This year marks the first time that the Near West Side’s 27th Street corridor windows have been decorated for the holidays. The Near West Side Business Improvement District 10 backed this project. This BID also serves over 350 local businesses along the Near West Side’s five major commercial corridors.
Health and Neighborhood Partnership Manager Barb Scotty of Near West Side Partners, Inc. plays a significant role in facilitating beautification efforts — including this window decorating initiative — in the community. She believes activating this corridor demonstrates interest and investment in the community to attract new business development.
“Having the storefronts decorated is a tool to brighten vacant storefronts,” says Scotty.
The project involved thorough planning and collaboration between Near West Side Partners and Melissa Muller, an arts consultant based in Milwaukee with expertise in nonprofit creative work. Muller recruited artist Bridget Evans, who has expertise in window painting, to craft imagery that would embody celebrating winter in the Near West Side. The Concordia 27th development and Tower Theater storefront space owned by Weigand Enterprises and Maures Management participated in hosting these efforts.
Explore additional community art projects within the Near West Side neighborhoods by taking time to appreciate the local murals, 35th and State Street sculptures, and André Saint-Louis neighborhood markers created through a partnership with the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design.
