Expansion and modernization project continues to change lives
When Baird Center was first proposed, one of its purposes was to be a space that not only hosts the community and its events, but also serves and supports the city, the county and its residents.
As has been previously noted, the Baird Center expansion has delivered on that from an economic impact standpoint. Beyond that though, this project doesn’t just contribute dollars to the local economy by hosting events, it has also impacted the community in less obvious ways.
“Most people look at Baird Center and think, ‘what a beautiful building’ or ‘what a great space for meetings, events, or conventions.’ When I look at Baird Center, I see jobs and economic impact.” City of Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson said. “The community impact of an expanded convention center is real. As employment opportunities grow, individual workers take home more pay; families, then, have greater economic stability; in turn, the fabric of neighborhoods improves, and our entire city is stronger and safer. Baird Center is a gem in downtown Milwaukee, and its benefits reach residents all across our city.”
This has come through in stories we’ve heard since even before we opened. From the impact of its construction and our Grand Opening Gala to the artists who created pieces for the We Energies Foundation Art Collection and our nonprofit work, Baird Center is already a difference maker for the betterment of Milwaukee’s downtown and the greater region.
“Our Baird Center partnership is a way to give back to the city that has been our hometown for Baird’s entire 105-year history,” said Mary Ellen Stanek, Chief Investment Officer Emeritus of Baird Advisors and President of Baird Funds. “We have watched with pride as the Baird Center becomes a transformative community asset, welcoming local and national events and bringing people together in the community. We look forward to what the future will bring.”
To showcase this impact, we spoke with a few people whose lives and work have changed as a result of the expansion.
Here is what they had to say.
Artists use public artworks to create new opportunities
John Fleissner is no stranger to public art. For years, the Milwaukee artist has created murals throughout the city alongside his other paint, spray paint and wood and linoleum cut projects.
Yet, an unexpected opportunity arose for Fleissner in 2023. Baird Center put out a request for proposals seeking local artists to create works for the then-being-built convention center expansion. With a focus on Milwaukee and Wisconsin labor history, Fleissner submitted his works for consideration.
Months later, he was asked to create six wood cut prints, essentially giant stamps, that would tell the story of Milwaukee’s industrial and labor history.
Between teaching art at Alexander Hamilton High School and other art projects, Fleissner brought Milwaukee’s industrial and labor history alive, one chisel and cut at a time. Once the wood cuts were completed, he used them to make the prints that now hang on the first floor of Baird Center, titled A Map of Working Class Milwaukee. It’s part of the We Energies Foundation Art Collection.
“I’m a huge nerd for Milwaukee, labor and industrial history,” Fleissner said. “It’s really cool to get to represent the city’s story for people who might come here from other places. From big industry events to public schools taking a tour, it’s incredible to share something people might not know about Milwaukee history.”
Standing next to his finished pieces a year later, Fleissner said this work changed him and his career. This work sits proudly in his portfolio and has been used to apply for more opportunities, especially in the public art realm.
Previously, he had never considered much work in public buildings and spaces. Seeing his work in a permanent space where both locals and visitors pass everyday has shifted his artistic focus.
“I’ve still got a bunch of time in my life to make art,” Fleissner said. “A project like this has not only helped me develop what else I want to do with my career, it showed me where I want my art to go. That’s telling more stories as commemorations of lesser-known histories in places people will see it, whether that’s a post office or convention center.”
Fleissner said that opportunities are coming in already. He said he’s heard the same from other artists who contributed pieces to the We Energies Foundation Art Collection.
“The art in Baird Center is not what you see normally in a convention center,” Fleissner said. “They really let the artists share their visions and you see that with all of the unique pieces hanging in there today. I think it’s great for local artists to have their work, truly their work, hanging in a high-visible public space like this.”
An event that led to more events
Samantha Mitchell got an unforeseen call in 2023. She was eight years into owning and operating her own event planning business, Samantha Starr Events. It was her second job, a passion project while also working for United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County.
That passion suddenly became full-time when she got a call from Dynamic Events President and Creative Director David Caruso. One of the biggest names in Milwaukee hospitality, Caruso was working on a secret, large community event. After following Mitchell’s career and work, he wanted her on the team for what would be one of the biggest parties this city has ever seen: the Baird Center Grand Opening Gala.
Mitchell had experience with celebrations and individual and corporate events, but this was an entirely different scale. This would be an 1,100-person event in the brand-new Baird Ballroom with an extravagant cocktail hour, intimate three-course dinner and even a live performance.
“In Milwaukee, collaboration is really evolving,” Mitchell said. “As much as people want to do things themselves or on their own, we are seeing so much greatness happening when more people, more ideas, are part of it. I’d been watching Caruso for years and when he said he wanted my eye, my attention to detail, my creativity, how could I pass that up?”
Planning and execution took over a year. Mitchell now stood beside a lineup of event planners, many of whom had 20 years or more of experience. This was the opportunity of a lifetime, she thought. It was a chance to learn from the best and get hands-on experience with putting on a massive event.
While Mitchell focused mostly on the cocktail reception and the large dinner, she said the entire process was collaborative with each event planner having a role in every part of the gala. All of the work, lessons and wisdom she has applied to her own business.
“Baird Center really helped me open me up a little more when working with my own clients,” Mitchell said. “A lot of this business is relationship-based. That’s all walks of life. The relationships I established through the gala have been incredible, and I’ve seen in increase in more people reaching out to me, clients and people just wanting to learn more about me.”
The event itself was four days of stress for an event planner. Set up alone took four days and the gala was flawlessly executed, Mitchell said.
A year later, she looks back fondly on the event. She said she even recently texted Caruso to let him know working on the grand opening gala prepared her to open her business up to creating and working on larger events. She has especially made inroads into corporate events, where she hopes to find a niche.
Most recently, Samantha Starr Events returned to Baird Ballroom as the event planner for the PEARLS for Teen Girls fundraising gala, a 540-person event in April. She hopes to plan and host many more events in that space moving forward.
“I’m always thinking bigger and praying and staying optimistic about large-scale opportunities and working with key people in the community,” Mitchell said. “This was such an exciting time for me because people who might never have known me were telling me they heard about my work on this project. That visibility has led to getting more inquiries for events.”
An apprenticeship into a career
When Delorean Johnson walked onto the Baird Center construction site for the first time, he described it as “controlled chaos but chaotic nonetheless.” The noises from equipment, people 30-feet up in scissor lifts, boom lifts and more created a zoo-like atmosphere that can often be found at an active work site.
This was a new experience for Johnson who had just completed his Wisconsin Regional Training Partnership (WRTP) training course, a nonprofit that trains and prepares workers in the skilled trades. For the decade before, he had worked in labs, doing sampling and testing for things like water pH levels. He hadn’t even considered construction until his girlfriend mentioned an opportunity through WRPT.
It was a paid, two-month class that that taught hands-on construction skills. Johnson’s work ethic stood out immediately. When the course was completed, he was picked for a plumbing apprenticeship on this big project downtown called Baird Center.
Suddenly, Johnson was thrust into working with gas and water lines with piping as thick as 12-inches and as thin as two-inches for a giant downtown structure. For four days each week, he was putting in 32 hours at Baird Center. For the other three days, he was putting in 12-hour shifts at the lab testing water. His free time was shuttling his kids around to various practices and games.
“It was a lot, but I’m a guy that can adapt,” Johnson said. “I adapt to my environment, even if that means sleeping in a camp chair at my kids’ practices. I have a positive attitude and believe you can speak things into existence. Turns out, the best from this was yet to come.”
Johnson turned his apprenticeship into a job with CornerStone One, a local construction contractor company with whom he completed the Baird Center expansion. Because of his progress and success on that project, he was pulled over to another site: the Northwestern Mutual expansion.
While Johnson initially hoped to continue growing in the plumbing trade, his project manager asked him if he instead wanted to shift to being a safety manager. As a father of five, Johnson said he was used to ensuring safety protocols at home.
He now also has a team of 12 to manage and an entire construction site to keep safe.
“We have the same rules at home: everyone comes out of the day with 10 fingers, 10 toes and two eyes,” Johnson said. “On the construction site, it’s a lot of work to make sure our people are safe. From physical health to mental health, I like to look at my team as life savers.”
A manager working one job and now home in time to pick up the kids, Johnson said this unexpected career path has been a blessing. With many people still not understanding the great life working in the trades can offer, he wants to continue to share his story with more people in the community.
Johnson is a Milwaukee native. With where he is now, he wants to promote and bring awareness to more programs like the Building Advantage Career Fair, which works with youth to teach them how to pursue a career in construction.
“I love this new career. It was destiny,” Johnson said. “I never even thought about construction in my life. When I got here, I fit in here. This for me is a career, and it all started with doing something amazing with Baird Center.”
Gala Giveaway winners bring in record fundraising
The 2025 Make Believe Ball was an unbelievable experience for First Stage.
The local arts nonprofit, which focuses on performances for youth and family audiences, was the second recipient of the Baird Center Gala Giveaway, which provides one local nonprofit an all-expenses paid gala in the Baird Ballroom for up to 500 guests. The package includes complimentary food and beverages, audio visual rentals, tables, chairs, linens, place settings and access to the Baird Sky View Terrace.
Normally, the organization’s event hosts around 300 to 400 attendees. With the Gala Giveaway, First Stage opened up the guest list for its biggest event yet.
“Having our event at Baird Center allowed us to send out more invitations for people like our artists and families who maybe wouldn’t have been able to purchase a ticket,” First Stage Special Events Manager Maddy Corson said. “Because we didn’t have the overhead costs of a space and meals, more people in our community attended and supported the arts.”
The Make Believe Ball is a unique gala event in that it includes both adults and kids. Corson said that this livens up the room with performances from its programs like the Organized Chaos improv group. Plus, as Corson puts it, “When you get a bunch of theater kids and fans together, the dance floor is packed.”
In addition to hosting the theater party of the year, First Stage also finished the evening with a record fundraiser. The goal for the night was $50,000. First Stage walked away with $58,000.
“That all goes to our mission of transforming lives through theater,” Corson said. “It’ll go toward our operating costs, towards theater education, our academy and our productions. It ensures that First Stage is able to thrive and continue offering all of our programs to the community.”
This is the second year in a row that the Gala Giveaway winner earned record fundraising from its event. In 2024, Autism United of Wisconsin, formerly the Autism Society of Southeastern Wisconsin, broke a fundraising record at its gala, raising over $360,000.
The Racine Zoological Society was named the 2025 Gala Giveaway winner in April. They will host their event in September of 2026.
“As a nonprofit, when you’re stretched thin, having an organization and the staff we worked with at Baird Center lift some of the weight off is just tremendous,” Corson said. “An event like this boosts morale. Congrats to the Racine Zoo. We’re so excited for them to get this experience. It’s an incredible opportunity.”