State Of The City Behind closed doors: Doors Open Milwaukee explores hidden side of downtown

Ever been backstage at the Pabst Theater? How about inside the Bradley Center locker rooms? Or up to the 41st floor observation deck at the U.S. Bank building?

We didn’t think so.

Lucky for you, all that can change this Saturday and Sunday at Doors Open Milwaukee. Presented by Historic Milwaukee Inc., the event is the first of its kind in the city. 100 downtown sites will open their doors to the public, allowing anyone to explore the nooks and crannies usually hidden from the public eye. Some locations will provide tours, talks, or informational booklets, and some are merely open for visitors to take a look around.

Anne-Marie Opgenorth, executive director of Historic Milwaukee, says the goal of the event starts with getting people out of their homes and into downtown. (No, driving down Wisconsin Ave. and looking out your windows doesn’t count). “It’s a great opportunity to really connect people with their environment,” says Opgenorth. “That’s the sole purpose. Just come, look, learn, and connect.”

Thomas Jablonsky, a Marquette University history professor, will be giving a talk in conjunction with the event. He says it’s an opportunity to use the physicality of Milwaukee, both in terms of neighborhoods and specific sites, to learn about how the city developed into what it is today. “We have real remnants where this living history was made,” says Jablonsky. “So there’s a chance to not only hear about Milwaukee history but to see it and to literally touch it.”

The folks over at Historic Milwaukee hope the event will reach beyond a two-day experience. The more people know about the place in which they live, the more connected they feel to their community. As a result, they develop a sense of pride in their city and are willing to take more ownership over its well-being.

Opgenorth says Historic Milwaukee studies history, tells historical narratives, and learns how to look at a built environment in order to build a better future for the city. “We try to emphasize to people that the reason we’re doing this is to participate in the decision-making process as more informed citizens. So we’re not doing history for history’s sake alone, we’re trying to become better, more educated citizens.”

In conjunction with Doors Open, Historic Milwaukee has developed a mobile app meant to supplement its tours. Users will be able to post their own photos and stories relating to historic Milwaukee as well as sift through posts by others about each particular site.

Missing Milwaukee, a book by local architectural historian Yance Marti, will also be released in conjunction with the event. The book documents Milwaukee buildings that were demolished from the late 1960s through the early 1980s because of expansion and change in the city. Participants can see first-hand the contrast between the lost and remaining architecture of the city.

So if you’re a regular at Pabst concerts, a lover of the Milwaukee Cupcake Company, or always wanted to know what the hell is in that huge red building just south of I-94, make your way downtown this weekend and spend some quality time with Milwaukee’s urban landscape.