Business & Tech

27th Street Revitalization Starts with Grand Opening of Historic Route US 41

The stretch of roadway was celebrated with a grand opening Thursday morning.

With the joint hope that the 27th Street corridor’s popularity takes off like a 1969 Chevelle off the starting line, City of Milwaukee and Greenfield officials declared Historic Route US 41 open for business Thursday.

In a attended by officials of both municipalities, business leaders and others, many praised the cooperation between the cities and the Wisconsin Department of Transportation to revitalize the stretch of a highway that runs from Michigan all the way down to Florida.

“This is an example of when you have good people working together trying to get something done positive for the community,” Greenfield Mayor Michael Neitzke said. “I think you’ll see more development along our stretch, and we hope that Oak Creek and Franklin join us and we extend the theme.

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“US 41 has the tradition like old Route 66, and that’s the kind of theme we’re trying to have here. It’s a great place and I think it’s going to improve.  … We all wanted this to work and we did it with an eye on the future and keeping maintenance costs down. “

The highway was constructed in the 1950s and over the years has been home to memorable business such as a go-kart track, a drive-in movie theater, Leon’s Custard and many, many more.

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“It’s great to have this infusion here,” Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said. “We’re breathing life into this thoroughfare and making this a place for retailers, for customers, for people from Greenfield or Milwaukee, and maybe even further south as time goes on, to really bring this section of our community even more back to life.”

Barrett praised Milwaukee Alderperson Terry Witkowski, Thursday’s master of ceremonies, for his efforts to make Historic Route US 41 a reality. Witkowski, in turn, passed the praise on to Neitzke.

“The idea for naming this historic Route US 41 came from Mike,” Witkowski said. “Both he and I grew up in this area. If you go back to the days of Southgate (Mall) in the 1950s, the first shopping center in the state of Wisconsin; Leon’s Custard, which presidents have stopped at, you’ll find this is a very historic place.”

. They were paid for by a $1.5 million grant from the WisDOT as part of the Interstate 94 Mitchell Interchange project.

“When we moved forward with I-94, we recognized we needed to make a community sensitive solutions investment along this corridor,” said Dewayne Johnson, Southeast Region Director of the WisDOT. “We’re really proud to see how this has come together.

“This corridor is important on its own for the various communities that adjoin the roadway, but when you couple it with our I-94 reconstruction project over to the east, the Mitchell Interchange, it becomes even more important.”

Neitzke and Barrett discussed the three business development districts – two for Greenfield and one for Milwaukee – that have been established along the corridor. The BIDs are believed to be the first in the state to cross city boundaries.

The BIDs were coordinated by the 27th Street Business Association.

“It’s been really great to work with both cities and the Wisconsin DOT,” said Tara Cavazos, the 27th Street Business Association president. “It’s always been our goal to keep this a vibrant and united business district and bring everyone together. The collaboration has really helped with that.”

Neitzke also declared June 2, 2011 as Tina Klose Day. Klose was the winning artist in the corridor’s streetscape design competition. Her name is engraved on a plaque at the median at 27th Street and Mangold Avenue and she was given a plaque in recognition of her efforts by Greenfield Alderpersons Linda Lubotsky and Shirely Saryan.

“Politicians come up with ideas, but it takes people like Tina to make them a reality,” Neitzke said. “She deserves a lot of the credit.”

Get more on this story from FOX6 News.


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