There’s something about the stretch from late winter into spring that makes people want to do something. Maybe it’s the longer daylight. Maybe it’s cabin fever finally breaking. But right now in South Milwaukee, that restless energy is turning into something genuinely beautiful: a grassroots movement to restore funding to our public library.
On April 7, voters will decide on a referendum to increase the library’s property tax levy by $425,000—reversing nearly 20% in budget cuts the library has absorbed since 2019. For the average homeowner, we’re talking about roughly $5 a month. For the community, we’re talking about something much bigger: more hours, more staff, and a stronger public space for everyone.
And what’s been remarkable isn’t just the referendum itself. It’s how people have shown up.
It Started with a Meeting
On the evening of January 15, a group of residents gathered around a table and asked a simple question: how can we best serve our community and our library?
Everyone knew the stakes. The library was down to just 44 hours a week—the fewest of any library in Milwaukee County. Years of cuts had taken their toll. But what nobody knew yet was how much the community would rise to the occasion.
People immediately stepped up. Someone volunteered to handle design. Others took on canvassing, research, fundraising, and outreach. By the end of the night there was a website in the works, events on the calendar, and a shared feeling that this was about more than a single vote.
As one volunteer put it in the follow-up notes: “Can’t wait to see what we accomplish as a group.”
That first meeting didn’t feel like the start of a campaign. It felt like the start of a community remembering its own power.
Building Something in the Dead of Winter
What’s special about this campaign is when it happened.
Not in the excitement of spring. Not when it was easy. But in January — when it would’ve been simpler to stay home and wait for someone else to deal with it.
Instead, people met anyway. They designed flyers and buttons. They debated colors and wording. They scheduled events, mapped routes, and talked through what a library actually means in their lives.
No consultants. No playbook. Just neighbors doing the work because the work mattered.
By the end of January, the campaign was real. Materials were printed. Events were booked. And the word was spreading.
Not loudly. But steadily.
This is the first part of a 3-part South Milwaukee Public Library Referendum update written by volunteer, Tyler Colby. The South Milwaukee Library referendum campaign is organized by residents working through the Friends of the South Milwaukee Library, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. For more information, visit smplreferendum.com or the city’s official referendum page.
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