McKinley Beach to reopen this summer
High water, erosion led to multiple drownings and eventual closure in 2020
After three-plus years of construction, Milwaukee’s McKinley Beach is poised to reopen this summer.
The beach — which closed initially in 2020 after at least four drownings there — is set to reopen around Memorial Day. The project addressed erosion and riptide concerns at the beach and lowered the depth of the water.
“We’ve taken a careful approach to re-establishing the original redesign that everyone has enjoyed for years and years. We hope they find this new beach what they remember,” said Sarah Toomsen, manager of planning and development at Milwaukee County Parks.
The beach’s reopening date is pending final adjustments, like grading and completing a signage kiosk, she said.
Toomsen said the beach’s changes came after the county hired a team of coastal and other engineers to evaluate the best ways to rehabilitate it. The county mulled a wide range of options, from closing to redesigning it, before deciding to restore it to its original design.
The project had a cost of over $1 million, according to the Milwaukee County Parks website. The official decision was made by the county board, which in 2022 approved more than $700,000 in funding for the project.
The reopening comes a year after an initial planned reopening was stalled due to permitting issues, and as some members of the public have continued to use the beach, despite its closure.
Why did McKinley Beach close?
McKinley Beach closed in August 2020 after several drownings and neardrownings. That summer, law enforcement had warned of increased chances of drownings due to historically high water levels, the closures of community pools and a lack of lifeguards.
On Aug. 10, 2020, two 14-year-old boys became caught in a current and a 50-year-old man attempted to save them. The man and one of the boys died from the incident. The month prior, a 19year-old man died trying to save two of his younger cousins in the water.
On Aug. 12, 2020, the beach closed. At the time, county officials noted the beach hadn’t had lifeguards for a decade and the county’s revenue shortages were hampering their ability to maintain parks and beaches like McKinley.
Now, after the lengthy restoration project, it’s poised to reopen. Like all county beaches, it has no lifeguard staffing, but it does participate in community beach safety programs, Toomsen said.
What work was done at McKinley Beach?
The process behind reopening the park included new sand, grading and rehabilitation.
Notably, the beach’s water depth is back to its intended two to 21⁄ feet,
2 down from what had reached up to 61⁄
2 feet at times, Toomsen said. The county hauled in about 11,000 cubic yards of sand. The process also required permitting with various government entities, due to its location on a Great Lake.
She said the beach is a “complicated environment” because of its variables. Among them is its proximity to the McKinley Marina pier structure. The pier creates rebounding waves — waves hit that and bounce toward the beach.
“It was quite a bit to coordinate, and we’re glad to be close to the finish line here,” she said. “We’re thrilled to reopen this beach. … I do also have to say that I hope people follow safe swimming practices.”
The restoration presents a wideranging solution to the beach’s issues, which weren’t isolated to any single issue, Toomsen said. Beyond the depth of the shallow water, the project also added sand past the beach’s jetties.
“We did work that was beyond what is considered the beach proper because we’re trying to control the energy that is coming from the waves … it really is a combination,” Toomsen said.