Milwaukee's American Legion monument restored, dedicated

MILWAUKEE - Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson and several special guests on Friday, Aug. 26 dedicated the now-restored American Legion Monument in Kilbourn Reservoir Park.

The 50-foot American Legion emblem was rebuilt ahead of the organization's 103rd convention, which is taking place in Milwaukee over the next week.

The monument has been on display along the hill of North Avenue in the Riverwest neighborhood for decades.

SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News

"For the first 60 years of its life, it was maintained as a flower memorial to veterans," Patrick Pauly, Milwaukee Water Works superintendent, told FOX6 News earlier this month.

Sometimes, the original plan just doesn't work out. Over the years, the flowers got too expensive for the city. In 2010, Milwaukee Water Works and the American Legion came up with a different idea; it was turned into a permanent concrete memorial, which wore down in time.

Contractors worked throughout the summer to remove colored class that was deteriorating, deconstruct and rebuild the concrete base and add a new layer of colored quartz to match the multicolored design.