For more information about the project and how to get involved visit www.riverworksmke.org/beerline-donate

The Beerline Trail Neighborhood Development Project invites you to attend "Equity, Green Spaces, and the Beerline Trail" on January 19. Featuring keynote speaker Carol Coletta, this event will showcase how creating equitable community spaces increases the prosperity of communities. Carol Coletta is a national thought-leader on creative placemaking and equity. She is a senior fellow for the Kresge Foundation's American Cities Program, and is President and CEO of the Memphis River Parks Partnership, Following Carol's presentation, a panel of local leaders and creative placemaking experts will discuss equity and the importance of creating equitable spaces within communities. Panelists include Mayor Tom Barrett, County Executive David Crowley, Riverworks Development Corporation executive director Darryl Johnson, and Wisconsin DOT Secretary Craig Thompson. Prior to Carol's keynote, Julia Taylor, president of the GMC, and Darryl Johnson, executive director of Riverworks, will share an update on the Beerline Trail with the launch of a new Beerline video.

The Beerline Trail Neighborhood Development project hosted another webinar celebrating the Beerline Trail on March 30. Keynote speaker Walter Hood has designed a concept plan for the creation of a Linear Park on the Beerline Trail. Hood, a nationally known landscape architect, engaged with the community and used that input in his design of the Lifeways Plan, an ambitious vision for this important community asset. Walter Hood is the Creative Director and founder of Hood Design Studio and a MacArthur Fellow. He is co-editor of a recently released collection of essays, “Black Landscapes Matter.” The book includes an essay about the Beerline Trail, written by longtime Beerline Trail project leader Sara Daleiden, director of MKE-LAX. The event featured Darryl Johnson, executive director of Riverworks, who shared Beerline Trail updates and a virtual “walk-through” of the Lifeways Plan. A local panel, including Sara Daleiden, discussed Black landscapes and why they are important for Milwaukee.

Keynote speaker Reggie Jackson shares an in-depth history of the Beerline Trail, from an active rail line through the 1970s to a nation-leading creative placemaking project. The Beerline Trail has served many purposes in its lengthy history, with its most recent rebirth acting as a catalyst for community and economic development. Reggie is a Co-Founder and Lead Trainer/Consultant for Nurturing Diversity Partners, a consulting firm that fosters diversity, inclusion, and equity within institutions and communities. Jackson is a Milwaukee native and nationally recognized speaker, researcher, writer, and consultant to the media on race relations. He helps institutions and individuals understand how our country’s racial hierarchy developed historically, its impact on our lives today, and how we can realize America’s promise for all its citizens. Reggie shares seldom-told stories and data about the experiences of African-Americans and other peoples of color past and present. Reggie has an amazing capacity to read, research, and absorb American history. He has a talent for synthesizing the material to make it compelling and meaningful for youth and adults from diverse racial/ethnic, socio-economic, and educational backgrounds. The event featured a panel of local officials and stakeholders talking about the Beerline Trail – its history and its future. Panelists included: - Sandra Gaillard, Harambee Resident and Artist - Darryl Johnson, Executive Director, Riverworks Development Corporation - John Schmid, Retired Journalist, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

The Beerline Trail Neighborhood Development Project hosted the final webinar of its series celebrating the Beerline Trail on May 25. Keynote speakers Mark Treskon and Kimberly Burrowes, researchers at the Urban Institute, discussed their newest report, “Embedding Equity into Placemaking: An Examination of the ‘Milwaukee Method’ of Creative Placemaking in Practice.” Efforts to build equitable creative-placemaking approaches are underway across the country. This report examines two creative-placemaking efforts in Milwaukee: the Beerline Trail and the Night Market. For both efforts, stakeholders in the city are building a practice to change how people see and experience the places around them. This “Milwaukee Method” of creative placemaking informs and shapes distinct creative-placemaking projects in the city to model a broader approach to place-based investing. The creative-placemaking projects were examined through a lens of inclusive, community-oriented development, with the goal of helping local stakeholders more effectively communicate the benefits and effects of placemaking in their work. This lens shows that how people feel about where they live, visit, and work affects their feelings of belonging, social cohesion, and identity. In addition to using the inclusive, community-oriented development lens, we determine how the lessons from the planning and implementation of these projects shape efforts to strengthen equity in the city and region. The findings capture takeaways to advance the creative-placemaking sector and drive future equitable investments. The webinar featured a panel of local officials and stakeholders talking about the impact of the Beerline Trail and the Night Market locally.

The Beerline Trail 5K is a community event located in the Riverwest and Harambee neighborhoods in Milwaukee, WI. The event is hosted by the Riverworks BID, during Riverworks Week, a celebration of the businesses, creativity and community within the district.

Video by James Carlson