Milwaukee Public Museum ceremonial groundbreaking; set to open in 2027
MILWAUKEE - Milwaukee Public Museum, donors, civic leaders and construction partners celebrated a ceremonial groundbreaking for the Future Museum on Tuesday, May 7.
The Future Museum—designed by architecture team Ennead Architects and Milwaukee’s own Kahler Slater—will be located at the corner of Sixth and McKinley streets in the Haymarket neighborhood adjacent to the city’s Deer District. A news release says construction of the new building is expected to begin in June.
The Milwaukee Public Museum is a staple to downtown. The museum's president and CEO said it has also become the largest cultural project in Wisconsin history.
"Today is, as I’ve said, mammoth moment. This is the next big step in this project," said Ellen Censky, Milwaukee Public Museum President and CEO.
"I don’t know about you but I am ready to build. I am ready to build so let’s build a museum y'all," said Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley.
Museum workers said over time, the existing building started to deteriorate. That put the museum in jeopardy of losing its accreditation. But thanks to donors and funding, demolition started at the new site in 2022. The project costs about $240 million.
"People from all around the world, they’ll benefit from the research that’s made possible by the museum’s collections and scientists," said Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson.
Milwaukee Public Museum unveils renderings for new building
Museum's design
Officials say the design of the new Museum will be reminiscent of the geological formations in Mill Bluff State Park, emblematic of the region’s diversity of landscapes formed by the movements of water through time. The convergence of Milwaukee’s three rivers—the Milwaukee, Kinnickinnic and Menomonee—inspire the Museum’s interior commons, with entrances welcoming visitors into a dynamic gathering space.
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The building will be approximately 200,000 square feet, including five stories: The first floor will house an open Museum Commons atrium where visitors and the public can gather and bask in natural light from a sunny lightwell; the four upper levels will feature immersive exhibit space offset from neighboring floors in the Museum’s collections storage lobe, allowing visitors to peek into and preview different exhibit floors and collections that are not part of specific exhibits or dioramas.
Milwaukee Public Museum unveils renderings for new building
Milwaukee Public Museum on Monday, July 18 kicked off the public phase of its ‘Wisconsin Wonders’ fundraising campaign aimed at enabling the construction of a new Museum in Milwaukee.
The new museum is scheduled to open in early 2027. Project leaders say they are still in need of funding. So far, $165 million of the $240 million has been raised.