Milwaukee's RiverWalk wins annual Global Award of Excellence from Urban Land Institute
Tom Daykin
Milwaukee's RiverWalk system has won some international recognition.
The RiverWalk, which runs roughly 3 miles along the Milwaukee River between the harbor and the North Ave. bridge, has won a 2017-2018 Global Award of Excellence from the Urban Land Institute.
It's one of 13 projects in North America, Europe and Asia to receive that recognition, according to a Tuesday announcement from the Department of City Development. It also marks the first time a Wisconsin project has been named a Global Award of Excellence winner.
The idea of creating a RiverWalk system emerged during the 1980s. It was expanded in the 1990s in the heart of downtown, and then to the Historic Third Ward, with costs split between private land owners and the city.
The RiverWalk has helped boost riverfront property values by more than $520 million, according to a 2014 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel report.
City officials are now considering an expansion to the Menomonee River.
Tom Daykin can be emailed at tdaykin@jrn.com, and followed on Twitter and Facebook.
