Historic footbridge in Lake Park may be renovated

Milwaukee County has settled on plans and funding to restore a historically significant footbridge in Lake Park that spans Ravine Road, the picturesque road leading to Lincoln Memorial Drive.

Both the footbridge, which was built in 1905, and the road have been blockaded for years because of safety concerns with the bridge. Most notable: increased cracking and soil erosion around the supports.

The road has been closed since 2014 and access to the bridge has been restricted since 2016.

Milwaukee County Supervisor Sheldon A. Wasserman called the wire fences and concrete blockades “eyesores” that have tarnished the beauty of the park.

Work on the bridge is not expected to start until 2021 with the help of up to $2 million in federal funds. But whether Ravine Road will be reopened is an open question.

“The road underneath has become kind of a separate issue,” said Wasserman, whose east side and north shore district includes Lake Park. “Many neighbors want to see it closed.“

As the bridge fell into disrepair, there was debate over whether something designed as a key feature of the park should be demolished, reconstructed or refurbished. Renovation won out.

Lake Park Friends, an advocacy group for the park, raised money and hired its own consultant, a firm specializing in evaluating historic bridges, which concluded the bridge could be renovated.

“The sooner we can get the park fully functioning, the better,” said Colleen Reilly, president of the Lake Park Friends, which favors restoring the bridge as close to its original design as possible.”

Frederick Law Olmsted’s vision

The footbridge lies just north of Bartolotta’s Lake Park Bistro and was one of a group of elements, including a nearby series of steps known as the “Grand Staircase,” that landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted envisioned for the park, according to Reilly.

Olmsted, a luminary in the field of public space architecture, designed New York’s Central Park, the grounds of the White House and the Capitol and many other parks during his lifetime.

Lake Park has been recognized as a National Register of Historic Places Historic District.

The modernistic footbridge was built with an early technique of reinforced concrete construction.

It was designed by the Milwaukee architectural firm of Ferry & CQClas, which also designed city classics such as the central Milwaukee Public Library.

Funding will come largely from a combination of 80 percent federal and 20 percent county funds. The state Department of Transportation administers the program for Wisconsin projects and has earmarked up to $2 million for the bridge renovation.

The county has spent $189,000 on the project and committed another $500,000 for its share of the work, according to county budget figures. The Milwaukee County Board is expected to review the measure Thursday but is not required to take action.

Reilly said bridge renovation estimates have ranged between about $1 million and $1.8 million.

Lake Park Friends has raised more than $800,000, which was originally intended to represent a match with public funds. The friends group is now asking donors whether their money could be used for other purposes, including bridge maintenance, and county officials say they are working with the group on an agreement involving bridge upkeep.

Reilly, of Lake Park Friends, agrees the road and bridge are separate issues but noted that permanently closing the road would require the approval of the Milwaukee Historic Preservation Commission and review by Wisconsin’s state historic preservation officer.