Check out these South Shore headlines …
Filed under Headlines
Today, some love for our local jeweler …
You have a lot of choices on where to buy your jewelry, and I encourage you to shop local this holiday season and pay a visit to Donn Powers Jeweler, 2110 10th Ave.
You get a nice selection, along with terrific customer service — in fact, chances are you’ll run into Don if you stop in. And they service what they sell, which is something you just can’t at get most competitors.
Check out their website here. And here is my 2012 12 Days post on Donn Powers.
I’ve written a lot about the South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center, and for good reason — it’s a unique selling point for our city, an amenity that many communities our size can not boast.
And there are some great shows (Christmas gift opportunities) coming up, including the “Calmus: Christmas a Cappella” on Wednesday, Dec. 12, and a show by the Milwaukee Ballet II on Jan. 25.
Learn more and purchase tickets here.
And check out my 2012 12 Days post on the PAC here.
Day three of “12 Days” brings us to one of the anchor businesses of downtown South Milwaukee … Parkway Floral.
Why not give the gift of flowers this Christmas? Or maybe pick up that perfect poinsettia.
We’re lucky to have such a first-class florist in town. Please support them this holiday season — and all year long.
Learn more in my previous post.
Check out these South Shore headlines …
And NOW has published a new police blotter, including this …
A South Milwaukee woman brought her 3-year-old son to the Police Department at 2:35 p.m. Nov. 26, because her son had taken a Spider-man towel from a store without paying. At her request, an officer lectured the toddler about stealing, and showed him a jail cell. The mother said she would return the towel.
Filed under Headlines
Continuing with day two of 12 Days of South Milwaukee Christmas, a celebration of local business this holiday season …
Today, it’s the city’s newest business, Candles By Lilly. I stopped by Saturday to welcome them to town, and I’m glad I did. It was a pleasure meeting owner Elizabeth Parker and hear more about some of her products, many of which she makes.
From candles to oil lamps to greeting cards, this new store has a lot of options for Christmas shoppers.
Stop by and see for yourself at 1304 Milwaukee Ave. Here is the store’s Facebook page.
Back by popular demand … and starting on Small Business Saturday …
It’s 12 Days of South Milwaukee Christmas, some suggestions for local shopping this holiday season. This year’s list will include some repeats from 2012 and some new options.
I start with Studio One Art Glass, still an undiscovered gem for many in South Milwaukee at 1333 Milwaukee Ave.
Check out my previous post on Studio One here, and tell Kim I sent you.
It was a busy agenda on Tuesday, in addition to passage of the 2014 budget, so here goes …
First, the Legislation and Permits Committee voted to reaffirm our bans on chickens and pit bulls in separate votes.
I voted to uphold both bans.
On chickens … I understand the arguments for allowing them, and find most of them quite valid, especially the desire to increase the amount of locally grown food and the positive health effects that brings. That is why I strongly considered voting to allow them with significant restrictions (permitting, etc.). But I couldn’t get past this question: “Would I want even one chicken living next to me?” The answer is, “No.” And, with that, I wouldn’t want to ask others to live next to one either. This would be a different story if we weren’t such a densely populated community, where many residents live mere feet from their next-door neighbor. And then there is the question of enforcement. How would we enforce this? Would we at all? My guess is, we wouldn’t. The proper (or improper) keeping of chickens would be a complaint-driven process, as so many of our ordinances are. We don’t need more of that.
On pit bulls … I wish we had more time to give this issue the debate it deserves. I did some homework before the meeting, and we heard from several people for 30-45 minutes during the meeting before a vote was called. I had to vote — and I cast my mine to uphold the ban first passed more than 20 years ago because of precedent. Simply, our pit bull and vicious dog ordinance seems to be working, and I trust in the people who passed it decades ago – and the city staff experts who think we should continue it. Our city attorney also raised a good question several times to various speakers: “How would rolling back the restrictions make South Milwaukee safer?” I thought that was a good way to frame the debate, and with two young kids at home, that argument really hit me. I couldn’t see how taking that action would indeed make us safer. Of course, I’m open to new ideas, new information and approach on all issues, and I suspect this issue will come up again. If and when it does, I hope we give it the full and deep debate it needs. There are good points on both sides of the debate over “breed-specific” dog ordinances.
Among other actions taken Tuesday night:
Filed under City Council, South Milwaukee
Happy Thanksgiving, South Milwaukee.
I hope this day finds you with family, friends and football … and, if it doesn’t, you are in the thoughts and prayers of the Brooks family.
And it’s that family that I am most thankful for. I would be nothing without them and their support. It’s been a terrific year, and I hope even bigger things are to come in 2014. I am blessed to have them behind me.
How about you? What are you most thankful for? Post your comments below!
Filed under Community, South Milwaukee
South Shore Supervisor Pat Jursik has published a new Enews update, with items on the recently passed budget, the Mill Pond warming house and more. Check it out here.
Also, be sure to vote for South Milwaukee’s Emerald City Catering as “Best Caterer” on WISN’s A List. Do so here.
And here is a new NOW police blotter, including these items …
Filed under Headlines, Milwaukee County
Just a reminder, that this is the biggest Christmas weekend of the year in South Milwaukee.
I love this season!
It starts on Saturday, with the South Milwaukee Downtown Market from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at South Milwaukee High School. Then it’s the South Milwaukee Christmas Parade on Sunday, starting at 12:30 p.m., followed by the city’s Old Fashioned Christmas celebration.
Learn more in my previous post on Christmas events … and I’ll see you out and about.
Filed under Community, South Milwaukee
A property tax levy and rate decrease.
It’s not often you read those words in the same sentence, but that is just what the 2014 South Milwaukee budget passed Tuesday night calls for.
I am proud to support the budget, especially because we are able to reduce the amount of taxes levied (and the tax rate) while still funding city services at adequate levels. For more details, you can check out my previous post on the budget here.
So, what will this mean for your tax bill?
The 2014 tax rate for city purposes was set at $8.85 per $1,000 in assessed valuation, about a four-cent decrease, or 0.42%, from the 2013 figure. The total tax rate for 2014 (including all government entities) will be $26.93 per $1,000, down from $27.29 a year ago. So, for the owner of a $150,000 home, your taxes may also go down next year, from $4,093 to $4,039. I say “may” because it’s impossible to predict the tax bill on a specific property.
That said, delivering a decrease in property taxes year over year is rare – and a sign of this council’s (and my) continued commitment to responsible budgeting.
Filed under 2014 Budget, City Council, City Services, South Milwaukee
Downtown South Milwaukee continues to transition — and this is a good news, bad news story.
The bad news: If you haven’t noticed, Studio 915 left its space at 915 Milwaukee Ave. a couple months ago. The studio is now “mobile,” according to its website, with private lessons, events and more. I wish Joe and Dawn the best of luck and feel bad that they couldn’t make a go of it here.
The good news: I Can’t Resist Kids Resale, already having outgrown its space down the block, has replaced the art gallery. And the store looks terrific, inside and out. If you haven’t stopped by the store yet, please do and welcome Becky to South Milwaukee. With the holidays upon us, you should add this store to your local shopping list.
This is the kind of destination retail I would love to see more of in South Milwaukee — the kind of merchants we’ll need if and when we are going to right the ship in our city center.
We obviously have some work to do.
Filed under Local Business, South Milwaukee
The Wisconsin Department of Revenue recently found Bucyrus/Caterpillar overpaid on its property taxes during four of the past five years – and, because of it, the city, school district and other taxing bodies owe the mining company more than $1.2 million.
The South Milwaukee City Council last week approved an agreement that will refund that tax overpayment in varying amounts over the next four years. The $1,265,135.22 will be sent to Caterpillar in these installments …
Caterpillar dropped its 2011 appeal as part of the settlement agreement.
Of course, as one of several taxing entities, the city is only on the hook for a portion of each year’s repayment, ranging from more than $56,000 in 2017 to more than $187,000 in 2015. All in, the city’s liability here is more than $437,000. The schools, for instance, are liable for more than $521,000 over the four years, with lesser amounts owed by the county, MATC and state.
I voted for this agreement because it was clear this was the best we can get.
Besides allowing for the gradual repayment plan – vs. requiring the city to pay one lump sum this Jan. 1 — the agreement waives any interest payments Caterpillar could have sought. In exchange, the city waives its right to challenge any Cat property tax assessments between now and 2017. I absolutely do not like that fact – but the benefit of retaining that right seemed relatively small since it is the state, not the city, that assesses industrial properties.
How did this happen? It’s hard to say, since the state makes the final call on industrial assessments. So we are reliant on what they determine (and must pay the price if they are wrong).
The issue in question dates to the days of Bucyrus more than five years ago, when the company first disagreed with the assessments on property outside of the tax incremental financing district (south of Rawson Avenue). The state disagreed. Bucyrus disagreed again. The state disagreed again. And so it went until a court found in favor of Bucyrus (now Cat) … and the state determined the manufacturer had overpaid for those four years. The city was informed of this final decision recently.
I’m certain the downturn in the economy had an impact here. Industrial land and property across the country was simply not worth as much during the time frame in question.
So, what does this mean for the city budget and property taxes? To be determined. The city will use its cash reserves to make the 2014 payment when it’s due in September. After that, future refund amounts can be added to the tax levy and not be subject to any state levy limits. That means it’s likely future homeowner tax bills will be affected by the ongoing refund payments.
Filed under Caterpillar, City Council, Local Business, South Milwaukee
Our employees do a terrific job of delivering our services … and it’s nice to see them recognized for their work.
With that in mind, here is an email I received from Hilbert Hayslett, a Fourth District constituent, about a recent experience with three of our department heads …
As your constituents, we have experienced your interest in and willingness to help resolve issues over the years. We also have come to respect the quality of services provided by the City of South Milwaukee and the dedication of its employees.
During the past seven weeks while coaching the South Milwaukee Middle School Rockets Robotics First Lego League (FLL) team, we called on Wastewater Treatment Facility Superintendent Andy Bakalarski, Health Department Administrator Jackie Ove and Water Utility Superintendent Doug Fischer to help the team fulfill the FLL research requirements. That included studying disaster situations, such as flooding, and its impact on our community’s water-processing facilities, property damage and disaster preparedness. Each of these city officials talked to our 6th and 7th grade-team members about their areas of expertise, and answered questions.
Andy’s detailed explanation of wastewater treatment and the impact of flooding was clear and useful to the team. Jackie gave an interesting presentation on disaster preparation, and demonstrated an emergency-preparedness kit and provided individual handouts with extensive information about home and personal disaster preparation. Doug took the team on a virtual tour of the Water Utility via his laptop computer and brought a large filter to demonstrate how our water is processed.
In addition, Jackie and Doug’s schedules permitted them to attend the dress rehearsal of the team’s skit on Nov. 14 that demonstrated its completed project, which they presented at the FLL Regional Qualifying Tournament on Nov. 17.
We and the team were impressed by the expertise, cooperation and gracious manner with which Andy, Jackie and Doug helped our team understand the complex issues and equipment involved in the delivery and safety of our drinking water in preparing for and during times of disaster.
The City of South Milwaukee can be proud to have such excellent representatives as these outstanding officials.
Filed under City Services, South Milwaukee
