Characterized by their distinctive round, windowed facade, the Mitchell Park Domes have been marked safe from demolition due to funding provided by the county this past July.
Just a five-minute drive or 25-minute bus ride from Marquette’s campus, the Domes are a Milwaukee staple that the community fought to save. Students can purchase discounted $6 tickets with a valid MUID.
As part of an estimated $133 million project, the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors approved giving $5 million over the next six years to support the Domes’ restoration.
The Milwaukee Domes Alliance, a non-profit currently responsible for running about half of the facility’s operations, is leading the plan. The Alliance was previously known as Friends of the Domes, established in 1989, but rebranded in March to better match their mission for the Domes’ future.
“Many organizations like mine are born out of advocacy efforts,” Christa Beall Diefenbach, CEO of the Alliance, said.
Those efforts are the result of uncertainty regarding their fate after years of deferred maintenance, Beall Diefenbach said, citing a fear that the Domes wouldn’t be able to be cared for anymore due to the county’s financial struggles.
In a press release from Aug. 5, it’s stated that the Domes Alliance will obtain responsibility for facility ownership, while the county will maintain plant care.
Additional funding will come from private philanthropy, and the alliance is currently working to secure funds from the state and federal governments.
The Domes, reimagined
The Alliance has named the project The Domes: Reimagined and will split restorative work into phases starting 2027 at the earliest.
Phase one will focus on facility-wide restoration, broken into three sub-phases addressing each dome, starting with the Show Dome. Simultaneously, renovations will add a new café, an expanded gift shop and a children’s play garden.
Beall Diefenbach said the main priority of phase one is replacing the panes of glass and fixing the seals on the domes’ exterior. This will require around 2,500 panes of glass for the Show Dome alone.
Later in the restoration process, phase two will include a new nature learning center and a stormwater garden to enhance the visitor experience.
The Domes are located in Mitchell Park, one of over 15o public parks in the system. Both phases include steps to restore the park itself.
The alliance is seeking funds from tax credit programs, including new credits that were funded in President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill. They’re also pursuing historic credits, which must be approved and dispersed by the National Park Service.
“As long as we meet the criteria for those programs, we will be eligible for funding,” Beall Diefenbach said. “It would’ve been really different for the project if the tax credit programs weren’t funded in the bill.”
The alliance is hoping to raise $17.1 million in donations for the first phase. Beall Diefenbach said the fundraising counsel has asked that contribution totals not be shared.
Though restoration hasn’t begun, Beall Diefenbach said the community has been highly engaged, with hundreds volunteering for interviews with the architects.
“There are a lot of people who want the Domes to stick around,” she said.
County’s commitment
County Executive David Crowley and County Board Chairwoman Marcelia Nicholson signed the legislation that approved the $30 million commitment on July 30.
“For [the county], it really is an incredible return on investment,” Beall Diefenbach said. “Every dollar they invest, we’re returning three.”
This results from the takeover of facility operations and resources contributed by the alliance.
Crowley’s approval of funding was contingent upon the alliance securing private and philanthropic support, according to Milwaukee County Parks Deputy Director Jim Tarantino.
“After years of study and public discussion, including options like demolition or partial restoration, the Domes Reimagined Plan provided a creative, sustainable way forward,” Tarantino said.
The decision, Tarantino said, was driven by the Domes’ landmark status and strong community support.
Before funding was approved, Milwaukee County Parks and the Domes Alliance had been working together for years to help with the transfer of responsibilities that made funding possible.
“A successful partnership also requires identifying a project that is going to be successful,” Tarantino said.
After receiving feedback and engagement from the community, the county and Milwaukee Dome’s Alliance agreed that the current project is the best approach to rescue the Domes.
Future of the Domes
Once restoration begins on the Show Dome, Beall Diefenbach hopes to use it to guide future phases.
“We want to be able to do this in a way that’s very thoughtful and lasting,” she said.
She hopes that in the long term, the Domes will continue to provide learning opportunities for the community and enhance an all-around love for nature.
“The Domes are more than architecture; they also promote environmental education, tourism, and cultural connection,” Tarantino said. “County leaders, together with the Milwaukee Domes Alliance, see them as more than just buildings: they are symbols of civic pride and bold innovation.”
This story was written by Lilly Peacock. She can be reached at [email protected].
