How To Really Improve The Pieces Of Eight Site
Mike Cudahy wants to put a new restaurant at the failed Pieces of Eight eatery site on the Lakefront now that UWM has correctly decided it was never a good spot to locate the School of Freshwater Science.
Well, maybe, as the Pieces of Eight was always an illegal use of lakebed land, but let's hope there are better uses that cooler heads will choose.
Nice blog item and discussion in the Sunday Journal Sentinel by Mary Louise Schumacher about what else could be done with the site, and I'm glad to see mention in her story about how the current WATER Institute could be made into a showcase with imagination and commitment.
I've been pushing that site for a while, as it would provide a boost to an industrial site near the Harbor through the leveraging of public dollars.
2 comments:
I see nothing wrong with him making it into a new restaurant. In fact that is what we have been missing all along. I find it annoying that there are not ways beyond picnicking to enjoy the beauty of the lake. Lets face it Milwaukee is fairly confused about its relationship to the lake that it turned its back on for so long, as evidenced with a highly sculpted lakefront. That site is a man-made municipal pier with no natural redeeming quality. It is, as is the rest of the lakefront, highway fill. Aside from something really cool like an art garden of beautiful proportions we need a place to enjoy the lakefront while dining; much like any other city in this country that has a water front worth appreciating. No need to get too puritanical about this.
When I get done sailing or biking along the lake, I would like to enjoy sitting back with friends and a drink further appreciating the lakes beauty. There is not a single establishment that allows this to the public along the urban coastline of Milwaukee. We have no docks to stroll, nor fish piers to romanticize, so at least let us have a bit of highly urbanized lakefront. This is a crucial “quality of life” ingredient missing from Milwaukee’s and most urban Great Lakes’ city lakefronts. I hardly ever ate at Pieces of 8, but the few times I was there I enjoyed bringing people to their outdoor patio where you could sit by the lake with a warming fire pit and good cheer. People new to the city or visiting were impressed with that experience. We need to increase access in varied ways and not make everything a park increasing jurisdictional access and bureaucracy. This would not lead to misuse of the lakefront just greater appreciation. Let down your hair and live a little Milwaukee!
When I get done sailing or biking along the lake, I would like to enjoy sitting back with friends and a drink further appreciating the lakes beauty. There is not a single establishment that allows this to the public along the urban coastline of Milwaukee. We have no docks to stroll, nor fish piers to romanticize, so at least let us have a bit of highly urbanized lakefront. This is a crucial “quality of life” ingredient missing from Milwaukee’s and most urban Great Lakes’ city lakefronts. I hardly ever ate at Pieces of 8, but the few times I was there I enjoyed bringing people to their outdoor patio where you could sit by the lake with a warming fire pit and good cheer. People new to the city or visiting were impressed with that experience. We need to increase access in varied ways and not make everything a park increasing jurisdictional access and bureaucracy. This would not lead to misuse of the lakefront just greater appreciation. Let down your hair and live a little Milwaukee!
If Cudahy puts up a restaurant he should be advised to give up any idea of architecture / new construction. At best he could grandfather something into current facility. Maybe. No way will any of Ms. Schumacher's architects' pipe dreams become reality. Public Trust Doctrine trumps other factors in case.
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