The new Prairie Springs On Park events venue set in an old riverside industrial building at the Urban Ecology Center on Milwaukee's East SIde will celebrate its grand opening on March 19.
The 300-person Prairie Springs on Park, 1420 E. Park Pl., is part of UEC's $8.2 million Riverland Project and will be operated by Two Birds Event Group, which operates The Ivy House, The Starling, The Society and The Rivulet venues as well as a number of events-related businesses.
The venue – which sits between the Urban Ecology Center building in Riverside Park and the 40-acre UEC’s Rotary Centennial Arboretum – is in a renovated early 20th century cream city brick building long used by National Brake & Electric Co.
Read an in-depth story on the history of the building and this project here.
The project was designed by The Kubala Washatko Architects, which also designed that 2004 Riverside Park building, and constructed by CG Schmidt.
The grand opening open house is open to the public and takes Wednesday, March 19 from 2 until 6 p.m., with brief remarks at 5:15pm. RSVP here.
Visitors will get to see the main space with its 75-person balcony and bird-safe glass, the 100-person covered patio and an adjacent 5,000-square-foot green space.
“Prairie Springs on Park will change the landscape of Milwaukee event spaces by creating a stunning eco-friendly setting for any special event that marries urban elegance with the enchantment of the natural world,” said UEC Executive Director Jen Hense.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
