Our downtown redevelopment momentum continues, wih the announcement today that the former Bucyrus campus has landed it first major tenant: Steele Solutions.
Steele Solutions makes mezzanines and catwalks and is expanding operations to South Milwaukee. It is based in Franklin and also has a Milwaukee facility.
“South Milwaukee has always been a hub for heavy manufacturing, and we look forward to helping keep that tradition alive,” said Chief Executive Officer Kevin O’Neill.
“Adding the Big Muskie building to our other two local fabrication plants will help us keep up with the rapid growth our customers are experiencing,” he said in a statement.
Here is my full statement: “This is great news for South Milwaukee. It’s exciting to see new life, and new jobs, come to the former Bucyrus campus in the heart of our city, and build on our manufacturing legacy. Steele Solutions is not alone in deciding to grow in South Milwaukee. So many good things are happening across our city these days, especially downtown, and I’m so happy to see them choose to write another chapter in that unfolding story.”
The South Milwaukee School Board on Monday voted to begin a return to in-person learning, starting with a “hybrid” approach for elementary students on Jan. 18 and middle and high school students a week later. Elementary students would fully return to school on Feb. 1, with middle and high students returning Feb. 8.
I support the decision to return to school, as mayor, husband to a school board member, and father of two district students. I also support the people who made it, the path they took to get there, and the motivations behind their decisions.
Yet districts across the county and state remain divided on this issue. It seems like no two are handling it in exactly the same way. Some districts have been fully open since September. Others have been fully virtual, and will seemingly remain so for some time. And then there is everyone in between, those who have mixed virtual and live schooling in recent months, often in very different ways.
That lack of a coordinated reponse to the virus is not unique to schools. Disagreements have marked every aspect of our response to COVID-19 since last spring.
Almost no part of the work to push back against the pandemic — from decisions on shutdowns and reopenings, to support for struggling families and busineses, to testing, to contract tracing, to adherence to safety measures like masking, to now vaccinations — has been consistent.
We have suffered because of it. Too many lives have been lost, as the pandemic has further divided an already divided nation and state and left local units of government, and their usually part-time elected officials, to fill this leadership vacuum and make the best of complex situations lacking clearly right or wrong answers.
Such is the situation the school board found itself in in recent weeks. Such is the situation we have all found ourselves in for the last 10 months.
You may not support the decisions made, and that is your right. Protest them, if you wish. But please draw the line at personally attacking the individuals making them.
I’d like to think we can at least agree on that, even in these times. Is that possible in 2021?
Times are tough for small businesses, amid a pandemic and recession, but there are signs of hope as we head into 2021. Here are a few from the last few weeks …
On January 15 through 17 at the South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center, a group of SMHS theatre alumni will be performing a production of Silent Sky by Lauren Gunderson.
The play is about Henrietta Leavitt, a Wisconsin native who went to Cambridge to work in an astronomy office at Harvard and, in her spare time, performed groundbreaking research that made her the first person to measure the distance between stars.
This was originally supposed to be part of our high school theater season with performances last June, but COVID prevented that from happening. We gathered a group of alumni together who still wanted to find a way to put on the show, and passed out scripts in August before most of them went off to college for the fall semester. We’ve been rehearsing while they’ve been home for winter break.
While this is not a high school event, we are doing it to support the high school arts. All money from ticket sales for the show will be donated to the SMHS theatre program.
We’re hopeful that this will be the first of more alumni-based productions to come in the future, so we can bring more theater to South Milwaukee and build up a community of people who care about the arts and the PAC!
Show times are January 15th and 16th at 7:30 PM and January 17th at 2 PM. Tickets are available at www.southmilwaukeepac.org. The PAC is doing a fantastic job of making its facilities safe for small productions like these; all patrons must wear masks and will be kept appropriately distanced in the theater.
Here is the team involved in the production:
Actors: Anna Basha (SMHS ’20) as Henrietta Leavitt, Grant Latus (SMHS ’16) as Peter Shaw, Lia Krystowiak (SMHS ’20) as Margaret Leavitt, Jessica Calteux (SMHS ’19) as Annie Cannon, Elizabeth Karnowski (SMHS ’19) as Williamina Fleming
Production: Tim Backes (SMHS ’06), Director; Natasha Bernovich (SMHS ’20), Stage Manager; Jack Millane (SMHS ’17), Lighting Design; Caitlyn Birmingham (SMHS ’16), Costume Design; Cara Jenquin (SMHS ’21), Sound Design; and Marina Bernovich (SMHS ’18), Deck Chief
This can’t be America. We can’t let this be America.
Division and discord can’t define us, even though we know they too often do, exacerbated most recently by our president and the pandemic. They defined us again on Wednesday, one of our darkest days.
We have to reckon with that as a nation.
As we do, the work of local government gives me hope today.
It comforts me knowing that work will continue, driven by leaders who seek to unite us, and delivered by people who won’t be deterred by the riotous acts of a mob a thousand miles away.
Our Health Department will continue to lead our fight against COVID-19, as it prepares to administer our first doses of the coronavirus vaccine, while continuing to test the community, track the illness and offer guidance on a safe and responsible reopening.
Our first reponders will go about their work as they always do, keeping us safe from harm and saving lives.
Our Street Department will pick up your trash. Our Senior Center will distribute meals to seniors over the lunch hour. Our clerk and treasurer’s office will keep working behind the scenes as they always do, as will our engineering, economic development, inspection, assessment, administration and other teams. The library will open as usual. Water will flow from your tap, your toilet will flush, and our water and wastewater utilities will continue to live out their promse of clean water.
Knowing that reassures me, especially on days like this.
It doesn’t diminish what happened in Washington D.C., and the need to hold those behind it accountable. It doesn’t diminish the need for those who support the insurrection we saw to take stock and speak out against it. It doesn’t diminish the hard work ahead in healing this country as a whole, starting today.
It does make me proud to lead the team I do. Let’s get to work, together.
From the South Milwaukee and St. Francis Health Department …
After conducting over 10,000 tests since it opened in late October, the South Shore Testing Site has proven to be a vital resource to bridge testing gaps in the southeastern part of Milwaukee County. We are pleased to announce the South Shore COVID-19 Testing Site will continue operations through early 2021.
Tests are free for everyone ages 5 and older.No appointment necessary. Please pre-register for testing through COVID Connect at: https://register.covidconnect.wi.gov/en-US/
I am thankful we can continue to offer this service during the pandemic, and so appreciative of the partnerships necessary to make it happen, as local governments continue to step up to fill this critical need. We are stronger, together, especially during a pandemic.
A message from the Friends of South Milwaukee Public Library …
Are you interested in helping your local community? The Friends of the South Milwaukee Public Library, a 501(c)(3) is looking for new volunteers and a Vice President and Treasurer for its board. Our volunteers and Officers help the Friends raise awareness and funds for the public library. Give us a shout at FriendsofSMKEPL@gmail.com to learn about these volunteer opportunities. We can’t wait to meet you!
Congratulations to our 2020 Light Up South Milwaukee Holiday Lights Award winners! Thank you to everyone who submitted photos and took the time to vote for your favorites.
Check them out in the images in the post, and take your own holiday lights tour in the next few days.
A special congratulations to these business/business property owners for sharing their displays:
It’s a summer Thursday evening in South Milwaukee, and you’re looking forward to a stop at the Downtown Market on the way home from work. You park along Milwaukee Avenue.
As you walk toward the vendors along 11th Avenue, you see a group of people sipping local craft beer around a firepit. “Why not?” you think, as a couple of friends motion you over to their table. You stop at the outdoor bar, share a joke with the bartender, and join your friends for a cold one.
You soon continue on your mission, walking past Da Crusher Statue and into the farmers’ market. By now, you can hear music in the distance. But first things first: It’s time to grab dinner. Should it be Mexican, Chinese, or maybe a freshly made burger? As you decide, you pick up some fresh tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuce for tomorrow night’s meal, and can’t resist the kettle corn, roasted nuts and honey either. You make your purchases, walk across a new 11th crosswalk, and look for a place to sit down.
You walk into the covered pavilion, the perfect place to enjoy dinner. You see a couple more friends and sit next to them, out of the sunlight and near the fireplace. Now enveloped by the music, you look east and see what’s in front of you: a well-manicutred grassy knoll, with picnic tables leading to a large stage, where a local jazz group has kids of all ages out of their seats dancing. You look to your left and note the restrooms; you’ll visit those before you head out. Beyond them, you take note of the alley — and artwork. Colorful murals stretch down the block, providing a beautiful boundary to one of the coolest new places in the South Shore.
This is vision for the new downtown South Milwaukee gathering place.
Last week, the South Milwaukee Common Council got a chance to weigh in on the concept plan for the space planned for the area near 11th and Milwaukee Avenues — which, if fully built out, could look and feel very similar to what I described above. Phase one is the focus for now.
I’m excited about what they saw, and I hope you are too. This will be the latest transformational deveopment for our city center, and I’m hoping to see shovels in the ground for phase one next year.
In early 2020, the City of South Milwaukee, in partnership with the Bucyrus Foundation, announced plans to acquire the property at 1919 12th Avenue and to invest in a public plaza at 11th and Madison Avenue.
The property at 1919 12th Avenue is being transformed into the Bucyrus Club, an event space and museum with Skyline Catering and the South Milwaukee Industrial Museum. Construction is underway, and it will open in the summer of 2021.
The second portion of the project is the site at 11th and Madison Avenue, space is currently used for the Downtown Market, a beer garden, and as the home for events like Crusherfest and the Festival of Trees. In early 2020, the City, looking to make the site into a more permanent space, hired a design firm to help determine the future of the site, in partnership with the community at large and a number of stakeholders. After several stakeholder committee meetings and two public surveys, the developed design can be seen above.
The redevelopment is likely to be phased, with the initial focus on the “event lawn” area as phase one. Plans for the first phase include construction of a stage and covered pavilion, with restrooms, and creation of an improved lawn seating area. Improvements to the adjacent areas — which could include a beer garden, heated seating area, improvements to 11th Avenue and the addition of an activated alley space with murals — are in the City’s long-term plans.
To view the full master plan presentation from Saiki Design, click here. The Plan Commission, Common Council, and Joint Review Board will be exploring this potential project further in 2021. Check back for updates!
Thank you to everyone who took part in the feedback process. More than 720 people offered their thoughts and opinions throughout the process, and we’ve incorporated that feedback into a design we think the entire community can be proud of.
Check out Milwaukee Journal Sentinel coverage here.
The Festival of Trees is open, and the trees are ready for viewing!
Thanks to Caterpillar employees for organizing this new South Milwaukee holiday tradition, to Ace Hardware for donating the trees, and to all of the organizations and businesses who stepped up to deocrate trees.
Beautiful! See for yourself as we head into Christmas.
Today marks the 100th anniversary of the opening of the original Bucyrus Club. About seven months from today, it will be be reborn.
Work is well underway on the project at 12th and Milwaukee Avenues, a combination banquet center and museum that will bring together our proud past and promising future to create a unique regional destination and catalyst for growth in our city center.
OnMilwaukee.com’s Bobby Tanzilo authored a terrific “Urban Spelunking” story about the project today.
Thank to you to the Bucyrus Foundation, Skyline Catering and the South Milwaukee Industrial Museum for their partnership on this project, and to Zimmerman Architectural Studios and CG Schmidt for bringing this vision to life. You can actually book the space right now here: https://bucyrusclub.com/
From the story: “You’d be hard pressed to find a South Milwaukee family that didn’t celebrate a wedding or a birthday, or attend a high school reunion or an awards ceremony, or even just eat a fish fry and play pinochle there. ‘The Club’ was a major focus of South Milwaukee social life for decades.”
Thank you to everyone who submitted their entries for the 2020 Light Up South Milwaukee Holiday Lights Awards. We received over 60 entries and are now looking for your help.
We need your help in choosing the “Best of the Best”! To vote, please comment on this post on the South Milwaukee Facebook page or react to the photos you think are the best.
Voting will end on Monday, December 21. Spread the word!
Congratulations to South Shore Rep. Jessie Rodriguez on her appointment today as an Assembly representative on the Wisconsin legislature’s powerful Joint Finance Committee.
I am incredibly honored that Speaker Robin Vos has placed his trust in me to serve on the Joint Committee on Finance. The primary responsibility of this committee is to review our state’s revenues and appropriations. Its role in the budget-writing process will be of the utmost importance going into the next biennium.
The pandemic has caused a lot of uncertainty for Wisconsinites and their budgets. Similarly, the pandemic is causing economic uncertainty and presenting new challenges as we head into another legislative budget process. Next year, as we work on a new biennial budget, it will be crucial to look at our revenues and expenditures with a critical eye and make sure we’re putting forth a careful and fiscally responsible budget for Wisconsin. I’m ready to get to work on this important task.
I wish Rep. Rodriguez nothing but the best on this critical commitee, and I look forward to working her, State Sen. Chris Larson and all lawmakers to move move South Milwaukee and the South Shore forward.
This is a critical time, as we look to state government for strong and unified leadership — and action — to address the pandemic, while confronting what figures to be one of the most difficult budgets in decades. I’ll proudly advocate for South Milwaukee every step of the way, reminding all lawmakers about the importance of local goverment in delivering the services that touch people every day.
I’m hopeful Rep. Rodriguez’s appointment will serve to amplify our voice — now, more than ever. It’s been more than eight months since Madison lawmakers passed any legislation. Let’s get to work.
South Milwaukee High School theater students continue to show their creativity with unique performances during the pandemic — tonight, in partnershp with a Rocket alumnus.
From 2004 alum Michael Cotey …
For the better part of a year, I’ve been working on a project called #ENOUGH: Plays to End Gun Violence, a theatre social activism initiative engaging young people to confront gun violence through playwriting. Our culminating event begins today and I’d love for you to check it out!
Selected by award-winning playwrights Lauren Gunderson, David Henry Hwang, Tarell Alvin McCraney, Robert Schenkkan, and Karen Zacarías, these seven powerful short plays written and performed by teens nationwide confront gun violence through the lenses of race, police brutality, community violence, school shootings, and American mythology. Co-produced by Alliance Theatre, Arizona Theatre Company, Berkeley Rep, Goodman Theatre, Orlando Repertory Theatre, and South Coast Repertory.
There are also 50+ unique readings happening across the country.
More details on the project here, and more on Michael’s other work here.
And here is more information from the South Milwaukee High School Theater Company …
If you want to tune in to a live stream of SMHS Thespians Present ENOUGH: Plays to End Gun Violence this evening, we will be streaming live in addition to hosting in person. The event begins at 7:30. Doors open at 7 for in-person attendees.For those coming in person tonight, reminder that admission is free, but we will be accepting cash and check donations, all of which will be going toward the Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort. You can make checks out to “SMHS Dramatics,” and we will be sending the organization one check encompassing all cash/check donations. Here’s the Zoom link! https://us02web.zoom.us/s/88005735990
It’s Da Crusher, of course! Shot the night of Crusherfest, as we unveiled this statue to the world. Do you have a photo you’d like to share on the blog? Send it along.
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