One of the Harley-Davidson Homecoming festival’s centerpiece attractions — concerts in Veterans Park in downtown Milwaukee — ended not with a roar but with a whimper July 11, and abruptly, when the concerts were canceled around 6 p.m. due to approaching storms.

The cancellation happened about three hours after festivities in the park had started, but before the day’s biggest acts — including Treaty Oak Revival, Charles Wesley Godwin and headliner Hank Williams Jr. — were able to perform. Four of the day’s nine acts, including country rock band Ole 60, managed to play before the park was shut down.

It was the first of two consecutive days of concerts at the downtown Milwaukee park, the festival’s main event.

Social media posts on the festival’s accounts indicated around 6 p.m. July 11 that “Veterans Park is being evacuated due to severe weather approaching, bringing strong winds, lightning, and heavy rainfall. … The remainder of the festival day has been canceled.”

Similar announcements were made over the festival’s speakers at around that time, when Godwin was supposed to perform.

Skies were clear and remained clear for an hour after the cancellation July 11. Thousands calmly walked out of the park; some attendees swore, while others danced. A handful of fans stayed put and continued to camp out by the main stage despite the evacuation order.

Outside the festival entrance, the War Memorial Beer Garden sold evacuated fest-goers drinks, while a couple of savvy hot dog vendors camped out and took advantage of the situation. Several hundred people hung around, watching an unexpected 6:30 p.m. traffic jam of motorcycles roaring out of downtown on Lincoln Memorial Drive.

At around 7 p.m. July 11, Harley-Davidson posted on its social media channels that all July 11 passes purchased through the event’s primary ticket seller, Front Gate Tickets, would be refunded, and all two-day ticket holders who purchased passes through Front Gate would receive a 50% refund. Refunds will be processed directly within 30 days, according to the post.

“Unfortunately, due to severe weather in the area, we had to end the show earlier than we hoped,” read the company’s statement on social media. “Safety is our top concern, and this was the best course of action for our fans, artists and crew.”

The Harley-Davidson Homecoming is in its third consecutive year. It kicked off July 10 with events at the motorcycle company’s headquarters and adjacent Davidson Park, the Harley-Davidson Museum, Harley-Davidson Powertrain Operations and six area Harley dealerships.

Of all of the Homecoming festivals, the Veterans Park concerts have been the main event. Last year, they featured headliners the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Jelly Roll and Hardy; in 2023, it was Foo Fighters and Green Day.

Both of those years were blessed with great weather, and the two festivals drew about 140,000 people combined.

Two-day passes and July 12 passes for the Veterans Park concerts this year were sold out before noon July 11, according to a media release.

The Veterans Park concerts July 12 are scheduled to feature nine acts, including headliner Chris Stapleton; buzzy undercard artists Sierra Ferrell and Turnpike Troubadours; and movie star and Harley fan Jason Momoa’s rock band Oof Tatata.

Those second day Veterans Park shows were still on as of 7:43 p.m. July 11. At that time, the forecast for July 12 called for a high of 84 degrees, with chances of a stray shower or thunderstorm.

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Amazon Prime Day lasted a whole week this year, and other retailers like Walmart and The Home Depot jumped in with some super-aggressive discounts to try and win some customers back. Today, HD’s doing one last push with super-low prices on some power tools from Milwaukee and DeWalt.

If you run Milwaukee batteries already, this tire inflator could be an extremely helpful tool in your arsenal for garage use or bringing to the track.

If you’re just a fan of red tools in general, these cool earbuds are on the most aggressive discount I’ve seen yet.

This mid-torque impact driver comes with two 6Ah batteries and a charger.

Or if you’d rather run yellow tools, here’s a similar setup from DeWalt:

Here are a few more super-hot deals on power tools at The Home Depot right now:

Milwaukee M18 FUEL 18V HACKZALL Reciprocating Saw + Two 6.0 Ah Batteries & Charger for $279 (was $468)

Milwaukee M12 FUEL 12V Hammer Drill + Impact Driver + Compact Spot Blower Combo for $199 (was $325)

Milwaukee M12 FUEL 12V Hammer Drill + Impact Driver + M12 3/8 in. Ratchet Combo for $199 (was $369)

 

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MILWAUKEE – More than $30 million in federal funding for 6th Street corridor reconstruction in Milwaukee has been pulled.

Just last year, former President Joe Biden announced $36 million to help reconstruct 6th Street. Now there is disappointment coming from Milwaukee City Hall.

What we know:

On Monday, July 7, Mayor Cavalier Johnson said the money was among the cuts in President Donald Trump’s spending bill that was recently signed.

Money was designated for a program to redesign the 6th Street corridor from North Ave to National Ave. This included making improvements like widening sidewalks, adding landscaping and installing dedicated bike and bus lanes.

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“It was terrible, it was terrible for Milwaukee,” Johnson said. “This was a project that made that corridor safer and corrected some of the wrongs that affected African American and Latino communities in Milwaukee.”

The project was initially included in the city’s 2040 strategic plan. Construction was expected to begin in 2027 and end in 2029.

Johnson said the setback cost the city hundreds of jobs and potentially safer roads.

What they’re saying:

“Now President Trump and his administration said ‘no, that’s not going to happen,’ and it’s a sad thing for the city,” he said.

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Johnson provided the following statement:

“Among the harmful cuts congressional Republicans recently enacted is a de-appropriation of money from the USDOT Neighborhood Access and Equity Grant Program. In Milwaukee, this means the Federal government will no longer fund the $34-million reconstruction of the 6th Street corridor through the City of Milwaukee.

“This project would have made a high-injury traffic corridor safer, created over 450 good-paying jobs, and created tens-of-millions of dollars in local economic impacts.

“Prior to the defunding action, I advocated for the program with dozens of communities in red and blue cities across the country. I would like to thank Senator Tammy Baldwin for her efforts to protect this project, including sponsoring an amendment to undo the rescission of funding on the Senate floor.

“Unfortunately, congressional Republicans and the White House chose not to support the improvements to public safety, good-paying jobs, and economic development the Neighborhood Access and Equity Program advanced.”