The bar’s last significant remodel took place in 1969, but This Is It has seen subtle changes in recent years, including the installation of new carpeting and tables, an extended bar counter, digital registers, a TouchTunes jukebox and gender neutral restrooms. 'This Is It will soon be seeking your services.' 'Wood paneling and wall carpet purveyors beware,' Schneider added cryptically. 'We are fully committed to an expansion so precise and perfect that you’d never know the bar had even been expanded.' 'We will maintain the integrity and aesthetic of the original bar, while creating an exciting new performance and dance space for our customers,' said George Schneider, co-owner of This is It. Details are forthcoming, but the vision and commitment are clear. For so many, many reasons, this is a triumph not only for the bar itself but for the greater community.Īs This Is It honors its past 50 years with an action-packed weekend schedule, its owners have announced – stop the presses! – ambitious plans to expand at its current address. Since 1968, this Cathedral Square classic has been a consistent LGBTQ landmark, making it one of the top 10 longest-running gay bars in the nation, and quite possibly one of the top five. Staff, guests and visiting dignitaries – including Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett – will mix and mingle at the jubilee of the summer. Wells St., celebrates a golden anniversary of national historic importance.
