On Thursday morning, September 4th, at Port Milwaukee (Wisconsin USA, Lake Michigan), officials assembled on newly reclaimed ground behind the Lake Express Ferry terminal to mark the start of construction on the South Shore Cruise Dock.
The long-anticipated project carries a price tag of US$17 million and will provide a deepwater berth at 2320 South Lincoln Memorial Drive. Completion is projected for June, shortly after the opening of the 2026 cruise season.
The dock is being designed to accommodate Seawaymax-class vessels, the largest ships capable of passing through the St. Lawrence Seaway locks. It will complement Milwaukee’s existing cruise berth at Pier Wisconsin near Discovery World, providing a more suitable embarkation point than the City Heavy Lift Dock at Jones Island, where Viking Cruises vessels have temporarily tied up in recent years.
Port Milwaukee Director Jackie Q. Carter reported that the 2024 season saw 22 cruise calls, with 13,500 passengers passing through the city. All of those calls were turnarounds, where disembarking passengers were replaced by new guests. She noted that the 2025 schedule already lists 55 visits, owing to the addition of transit calls, where ships dock temporarily to allow passengers to explore the city before continuing their voyages.
Visit Milwaukee President and CEO Peggy Williams-Smith said that cruise traffic this year generated an estimated US$2.5 million in economic benefit, and projections suggest that the total will rise to US$3.5 million next season. She explained that these figures reflect spending at hotels, restaurants, attractions, and small businesses, along with wages earned by Milwaukee residents employed in those sectors. A Port Milwaukee study calculated that cruise ship passengers have contributed US$7.2 million to the local economy between 2022 and 2024.
Financing for the new dock has been assembled from multiple sources: a US$3.5 million Wisconsin Capital Tourism Grant, a US$500,000 Harbor Assistance Grant from the state’s Department of Transportation, US$5 million from the City of Milwaukee, and additional reserves from the Port itself.
At the groundbreaking, Carter and Williams-Smith were joined by Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson, Wisconsin Department of Administration Secretary Kathy Blumenfeld, and Alderman Marina Dimitrijevic. The mayor remarked that the project would strengthen Milwaukee’s position as a destination and expand Wisconsin’s reputation more broadly, ensuring the benefits of tourism are felt across the region. He added that the dock represents a step toward a stronger port, city, and state.
Planning for the facility began several years ago, with an initial target for completion in 2023. The effort now advances with a firm date on the horizon.