Every Friday, Off The Record looks to other Milwaukee publications (and beyond) for bits of news we missed throughout the week.
• On Tuesday, OnMilwaukee got a “first look” at the new IKEA store in Oak Creek, which is set to open Wednesday, May 16, at 9 a.m. On the same day, BizTimes took a “sneak peek” at the store. So did CBS58. And FOX6. And Milwaukee Magazine. The Milwaukee Business Journal received an “inside look” of the Oak Creek IKEA, while Erik S. Hanley, writing for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, detailed his “first IKEA experience.” (“Driving down South Ikea Way in Oak Creek you’re first met with a horizon of deep blue against the lighter blue sky with a splash of yellow. As you drive on, the yellow takes shape into four letters: IKEA.”) Urban Milwaukee did a press release. As for Milwaukee Record, one of us was staying overnight at WMSE and the other was fishing. Also, we weren’t invited.
Anyway, here’s a exhaustive ranking of Milwaukee media’s exhaustive coverage of a big-box store opening in Oak Creek:
7. Milwaukee Magazine: Sneak a Peek Inside Wisconsin’s First Ikea
“Wisconsin is getting its first Ikea this month. On May 16th, the flat-packed furniture powerhouse is opening an Oak Creek outpost, at 7500 S Ikea Way (yup, the town is giving the company its own street name).”
6. CBS58: Sneak Peek: IKEA opening in one week in Oak Creek
“In one week there will be a new store to pick up everything you need for your home from furniture to decorations. IKEA is opening its first location in Wisconsin in Oak Creek.”
5. BizTimes: Sneak Peek: Oak Creek IKEA opens May 16
“Wisconsin’s first IKEA store will open in Oak Creek at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, May 16, following years of anticipation for the Swedish furniture retailer. The 293,000-square-foot store will feature nearly 10,000 items, three model home interiors, 50 room settings, and a supervised children’s play area.”
4. FOX6: Sneak peek look inside IKEA Oak Creek, set to open Wednesday, May 16
“IKEA Oak Creek, Wisconsin’s first IKEA store, is set to open on May 16—and on Wednesday, May 9 FOX6 got a unique sneak peek.”
3. Milwaukee Business Journal: Look inside the state’s first Ikea store in Oak Creek: Slideshow
“The Milwaukee Business Journal received in an inside look of the 293,000-square-foot store on Wednesday ahead of the opening.”
2. OnMilwaukee: First Look: IKEA Oak Creek, which opens next week
“If you’ve been following the progress at the new IKEA store in Oak Creek via OnMilwaukee, you got to see early photos of its build-out and more recent ones as the huge store began to take shape. Today we returned to show you the (nearly) finished product as the store prepares to open on Wednesday, May 16 at 9 a.m.”
1. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: My first IKEA experience: What newbies can expect when the store opens in Oak Creek May 16
“In front of the first room was a sign that read: ‘Create your dream room for just $780.91.’ In a world where prices seem to always end in 99 or 95, the 91 cents caught my eye and made me wonder if that was intentional.”
[h/t to @evanhatestwitr for the photo idea]
• Chef Justin Carlisle will open not one, but two new restaurants in the almost-complete Urbanite building, 1840 N. Farwell Ave., directly across the street from his Ardent and Red Light Ramen. The Duke “will be a grab-and-go place,” while Purlieu “will offer casual sit-down dining.” [OnMilwaukee]
• Crews have begun installing the 21 sculptures that will make up Sculpture Milwaukee 2018. One of the pieces that will line Wisconsin Avenue this summer is Robert Indiana’s iconic LOVE sculpture. [Urban Milwaukee]
• Klassik released a new track, “Restraint,” featuring Lorde Fredd33, SistaStrings, and Jay Anderson. [Bandcamp]
• The Wauwatosa Red Dot, 6715 W. North Ave., closed after a fire broke out on Monday. The restaurant plans to reopen “in no less than 75-90 days.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]
• This year’s Mitchell Street Sun Fair has been cancelled. Why?
“We just weren’t able to pull everything together to hold it this year,” said [executive director of Historic Mitchell Street Business Improvement District 4 Nancy] Bush, adding that the fair would be back in 2019.
Bush said organizers decided last week to cancel it because of funding issues exacerbated by increased safety costs. The well-attended Sun Fair, which is sponsored by BID 4, was relaunched in 2010, an offshoot of a Mitchell Street Fair that drew large crowds in the 1980s and 90s. [Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service]
• Evan Rytlewski rounded up some new tracks from Milwaukee rappers like Lil Chicken, Gwapo Chapo, and Shle Berry. [Shepherd Express]
• Kanpai 2 is now open in the former East Side Izumi’s space, 2150 N. Prospect Ave. [OnMilwaukee]
• East Side axe-throwing joint AXE MKE, 1924 E. Kenilworth Place, will host a grand opening shindig on June 16. [TMJ4]
• Now there’s a song about Bay View’s “Prius Lady.” [Urban Milwaukee]
• View MKE will open this summer in the former Wolf Peach space, 1818 N. Hubbard St. [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]
• The downtown Boston Store building will be spruced up and rebranded as HUB640. [Milwaukee Business Journal]
• Have a great weekend, Milwaukee!