Milwaukee, WI
The RNC has moved into Fiserv Forum. Is the Bucks Pro Shop, atrium still open?
The proximity of the three main buildings to be used during the RNC
Check out the proximity between the Baird Center and Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee which will be heavily used during the Republican National Convention.
The Republican National Convention has officially moved into Fiserv Forum.
Planners and the “build-out” team started their work June 3 to turn the home of the Milwaukee Bucks into the main venue for the convention, which runs July 15-18.
But can the public still get into the arena at all before the convention? In particular, is the Bucks Pro Shop still open?
Here’s what to know about whether you can access parts of Fiserv Forum as the RNC continues setting up inside:
Is Fiserv Forum still open to the public before the RNC?
The atrium of Fiserv Forum closed to the public June 3, the same day the RNC began moving into the arena.
During the RNC, only people with credentials will be allowed to enter. The venue will be closed to the public during the convention.
Fiserv Forum will also remain closed to the public until the RNC finishes its post-convention “move-out,” an RNC source said.
More: What we know (so far) about how the RNC will impact those who live and work in downtown Milwaukee
Is the Bucks Pro Shop still open to the public before the RNC?
While visitors won’t be able to access the atrium, the Bucks Pro Shop will remain open to the public until July 8. There’s a separate entrance to the store that doesn’t run through the atrium.
The Bucks Pro Shop website notes the Fiserv Forum location will be closed through July 25, potentially indicating how long the move-out process will take.
During that time frame, the Bucks are asking fans to visit their other Pro Shop location at Bayshore mall, which is open Tuesday through Sunday. The Pro Shop also operates out of three Name of the Game stores in Wisconsin.
Will Fiserv Forum still offer public tours ahead of the RNC?
While Fiserv Forum typically offers behind-the-scenes tours, no public or private tours are being offered from now through September, according to the venue’s website.
When they are offered, the tours last about 90 minutes and cost $21.58 for adults and $16.19 for children.
More: What to know about Secret Service’s final planning for the RNC in Milwaukee
More: These Milwaukee restaurants and bars will be closed to the public during the RNC
Are there any concerts scheduled at Fiserv Forum this summer?
No concerts or shows are scheduled for Fiserv Forum until Aug. 2. But June and July are typically slower months for the venue — no concerts were held in those months last year, and just two the year before that.
More: Construction begins on FPC Live’s Deer District music venue in Milwaukee
Alison Dirr of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel contributed to this story.
MILWAUKEE — Sometimes the most influential people in our lives are the ones we don’t expect to meet. In Milwaukee, a simple social media post led to a story about mentorship, inclusion and the power of creating safe spaces in the arts community.
Watch: Milwaukee community hero recognized
From survivor advocacy to tattoo artistry: Community hero recognized in Milwaukee
A few months ago, TMJ4 reporter Meryl Hubbard posted a TikTok asking people to name their community hero. Miranda Davila commented:
“Mai Kue a tattoo artist and owner of Starseed Studio. She’s done a lot to uplift, specifically Hmong artists and voices, but also was extremely kind when I was initially asking for help with my portfolio, and was looking for an apprenticeship. She doesn’t gatekeep, and she wants more women, specifically women of color in the tattoo world.”
Davila, an artist herself, says Mai Kue Vang gave her genuine feedback on her work and helped her get started with finding apprenticeships and a studio.
“I had been looking for, like, literally anybody to look at my portfolio for tattooing. She was the main one who really kept up with me,” Davila said.
When Vang learned she had been nominated as someone’s community hero, her reaction was one of humble surprise.
“I’m like, what?! Somebody like somebody shared me, and I’m just like, what really? So I’m always like, humbled. I’m always surprised. My Achilles heel is like, I never give myself time to, like, give myself credit,” Vang said.
After a career committed to non-profit work of helping survivors of gender-based violence, Vang started Starseed Studio in 2018. She has been tattooing out of her current location since 2022.
Today, Vang is still helping survivors and inspires Hmong, queer and women of color communities to explore tattoo artistry. Her main drive is creating a safe space and motivating others to pursue their dreams.
“I always encourage people of like, if you don’t see a space for you, like, create it,” Vang said.
For Davila, Vang’s intentional approach to art makes all the difference.
“She’s so intentional with the way that she creates art, and I think that’s so special, especially when it’s something you’re going to be putting on someone forever. It’s just an amazing feeling to have someone in the community here who, like truly cares about their artwork and how they give it to other people,” Davila said.
Vang was one of the only people who took time to help Davila with her artistic aspirations, something that meant everything to an artist trying to find her place in the community.
“There’s so many artists and you don’t feel like you’re necessarily part of the community sometimes. I felt, yeah, very seen by her. I felt a connection there,” Davila said.
The feeling of being seen goes both ways.
“I’m just like, Oh, my God, I’m a hero? Like, okay, like, Thank you. You know. I’m in gratitude that someone sees me as their hero,” Vang said.
If you have a community hero you’d like to share, you can email meryl.hubbard@tmj4.com.
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Milwaukee Public Schools superintendent talks about youth gun violence
Milwaukee Public Schools Superintendent Brenda Cassellius has worked in Minneapolis, Memphis and Boston. She says she has never seen gun violence so bad.
A Milwaukee teenager convicted of killing two St. Anthony High School students will spend the rest of his life behind bars.
Circuit Judge Laura Crivello handed down the life sentence for Moses Martinez on Nov. 14. Martinez filed papers that same day signaling his intent to appeal the conviction, online court records show.
Martinez was 17 when prosecutors say he fatally shot Diego Herrera-Mejia, 16, and Isaac Rodriguez, 15, on the 800 block of West Manitoba Street on June 15, 2024.
In August, a jury found Martinez, now 18, guilty of two counts of first-degree intentional homicide, first-degree reckless injury and fleeing police.
The state dismissed charges of driving a vehicle without the owner’s consent and misdemeanor possession of a dangerous weapon by a minor.
Here’s what prosecutors say happened to Diego Herrera-Mejia and Isaac Rodriguez
Family members told police investigators the two teens were walking with a few friends and cousins on Manitoba Street when “some guys on a scooter” came up to them and tried to provoke them.
A third person, a 14-year-old girl, also was shot, but survived the attack.
Martinez was arrested two months after the shooting.
Diego and Isaac, friends since middle school, were set to begin their sophomore year together in the fall at St. Anthony, on Milwaukee’s south side.
According to a criminal complaint, a 14-year-old girl told police she was part of a group that was walking away from a party when two teens approached on a scooter.
At some point, one of the two teens pulled out a gun and started shooting at the group, hitting Diego and Isaac, the complaint says. The girl also was injured by gunfire but survived.
Why was this case important?
Martinez’s trial offered the latest evidence of Milwaukee’s ongoing struggle with a swell of juvenile crime involving guns and homicides.
There have been 128 homicides reported in the city of Milwaukee in 2025 as of Nov. 13. During the same period in 2024, the year Diego and Isaac were killed, there were 117 killings reported in the city, according to Milwaukee police statistics.
There have been 20 homicides reported in Milwaukee since January involving victims 17 and younger, compared with 17 during all of 2024, department statistics say.
In 2023, there were 16 child homicides reported in the city.
Chris Ramirez covers courts for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. He can be reached at caramirez@gannett.com.
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