Cahill Square Park Redevelopment Proposed

On April 21, the Whitefish Bay Village Board listened to an hour-long presentation from resident and youth baseball volunteer Andy Burkholtz, who outlined a three-phase concept that would overhaul major amenities at Cahill Square Park.

Burkholtz lives a few doors from Cahill Park and has spent years coaching in Whitefish Bay Little League, Junior Dukes Baseball, and (most recently) the high school program. Because he is heavily involved locally, he knows both the youth sports community and municipal processes. Over the past two years he commissioned concept drawings, talked with potential contractors, and solicited initial private pledges. In short, he is the citizen-volunteer who pulled the idea together and offered to lead the private fundraising.

The April meeting was strictly informational—no vote was requested—but it allowed trustees to consider before the 2026-31 Capital-Improvement Plan discussions begin in May.

Phase-by-Phase Summary

In this proposed plan, Phase One would gut the current warming house and replace it, inside its existing footprint, with a 10,500-square-foot civic center. Roughly a quarter of that space would hold meeting rooms that double as the Village’s voting site. The remaining eight thousand square feet would be an open turf hall with retractable nets for year-round practice. Plans also show full concessions, modern rest-rooms, accessible walkways and an elevated viewing deck that overlooks both tennis and baseball. The early cost estimate for this phase is about four million dollars.

Baseball field renovations proposals

Phase Two shifts attention to the ballfield. By flipping the diamond so that home plate moves to the west side of the park, foul balls would be directed away from nearby houses and parked cars on Lake Drive. The entire surface would become synthetic turf, which would limit rain-outs and allow Little League to drop in a portable 200-foot fence when needed. Contractor quotes place this work at roughly two-and-a-half million dollars.

Phase Three targets the tired tennis slab on the park’s south edge. The six present courts would be demolished and replaced by eight north-south courts, a layout that meets WIAA requirements for sectional tournaments. One court would sit adjacent to the new balcony as a championship venue, and the plan leaves room nearby for either a full-court basketball pad or open green space. Estimated cost: one-and-a-half million dollars.

How the Project Might Move Forward

Several local organizations submitted written support before the meeting.

Tim Posnanski, president of Whitefish Bay Jr. Dukes Baseball, called the plan “a wonderful resource” that would let players “effectively spend the vast majority of their baseball development without having to leave the Village.” ​

Zach Hayes, varsity baseball head coach at Whitefish Bay High School, wrote that a modernized complex would be “an avenue to promote baseball, a sport the community appreciates at a level unlike any other,” and noted that concessions revenue could finally let the school host WIAA sectional games. ​

Burkholtz arrived with letters of intent totaling one million dollars in private pledges. In addition, the Junior Dukes travel-baseball program agreed to move its $40,000 annual lease payment from an indoor facility in Glendale to the new community center once it opens. The presenter believes another one to two million dollars could be raised through naming rights and individual gifts. Any Village contribution is undecided and will have to compete with sewer, landfill and sidewalk work when staff drafts the 2026–31 Capital-Improvement Plan this summer. The School District, which shares rights to the varsity field under an inter-governmental agreement, will also need to sign off on any baseball-diamond changes.

Burkholtz asked for an eighteen-month window—through autumn 2026—to demonstrate private fund-raising progress before the Village considers borrowing or allocating public capital.

Trustees stressed that the facility must accommodate more than baseball and that a clear scheduling policy will be essential. Neighbors along Lake Drive and Woodruff Avenue asked how traffic and parking would be handled during large events. Public Works staff noted that the flipped diamond sits close to a storm-water detention basin and that drainage will need further study. Board members also pointed out that policies for rental fees, concessions revenue and long-term maintenance are still undefined, and they reminded the audience that other large infrastructure projects are already in the queue for future borrowing.

The Board did not vote on the proposal; the agenda item was informational only. The full presentation can be seen at the Village meeting recording below.

Next Steps Outlined by the Village

Staff will include a placeholder for the project when Capital-Improvement discussions begin in May. An online feedback portal and in-person listening sessions are expected later in the summer so residents can comment on parking, lighting, court layout and other details. Village and School-District officials will meet to discuss shared use of the baseball field and the proposed indoor space. Engineering staff will refine cost projections and review drainage, traffic and lighting implications. Finally, the Board will set private-fund-raising benchmarks that must be met before design work or municipal borrowing moves forward. If everything aligns, the earliest construction window would coincide with the Village’s 2027–28 borrowing cycle.

The first measure of momentum will be whether private gifts reach the two-million-dollar mark over the next year. Later in 2025 the Village expects to release updated site drawings that reflect public feedback and technical analysis. North Shore Family Adventures will post dates for listening sessions and board votes as soon as they are announced, so residents can stay involved as the proposal advances—or stalls—in the months ahead.

Already in motion: new playground equipment

While the large-scale redevelopment plan is only at the concept stage, improvements to Cahill Park’s playground equipment is already underway. Demolition of the old equipment began in early April.

The replacement playground—approved last year through the Village’s regular capital-projects process—is currently being worked on and is not tied to the three-phase proposal described above. In other words, even if the community-center/field/tennis overhaul takes years to sort out, families can still look forward to brand-new play structures at Cahill in 2025.

Previously, the Cahill Park tennis courts resurfacing project was completed in 2021. The courts are open to the public when not in use by the School District, Recreation Department, or Whitefish Bay Tennis Club.

Looking for more green spaces and parks in the area? See our guide to parks in Milwaukee’s North Shore.