The ridiculous thing about ridiculous controversies is that they tend to go on for so long. Take these ridiculous Milwaukee controversies of 2025—a few of them are unique to this year or to last year, but many of them date back to at least 10 years ago. Like, say what you want about the Milwaukee Public Museum closing and moving in 2027, but they did announce those plans in 2017.

Anyway, here’s a short, not-at-all-comprehensive overview of eight ridiculous Milwaukee controversies of 2025, complete with ridiculously brief updates.

THE HOP

Ridiculous Controversy: A full seven years after its debut, Milwaukee streetcar system The Hop remains (ridiculously) controversial. Critics charge that the thing is a waste of money, that it doesn’t go anywhere, and that no one rides it. Supporters counter that The Hop could be great, but that its growth has been hindered by politics. In 2025, Milwaukee Alderman Scott Spiker released approximately 8,000 press releases about The Hop, wondering why the city was spending $4.2 million on the thing while other services suffered. Spiker even wrote a letter to U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy asking please, pretty please, could the city be excused from any financial penalties if we just scrapped the thing already? “I am asking your department, as an alderman speaking only for myself and those I represent, to throw us a lifeline,” Spiker wrote.

Ridiculously Brief Update: Duffy hasn’t responded, and The Hop doesn’t appear to be going anywhere. Amongst the Common Council, at least, Spiker stands alone. “I often say in response to the remark that ‘the streetcar does not pay for itself’ that it has paid for itself many times over in terms of economic development and increased tax base,” Alderman Bob Bauman has said.

RETHINKING 794

Ridiculous Controversy: In 2021, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) launched an initiative to figure out what to do with a chunk of I-794—from the north end of the Hoan Bridge to the Marquette Interchange—in Downtown Milwaukee. Replace it? Improve it? Remove it altogether? Groups like Rethink 794 want a chunk of that chunk—from the Hoan to Water Street—removed altogether, opening to area to development and turning it into a “people-focused, at-grade boulevard that reconnects the downtown and unlocks long-term social, environmental, and economic benefits for Milwaukee and the region.” Other folks who drive on the thing want to keep it. Everyone gets really mad whenever this issue comes up, and yells about cars and commutes, cities and developers, and the suburbs and whatever.

Ridiculously Brief Update: WisDOT is taking public input through January 5, 2026. It plans to make a decision by 2027, and begin construction by 2030.

AMERICAN FAMILY FIELD PARKING LOT DEVELOPMENT

Ridiculous Controversy: In late 2025, a study prepared by Washington D.C.-based Brailsford & Dunlavey Inc. presented three different plans for converting different chunks of American Family Field’s 160 acres of parking lots into different combinations of housing, hotels, retail, office space, and shared parking. Between 1,581 and 2,958 current parking spaces would be lost, depending on the plan. Everyone gets really mad whenever this issue comes up, and yells about cars and commutes, cities and developers, and the suburbs and whatever.

Ridiculously Brief Update: It’s important to note that AmFam Field and the Milwaukee Brewers did not request the study; instead, it was one of the requirements of the 2023 subsidy agreement giving the Brewers more than $500 million in state, city, and county money to renovate AmFam Field, and to keep the team in Milwaukee through 2050. “This report is a good first step in the process of imagining what real estate development opportunities may exist,” Rick Schlesinger, Brewers president of business operations, recently told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

MILWAUKEE PUBLIC MUSEUM / NATURE & CULTURE MUSEUM OF WISCONSIN

Ridiculous Controversy: Way back in 2017, the Milwaukee Public Museum said it would move to a new downtown location in the next decade. And sure enough, a decade later, it’s ready to move to a new facility and rebrand itself the Nature & Culture Museum of Wisconsin. People are angry about this, and have spent the past few years wailing to the heavens about the still-uncertain future of many beloved MPM exhibits like the Streets of Old Milwaukee. (MPM has released information and renderings on the new Nature & Culture Museum of Wisconsin exhibits—including the “spiritual successor” to the Streets of Old Milwaukee, Milwaukee Revealed, but still.) Also, some folks think the new museum will be “woke,” or some such tired bullshit.

Ridiculously Brief Update: You’ve got one year left, folks. The Milwaukee Public Museum as we know it will officially close on January 3, 2027. An official opening date for the Nature & Culture Museum of Wisconsin has yet to be announced. Fundraising for the still-under-construction new facility remains on track.

THE MILWAUKEE FLAG

Ridiculous Controversy: Way back in 2016, a grassroots group called the People’s Flag of Milwaukee held a competition to replace Milwaukee’s official, old, and—gasp!—TED Talk-derided city flag. The winning design, “Sunset Over The Lake,” was quickly embraced by people who tend to embrace city flags. In the ensuing years, the People’s Flag folks have tried to make “Sunset Over The Lake” the official Milwaukee city flag, but have found no success. Despite the issue fizzling and flaming out several times in the past decade, Alderman Peter Burgelis revived the flag debate in 2024, calling for a new process to create another new city flag.

Ridiculously Brief Update: Burgelis originally wanted to adopt a new city flag by the end of 2024, in time for Milwaukee’s 179th birthday. That didn’t happen. After reviving the issue again, and creating an eight-person Milwaukee City Flag Task Force, Burgelis called for the adoption of a new city flag by the end of 2025, in time for Milwaukee’s 180th birthday. As of mid-December 2025, the Milwaukee City Flag Task Force has gone, in Urban Milwaukee‘s words, “nowhere.”

SOCCER STADIUM / IRON DISTRICT

Ridiculous Controversy: Way back in 2022, plans were announced to build an 8,000-seat professional soccer stadium near 8th and Michigan in Downtown Milwaukee. The new so-called “Iron District” would also include hotels, retail, housing, and a 3,500-person concert venue. It was all set for completion by 2024. Though the concert venue plans soon fell through, the public spent 2022 and 2023 voting on a name for the new USL Championship team that would begin playing in the new stadium in 2026.

Ridiculously Brief Update: Every aspect of the plan is all but dead. No soccer stadium, no soccer team, no Iron District, nothing. In late 2025, the only thing near 8th and Michigan is a pile of rubble from the vacant Ramada hotel that was demolished in 2023.

JULY 3 DRONE SHOW

Ridiculous Controversy: Remember that drone show that Milwaukee County sponsored on July 3, instead of fireworks? Yep, a lot of people got angry about it.

Ridiculously Brief Update: In a July 18 newsletter, Milwaukee County Supervisor Sheldon Wasserman discussed the results of a survey he had taken on the drone show. “The average rating for the drone show was 3 stars out of 5, with 51% of you feeling that the show should not return next year,” Wasserman wrote. “We also saw that 56% of you would prefer a fireworks display in the future. However, if sponsorships are unavailable to fund a fireworks show, 66.7% of respondents indicated they would prefer to keep the drone show versus nothing.”

THE BOAT

Ridiculous Controversy: Remember that Boat that was abandoned between Bradford and McKinley beaches on October 13, 2024? The Boat that became a fun, harmless thing to talk about and write about and tag and unsuccessfully tow for nearly seven months? Yep, some people got angry about it.

Ridiculously Brief Update: All City Towing finally dragged the Boat over the rocks and towed it on May 6, 2025. All City owner Jeff Piller later bought the Boat at a public auction for $2,525—$17,475 less than what Milwaukee County was hoping to make on the auction to cover the cost of towing the thing in the first place. In October, Piller and company were offering free chunks of the Boat to anyone who stopped by the lot. And don’t forget the bobble!