Live Music Begins Tonight in Downtown Waukesha

Freeman Friday Night Live kicks off tonight at stages throughout the downtown Waukesha area. The live music will last from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Fridays through the end of September.

The Waukesha Police Department has provided a map of areas where it intends to barricade streets and close traffic during the popular, weekly events. The move to close the streets has created some frustrations by a few downtown stakeholders, but the Waukesha Police Department reiterated its plan in a recent memo to close the streets for safety concerns.

“The stages have drawn crowds into the streets and move in and out of lanes of traffic, causing a safety hazard as they interact with vehicle traffic,” Police Chief Russell Jack said in a May 30 memo. “These large crowds enjoying the entertainment force other pedestrian traffic into the streets to maneuver around the downtown.”

The plan to close the streets is fluid, Jack said, and may change on a weekly basis given crowd size and weather conditions. The final call is being left to the discretion of the on-duty patrol supervisor.

Waukesha Patch has provided the full memo from Jack and has also included a map of the street closures from the Waukesha Police Department.