Milwaukee city leaders and the downtown business improvement district have been working on plans to reimagine the downtown area over the next two decades.
They welcomed public input during an open house on Wednesday and shared what they have come up with so far drawing dozens of people. Project leaders are looking at the potential in everything from housing to business to public space.
Early ideas included redesigning the areas near Water Street and Juneau Avenue, along with Kilbourn and Plankinton by widening sidewalks, adding protected bike lanes, and narrowing car lanes to make space for bigger bus shelters.
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"I see the vision Milwaukee wants to go for a while keeping that small city kind of feel and vibe to it," said Dwight Gilbert.
Gilbert was born and raised in Milwaukee and spends a lot of time downtown for work or fun. He has been a fan of the development so far and is eager to see where the city goes and had this idea to make downtown more of a destination.
Gilbert hopes whatever changes will make downtown more of a destination for people of all ages.
"More green open space for people to not just get here and get out but get here and hang out," Gilbert suggested.
Creating an equitable and accessible downtown
As the city begins to reimagine downtown, many community members say equity and accessibility need to be taken into consideration.
"Is Milwaukee's downtown being designed for people who already live and work downtown? Or is it being designed for all of Milwaukee?" Krissie Fung asked.
Fung was one of many community members that attended the open house on Wednesday. She used to live downtown but moved out of the area several years ago.
"Part of the reason I moved out of downtown is because I was paying a lot for a really small space and I just couldn't afford it," Fung said.
For Krissie, a big part of creating an equitable and diverse downtown is affordable housing.
"I wanna make sure that they can afford to live, people like families can live downtown," Fung said. "And the concept of having a whole neighborhood rather than a place that you drive into and drive out of."
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Fung went to the open house with her friend Martha Collins. Collins agreed that affordable housing was a big issue. She also wanted to see more done about transportation.
"I would love to use transportation," Collins said. "We're already such a segregated community, so where's the connection to downtown to other surrounding communities?"
The city and business improvement district have transportation and housing listed as two of the areas they're focusing on in the 2040 plan.
"We want to be intentional about making sure every recommendation has an equitable lens," said Genyne Edwards who is serving as the Equity Consultant for the downtown plan.
Some of the recommendations include expanding the Hop to Kind Drive and Walker's Point, creating more pedestrian-friendly areas, and diversifying the types of housing to include affordable and family options.
Genyne also helped to create a community council, made up of a diverse group from the community to give input at every stage of the process.
"That can be from the standpoint of accessibility issues, that can be from the standpoint of diversity, equity and inclusion, but also just lived experiences," Edwards said.
Public comments can be submitted through theCity of Milwaukee or theMilwaukee Downtown Business Improvement District website.
