Author Archives: Erik Brooks

I say this a lot, but I believe it completely: There are 19 communities in Milwaukee County, often delivering services 19 different ways. That is not sustainable.

So we must explore partnerships where we can, and where they make sense.

The City of South Milwaukee and Oak Creek are considering one that seems to make sense: a collaboration around public health services.

The Public Policy Forum has released its study of what a potential partnership could look like. Its summary …

Our latest research on intergovernmental service sharing suggests that the cities of Oak Creek and South Milwaukee could improve public health services in both communities at no extra cost should they decide to pursue health department consolidation.

Key findings:

• Despite their differences in geographical size and population, South Milwaukee and Oak Creek provide similar types and levels of public and environmental health services and devote remarkably similar amounts of resources and staffing to deliver those services.
• Sharing or consolidation of staff resources could help resolve existing recruitment challenges, enhance programming capacity and quality, improve billing and reimbursement, and eliminate redundant administrative functions.
• While significant savings are unlikely to materialize from full consolidation, existing appropriations could be combined to produce higher-quality services and/or to prevent service reductions in the face of fiscal constraints.
• The report suggests a three-phased approach, which would allow for immediate implementation of service sharing opportunities, but allows the two cities to stop short of full consolidation if deemed appropriate.

Public health services are critical to me and this city, and I want to find ways to invest in these services for the long term, even as we face increasingly difficult budget times. The vision laid out in the report offers us a strong option to do this — to potentially enhance our health services and increase our capacity, as we collaborate with our neighbors.

Of course, the details matter, and there is a lot of debate to be had on this potential partnership, and details to be worked out.

In addition, the phased approach the report suggests allows us to evaluate any relationship with Oak Creek as we go, allowing us to ensure the quality of the service is at worst being maintained, at best significantly improved.

I welcome your thoughts on this, and will keep you posted as we further explore a collaboration with our neighbor.

Given financial realities, we need new and innovative approaches to how we deliver our services. I’m proud to say the city is actively working to deliver on this promise.

Today, I’m proud to unveil South Milwaukee Business Spotlight, a collaboration with the South Milwaukee Community & Business Association where we’ll spotlight local small business each month. Businesses will be chosen by the SMCBA.

This month, we profile Parkway Floral.

The Basics

• Business name: Parkway Floral
• Address: 1001 Milwaukee Ave., South Milwaukee
• Hours: Monday-Friday 8-6, Saturday 8-5, closed Sunday
• Phone number: 762-0246
• Website: parkwayfloralinc.com
• Social media: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest … @ParkwayFloral #ParkwayFloral
• Founded: 1951
• Owners: Leah Manthey and Carly Johnson
• Number of employees: In addition to Carly & Leah serving as owners, managers, and lead floral designers, Parkway Floral employs 2 full time floral designers, 3 part time shop assistants, and 4 part time delivery drivers.

Learning More

How did you get involved in the business?
Leah started working at Parkway Floral as an after school shop assistant in August of 2000. After graduating from South Milwaukee High School in 2004, she started training full time as a floral designer and bridal consultant. As she progressed towards purchasing her shares of the company, she apprenticed under Brian Lynch until she made partner in June of 2010.

Carly is 3rd generation at Parkway Floral and spent most of her childhood helping with various shop tasks to pass the time. She officially started working part time at Parkway Floral in August of 2003. Carly became a full time floral designer after graduating from South Milwaukee High School in 2005. After her apprenticeship with Bryan Lorentzen, she made her move to partner in October 2013

In addition to our natural talents as floral designers and indoor plant specialists, we both work on day to day business operations including human resources, payroll, account management, marketing, merchandising, customer service, sales, delivery management and quality control.

What sets your business apart?
Without a doubt, dating back to 1951, Parkway Floral has always taken great pride in giving back to the South Milwaukee community through various donations of fresh flowers and gift certificates for events throughout the year.

Leah also spends a majority of her personal time leading several volunteer projects in South Milwaukee. She serves as President of the South Milwaukee Community & Business Association (Chamber of Commerce), chairperson for Project ReStore (a downtown revitalization workgroup), and President of Growing South Milwaukee (a movement to build a community garden). She is a member of the Beautification Committee, organizes Evening on the Avenue, and volunteers for the Tree Lighting Celebration.

What is your business’ biggest challenge?
Running an independant floral shop in the age of online shopping is a great challenge. We find that technological advancements in the industry have diluted the value of our labor and expertise as professional florists. During some of life’s most emotional and monumental moments, online flower shoppers are being lured into sending bargain bouquets instead of consulting with a florist to preserve customary floral traditions that hold significant meanings to individual recipients.

Since the early 2000’s, we have seen and will continue to see a decrease in sales lost to large online commercial flower selling companies. These highly competitive, web based companies outsource employment, offer only imported goods, and undercut local shops on retail pricing while charging additional service fees to subsidize the loss.

On the bright side, we are not afraid of downsizing. We plan to focus our energy on sourcing high quality, local products and tending to our clients on a more personalized level. Running any small business is a delicate balancing act that becomes more natural over time and after extensive trial and error. We will continue to tailor our business plan to ensure that we hold strong throughout continued changes in both the floral industry and the downtown district.

What is your business’ biggest opportunity?
Our business’ biggest opportunity lies within an unstoppable strength that can only come from joining the people of Milwaukee Avenue together. There are still quite a few successful businesses downtown and occupants are slowly becoming aware of the huge volunteer responsibilities falling onto the shoulders of downtown stakeholders. As more large manufacturing firms leave the area, we are realizing that it is time for us to work together to advance the comprehensive downtown revitalization plan that the City of South Milwaukee had created for us as a guide to achieve a brighter future through ongoing teamwork. Long term collective efforts towards downtown revitalization will be needed to lift the entire community and generate reliable walk up revenue for all of us.

What are your growth plans?
We plan to spend the next few years investing as much as we can into our building on the corner of 10th and Milwaukee Avenue. This year, we will be working on exterior maintenance projects including cornice and trim work. We also have some very exciting large scale renovations in mind for the future but, for now, we plan to keep things modest and look forward to saving up for the more luxurious items on our wishlist.

Why should others consider doing business in South Milwaukee?
A vast amount of South Milwaukee businesses take great pride in giving back to as many community events as we can throughout the year. We can only hope that these gestures are being seen as both an asset to the events, and as a symbol of each business owner’s ongoing commitment to community betterment.

If you could change one thing about South Milwaukee, what would it be?
We are optimistic that our downtown will once again become a thriving economic hub. However, several rundown buildings owned by disengaged property owners are setting extremely low standards for the neighborhood. We would love to see all of the dilapidated buildings on Milwaukee Avenue cleaned out, fixed up, and on the market to be rented to legitimate commercial tenants.

What is something people would be surprised to know about you or your business?
If you call before 11:00am we will hand make a fresh floral gift and deliver it anywhere in Milwaukee county, parts of Racine, Waukesha, Pewaukee, or Mequon before 4:00pm.

I’m a huge fan of the South Milwaukee Youth Theatre. My daughter has been a part of the program for several years, and she loves it.

From the press release …

South Milwaukee Youth Theatre (SMYT) is proud to present two musical theatre productions this summer, including Disney’s 101 Dalmations KIDS for 6-11 year-old students, and SHREK The Musical, JR. for 12-18 year-old students. South Milwaukee Youth Theatre is an educational summer program for youth provided by the South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center. Last summer, more than 125 students from south suburban communities participated in the 6-week program.

The mission of South Milwaukee Youth Theatre is to create a safe, respectful and collaborative environment for students to learn the values and life skills of teamwork, confidence, honesty, kindness, perseverance and responsibility through the performing arts.

I couldn’t have said it better myself, and I’ve seen it firsthand.

Everyone who enrolls gets a part.

For more information, including rehearsal schedules, visit http://www.southmilwaukeepac.org/youth-theatre. To enroll, call the box office at 414-766-5049, Mon.-Thurs. 10am-4pm. Pre-registration is limited to the first 90 students (ages 6-11) and first 50 students (ages 12-18). The last day to register is May 19. Auditions are May 22-23.

There is an effort underway at the state Capitol to rename the beautiful bridge at Lakeshore State Park near the Summerfest grounds after Rick Grobschmidt.

What a great tribute for this South Milwaukee icon. Now, let’s see that it passes.

The Senate Committee on Transportation and Veterans Affairs held a hearing on SB 99 — to rename the bridge — on Wednesday, but it has not been scheduled yet for a vote, nor action in the Assembly.

State Sen. Chris Larson testified on behalf of the bill, and I sent a letter of support to legislators last month. From it …

Richard Grobschmidt was a lifelong resident of South Milwaukee and was a dedicated community servant, accomplished public official and fierce supporter of education.

Rick graduated from South Milwaukee High School in 1966. He returned to teach political science at the school before serving five terms in the state Assembly and parts of three terms in the state Senate, chairing both the Assembly and Senate education committees. Rick left the Senate in 2003 after he was appointed assistant state superintendent of the Department of Public Instruction. He retired from the DPI in 2010.

Sadly, Rick passed in 2016 after a battle with cancer.

In his time in the state legislature, Rick championed the creation of the Lakeshore State Park, and I can’t think of a better honor for him and his family than to name this bridge after him.

I would like to thank the bill’s co-sponsors for their support in honoring this great man, and, if you have not already, I ask you to consider joining as a co-sponsor and to vote for this bill. I speak on behalf of all the residents of South Milwaukee when I tell you how much we appreciate your efforts to recognize the contributions Rick made to all of Wisconsin.

The Assembly and Senate also passed a joint resolution on Tuesday, in support of Rick. From it …

Whereas, he was known in his many years in the legislature as a consensus builder, a bipartisan worker, and a tireless servant to this constituents;

now, therefore, be it Resolved by the assembly, the senate concurring, That the members of the Wisconsin Legislature salute Richard A. Grobschmidt, acknowledge his tremendous record of public service, and mourn his passing.

South Milwaukee still mourns as well.

I will keep you posted as this makes its way through the legislative process, and as fundraising begins. Learn more about the park here.

From the South Milwaukee Education Association …

The public is invited to a forum about the impact of private school vouchers on neighborhood public schools at 6 p.m., Tuesday, May 16, at South Milwaukee High School.  Presenters at the Community Forum on Private School Vouchers will include representatives of the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, the South Milwaukee School Board, Schools and Communities United and the Wisconsin State Legislature.

The number of private schools taking tax dollars has expanded significantly since the stateside voucher program was expanded four years ago, resulting in a loss of millions of dollars from neighborhood public schools – including in South Milwaukee and the area. Many public schools are forced to increase class sizes, reduce student opportunities, lay off teachers, and cut arts and after-school programs because of the loss in funding.

Nearly 300 private schools in Wisconsin are registered to get tuition subsidies in the coming school year through the statewide voucher system. The governor’s budget plan estimates the state’s voucher programs are expected to cost taxpayers about $263 million in 2017-18.

I thank the South Milwaukee Fire Department for offering this service, and am proud we can do so. Check out a PDF of the flyer here.

Mark your calendars for May 30!

I have been a part of the district’s long-range visioning and planning twice now, and it’s a valuable process that needs (demands) as much community input as possible. Have your voice heard as we shape the future of our schools.

Check out these South Shore headlines …

• China Helps Make Caterpillar Great Again as Sales View Brightens (Bloomberg)
• Patients Who Rely on Obamacare Protections are Worried (New York Times)
• Realtors Say It’s a “Seller’s Market” for Southeast Wisconsin Homes (TMJ4)
• Voters Speak Out at Spring Hearings (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
• Oak Creek Approves More Funding for IKEA, Lays Groundwork for Further Development (Business Journal)
• New Valentine’s Coffee in Oak Creek Goes Well Beyond the Traditional “Coffee Shop” (OnMilwaukee.com)
• Oak Creek Fight Sends Student to Emergency Room (Patch)
• Cudahy Woman Charged with Infant’s Death Stands Trial (TMJ4)
• Cudahy High School Staff Member Put on Leave After Incident with Student (TMJ4)

We continue to invest in our roads, and you’re seeing evidence of that in a couple areas this week, including the area around Grant Park.

Check out letters sent to neighbors for projects on Hawthorne Avenue and Lake Drive, Fairview Avenue and the area around Southtowne.

Please be patient as we begin these projects.

As mayor, job No. 1 is to ensure we deliver the first-class city services you have come to expect from us. And that starts with fire and police. If we’re not doing all we can to deliver on public safety, nothing else matters.

This is becoming more and more challenging given the state of our budget. We’re proud that we’ve been able to fund our services at the levels we need to, but that is getting increasingly difficult. Times are changing. We’re getting squeezed on revenues, while expenses continue to grow, and we’ve cut all we can cut – all while demand for our services increases.

That is especially the case with public safety.

South Milwaukee is certainly not alone in this, but this is our reality. We are at a crossroads, and we need your feedback to guide our future actions.

We are offering a community public safety survey to help us determine steps we need to take around investing in two key areas: preserving locally provided paramedic services and potentially adding police officers. There is a strong case to be made for doing both, but before we act we need to know what you think.

We are working with Community Perceptions, an independent firm with expertise in conducting community surveys like this.

Surveys are arriving in the mail to each South Milwaukee residence this week.

You can also take the survey online here. To do so, you will need the code included in the mailing. If you did not receive a survey in the mail or need additional access codes for other adult members in your home, call the city at 414-768-8051.

Please take the opportunity and respond. Your voice matters.

There is good background information in the survey itself, including some compelling data. Here is a sample, and you can take an even deeper dive in this document we’ve prepared. More information — including a digital version of the options assessment and the sample survey  — can also be found on this page on the city website.

Here is the reality, taken verbatim from the survey …

• Paramedic services: In the past, the city has been able to use surplus funds to maintain paramedics/advanced life support (ALS) services. Starting in 2018, the city’s fund balance will no longer be available. Over the next 10 years, funding from Milwaukee County will be reduced by an additional 62%. The result is a funding gap, which will be nearly $250,000 in 2018 and double to more than $583,000 in 2027. The total projected paramedics/advanced life support (ALS) services budget shortfall between 2018-2027 will exceed $4.1 million. The city will need to make critical decisions regarding whether to maintain the current level of EMS services or reduce those life-saving services.
• Police: Over the past 20 years, the Police Department’s staffing level has decreased, despite a greater demand for officer time due to increases in crime and drug-related incidents. As a result, South Milwaukee is now well below the national average for number of officers for our population. In addition, South Milwaukee has less officers per person than every other municipality in Milwaukee County, except Greenfield. Additionally, there has been an increase in service calls beyond law enforcement’s traditional duties, including providing assistance to citizens with mental health and alcohol/drugs issues.  The complexities of these incidents require officers to spend more time on the scene, preventing them from fulfilling other duties.

In other words, we’ve been forced to do more with less when it comes to public safety for many years. That is not a sustainable approach to delivering these services.

So, how do we fix this? That is what we want to hear from you.

The survey offers a number of options, including exploring outsourcing, consolidation, cuts in other department and raising taxes through a referendum — one of the few options the state gives communities like South Milwaukee to increase revenues beyond the restrictive levy limits we’ve been under for a decade.

These are complex issues, with potentially complex solutions, and your feedback will be critical as we consider a way forward.

Thanks ahead of time for your participation in the survey. We will solve this, together.

Note: All survey data is returned to Community Perceptions, and your feedback will remain anonymous. Final survey results will be reported at a Common Council meeting this summer and will also be available on the city’s website.

I am proud of the progress we’re making in urban forestry in South Milwaukee, especially when it comes to tree planting. While we’ve removed hundreds of dead and dying trees in the city in recent years, with more to come, we are also making replanting a priority. We need to.

Here are two recent examples of this commitment coming to life: A new Adopt-a-Tree program and the ongoing partnership with the South Milwaukee School District around Arbor Day.

First, Adopt-a-Tree. The program, developed by the Beautification Committee and the engineering office, was launched this spring, and is a partnership between property owners and the city to plant trees in the city right of way.

We offered 50 trees as part of the program, and more than three dozen property owners signed up. That leaves about 10 trees available, as we now make the program available citywide.

Learn more about the initiative here. From the program brochure …

The Beautification Committee’s mission is to promote, encourage and work to enhance the beauty of the City of South Milwaukee. The new Adopt-A-Tree program will help improve neighborhoods by replacing some of the many trees lost to the emerald ash borer, other diseases, storm damage and age. The Common Council has agreed to fund this trial program for 2017 with 50 trees. It is available to residentially zoned properties, and trees will be planted at approved planting sites based on our tree inventory and suitability. …

All trees will have at least a 2” diameter trunk and be between 8-12 feet tall. These are street trees and must be placed between the curb and sidewalk or within 4 feet of the curb where there is no sidewalk. The cost of each installed tree plus the items listed below is estimated to be $400-500 depending on the size, species and bid prices. However, much of this cost will be funded by the City of South Milwaukee, through the program.

Indeed, the cost to the property owner is just $100.

Interested in taking part? Sign up by May 15. Trees will be planted in the right of way by June 30, and a certified arborist with pick the species of tree to be planted. One tree per property.

We’re also proud of our Arbor Day partnership with the school district.

Tree plantings start this week at the four elementary schools in what is the third year of the program.

These efforts — along with our work in December along 10th Avenue, and in other areas — show our commitment to our urban forest. I am excited we can creatively continue to invest in this important service.

Get your foursomes together, and join me at the 16th-annual South Milwaukee Police Department DARE Golf Outing!

The event is set for Monday, July 24, at Oakwood Golf Course in Franklin. The shotgun start is at 8 a.m.

Cost is $80 per golfer. For that, you get 18 holes of golf, a cart, lunch, all the beer you can drink, a chance at a $10,000 hole in one, and many chances to win great raffle prizes.

All proceeds benefit the SMPD DARE program, a great city-school partnership that teaches kids about sound decision making and the dangers of drugs.

More details here.

National Day of Prayer is set for 7 p.m. on Thursday, May 4, at South Milwaukee City Hall. This is a non-denominational event, open to all. See you there!

April showers bring May flowers … so why not buy those flowers from a local organization fundraiser?

Two of them are holding plant sales at South Milwaukee Middle School in May …

• Saturday, May 13: South Milwaukee Middle School Environmental Club Native (and Veggie) Plant Sale, 9 a.m. to noon. More details here.
• Saturday, May 20: South Milwaukee Municipal Band Germanium Sale, 9 to 11 a.m. More details here.

And don’t forget about other discount opportunities available through the Beautification Committee’s Neighborhood Beautification Program.