Madison LakeWay | Lake Monona Waterfront

The Lake Monona Waterfront Design Challenge is the result of decades of private advocacy and support. Through the efforts of volunteers, design professionals, stakeholder groups, and community leaders, the City approved funding for the development of a signature park master plan in 2018. The City’s current Capital Improvement Plan also identifies $2.5 million to be used for a catalytic demonstration project for the Lake Monona waterfront. Successful implementation of master plan recommendations will depend on continuing support from project advocates and the private sector. The City seeks to develop productive, public/private partnerships and identify philanthropic opportunities to realize the Lake Monona Waterfront vision.

The unique opportunities and challenges of the project area require an approach beyond the standard master planning process. On February 1, 2022, the City of Madison the Common Council authorized the Parks Division to hold a design competition for master plan development for the Lake Monona Waterfront (file# 68974). The intent of the design challenge is to attract regional and national planning expertise to the planning area. The challenge will be a two-year process, with design team selections and master plan options prepared in 2022, and refinement of a preferred master plan and submission to the Common Council in 2023.

Funding support for the competition is provided by the City of Madison and the Friends of Nolen Waterfront. The Friends of Nolen Waterfront is a private, non-profit advocacy group focused on promoting and developing the Lake Monona Waterfront as a signature civic park. The Friends group website contains a wealth of information on the history of the planning area and previously proposed plans for the Lake Monona shore.

Friends of Nolen Waterfront 

Madison Parks issued a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) to invite interested planning teams to submit their qualifications for consideration in the team selection process. The deadline for team submissions was May 2, 2022, at 2:00 p.m. CDT, and the RFQ is now closed. Please see the list of received consultant team submissions below:

RFQ 1008-0-2022- BP vendor list

RFQ team submissions

Based on RFQ responses, a City-appointed ad-hoc committee will select three multi-disciplinary teams to participate in the Design Challenge. Each selected team will receive a contract for a set stipend of $75,000 to develop a waterfront master plan option and participate in the competition. The committee will also review master plan submissions and select a preferred master plan to proceed in the plan approval process. The selection includes the opportunity for the chosen design team to further contract with the City for plan refinement and schematic development.

The RFQ and addendums were posted to the indicated bid distribution websites:

• DemandStar, https://network.demandstar.com/
• VendorNet, https://vendornet.wi.gov/

RFQ pre-submittal informational meeting

The Parks Division held a non-mandatory, pre-submittal meeting via Zoom on March 17, 2022. The presentation focused on the information provided in the RFQ and Lake Monona Waterfront - Preliminary Report.

Pre-submittal Informational Presentation Slides 

Pre-submittal Presentation Registration List

Lake Monona Waterfront Design Challenge - Design Team Finalists

The Lake Monona Waterfront Ad-hoc Committee completed its evaluation of the fourteen RFQ submissions and the five interviewed teams. The top-scoring teams are Agency Landscape + Planning, James Corner Field Operations, and Sasaki Associates. The experience and expertise the selected teams bring to the master planning process are significant, with each team providing a unique perspective on plan development.

LMW - RFQ and Interview Combined Scoring 07-21-22

Master plan work is anticipated to begin in October, and teams will have fourteen weeks to prepare their vision of a signature waterfront master plan for the Lake Monona Waterfront. The plans will then be available for public review and comment, with the Ad-hoc Committee recommending a preferred plan to the Common Council and Board of Park Commission in 2023.

Design Challenge Team Selection

Madison Parks is pleased to announce the Lake Monona Waterfront Ad-hoc Committee selected Sasaki to proceed with the Lake Monona Waterfront master plan process. The Committee evaluated the three master plan submissions and scored each team on five primary categories: alignment with guiding principles; overall project vision and cohesion; response to and engagement with the public input; project feasibility; and overall quality of plan materials. The Sasaki team consistently scored higher in the Committee's review and the public survey results, notably in community outreach and feasibility. The selection begins the next phase of plan development, with the Committee and team refining their plan based on the community input received during the comment and review period. Parks anticipate introducing the revised master plan to the Common Council in October 2023.

We thank the James Corner Field Operations and Agency Landscape + Planning teams for participating in the challenge and are grateful for the expertise and vision they brought to the process. The level of thought and effort demonstrated by both teams is greatly appreciated. The future of the lakeshore is better due to their participation in the design challenge.

We look forward to the next exciting phase in creating a visionary, inclusive, and environmentally focused master plan for the Lake Monona Waterfront.

After 14 weeks of development, the design teams have completed their master plan submittals for the Lake Monona Waterfront. See the design reports, presentation plans, and introductory videos below.

Agency Landscape + Planning

• Design report
• Presentation plans
• Video introduction

James Corner Field Operations

• Design report
• Presentation plans
• Video introduction

Sasaki

• Design report
• Presentation plans
• Video introduction

The Design Challenge offered numerous public events, both in person and virtually, media interviews, an online survey, Madison Parks website featured spotlight, social media posts and presentations to local organizations and stakeholders. 

Lake Monona Waterfront Design Challenge - Public Event Series

Design Challenge Master Plan Presentations

• Held on Thursday, January 26, 2023 @ 6:00 pm CT
• Madison Central Library, Rooms 301-302, 201 W Mifflin Street
• The design teams presented their proposed master plans for the Lake Monona Waterfront.
• View the recorded LIVE STREAM

Design Challenge Check-In

• Held on Monday, November 7, 2022 @ 6:00 pm CT, at the Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center, Lecture Hall, 1 John Nolen Drive
• Design teams virtually presented their initial thoughts and concepts in developing a master plan vision for the Lake Monona Waterfront.
• View the recorded LIVE STREAM
• Check-in Presentation Slides
  • Agency Landscape + Planning
  • James Corner Field Operations
  • Sasaki

Design Challenge Kick-Off

• Held on Monday, October 3, 2022 @ 6:00 pm CT, at the Madison Central Library, Rooms 301-302, 201 W Mifflin Street
• Design teams virtually attended the event and introduced themselves and their team's unique perspective on master plan development.
• View the recorded LIVE STREAM.

Frequently Asked Questions

Madison Parks is gathering public questions on the design challenge process and team submissions through an online survey and a dedicated email address.
We are periodically posting responses during the public review phase. Due to the volume of inquiry, questions are consolidated in general themes. Below is the current list of responses.

Lake Monona Waterfront - Questions and Responses

Lake Monona Waterfront Survey Results

Thank you to everyone who completed the online survey. Your input and thoughts are greatly appreciated. The survey closed on March 23, 2023, and the compiled results are now available for review. Please see the links below for data tabulations, written comments, and received correspondence.

• LMW Design Challenge Online Survey Results
• Attachment A - Survey Write-in Responses
• Attachment B - Received Correspondence

Informational Presentations

During the public review and comment phase, the committee held a series of informational presentations by project stakeholders that were open to the public.
The presentations included:

• 10/19/2022   John Nolen Drive Reconstruction and the Mad-City Ski Team
• 10/26/2022   Preliminary Report Public Engagement and Brittingham Boats
• 11/16/2022   Destination Madison/Madison Sports and Madison Bikes
• 12/07/2022   Clean Lakes Alliance and Ho-Chunk Representatives
• 12/21/2022   Madison Destination District

Meetings can be viewed via the Lake Monona Waterfront Ad-hoc Committee website

With the conclusion of the public review and comment phase for the three plan options, the Lake Monona Waterfront Ad-hoc Committee will consider the results and comments during their plan evaluation and scoring process. The plan evaluations will occur over a series of committee meetings in April and early May. Once a preferred team design/plan is selected, the committee will work with the respective team to make design revisions based on comments and committee recommendations. The committee anticipates introducing the revised master plan to the Council Council for their consideration later this year.

Monona Terrace Community Event

Madison Parks held a public event at the Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center on Monday, July 24, 2023. Representatives from the Sasaki design presented proposed revisions to their lakeshore plan based on community input received during the first phase of the design challenge. The team is working closely with the Lake Monona Waterfront Ad-hoc Committee to prepare an updated plan for Common Council consideration later this fall. The event included a half-hour presentation, a Q&A session, and an open house to discuss the project with team members and Parks staff.

The presentation and Q&A session were recorded:

• LMW Master Plan Update Recorded Presentation
• LMW Master Plan Update Presentation Slides

Please note, due to a technical issue during the presentation, the first 6-1/2 minutes were recorded without sound. This portion of the video was removed to avoid confusion. We are providing text document that includes the event introduction information.

Over the coming months, the design team and Ad-hoc Committee will continue to refine the draft master plan with an anticipated Common Council introduction in late October this year. The plan will then be referred to various City Committees, with opportunities for further public input during the committee review process.