Sarah Hauer

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

View the skyline from a rooftop pool, climb the City Hall bell tower and learn about the past while exploring more than 150 sites across downtown and surrounding neighborhoods as part of Doors Open Milwaukee Sept. 17 and 18.

Returning favorites the U.S. Bank Center and Milwaukee Blacksmith will participate again, but many sites are new. Some, like the 1920s Seneca Gas Station in West Allis, will be open to the public for the first time in decades. Others, like rock climbing center Adventure Rock, just completed construction this summer.

“Doors Open is a great way for the public to see sites that they may not see or access otherwise,” said Historic Milwaukee director of special events Grace Fuhr. “We want to foster a sense of civic pride and positivity about the city.”

Doors Open, now in its sixth year, is organized by Historic Milwaukee , a nonprofit organization that hopes to increase awareness of and commitment to Milwaukee’s history, architecture, and the preservation of the built environment through education and advocacy.

Many Doors Open sites offer tours for free, while other tours cost $10. Even for some free tours, tickets are required and must be ordered online prior to the event. Several tours, such as one that takes visitors behind the Oriental Theater's curtain, have already sold out.

The event goes beyond buildings with open archives , music , storytelling.

“Doors Open is about built environment and what’s around you, but communities are much more than what’s around you,” Fuhr said.

Archives at some sites, such as Johnson Controls' corporate headquarters, will also be on display. At four Doors Open sites – Central Library , Ambassador Hotel , Burnham Block and ASQ Center – Access Contemporary Music will perform music inspired by the location. Ex Fabula and Historic Milwaukee will present a StorySlam Saturday. Eight Milwaukeeans will share 5- to 8-minute true stories about the city’s neighborhoods and places. The StorySlam will take place at the Wisconsin Black Historical Society and Museum .

Neighborhood spotlight

Doors Open is expanding this year further from downtown to highlight a handful of sites in three neighborhoods – Clarke Square, Sherman Park and West Allis.

Clarke Square southwest of downtown is one of three original settlements that eventually formed the city of Milwaukee. Visit murals throughout the neighborhood and ceramic studio Tree of Life Earthworks. Step out onto the Journey House Packer Field . The Green Bay Packers donated the former practice field to Journey House, located in Mitchell Park, in 2013. The synthetic turf had been used in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Sherman Park on the northwest side is where business owners in the 1920s and 30s built homes and was once the heart of the city’s Jewish population. Washington High School of Information Technology will participate in Doors Open for the first time. The school’s hall of fame will be open, spotlighting former baseball commissioner Bud Selig, former senator Herb Kohl and the recently deceased Jerome Silberman (actor Gene Wilder). The first portions of the high school on Sherman Blvd. were completed in 1916. The schools will only be open Sept. 18.

West Allis has its roots in manufacturing. For the first time since 1978, the public will access Seneca (Wadham’s) Gas Station . The gas station was built in the 1920s and is now owned by the city. Inside, visitors can view the old equipment and displays of petroleum products. The century-old St. Joseph Chapel on W. Greenfield Ave. and its over 100 stained glass windows will be on display Sept. 17.

Other highlights

The Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church on Congress St. was the architect's last major building. It will be open Sept. 17 with tours each hour. Homes designed by the architect on W. Burnham St., called the Burnham Block , are also participating.

The Catholic Financial Life building on W. Wells St. will allow the public on its rooftop oasis featuring the city’s only rooftop pool and sundeck. Enjoy views of the city from the 19-story structure. The All Saints Chapel on the first floor will be open.

Karl Ratzsch restaurant first opened in 1929 and has been a local landmark since then. Located on E. Mason St., the space has hand-painted murals, stained glass and other items showing its German heritage.

IF YOU GO

What: Doors Open Milwaukee

Where: More than 150 sites across Milwaukee.

When: Sept. 17 and 18 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Admission: Buildings and sites are free to explore. Some tours require tickets, many are free, while others cost $10.

Info : www.doorsopenmilwaukee.org