Dancing on Monona Terrace rooftop is just one of the many activities that locals love about this iconic site. | twitter.com/MadisonCommFdn/status/1540356334616547329
Dancing on Monona Terrace rooftop is just one of the many activities that locals love about this iconic site. | twitter.com/MadisonCommFdn/status/1540356334616547329
Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway is urging residents to step forward and partake in a piece of history.
"Monona Terrace celebrates 25 years,” Conway recently posted on Twitter. “Check out this wonderful recap of the history behind one of Madison's most iconic buildings by @deanmosiman.”
To this day, the downtown Madison building with ties to Frank Lloyd Wright still holds multiple purposes, serving as a convention center, tourist attraction and community gathering spot. All told, over the last quarter-century since it opened on July 18, 1997, the iconic dwelling has played a role in everything from farmers' markets and community programs to rooftop concerts and joined in enough conventions and conferences to put nearly $700 million into the local economy.
As part of the anniversary festivities, Madison.com reports The Terrace is holding a free rooftop celebration on Saturday, July 23. Even with events and conventions not being held at The Terrace over the last couple years due to COVID, the legend of the structure has continued to build in the community, with walkers and runners frequenting its waterfront path and it growing in popularity as a fishing destination.
Lloyd’s now 84-year-old creation continues to pay dividends for Madison in the way it serves as a dream convention center and brings the shores of Lake Monona into the downtown area.
Ultimately, Wright visualized eight different versions of the building, the last one coming just months before his death.
Finally, in the 90s, then Madison Mayor Paul Soglin got the project up and running with tremendous support and success.
“One cannot overstate the importance of Monona Terrace to the vibrancy, vitality and economic health of Downtown Madison,” Jason Ilstrup, president of Downtown Madison Inc., said.