MILWAUKEE — A group has presented a $133.4 million plan to restore the Mitchell Park Domes after the conservatory faced deferred maintenance for years.
The Friends of the Domes, Milwaukee County Parks and Madison-based The Alexander Company on Tuesday presented plans to restore the existing dome structures, expand the gift shop, create a children’s learning space, build a new café, a new courtyard and construct a nature learning center. The project would also bring improvements to Mitchell Park. The partners would take over ownership of the conservatory from Milwaukee County, but the park will remain in county hands.
In 2016, the domes temporarily closed after a piece of concrete fell from the ceiling of one of the structures. Conversations over the domes’ capital and maintenance needs started and were put on hold due to the pandemic. The county looked at different avenues for what to do with the structure, including demolition.
The Friends of the Domes’ project is split into two phases: The first phase is budgeted at $107.4 million and includes expanding the gift shop, creating the “Little Sprouts Dome” learning center in the fourth dome and building a new café.
The second phase includes a new courtyard and early plans for a 25,000-square-foot, two-story learning center building. The second phase is budgeted at $26 million.