of City Department anticipates taking a design plan for the Harbor District riverwalk to the Common Council by early January.
That design would, for now, apply to the chunks of riverwalk planned at Komatsu and R1VER.
But several proposed developments that will include apartments, retail and possibly hotel space along Water Street just south of Pittsburgh Avenue would also include riverwalk if approved.
"We've long felt that one of the most important things Harbor District Inc. could do is push for extending and expanding the city's riverwalk system through the harbor." — Lilith Fowler, executive director of Harbor District Inc.
Lilith Fowler is the executive director of Harbor District Inc., a non-profit organization created to attract new life and development to the area around Milwaukee's harbor.
"In the roughly 1,000 acres of the Harbor District, there's the potential to create $1 billion in new tax base for the city," she said.
"We've long felt that one of the most important things Harbor District Inc. could do is push for extending and expanding the city's riverwalk system through the harbor," Fowler said.
She hopes that riverwalk will eventually stretch all the way to Bay View. Fowler acknowledges that won't happen overnight, though.
"We'll definitely have some holes, where we're routing people back to the street, for a number of years," Fowler said.
Still, the possibility is exciting for neighbors.
Lamont Westmoreland of Milwaukee said he enjoys using the riverwalk through downtown and the Third Ward. He's intrigued by the idea of a similar project taking shape through the Harbor District.
"It's important because when people come to our city, we want it to be attractive. We want them to have things to do," Westmoreland said.
"But also, it's important from the aspect of keeping locals happy. We don't want our people leaving and going to other thriving cities," he added.
