MMSD Green Luminary® Award | Morel Restaurant

12/06/21 12:46:pm

Located in Milwaukee’s historic Walker’s Point Neighborhood, Morel Restaurant offers a unique outdoor dining patio situated amongst a wide variety of green infrastructure (GI) types.

Although the space is tightly squeezed by buildings on both sides, rain barrels, cisterns, porous pavement, native landscaping, and bioswales all contribute to the outdoor patio’s ability to manage over 9,000 gallons of stormwater every time it rains.

Diners at Morel’s sustainable food patio are surrounded by native plantings that both beautify the space and help water soak into the ground through their deep root systems. A pair of large 150-gallon rain barrels collect rainwater used for onsite irrigation. The seating area is surrounded by porous pavers that direct runoff to an underground cistern.

Morel chef and founder Jonathan Manyo has created a modern American restaurant that’s both source- and water-conscious. He includes numerous Wisconsin-sourced ingredients on his menu. The restaurant has gathered acclaim from numerous publications including a #1 rating on the 25 Best Romantic Restaurants in Milwaukee list by Vacation Idea Magazine in February of 2021.

Looking for green infrastructure funding for your public, not-for-profit, and private sector organizations? Visit our funding programs page for the announcement of our 2022 Green Infrastructure Partnership Program (GIPP).

What is the Green Infrastructure Partnership Program (GIPP)?

The program offers incentive funding on a per-gallon-captured reimbursement basis for green infrastructure strategies designed to capture and clean water where it falls. Annually, MMSD seeks partners that will foster the acceptance and implementation of green infrastructure as a viable means of managing water where it falls. Stay tuned for the GIPP kick-off meeting in January 2022.

Why Should I Apply for GIPP Funding?

By installing green infrastructure on your property, you can play a crucial role in protecting our local waters while enabling your organization to become greener and more sustainable. Helping capture stormwater on your property helps prevent excess water from entering our sewers. Excess water contributes to sewer overflows and basement backups.

Learn How You Can Help Protect Lake Michigan

Green Luminary ^® Recipients

A Green Luminary® helps protect our rivers and Lake Michigan by adopting practices that harvest rainfall for other uses, or mimic nature, by helping it soak into the ground to reduce water pollution. View previous Green Luminary^® award winners from the MMSD service area.

Install a Rain Barrel

Get FREE water by the barrel from your roof and use it when it’s dry outside to use in your landscape. Rain barrels help keep excess water out of the sewer system and help reduce water pollution.

Adopt-A-River

Looking for something to do as a team? Something that will bring you closer together, make a huge difference in your community, and only needs to be done twice per year? Consider adopting a section of the Milwaukee, Menomonee and Kinnickinnic Rivers.