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Consideration of approval of an agreement between the City and the City of Wauwatosa VFW Post 1465 for the Construction of a Veterans Memorial located on City-owned land at Harwood and Milwaukee Avenues
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Submitted by:
David Simpson, Director of Public Works
Department
Department of Public Works
A. Issue
Representatives from Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Posts 1465, 6498 and 8320 have been working with the City to find a location to construct a Veterans Memorial in Wauwatosa following an extensive fundraising campaign by the group. Approval of an agreement to construct the Memorial on City owned property is needed to move the project forward.
B. Background/Options
Representatives from VFW Posts 1465, 6498 and 8320 formed a Committee to design, fundraise, and construct a Wauwatosa Veterans Memorial, originally intended to be located at Hart Park. Following the historic flooding in August of 2025 the decision was made to look for sites outside of the floodway to prevent future damage to the Memorial as well as reduce costs and time related to regulatory approvals that would be needed to place a memorial in Hart Park.
After exploring many sites the veterans group has decided that the City owned property at the western corner of Harwood Avenue and Milwaukee Avenue would be a good fit for the proposed Memorial. This triangular shaped property is the location of Wauwatosa's first public library which operated from 1896 until 1957 when it was replaced by the City's current library. Currently, the site is City owned green space, however, not currenty designated as a City park.
In order for the veterans group to proceed with this project the City's Common Council would first need to approve an agreement for the construction and dedication of the Memorial. A draft of such an agreement is attached as well as the most recent draft plans that the group has supplied to the Design Review Board. In the plans you will see the proposed site plan, land...
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