Update (7/9/2024)
Milwaukee County Parks provided a response after the original article was published.
"The fish cleaning station at McKinley Marina has yet to be completed due to unexpected permitting delays," said a representative via email. "Work on final elements to make the facility operational will be completed as soon as possible, and the County is working to provide all information needed to move forward at the site. Once the final permit(s) are received, the contractor needs to complete installation of grinders, controls, sprayers, etc. This is expected to take an additional two weeks from the time the permit is received. Thank you for your understanding and patience as we work to improve this important lakefront facility."
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The McKinley Marina has gone through a redevelopment in the last year. One part of that redevelopment was creating a new fish-cleaning station for fishermen.
However, as the summer progresses, the station remains locked.
A TMJ4 viewer alerted us to this issue, and what it means for fishermen.
The slow progress has frustrated some people who use the Marina.
Denny Rauen can be found on his boat Ohima almost every other day. He loves to go salmon fishing.
"The fishing season this year has been outstanding," Rauen told TMJ4.
While the fishing has been good, the lack of a Cleaning Station at McKinley Marina creates a hurdle, and that's frustrating for Rauen.
"It looks done, and it's just sitting there and fishermen are going crazy because it's really a big part of salmon fishing."
According to the county parks website, substantial completion of the entire project is supposed to be finished this month.
TMJ4 reached out to Milwaukee County Parks for a firm timeline on when folks could expect the cleaning station to be open, but have yet to hear back.
Rauen says, people fishing have a few options. They can go to South Shore Yacht Club and use their cleaning station, they can clean fish on the shore which can create a mess, or they can clean fish out on the water on their boat, which can be difficult on the open water in smaller boats.
Watch: Fishermen want to use McKinley Marina cleaning station.
Rauen cleans his salmon on the water. He created a small table out of PVC board and cedar, mounting it onto his boat.
He says since last summer, he'sfilleted about 100 salmon on it.
But it's not ideal, using a knife on the open water can be dangerous as the boat moves around.
Rauen also says he misses the community that would come together at the cleaning station.
"It's not just that we clean our fish there, you have your community there," Rauen said. "You talk, and you learn things about what's going on out there if somebody has a different idea. All that sharing goes on. I miss that as much or more than the cleaning table itself."
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