Monthly Archives: August 2010

Update: Be sure to register your vote on my new poll question below!

This coming Thursday, August 12, is another one of those great days to live in South Milwaukee.

Two wonderful events are planned for that night: Community Night Out and the South Milwaukee Downtown Market.

Community Night Out is the annual celebration behind City Hall featuring children’s games, food music, educational exhibits, prizes, raffles, fireworks and a host of other activities for everyone to enjoy. It runs from 5 to 9 p.m.

Of course, Thursdays are also Downtown Market nights, and we have a special event planned for August 12, as local band A Wall of Sound performs as part of the South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center Concert Series. The show is from 5 to 7 p.m. Learn more here.

So, what should you attend? How about stopping by the market for dinner and shopping, catching some of the concert and then heading over to Community Night Out? Or, how about start the night at City Hall and then head over to the market for a late dinner and shopping and some great music?

You can go wrong either way, if you ask me. See you there!

Milwaukee News Buzz, the daily news home of Milwaukee Magazine, has an interesting article on the blog-driven controversy over State Sen. Jeff Plale’s campaign finance reports.

(My take: I know and respect Jeff Plale and think some of these blogs are way, way out of line on this issue. Even suggesting a “quid pro quo” without proof is irresponsible.)

Read the story here.

And here are some other headlines of interest from around the area:

• A Wall of Sound Plays at South Milwaukee Farmers Market (South Milwaukee NOW)
• St. Francis City Administrator to Retire (Journal Sentinel)
• Oak Creek Hasn’t Narrowed List of City Administrator Candidates (Journal Sentinel)
• Hoan Bridge Lane Closures Start This Week (Journal Sentinel)
• Greendale Opts for Upgrades to Paramedics (Journal Sentinel)
• The Big Race (Bay View Compass)

A group of 11- and 12-year-old girls from South Milwaukee did the city proud in their attempt to qualify for the Little League World Series this week.

The softball team came up just two games short of that milestone after playing their way into the semifinals of the LLWS Central Region tournament in Missouri this week. The team lost 12-7 to Indiana on Thursday.

Learn more about their run in this story on South Milwaukee NOW.

From the NOW story:

The girls, ages 11 and 12, secured their spot in the prestigious tournament after winning both the Wisconsin State Tournament and the Wisconsin District Six Tournament. It has been seven years since a Major team has advanced to the Regional Tournament, and this is the first time a South Milwaukee team has reached the semifinals in the league’s history.

Follow the progress of the team on this page on the Little League Baseball website. The team is also on Facebook.

Congratulations, girls!

The Wisconsin Public Service Commission will hold a public hearing on the South Milwaukee Water Utility’s proposed 53 percent rate increase on Sept. 9 at the South Milwaukee Public Library. The hearing starts at 10 a.m.

Here is the complete meeting notice, and here is a document comparing current water rates with those proposed as part of the increase.

The Water Utility announced its proposed rate increase in May. Check out my blog posting from then, including a link to a document providing some background and perspective on the proposed change.

Indeed, while the proposed increase is significant, perspective is good here: Keep in mind that the average residential user’s bill, if the proposed increase remains intact, would grow from $59.18 to $91.85 per trimester, according to the meeting notice. That’s $8.16 more per month or $98.01 more per year. (And it’s actually a 55.2 percent increase for the average payer.)

From the hearing notice:

The increase is necessary because of an 83% increase in gross plant investment, and a 42% increase in operating expenses since our 2004 rate increase application.  The plant investment is our new state of the art ultra-filtration pressurized membrane system.

Declines in industrial and residential usage are another major driver of the proposed increase … and a number of other proposed increases from around the area. Here is a story from the Journal Sentinel on Saturday showing that South Milwaukee residents are not alone in facing large water rate increases.

From the story:

Water rates would rise by an average of 27% in Milwaukee, while changes for suburban residents would range from a 13% cut in Butler to a 47% jump in Mequon, under a recent recommendation from the state Public Service Commission staff.

For the average residential customer in the city, water bills would increase 30%, from $204 to $266 a year. In addition to Mequon, the biggest increases would be 39% for New Berlin and 53% for the County Grounds in Wauwatosa.

For those who can not make the South Milwaukee public hearing in person, you can submit comments in writing to the PSC. Do so here.

Former South Milwaukee state Senator and Assemblyman Richard Grobschmidt is retiring from his role as assistant state superintendent in the Division for Libraries, Technology, and Community Learning at the Department of Public Instruction.

Learn more in this release from the DPI and on the Wisconsin Library Association blog. And here is his Wikipedia page.

And check out these other headlines of interest from around the area:

• Jensen Resurfaces in Politics (Journal Sentinel)
• Oak Creek Council to Narrow Pool for Administrator Post (Journal Sentinel)
• Hearing in Oak Creek Football Case Postponed (Journal Sentinel)
• Cudahy Police Say Package Was Not Dangerous (Journal Sentinel)
• A Triumphant Racing Return (Journal Sentinel)

Milwaukee County Supervisor Pat Jursik (who represents all of South Milwaukee) has published her August E-News Update.

The top item is one on the opening of the Warnimont Park dog park on Friday, August 6. The grand opening ceremony is at 10 a.m.

Read the entire newsletter here.