Monthly Archives: November 2010

by | November 16, 2010 · 11:32 pm

R.I.P., KRM Commuter Rail Line … and Its Potential

I’m giving up on the Kenosha-Racine-Milwaukee commuter rail line. It’s dead, certainly for the next four years.

Of course, my heart still harbors a modicum of hope that political leaders will come to their senses and see that southeastern Wisconsin deserves a transportation system competitive with other major urban areas, one that includes a real commitment to rail and other forms of mass transit as a complement to the almighty car.

I still want to believe that political leaders will see this as an economic development issue, that they’ll realize what Bucyrus CEO Tim Sullivan and numerous other business leaders have said consistently: that the KRM is first and foremost about jobs, about keeping and attracting employers who need to get people to and from work.

I still want to believe that people will see that the KRM is not the Milwaukee-to-Madison high-speed rail line … despite election-year attempts by politicians and right-wing talkers to unfairly vilify and denigrate all rail and all rail supporters, even though not all rail projects are the same, nor of the same value and need.

I still want to believe that people will see just what kind of impact the commuter rail line can have on downtowns like South Milwaukee, which would stand to reap significant development benefits from a KRM station.

I still want to believe that the 20 years of detailed discussion and study of the KRM line — almost all pointing to the viability of the commuter line over the long term — means something and wasn’t wasted.

I still want to believe, against my better judgment, that politicians will realize that we need a viable and permanent regional transit authority to make this all happen, taking buses and other transit options off the property tax rolls and delivering the proper funding source for transit systems that nearly all major population centers across the country already employ.

I still want to believe all of this. But I really don’t. Not anymore.

Not with a Republican governor and Republican legislature bent on spending every last transportation dollar on roads. Not when even Democratic politicians like U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore speak out against the KRM. Not with little other vocal local support for commuter rail.

No, I’m a realist, and KRM is dead. Rest in peace. I hope those who killed it are proud.

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by | November 16, 2010 · 8:16 am

More Details on the Bucyrus Purchase: Blue Collar Jobs Seemingly Safe

Update: Check out the Journal Sentinel’s editorial on the deal. It, too, casts a wary eye to the statements about job cuts and raises a point that I also have been concerned about: the potential impact the acquisition will have on corporate giving.

The Journal Sentinel has some more details on Caterpillar’s purchase of Bucyrus in Tuesday’s edition.

Here is the story. From it:

Under the deal, Caterpillar, based in Peoria, Ill., would move the headquarters of its mining equipment division to Bucyrus’ headquarters in Oak Creek. The Bucyrus plants in South Milwaukee and Milwaukee would remain intact, according to Bucyrus and Caterpillar executives.

Caterpillar would bring some senior managers here to run the mining division, including Bucyrus. That’s likely to come at the expense of some Bucyrus executives jobs, according to CEO Tim Sullivan.

“I am sure that with (Caterpillar’s) existing mining team, some of us at the senior executive level will not be required as time progresses,” Sullivan said.

“I will have between now and the closing (of the sale) to think about what I will be doing,” he added.

The combined companies say they expect about $400 million in cost savings, beginning in 2015, as a result of coming together.

The bulk of that savings won’t come from job cuts, according to Sullivan, adding that much of it would be from things such as combining equipment service centers and sharing a global distribution system.

“We see this as nothing but upside to continued growth and expansion of our Milwaukee operations,” Sullivan said. “I think it’s the best move, in the long term, for our existing employees.” …

In recent years Bucyrus has spent millions of dollars to upgrade and expand its Milwaukee area factories.

“The scale of the products that it makes in South Milwaukee is at least on par with the largest Caterpillar factories. I would not be terribly worried if I were a Bucyrus worker,” said Robert McCarthy, a senior analyst with Robert W. Baird & Co.

Also, the Journal Sentinel has a story about Sullivan’s future. See it here.

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by | November 15, 2010 · 9:04 pm

Good News for South Milwaukee on Bucyrus Deal

Little if any local job loss, at least for now. A continued strong commitment to local manufacturing. The establishment of Oak Creek as a “nerve center” for a global mining business.

Heck, South Milwaukee can even say we’re still home to “Bucyrus.”

In other words, the potential fallout from Monday’s announcement regarding the sale of Bucyrus International to Caterpillar isn’t as damaging as it could be.

The Business Journal of Milwaukee has some new details gathered at an afternoon press conference at the South Milwaukee company.

See the full story here. From it:

Caterpillar Inc.’s acquisition of Bucyrus International Inc. isn’t likely to lead to immediate job cuts in the Milwaukee area.

In fact, Peoria, Ill.-based Caterpillar has vowed to create a global mining headquarters in Oak Creek at the site of the former Midwest Airlines corporate offices on South Howell Avenue.

Bucyrus currently has about 1,600 employees in the Milwaukee area, including about 880 hourly production workers, Sullivan said. The sale to Caterpillar doesn’t alter Bucyrus’ plans to add as many as 515 jobs, evenly split between administrative and production personnel, in the Milwaukee area in the immediate future, said Sullivan, who will leave the company after the deal closes.

“The great situation that we’re in today is that we’re in a booming market,” he said. “When two companies like this get together, you’re usually talking about cost synergies. We’re talking about expanding. My hope is that this is just the start and that we can continue to grow employment in the Milwaukee area.”

Caterpillar CEO Doug Oberhelman also said he sees growth for Caterpillar’s mining operations, but added that it’s unlikely any Caterpillar manufacturing jobs would be shifted to South Milwaukee.  And he wouldn’t completely rule out job losses: “I can’t say with certainty about anything with the state of the economy today, but we are very optimistic with where we see growth and what we see happening in the mining industry.”

Here is a story with additional local reaction from the Daily Reporter.

I’ll keep you posted on this story as it develops. And feel free to post your comments below. I’m interested to know what you think about this.

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by | November 15, 2010 · 12:56 pm

Caterpillar CEO: “Caterpillar is Coming to Milwaukee. Bucyrus is Not Leaving”

In an interview with CNBC this morning, Caterpillar CEO Doug Oberhelman — thanks in large part to U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan — shed some light on to what his company’s acquistion of Bucyrus might mean for local operations.

Check out the full interview here. Among the CEO’s comments:

Catperilliar is coming to Milwaukee and Wisconsin. Bucyrus is not leaving. We will be moving a fairly select number of senior level, executive-type jobs to Milwaukee over the next couple of years. We intend to keep the headquarters for our global mining business right there in Milwaukee. We like the facliites, we like the people and we think it will serve us very, very well as we go forward in this business in a  lot bigger way.

He said the future is “very bright” locally. However, when asked if employment would increase locally, Oberhelman said: “I don’t see it decreasing much. It’s hard to say. It’s early.”

Of course, everyone keeps saying “Milwaukee” here. I am assuming they mean “South Milwaukee” and “Oak Creek.” If I suspect otherwise, I will let you know.

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by | November 15, 2010 · 9:55 am

Caterpillar Acquires Bucyrus: What Does That Mean for South Milwaukee?

Caterpillar is acquiring Bucyrus International in a $7.6 billion deal.

Here is the press press release, and check out coverage from Reuters and the Journal Sentinel.

So, what does this mean for South Milwaukee? I wish I knew. I was as surprised as anyone with this announcement. But this quote from Bucyrus CEO Tim Sullivan is telling:

This is an outstanding and financially compelling transaction for our shareholders. More fundamentally, it is a testament to the tremendous value our talented team of employees has created over the past several years and to the strength of our brand in the global mining machinery marketplace. I am confident that we have found an excellent partner in Caterpillar. Caterpillar is a first-rate global company and it shares our commitment to providing innovative products and exceptional service to customers, creating a collaborative and safe work environment for employees and minimizing the impact on the environment.

We are very pleased that Caterpillar has committed to locate its mining business headquarters in Milwaukee and we are confident that the combined global platform will be extremely well positioned to capitalize on the substantial growth opportunities in this market in the years ahead.

Headquarters in Milwaukee? Not sure what that means. Maybe “Milwaukee area”? After all Bucyrus now has operations in South Milwaukee, Oak Creek and Milwaukee after recently acquiring the former Midwest Airlines headquarters building on Howell Avenue.

The Reuters story says: “Caterpillar said it would locate its mining business in South Milwaukee, Wisconsin.”

I tend to believe that South Milwaukee will continue to play a major role here. With the hundreds of millions of dollars Bucyrus recently put into its local manufacturing operations, I can’t envision much of a change there. The South Milwaukee and Oak Creek office complexes are another story, however, and it remains to be seen what amount of change we’ll see there going forward.

After all, how many white collar workers will Bucyrus need now that it’s part of a global behemoth like Caterpillar?

There is an 11 a.m. CT teleconference that I am sure will yield more details on this. I’ll keep you posted.

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by | November 13, 2010 · 11:20 pm

Journal Sentinel Story Offers Some Perspective on Walmart Growth

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has an interesting story providing some good context around Walmart’s expansion in the area — including the store planned for South Milwaukee.

Read the story here. From it:

In recent years, Wal-Mart has opened supercenters in suburbs ringing the city, and it has converted two existing stores in Milwaukee County into supercenters by adding full grocery departments.

Now, the Bentonville, Ark.-based retailer is planning to bring its newest generation of grocery and general merchandise stores to locations around the metro area. The company hasn’t announced a number, but a retail industry source estimated there could be eight or nine sites under consideration.

“We’re looking to serve our customers all over the state,” said Wisconsin-based Wal-Mart spokeswoman Lisa Nelson. “There’s plenty of opportunity in Milwaukee.”

Last week, South Milwaukee agreed to sell 3.5 acres of land to Gatlin Development Co., a Tennessee-based developer that is assembling what will be an 11-acre parcel on N. Chicago Ave. Gatlin hopes to build a nearly 120,000-square-foot Wal-Mart store that would sell both groceries and general merchandise. The size is a bit smaller than its typical 140,000-square-foot supercenter and is sized appropriately for the neighborhood, according to Nelson. …

Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, faces more challenges entering the area than the Wisconsin-based supermarkets. When Wal-Mart tried in 2008 to build a store in Cudahy, for example, officials refused to approve the plan, hoping to get something better. News of Wal-Mart’s suburban plans posted on the JSOnline website last week brought dozens of negative responses from people who identified themselves as living in the communities, but also drew favorable comments.

Wal-Mart spokesmen cite new jobs and low prices as reasons that communities should welcome them.

Danielle Devlin, executive director of South Milwaukee’s Community Development Authority, agrees.

“Wal-Mart has a community giving program,” Devlin notes. “We have a tradition of our corporations being involved, but Bucyrus is pulling back from that. In terms of an economic impact, it will be significant.”

And not only that, Devlin notes: “Residents will be able to buy a pair of socks in their own community.”

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by | November 13, 2010 · 5:28 pm

Celebrating Christmas in South Milwaukee

I’ve said this many times, but it bears repeating: South Milwaukee does Christmas right.

Two tree lightings, an underrated parade, the annual Olde Fashioned Christmas activities, the first-ever South Milwaukee Christmas Market … there is no shortage of ways to celebrate the season in our great city.

Here are just a few things to put on the calendar in coming days:

  • Heritage Place Park Tree Lighting: Get in the holiday spirit by joining tree lighting festivities on Saturday, Nov. 20, on the northwest corner of 10th and Milwaukee Avenues. Enjoy hot cocoa, cider and Santa Claus from 3 to 5 p.m.
  • Christmas Parade. The annual parade sponsored by the South Milwaukee Lions Clubs is planned for Saturday, Nov. 28, downtown. It begins at 12:30 p.m. at 12th and Milwaukee Avenues, snakes down Milwaukee and then south on 15th to City Hall. Stake out your spot and look for Santa!
  • Olde Fashioned Christmas: The city’s annual Christmas celebration begins at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 28, at the Senior Center and City Council chambers at City Hall. Activities include crafts, Christmas movies and visits with Santa. A carol sing-along and the tree lighting ceremony begins at 5:30 p.m. Learn more in this flier.
  • South Milwaukee Christmas Market. The South Milwaukee Downtown Market hosts its first-ever Christmas Market from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 4, at the Bucyrus Heritage Building. More than 40 arts, crafts, food and other vendors are expected. Look for more details soon on what is sure to be a new holiday staple in our city.

Do you have another local holiday tradition you want to promote? Post your comment below!

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by | November 11, 2010 · 11:32 pm

BoDeans Coming to SMPAC

South Milwaukee is blessed to have arts and entertainment options not typically available in cities our size. And it’s all due to the South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center.

Case in point: The BoDeans. They’re coming to the SMPAC on Feb. 24.

Learn more in this Journal Sentinel story and on the SMPAC website. From it:

The BoDeans are one of Milwaukee’s most popular and enduring bands. With the release of their ninth studio album, Mr. Sad Clown, they will be touring some of Wisconsin’s most outstanding theaters, including the South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center.

The show is specially designed for the intimate theaters they plan to visit and features founding members Kurt Neumann and Sam Llanas along with other band members. The band will be performing beautifully reworked classics from the BoDeans legendary catalog and songs from the new Mr. Sad Clown. Along side the music, the BoDeans will throw in a few stories to make this a truly memorable and special experience.

Of course, there are plenty of other events coming up before Feb. 24 at the SMPAC, including a Dec. 8 holiday concert by the Milwaukee Symphony Orchesta and the center’s 2010-2011 Performing Arts Series, which includes shows by Grammy-nominated blues artist John Hammond and local historian John Gurda.

And here is a list of past performances. It’s an impressive list — something all South Milwaukee residents should be thankful for and boastful of. I know I am.

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by | November 9, 2010 · 9:49 pm

Walmart Has Eyes on South Milwaukee

Update: Here is the Journal Sentinel story on this. And be sure to vote in the p0ll on the right-hand side of the page.

Walmart wants to come to South Milwaukee.

The world’s largest retailer is proposing to build a store on a 10-acre parcel at 222 N. Chicago Ave. — a more than $13 million project that would provide another local shopping option and potentially more than 120 jobs to area residents.

This would not be your typical Walmart — and not a SuperCenter.

At 115,000 square feet, it will be one of the first in the area to be built using the company’s smaller, neighborhood-focused retail concept, a more upscale version of your traditional Walmart featuring groceries, a pharmacy and general merchandise.

The store would be “tailored to the character of the neighborhood,” according to Gatlin Development, the project developer, and it will serve an approximately two-mile radius, rather than the chain’s typical 10-mile area. The development would also include an outlot to potentially be used for development of a national chain restaurant.

The South Milwaukee store would create approximately 120 jobs, about 60 percent full-time, according to Gatlin.

The store is part of Walmart’s aggressive growth in the region, which also apparently includes plans for a smaller grocery store on 76th Street in Greendale and the recent remodeling of the store on South 27th Street in Franklin, among others.

Of course, more details will emerge in the months ahead.

Tuesday night, the project got a boost when the City Council approved the sale of a 3.6-acre parcel of land between Davis and Carroll Avenues — part of our Tax Incremental Financing District #2 — for $500,000 to Gatlin, which also has under contract the other 6.5 adjacent acres being used for the project.

(Full disclosure: I was not at the meeting because I was out of town on business involving my day job at MillerCoors. I expect I would have voted yes.)

I am interested to know what you think about the project. The proposed development will be subject to public hearings and approvals before several city entities, including the Plan Commission, Community Development Authority and City Council, so there is plenty of time to have your voices be heard on this. I’ll keep you posted when those opportunities occur.

Of course, you can call me anytime, or post your comments below. I’ve also posted a poll question about this on the right-hand side of the page. I appreciate your feeback.

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by | November 9, 2010 · 9:48 am

South Milwaukee School Tax Levy Increases 5.1%

The school portion of your tax bill will likely go up next year.

The South Milwaukee School District has increased its 2010-11 tax levy 5.18%, from $13,836,711 to $14,546, 459. This is higher than the area average levy increase of 2.68%, according to this Journal Sentinel story.

Here is how it compares to other area communities:

  • Cudahy, up 1.69%
  • Oak Creek-Franklin, down 0.83%
  • St. Francis, up 9.9%
  • Milwaukee, down 0.79%

Click here for a graphic showing levy increases for all area school districts.

Of course, this deserves some context.

I’ve been lucky, and honored, to be a part of the school district’s ongoing long-range visioning and planning exercise involving more than 30 administrators, staff, students and other community members. As part of this, we’ve had a chance to take a deeper dive into the financials of the district — and clearly see the problems facing it and many other school districts in the state.

It starts with a broken state school funding system — one that is supposed to fund two-thirds of local education costs, but increasingly falls short of that — and is exacerbated by enrollment concerns, levy limits, state mandates, rising costs and other factors.

The end result? Cuts to staff, programs and curriculum are an annual reality for the district, and this year is no different. Simply, there is not much left to cut, and further cuts directly impact the quality of local education. So it’s hard to argue with a levy increase of 5.1%.

South Milwaukee needs, and deserves, a first-class school system. And I’m willing to pay for it.

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by | November 8, 2010 · 10:10 pm

South Milwaukee Fire Chief to Retire

Update: The City Council accepted Chief Behling’s letter of resignation at its meeting Tuesday night and approved his request for a residency exemption.

South Milwaukee Fire Chief Jay Behling will retire effective Jan. 31 after six years in the role.

The item is on the City Council agenda for Tuesday’s meeting, as well as his request for an exemption to the city’s residency requirements. Chief Behling wants to move outside of the city until he retires.

I wish Chief Behling the best.

While he certainly has not been without controversy, I have enjoyed getting to know Jay over the past 18 months and respect the job he has done in leading the department and our emergency management efforts. Our fire (and police) forces are first-class and, with budgets tight and resources limited, they truly know what it is like to do “more with less.”

I’ll keep you posted on the next steps here, including the search for a replacement. The Police and Fire Commission will do the actual hiring, and they are meeting on this issue Tuesday at City Hall. Here is the agenda.

I’d also like to know what you think about the news. Post your comments below.

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by | November 7, 2010 · 12:29 am

South Milwaukee’s Special Season Comes to an End

Update: Here is a photo gallery from the game.

In the end, Franklin was just too much.

The Sabres beat the South Milwaukee football team 45-27 on Saturday at Spaltholz Field, ending a season that saw the Rockets advance farther than they ever have in the WIAA playoffs.

South Milwaukee led 7-0 and 14-7 in the game, but Franklin scored 38 unanswered points starting in the second quarter, including a 76-yard fumble return for a touchdown late in the fourth to put it away.

Read the Journal Sentinel story here. Here is the box score.

Congratulations to the Rockets on a great season!

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by | November 7, 2010 · 12:27 am

Gold Medal for Local Author and Other Headlines of Local Interest

If you have young children in South Milwaukee, you may know of Janet Halfmann.

She’s a talented local children’s book author who has been a regular at the South Milwaukee Library, Downtown Market and other local activities.

She’s also an award-winner. Halfmann recently received a Moonbeam Award in the preschool picture book category for her book “Fur and Feathers.”

Learn more on Jerianne Hayslett’s South Milwaukee NOW blog and on the awards website.

And check out these other headlines of local interest:

Also check out County Supervisor Patricia Jursik’s November E-News newsletter here. It includes items on the budget, buses, parks, Hoan Bridge and South Milwaukee’s “pinkout.”

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by | November 5, 2010 · 9:55 pm

It’s Almost Game Time!

The Big Game starts at 5 p.m. Will you be there?

South Milwaukee hosts Franklin in round three of the WIAA Division 2 football playoffs on Saturday at Spaltholz Field, as the Rockets look to continue their deepest run into the playoffs in school history.

To do it, they’ll need an upset. Franklin is the top seed, and the Sabres have outscored their first two playoff opponents by a combined score of 83-32. South Milwaukee, meanwhile, has squeaked out its two victories, including an improbable comeback win over Pius XI last weekend.

Learn more about the game here. See a playoff bracket here.

Tickets are $4 at the gate. Go Rockets!

(I’ll post game results on Saturday night, so check back in case you can’t make it in person.)

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by | November 4, 2010 · 10:07 pm

Developing Story is Not a Pretty One in Cudahy

Not much surprises me anymore, but the email I received from Lara Fritts on Thursday did.

The message from the Cudahy economic development director had a simple, but pleading, subject line: “Please Help!”

Inside was a pretty amazing scenario. You can see the full email text here. I’ll give you a summary …

Lara is a full-time economic development director, and she has two part-time interns. Last week, the Cudahy Finance Committee approved a budget that cut the two interns. Then, at another meeting last night, the Finance Committee re-opened the Cudahy Economic Development Department budget — and proceeded to cut Lara’s hours to part time, and her salary to $40,000 per year. And this was done without Lara in attendance. (She was teaching a course at UW-Milwaukee.)

“The rationale provided,” Lara wrote in her email, “was there was more development that occurred with the previous part-time position.”

Wow. While Lara says this decision isn’t final — the reduction in hours and salary still must go before the Personnel Committee and the whole budget still must be approved by the council — the fact that it is even under consideration is surprising.

I realize times are tough for communities, and Cudahy is no exception. Neither is South Milwaukee.

But now is NOT the time to be cutting back on economic development. Now is the time to invest in that area. Just as it is in the private sector, you invest in your core during times of struggle so you can emerge even stronger on the other side. And I can’t think of a more core mission for local government than economic development.

That said, South Milwaukee does what it can in this area. We hold our own with one person (Danielle Devlin) working hard to lead our economic development efforts, oversee our TIF districts and manage our Parkcrest housing development. It’s not ideal. I’d actually like to see us move toward one full-time economic director down the road. It’s an investment that pays countless dividends for communities likes ours.

Cudahy is a great example of this. Our neighbor to the north is nothing short of a model for proactive economic development for small cities.

Consider some of the accomplishments of the city’s economic development team in the past year or so:

Those are just some of the things that immediately came to mind. There are more.

What happens to these and other similar initiatives if the proposed cuts become a reality? It remains to be seen.

After all, there is still time for Cudahy to do the right thing here. Investing in economic development is the right thing.

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