Last night, the Milwaukee Bucks secured their first NBA title in 50 years with a Game 6 win over the Phoenix Suns. Known for their lively fan atmosphere, the Bucks’ triumph was shared by 65,000 supporters who were present just outside of the Fiserv Forum in a dedicated fan section known as the Deer District. As the Bucks progressed through the playoffs, the reputation of the Gensler-designed entertainment area has grown and is now being used as a model for NBA cities across the country.
Gensler designed the Deer District, in collaboration with Milwaukee-based firm RINKA, to become the city’s new “living room”. Formerly occupied by a parking structure, vacant lots, and a street, the site was cleared to connect the surrounding communities to the new Fiserv Forum, which opened in tandem with the district in 2019.
The architecture is envisioned as a modern interpretation of the industrial heritage of the city, incorporating design elements such as exposed steel and aluminum framing, glass, wood, and masonry materials. The material palette and a large-scale mural pay homage to Milwaukee’s past, while a large screen media wall and ETFE roof panels point towards the future.
A mix of programs, including retail, performance venue, and dining creates an immersive fan experience. The heart of the project is a 2.3-acre public plaza, which features landscaped greenery, public art, an interactive water feature, and a large central gathering space that hosts year-round festivals and events.
Balconies and terraces turn the district into a public arena, framing the plaza with tiered views of the area. The building façades are permeable and flexible, with large-scale overhead doors that open to create more space. In addition, the north pedestrian connector guides visitors through the multi-use district to the arena. It is enhanced with a unique semi-covered canopy and trellis that provides a convertible indoor/outdoor space, allowing for year-round activity.
Since its inception, the Deer District has served to elevate the game-day experience of Bucks fans and the Milwaukee community at large. Even without being inside the Fiserv Forum, the district extends the exciting in-game atmosphere to tens of thousands of outside fans, while also channeling the energy back towards the team.
13 Comments
"and is now being used as a model for NBA cities across the country. " .. not really...
This is effectively a Gensler press release.
NBA Cities made me throw up in my mouth
....and the funny part is Gensler was asked not to continue on the project after DD and RINKA finished it themselves. I guess they still got those sweet sweet licensing rights.
curious how many of the people's tax dollars the city/state forked over for this
https://www.bizjournals.com/milwaukee/blog/2015/08/so-how-much-will-the-milwaukee-bucks-arena-cost.html
"The $250 million in public funding is coming from
state income tax, a ticket surcharge at the new arena, $4 million
annually in Milwaukee County funding, $47 million from the city of
Milwaukee and $203 million-plus in new bonding from the Wisconsin Center District."
What a fucking racket.
I can't find anything about property tax abatement but that is a typical component of these projects.
Capitalism: Privatize profits and socialize losses.
"The $250 million in public funding is coming from state income tax, a ticket surcharge at the new arena, $4 million annually in Milwaukee County funding, $47 million from the city of Milwaukee and $203 million-plus in new bonding from the Wisconsin Center District."
This is not capitalism...^ tax tAx TaX BLAPITY BPIPITY BLAH
You would think living in Wisconsin and wearing those cheese-hats would be punishment enough.
For all the haters in the room, I’m curious what the tax revenue was from the businesses in this development from this past nba season alone.
doubt it's enough to offset the yearly $4million contribution from the county, judging how good everyone is these days at avoiding paying taxes.. plenty other examples in other cities how these types of project always cost tax payers more than they bring in.
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