Every Friday, Stuff We Missed looks to other Milwaukee publications (and beyond) for, well, stuff we missed throughout the week.
• Opening your doors to thousands of strangers isn’t the greatest idea these days, but that isn’t stopping Doors Open Milwaukee. Well, sort of. The 10th annual “check out all these cool buildings you always wished you could check out” blowout will take place virtually this year, from September 26 through October 11. How’s it gonna work? Let Doors Open explain:
Online Building Tours: 70+ Milwaukee buildings will be showcased through virtual content ranging from photos to videos to 360 virtual reality tours. Visitors will also be invited on virtual tours of Fund for Lake Michigan Water Passport sites and explore the relationship between Milwaukee’s water and the city’s industrial, commercial, civic, and residential development.
Neighborhood Highlights: Doors Open will feature a downloadable neighborhood activity booklet designed by artist CK Ledesma. The booklet will feature activities pages for the whole family. To compliment the booklet, Doors Open will highlight 16 Milwaukee neighborhoods with recommendations of places to visit there. We hope visitors will take the opportunity to explore Milwaukee’s neighborhoods!
Virtual Programming
• On September 26 at 12 pm, join Common Council President Cavalier Johnson on Facebook Live as we ring in the 10th annual Doors Open from the City Hall Bell Tower.
• Virtual tour and live Q&A of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra’ new home the Bradley Symphony Center, with MSO President & Executive Director Mark Niehaus on September 28 at 1 p.m.
• Virtual tour and live Q&A for Historic Milwaukee members with actor and storyteller John McGivern on September 31.
• Live virtual program with Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service featuring eight neighborhood stories on October 1 at 6 p.m.
• Celebrating Central: A Brief History of Milwaukee Public Library’s Downtown Library at Virtual on October 02 at 5:30 p.m.
• Art activity with Artists Working in Education featuring the Silver City Neighborhood.
• In-depth virtual neighborhood tours of Clarke Square (Sept 26), Lindsay Heights (Oct 3), and Havenwoods (Oct 10) by Tank Think. Video tours will air via YouTube premier and be available to view anytime the premier.
• Musical performances with Access Contemporary Music featuring Milwaukee City Hall and Wisconsin Black Historical Society. These performances will be available to view anytime during Doors Open.
And hey, the whole thing is free! HERE’S a full list of events, and HERE’S a full list of sites. [Doors Open Milwaukee]
• This week in Oh God This Is Never Going To Stop Please Someone Make It Stop news, part 1: Milwaukee’s Wisconsin Center District—operator of the Wisconsin Center, the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena, and the Miller High Life Theatre—expects to lose $2.6 million in 2020. “On Sept. 14,” says the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “the district eliminated eight positions, laid off 18 employees and furloughed 30 employees, who now work four days a week instead of five. An additional 11 employees received a 10% pay cut. In all, 88% of the district’s full-time employees are affected by the reductions.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]
• This week in Oh God This Is Never Going To Stop Please Someone Make It Stop news, part 2: Bartolotta Restaurant Group announced extended layoffs for 268 of its employees. [BizTimes]
• This week in Oh God This Is Never Going To Stop But At Least Something Good Is Happening news, part 1: Downtown restaurant Amilinda has re-opened for in-person dining. [OnMilwaukee]
• This week in Oh God This Is Never Going To Stop But At Least Something Good Is Happening news, part 2: Third Ward restaurant EsterEv has re-opened for in-person dining, too. [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]
• Huddle around the TV on December 12 and catch The Christmas Set Up, a new Lifetime holiday movie that’s set in Milwaukee! It stars Ben Lewis (Arrow), Blake Lee (Parks And Recreation), and Fran Drescher (!!!). It’s being billed as Lifetime’s first holiday movie starring an LGBTQ+ couple. [Milwaukee Magazine]
• Meet Marlaina Jackson, Milwaukee’s new (interim) Commissioner of Health. Jackson takes over for Jeanette Kowalik, who’s headed to Washington D.C. [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]
• Remember when the only thing everyone got worked up about was the streetcar? Well, it’s time to get worked up all over again, because Milwaukee “may spend up to $2.9 million in city parking fund money from tickets and street meters to pay for the operations of the streetcar system” in 2021. [Milwaukee Business Journal]
• Have a great weekend, Milwaukee!