The breakwater east of South Shore Yacht Club in Milwaukee was in need of major repairs following the storms of January 2020.

After years of negotiations with the county, the corps of engineers, and other concerned parties, repairs were started in late 2023 with several large boulders inserted to fill the gaps in the wall in order to protect the harbor from further storm damage.

In late 2024, the second phase of breakwater reconstruction began, and a whole new structure is being built to replace the center section of the breakwater directly in front of South Shore YC. The original structure was primarily made of boulders and was built back in the late 1930’s. There were as many as seven different types of bases under those rocks which made the reconstruction project much more difficult to design and build.

The new wall is much wider, much taller, and covered with a smooth finished surface. There is even a road way on top of the base area where trucks can move construction materials around as the new wall takes shape.

This picture shows the base being raised higher with extra rock and fill to level the surface for additional finishing.

The second picture (top of the page), taken earlier this winter, shows a portion of the wall which has now been finished with a smooth rock surface which will allow the waters to run off without damaging the structure or creating chaotic waves inside the harbor.