Humboldt Park Watch Endorses the Proposed Humboldt Park Beer Garden
Since plans for the beer garden were a first announced in December 2013, Humboldt Park Watch (HPW) chose to remain neutral on the issue. HPW hosted a public meeting in February to help HPW, and the surrounding neighborhood, stay informed on specific proposal details. Since then, the Milwaukee County Parks Department and St. Francis Brewery have continued to share information with HPW membership at monthly meetings.
When discussing beer garden plans with the County Parks Department and St. Francis Brewery, HPW pushed for stronger investment and reduced impact beyond the pavilion. Significant changes have been made to the original proposal based on HPW’s and the general public’s input. Business operation hours have been reduced, capacity limits have been set and the beer garden’s footprint is considerably smaller.
This proposal opens the opportunity for significant investment in the park pavilion that would not otherwise happen. In the first year, concession and warming rooms will be improved both in functionality and esthetics. If the trial year goes well, and a long-term agreement is reached, major investments are expected, similar in scope to improvements made to Estabrook’s beer garden pavilion.
Based on these changes to the proposal and expected investment in the park, HPW has chosen to endorse the beer garden. The beer garden will improve park safety and reduce vandalism in and around the pavilion. It offers our neighborhood another way to enjoy the park while increasing the number of eyes in and around the pavilion. County sheriffs participating in HPW monthly meetings have made it clear that there have been no incident calls related to the beer gardens in Estabrook and Hoyt Parks during the two years that they have been in operations.
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Alderman Tony Zielinski is hosting a public meeting (June 9, 7pm) in the park pavilion regarding the proposed beer garden.