After more than a decade of planning, designing and reconstructing, the new and improved South Shore beach is officially open.
The Milwaukee County Parks System’s $8 million effort to move the South Shore beach has been in the works since at least 2014, with construction officially kicking off in October 2024.
Though the community has been enjoying the new beach since July — when fences came down as part of the soft opening — local officials will mark its official completion this month with a Sept. 25 ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Here’s what to know about the newly reopened beach:
Why did the South Shore beach move?
Parks officials launched the “rehabilitation project” after the Bay View beach was frequently forced to close due to high levels of E. coli in the water. As recently as 2022, the beach was closed 27 times, according to Milwaukee County Parks.
Its poor water quality also led to the beach to regularly rank among the worst beaches in the nation.
What’s changed at the South Shore beach?
The main part of the project involved moving the beach 400 feet south down the lakefront and turning the old beach space into open space with native vegetation. The new beach space was chosen after parks officials monitored the spot for 12 years and found it to have significantly less E. coli and water quality issues.
Additional changes in the new beach include a stabilizing stone wall, dry prairie grasses to deter birds and sand with larger grain size.
Is the South Shore beach fully open?
According to its website, the project is at “substantial completion,” but the public should still avoid the following areas:
Caitlin Looby contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: After nearly a year of reconstruction, the new South Shore beach is officially open
Reporting by Maia Pandey, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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