Readers of this blog know I love Azteca, South Milwaukee’s Mexican restaurant. Authentic, affordable, great service, great atmosphere — an atmosphere that got a makeover this week.
The picture below is from the Azteca Facebook page. It’s quite a change.
I wish Carlos and Rosie the best. They run a first-class establishment, and they continue to invest in their long-term future in South Milwaukee. We are lucky to have them, and be sure to stop by and check out the new look.
Filed under Local Business, South Milwaukee, Uncategorized
Profits were up significantly for Caterpillar in the fourth quarter of 2013, and the company on Monday issued a positive earnings forecast for the new year … but there wasn’t a lot of positivity in the sector South Milwaukeeans watch closest.
Here is MarketWatch coverage. From it:
Oberhelman said the company sees some signs of improvement in the global economy, which should bode well for sales in its construction and power systems businesses. However, despite expectations that mining production will continue to rise, the company sees mining companies further reducing capital spending this year.
“As a result, we’re expecting sales in resource industries to decline modestly,” he said. “ We’ve already taken a number of restructuring actions to help improve our financial results and expect to take additional actions in 2014.”
Reduced spending by mining companies has taken a toll on sales of mining equipment, while Caterpillar’s sales of construction equipment have benefited from a recovery of home building in the U.S. The heavy-equipment maker has been closing plants that make mining equipment and laying off workers to reflect a sharp drop in demand in the sector.
Of course, I always worry about the “additional actions in 2014.” The Reuters story included this …
He characterized the moves as “tough decisions necessary to better position us down the road when economic conditions improve and our sales rebound.”
I guess we’ll have to wait and see what “tough decisions” are to come. Let’s pray the worst is over.
Also, check out coverage from the Chicago Tribune and Wall Street Journal.
Filed under Caterpillar, Local Business, South Milwaukee
A quick roundup of some of the impacts the cold is having locally …
Am I missing anything? Let me know.
Filed under South Milwaukee, Weather
Tuesday evening’s public information meeting on the proposed South Milwaukee lakeshore park has been cancelled due to the cold.
I’ll let you know on a new date.
Learn more about the project here.
Filed under Parks, South Milwaukee
More than 200 customers on the southwest side of South Milwaukee found themselves without power for a time overnight.
Thankfully, all seemed to be OK despite the freezing temperatures.
From South Milwaukee Fire Chief Joe Knitter …
An area southwest of Blakewood School experienced a power outage last evening from approximately 11:45PM until 2:06AM this morning. As one of those affected by the outage, I immediately contacted WE Energies on their Police/Fire Emergency Line and reported the outage. WE Energies called me back shortly thereafter and reported that they had experienced an equipment malfunction and that the outage affected 205 customers. I then called SMPD to relay the information to the Dispatcher. The fire department did not receive and calls for service related to the outage.
Filed under South Milwaukee
Update: Of course, Divine Mercy and Zion Lutheran students are off the next two days too. And the senior center is closed too.
That’s according to the updated message on the South Milwaukee School District website.
Filed under Schools, South Milwaukee
South Milwaukee students will have school on Monday, according to the district website.
The message from the district: “All South Milwaukee Schools will be OPEN on Monday January 27th, 2014. Please check back in the morning for any new developments but at this point we plan on holding classes on Monday.”
I’ll keep you posted, and we’ll see about Tuesday. With a predicted low of minus-18 and a wind chill of minus-50 possible overnight Monday, leading to a wind chill warning, it’s hard for me to see schools being in session Tuesday morning.
Monday has obviously been a tougher call. Some large districts like Milwaukee and Racine are closed. Others are open, including, from the looks of it, all of the Milwaukee County suburban districts. Many local private schools are closed, including local high schools like St. Thomas More, but not all (including Divine Mercy and Zion Lutheran).
Filed under Schools, South Milwaukee, Weather
The South Milwaukee Lions do so much good for our community, and I’m proud to be a member.
One of their initiatives: blood drives. Mark your calendars three upcoming drives. Dates are …
The February 19 drive will be held from 2 to 6p.m. at Knights of Columbus, 732 Badger Ave. More details, including how to schedule an appointment, can be found on the South Milwaukee Lions page. Walk-ins are welcome.
Filed under Community, South Milwaukee
Check out these South Shore headlines …
And Caterpillar reports quarterly earnings on Monday. There are signs they won’t be good.
Filed under Headlines
South Milwaukee was the focus of a WUWM story on area schools allowing January graduations.
Check it out here. From it:
South Milwaukee High School is among those in metro Milwaukee that allow January graduations, and it has seen the numbers grow since changing its credit requirements and class scheduling a few years ago.
All we spoke with, Rachel Rosploch, Serena Hinojosa, Lois Applegate, Susan Yang, Amberae Northrop, Nicholas Hofmann and Olivia Oddis, plan to attend college, and most say they need to save money beforehand because of the expense of higher ed.
Their concerns include missing friends and final semester activities – such as spirit week, though a few say high school traditions never meant much to them.
Guidance Counselor George Cleveland says January graduates who are mature and have a well-constructed plan for themselves can succeed – even if college begins just a day or two after high school ends. However, he says others return for the ceremony in June and tell him they wish they had remained in high school until then. Some are not ready for the unstructured life college abruptly delivers.
For those who want to graduate a semester early, Cleveland says there’s no slumping. They must stay on top of their academics. Some seniors say high schools that allow early graduation should inform freshmen, so they can plan accordingly and not ‘slide’, their first few semesters.
And check out these other South Shore headlines.
Also, NOW has published a new police blotter.
Filed under Headlines, Schools, South Milwaukee
Update: All donations are due March 4, and you can drop them off at City Hall, the Health Department or Fire Department.
From the South Milwaukee Fire Department …
Once again, all Milwaukee County fire departments have partnered with the Hunger Task Force to collect jars of peanut butter for the less fortunate. We are collecting it at the South Milwaukee fire station and all donations received here will be taken to Human Concerns for local distribution. Walgreens has officially joined the effort this year, as well, so you will probably see SMFD firefighters collecting donations at their store like we did last year. If you know someone in local industry or at the schools that would like to start a collection, please feel free to contact them or give us a call and we will !!!
Stop by the station to drop off your donation or, if a department wants to stockpile their own donations, give us a call and we can have someone stop over and pick them up. Thanks, in advance, for your efforts !!!
Filed under Community, Fire, South Milwaukee
Here is the press release I worked up for my church … hope to see you there, and spread the word!
Nothing warms you up better than Scandinavian meatballs and lefse.
That’s why we’re happy to announce the Trinity Lutheran Church Meatball Supper returns this Friday, January 24, with some great homemade food and fellowship.
The event runs from 4 to 7 p.m. at Trinity, 2507 5th Ave. in South Milwaukee.
On the menu are those terrific meatballs and gravy, parsley-buttered potatoes, corn, coleslaw, lefse and rolls, and the best homemade desserts around.
Cost is $10 for those age 11 and up. It’s $6 for those 6 to 10, and those 5 and under are free. All take-out orders cost $9.
Learn more about the event, and Trinity Lutheran Church, at its website: www.tlcsm.org. And we’ll see you for this unique celebration of food and friends. And meatballs.
Filed under Community, South Milwaukee
So says the restaurant’s Facebook page …
Be sure to visit Sal’s Cudahy location, and let’s support him when he reopens following the water damage sustained earlier this month.
Filed under Community, Local Business, South Milwaukee
Urban forestry and a potential plan to combat emerald ash borer are on the agenda for Tuesday’s South Milwaukee City Council meeting.
It starts with a presentation by representatives from Bluestem Forestry Consulting Inc., which has completed its South Milwaukee tree inventory and its detailed look at the health of our ash trees.
The presentation starts at 6 p.m., followed by the actual council meeting.
The urban forestry management plan to be discussed can be found here. The EAB readiness plan can be found here. They contain some interesting, and sobering, data. From the inventory document …
So, what to do about this? The EAB report takes a closer look at several options when it comes to tree maintenance …
There is lots of information and data in these reports that needs further examination. Whatever we decide, I’m glad we’re having this discussion. It needs to happen.
I believe the city has a responsibility to address this issue head-on and preserve (and enhance) our urban forest. It’s a worthy investment behind a community resource, our trees, that we probably take for granted.
Unfortunately, we’re in more of a reactive mode with EAB, like many communities. But we still have options. I look forward to discussing those — and figuring out a path forward through this forest.
Filed under City Council, City Services, Emerald Ash Borer, South Milwaukee
Check out these South Shore headlines …
And NOW has published a new police blotter, including these two items …
Filed under Headlines
South Milwaukee Blog 