Downtown Milwaukee Dog Park ribbon cutting; Riverwalk landscape reshaped

Downtown Milwaukee Dog Park ribbon cutting

The Downtown Milwaukee Dog Park marks its grand opening with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and "Yappy Hour" celebration to follow.

MILWAUKEE - The Downtown Milwaukee Dog Park marked its grand opening on Wednesday, Aug. 20 with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and "Yappy Hour" celebration to follow. 

Downtown Milwaukee Dog Park grand opening

What we know:

A news release says the dog park development was a collaborative effort led by BID #21 and BID #2. It was made possible by support from the Milwaukee community, public officials, leaders in business and thousands of donors. 

The Downtown Milwaukee Dog Park is located at 103 W. Clybourn Street and features more than 23,000 square feet of community space including fenced-in exercise areas for small and large dogs, water stations, and a new Riverwalk segment.

Downtown Milwaukee Dog Park

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The title sponsor, Fromm Family Foods, played a crucial role in supporting this initiative both with funding and development, and led the brand to begin development on the adjacent parcel of land which will be home to the new Foxtown Landing, distillery, pub, restaurant, cocktail lounge and ballroom event center, slated to open in early 2027.

Backers of the dog park

Dig deeper:

In addition to Fromm Family Foods, the dog park was made possible by the support of a unique group of sponsors and public sector partners including The Milwaukee Admirals, 1 Berghammer Construction, WE Energies, BMO, Veolia, Off Leash K9 Training, LLC, and other businesses, as well as thousands of individuals who pledged support. 

Public partners include the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Milwaukee County, and the City of Milwaukee.

What they're saying:

"We've had an opportunity to reimagine one of the key, access points into downtown Milwaukee previously underutilized site. And that was gonna be a beautiful public space that's going to be activated," said Matt Dorner, CEO for Milwaukee Downtown. "We're strengthening the connections between the historic third Ward, Milwaukee downtown and Walker's Point. We're also improving the water quality, through our sustainable infrastructure that we put in, improving water quality as well."

"A little more than a year ago, we broke ground and spoke about it to make a newly revitalized part of the dog district for Greater Downtown. It would seem hard work is paid off. We are ready to unleash this best-in-class park to the community," said Tom Nieman of Fromm Family Foods.

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"It's a huge amenity and one that was largely brought forward from the private sector through private donations from various downtown businesses and stakeholders, and the great work of the two Business Improvement District, which really took the lead, a $2 million investment with very little taxpayer funds, which is generally a good thing given all the challenges that the city faces from financial standpoint," said Milwaukee Alderman Bob Bauman.

"we evidently value all of our four legged friends. And that's evident by the names of the spaces. Right. You got Deer District, you got black Cat alley, and now we got the doggy district rising in downtown Milwaukee in that. Great. I think it's pretty good," said Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson.

Purchase dog park pass

What you can do:

The new Downtown Milwaukee Dog Park operating hours will be Monday-Sunday, 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Similar to other Milwaukee County facilities, the new downtown location requires a Milwaukee County dog park pass that can be purchased on the county's website.