Author Archives: Erik Brooks

South Milwaukee’s longtime street superintendent, Rich Davidoff, has died.

We do a lot with a little when it comes to our budget, and we deliver a lot of value for taxpayer dollars. And that starts with our departments and the people who deliver every day … sometimes on weekends, nights and holidays too.

Rich Davidoff was one of those front-line heroes.

Rich retired as our street superintendent effective Jan. 5. He had been with the city since 1984 and was the superintendent since 1994.

Services are Tuesday at Molthen-Bell & Son Funeral Home. Details here.

Please join me in offering your thoughts and prayers for his family.

More details from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel …

Jordan Janusiak of South Milwaukee finished fifth at the WIAA Division 1 state cross-country meet in Wisconsin Rapids on Oct. 28, running 15:53.8 and helping his team land an impressive third-place showing as a team.

SM scored 191 points, behind only Middleton (76) and Stevens Point (177) in the team standings. Monona Grove (197) took fourth. 

Wyatt Schlager took 53rd for the Rockets in 16:45, Max Moran 59th in 16:48, Aidan Sodemann 94th in 17:08, Nick Sluga 105th in 17:11, Owen Smith 162nd in 17:56 and Andrew Strasser 168th in 18:03.

The Rockets took sixth at last year’s state meet, one point shy of fifth, and Janusiak landed eighth place among individuals to cap his junior year. It’s the closest the Rockets have come to a title since winning the 1965 medium-schools championship. 

Oh, and Jordan’s brother, Josh, won his second straight Midwest Conference individual championship on Saturday, too. Not a bad day to be a Janusiak, or a Rocket runner.

Last Saturday, on an absolutely gorgeous day at Grant Park, we celebrated our recent Bird City recognition today with Birds & Beers. (I had to leave before the beers at Moran’s Pub.)

Thanks to Rita Flores Wiskowski, Brian Lentz from Bird City Wisconsin, the Friends of Grant Park and all of the birders who took part.

We should be famous for so many positive things in South Milwaukee, and birding is one of them. This honor will help us tell that story — and help remind us of the need to preserve and enhance the ecological logical treasures we have in this city.

Before you check out these headlines, enjoy some shots of nature’s majesty from Grant Park last weekend …

• Sheriff’s Office: 35-Year-Old Inmate Dies at Milwaukee County Jail (Fox 6)
• Bartender Worked at South Milwaukee’s Tap Room for 8 Months With no License; Served Drinks After Hours (NOW)
• 6-Year-Old Boy Prone to Wandering Suspended from School Because of Device (WISN)
• Cudahy Company Donating Floors for Milwaukee’s Streetcar (Milwaukee Business Journal)
• Amid Trying Circumstances, Oak Creek Hires a Familiar Face (NOW)
• Ryan Road Interchange Work to Start Oct. 25 (NOW)
• South Shore Frolics Canceled for 2018 (Journal Sentinel)

One additional note on The Tap Room situation: Both the unlicensed bartender and the owner received citations from the SMPD regarding the incident.

Also, Caterpillar released its third-quarter earnings earlier this week. Sales are up.

In a sign that economic growth is taking root across all regions, Caterpillar reported increased demand in every place it does business. The manufacturer is benefiting from increased capital investments by mining customers, rising sales of construction equipment in China and strength in on-shore oil and gas industries in North America. The gains underscore the International Monetary Fund’s assessment for brightening prospects in the world’s biggest economies.

And NOW has published a new police blotter.

Check out this great story from Patch on Thomas Jones, owner of the South Milwaukee Cousins Subs restaurant, and three others.

It celebrates Jones’ commitment to charity, including his recent support of the Growing South Milwaukee community garden efforts. From it …

At 16 years old, he started working at Cousin’s Subs. After gaining experience in business, working his way through college and the corporate office setting, he quickly realized that working in the restaurant is where he wanted to be.

In 2006, he purchased an existing Cousins Subs in South Milwaukee, and now owns four restaurants in Franklin, South Milwaukee, Oak Creek and Greenfield.

As his career in the restaurant industry grew, his means to express gratitude and charity did as well. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg for Jones. Through his businesses, he has donated more than $20,000 to local organizations in 2017 alone.

“Through giving back, I hope to empower individuals to support and help themselves so that they can positively contribute to society at large,” Jones told Patch. You cannot help others if you aren’t well. So, whether that is through gardening and eating clean foods like fruits and vegetables, or overcoming drug addictions, emotional and mental issues, or developing a healthy lifestyle through fitness and eating, it’s important to give back to causes that assist community members in being the best versions of themselves.”

Consider it another example of a South Milwaukee business owner doing business the right way. Thankfully, we have a lot of them.

With 45 businesses participating this year, our Downtown Trick-or-Treat Scavenger Hunt is the biggest one yet. What a great community event!

Thanks to Julie Arnold from Lovenote Photos for driving this. Very cool.

Check out more details in the image with this post. Here is the actual scavenger hunt game card, which you can print and bring with you, or pick up along the route.

Happy Rocketober, and see you Saturday!

Update: Here is coverage from from the Aurora Foundation newsletter. 

When it comes to keeping South Milwaukee healthy and safe, we’re all in this together. That is why we are so grateful for Aurora Health Care’s recent donation of a mechanical CPR device to the South Milwaukee Fire Department.

From the fire department Facebook page …

Through a generous donation from the Aurora Health Care Foundation, the SMFD has taken delivery of a LUCAS 3 Mechanical CPR device (http://www.lucas-cpr.com/). This lifesaving device will assist us in delivering high-quality, consistent CPR, which is vital in the resuscitation efforts delivered to patients that experience sudden cardiac arrest. Thank you to the Aurora Health Care Foundation and the ER staff at St. Luke’s – South Shore Hospital for being great community partners.

I couldn’t agree more.

If you’re not having fun in South Milwaukee in October, you’re not trying.

More details on these events on the Rocketober Facebook page. Look for a separate post on the downtown event. Happy Rocketober!

There is lots happening in the South Shore around economic development, and I can’t wait to tell South Milwaukee’s story. Join us Thursday, Nov. 2!

I love our small local businesses in South Milwaukee, and this week we’re celebrating dozens of them.

First, on Thursday, C3 Designs, the new jeweler at 2110 10th Ave., is holding a Ladies Night from 4 to 7 p.m.. Free gifts for the first 50 women who attend, and a costume contest is also planned. Also, Mari’s Flowers, the new flower shop at 905 Milwaukee Ave., is holding a wine tasting and special sale from 4:30 to 7 p.m.

On Friday, Zombie House opens at Milwaukee Gourmet House, 800 Milwaukee Ave. Stop by and enjoy hayrides, treats, zombie face painting, raffles, giveaways and more at this event presented by the South Milwaukee Lions and Friends of the Mill Pond and Oak Creek Watercourse.

Saturday will be nonstop.

• First, stop by the new American Family Insurance insurance office at 2605 S. Chicago Ave. for an open house and Halloween event. Hours are 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Check out the flyer image for more information.
• Then, at 10 a.m., visit Mari’s for a ribbon cutting.
• And, at 11 a.m., head down the block to Parkway Floral, 1001 Milwaukee Ave., for my Meet the Mayor session. I’ll be there until 1 p.m., and stop by anytime to  ask about the Nov. 7 public safety referendum or any other local topic you see fit, or just to say hi. Thanks to Leah and the gang for hosting me.
• Then, from 2 to 5 p.m., it’s Downtown South Milwaukee Trick-or-Treat Scavenger Hunt, presented by Lovenote Photos. Julie has done a terrific job rounding up 45 downtown businesses to take in this terrific annual event. Learn more, and see all participating businesses, on the event Facebook page.
• And from 2 to 7 p.m., it’s day two of Zombie House.

More details on the Rocketober events on that Facebook page. Should be quite a week!

Congratulations to the South Milwaukee boys’ cross-country team for their WIAA sectional victory on Saturday, one that sends them to the state meet as a team this Saturday in Wisconsin Rapids. Senior Jordan Janusiak won the race, and is looking to improve on his eighth-place finish in 2016. Also, congratulations to South Milwaukee’s Miranda Ekelberry, who qualified for state individually.

From the NOW story …

Jordan Janusiak, one of the contenders for the individual crown at state Oct. 28, won the sectional with his time of 16:06, nearly 24 seconds ahead of Job Roloff of Greendale. 

Aidan Sodemann took ninth in 17:11, and Nick Sluga finished 10th in 17:13. Max Moran added 14th in 17:16. Other members of the Rockets squad are Wyatt Schlager (16th), Andrew Strasser (21st) and Owen Smith (25th). … 

The South Milwaukee girls barely missed the cut for state, taking third place, but Miranda Ekelberry made the cut as an individual with her time of 21:30. She finished just ahead of teammate Mackenzie Thayer for that distinction.

Go Rockets!

Thanks, Michele Sodemann, for the photos. 

From the city clerk’s office …

Absentee voting in the Clerk’s Office for the Nov. 7 public safety referendum special election will be Oct. 23-Nov. 3.

Hours, availability and more information on voting can be found on our website. 

If you are unavailable during in-person absentee voting and wish to have a ballot mailed, or to check your polling location for voting on election day, please visit MyVote. https://myvote.wi.gov/en-us/VoteAbsentee

Learn more about the referendum on our city website.

It was an honor to be a small part of this, and to support Police Chief Ann Wellens as she leads this community effort for the last time before her retirement in January.

From the South Milwaukee Police Department …

The South Milwaukee Police Department would like to thank our community for the awesome support for the Justice for a Cure Day event held yesterday, October 17th. Our community raised $4,063.00 for cancer research and support. The South Milwaukee High School Marketing Class, led by Mr. David Fix (teacher) arranged for the PINK Day t-shirt sales. A special thank you to the South Milwaukee McDonald’s, the South Milwaukee Tri-City National Bank, Rawson School – Mr. Gaynor’s 3rd Grade students, Lakeview School – Principal Cindy Dennis, the South Milwaukee Health Department, the South Milwaukee Fire Department and the South Milwaukee Street Department for their support.

Thanks, Chief Wellens, for driving this! Your passion for helping others is evident. You make the community a better place.

As I wrote this summer …

South Milwaukee is a crossroads when it comes to economic development.

We have built a strong foundation for growth, are witnessing some real successes and have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reshape who we are and where we’re headed. At the same time, we are facing some of the biggest economic (re)development challenges we’ve ever faced as a city,

We need help — the right person to help guide us through this critical time.

We now have that person. And we didn’t have to look far.

On Tuesday, the South Milwaukee Common Council voted unanimously to appoint Stephanie Hacker as our new economic development director.

In her leadership role at GRAEF, Stephanie was the point person in helping us develop our comprehensive plan. Now she will help bring it to life.

She’s a perfect fit, now more than ever, as we dive into major redevelopment efforts across the city, in need of someone who brings the requisite knowledge, energy, passion and relationships to the role and can hit the ground running.

There is plenty to do.

• It starts with the potential redevelopment of more than 1 million square feet of industrial, warehouse and office space downtown. This includes much of the Caterpillar campus, where 750,000 square feet of buildings were recently put up for sale or lease, and the Johnson Health Tech property along 12th Avenue, where more than 250,000 square feet is coming available as the company plans a move to a new location in Racine County later this year.
• Our ongoing work in revitalizing Milwaukee Avenue and the rest of our city center, where the focus remains on working against the downtown plan. This includes a great start to our Downtown Revitalization Grant program, early work in exploring formation of a business improvement district, and advancing our designation as a Connect Communities city.
• Our (stronger than ever) efforts around small business recruitment and retention. We have delivered solid new business growth across the city in the last several years, and there is more in the pipeline and plenty more to go out and get. We are building new relationships every day, and strengthening our existing ones, and this role will be critical in those efforts.
• The planned redevelopment of the property at 11th and Madison Avenues into a mixed-used development. The project is still very much alive, and I am expecting Vetter Denk to bring a formal plan forward later this fall.
• Redevelopment of other key “opportunity” sites across the city as identified in the comprehensive plan, including the former AMF property, areas along Oak Creek north of downtown, and key parcels near South Chicago Avenue. There is also this proposed project on College Avenue. These are often tough sites that require intense focus to bring back to life.

Stephanie will lead these efforts, and more.

She also has a respected and powerful team behind her. Stephanie will remain an employee of GRAEF, working for the city on average 25 hours per week under a retainer agreement. It’s an arrangement that has served us well in other areas, as City Attorney Chris Smith brings the resources of his law firm (Wesolowski, Reidenbach and Sajdak) and Assessor Stewart Hamel brings the resources of his assessment firm (Tyler Technologies Inc.) in delivering these services for us on a day-to-day basis.

While that relationship will be invaluable, Stephanie is well qualified on her own, and well-regarded in the economic development community as leader of GRAEF’s Planning + Urban Design Group. From the GRAEF website …

Stephanie has experience spanning comprehensive and master planning, public participation strategies, municipal code review, neighborhood revitalization, and ongoing planning services for urban, suburban, and rural communities. At the core of Stephanie’s work in economic development, planning, and urban revitalization lies her dedication to building a central vision and establishing systems that kick-start physical change. She cares deeply about using urban design and planning to enhance the nexus of community and neighborhood vitality, public health, and the triple bottom line. Stephanie works with business, nonprofit, and government clients to implement vital enhancements in our physical environment.

Missing from that description is probably Stephanie’s strongest attribute: her passion. It’s something I noticed the first time I met here, and I see it more than ever now.

Stephanie is genuinely excited to step in this role, and move from planning to execution. And we are excited to have her.

Now, let’s get to work.

What a weekend! Check out the full schedule for a complete listing of Rocketober events, and I’ve posted the flyer advertising the South Milwaukee Human Concerns Haunted House, which opens this weekend.

Learn more about all these events on the Rocketober Facebook page.

A note on the haunted house … Anyone who brings two packages of toilet paper or paper towel products this weekend they will receive a free hot dog!

And here is more information on the Birds & Beers event from organizer Rita Wiskowski, the driving force behind our recent Bird City designation …

Join us at 3 pm on Saturday, Oct. 21, as Bryan Lenz, Director of Bird City, Mayor Erik Brooks, other city officials, birders, Park Friends representatives, and community people come to Grant Park Picnic Area 5 for a brief presentation of SM’s newly designated Bird City Status. After the presentation we’ll do a little birding, so bring your binoculars and wear comfortable shoes. Following the bird walk, at about 4:30, we’ll be headed to Moran’s Pub (912 Milwaukee Ave, South Milwaukee). Moran’s has a great selection of beers and offers a menu of sandwiches and soups. This portion of the celebration is known as a “Birds & Beers,” a gathering of birders where we discuss all things birds, over food and libations. Come and meet the birders who know that Grant Park is a great place to bird.