#SaveOurDomes Background

​Save Our Domes is a campaign of the Milwaukee Preservation Alliance and National Trust for Historic Preservation working toward a long-term preservation solution for the iconic and beloved Mitchell Park Domes, a local landmark for generations of area residents, a unique engineering marvel, and a nationally significant example of midcentury modern architecture.

Despite the Domes’ significance and their continued role in the community, the Domes remain threatened and were added to the National Trust’s 2016 list of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places. 

In 2016, Milwaukee County created a citizen-led Domes Task Force to study feasible solutions for the long-term future of the Domes. The Task Force worked for 3 years, engaging with the public and endeavoring to consider all possible ways forward. Based on this exhaustive work, the Task Force in 2019 developed a vision for a way forward that acknowledges the challenges while focusing on the possibilities. Their years of work determined that preservation is both feasible and beneficial and would produce an economically sustainable future for Mitchell Park that would enhance the Clarke Square neighborhood and the entire County. This vision would create 300 quality new jobs in a dense and diverse neighborhood and foster a culture of health and urban agriculture throughout the region by developing Mitchell Park into a new Learning, Wellness, and Horticultural campus through public-private partnerships and Historic Tax Credits. 

Our public outreach, along with every survey conducted with the public, shows that the people of Milwaukee County cherish the Domes and support a preservation solution.

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