South Milwaukee Police: “Zero Tolerance” For Fireworks

Want to shoot off your own fireworks at Grant Park on July 4? Expect to pay $290.

That’s the message from the South Milwaukee Police Department, which is stepping up enforcement at the park and will not issue warnings if it finds someone setting off fireworks.

See the press release here, which also contains this reminder: “There are almost no fireworks that are lawful to discharge in a county park or anywhere else in the City of South Milwaukee.”

Find the city ordinance on fireworks here (page 36). Here is the state law.

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More Headlines

Here are more headlines from around the South Shore …

Also, South Shore Supervisor Pat Jursik was one of four “no” votes against confirmation of a top aide to County Executive Chris Abele. See the story here.

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Celebrate July 4 In South Milwaukee

Update: Here is a schedule of all area July 4 festivities.

South Milwaukee’s Fourth of July festivities at Grant Park are always fun, starting with the children’s bicycle and coaster parade and ending with fireworks. In between are games, food and music.

Everything starts at 10 a.m. on Wednesday. See the full schedule here.

I’m also curious: What do you think of the city’s July 4 celebration? What works? What doesn’t? What would you like see changed? Post your comments below!

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Beating The Heat In South Milwaukee

With the heat advisory issued for Thursday – and the heat index expected to soar into the low 100s – please be careful as you head out. Stay cool.

Here are a few local notes on the heat … 

  • The South Milwaukee Downtown Market will occur as scheduled, from 3 to 7 p.m., on Thursday. But we have cancelled the outdoor music.
  • The South Milwaukee Public Library and Grobschmidt Senior Center are cooling sites for South Milwaukee and are open to the general public in a health emergency. The library is open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. today and 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Thursday. The senior center is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday. Those hours may be extended if necessary.
  • The Grobschmidt Pool is open from 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. and 5:30 to 7 :30 p.m. Thursday.

Remember that the elderly, infants and young children, persons with chronic health problems and people on medication for mental health conditions are most susceptible to heat-related health effects. Please pay special attention to people who may be isolated or unable to recognize the effects of extreme heat.

Here are additional tips from the Milwaukee County Heat Task Force, of which South Milwaukee Health Administrator Jacqueline Ove is a member. 

  • Stay out of the sun, avoid strenuous outdoor activities and seek cooling in buildings with AC.  Basements are also generally cooler than upper floor of buildings.
  • Showers, baths and cool rags can also provide relief.
  • Drink plenty of water and avoid beverages containing alcohol or caffeine (2-4 glasses per hour).
  • Wear loose-fitting light colored clothing.
  • Check frequently on elderly relatives and neighbors or those individuals homebound or isolated.
  • Do not leave young children or pets in cars for even a few minutes.

I’ll keep you posted when I get more updates.

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Extended Hours For South Milwaukee’s Grobschmidt Pool

With highs in the 90s expected, Milwaukee County is extending the hours of a number of pools this week.

That includes Grobschmidt Pool in South Milwaukee, which will now be open from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday this week. The pool is already open on Tuesdays and Thursdays during that time, as well as 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. daily.

Learn more in this Journal Sentinel story on the Milwaukee County Parks website.

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More Headlines

Check out these headlines from around the South Shore:

And NOW has published a new police blotter. Among the crimes: an alleged assault at Boosters and a report of a woman singing in front of her home.

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Patience, Please: Nicholson/Pennsylvania Widening Project Begins Tuesday

Be sure to post in the poll on the right side of this page!

The long-discussed Pennsylvania/Nicholson Avenue widening is now underway … and it won’t be done until early October.

In the meantime, your patience is appreciated.

Learn more in this letter shared by the city and in these notes shared by the project’s engineer.

Some key points:

  • The road officially closes Tuesday, and it will be closed to through traffic for the entire length of the project.
  • Police will enforce the through-traffic closure, so be advised.
  • Howell Avenue will be the official posted detour, but there are obviously other options, especially for local traffic. This includes 17th Avenue/Parkway Drive, which was the subject of a repaving project completed over the weekend.

The contact for construction-related information is Bret Swenson, project leader for Community Engineering & Building Services. He can be reached at 414-313-5940. South Milwaukee City Engineer Kyle Vandercar can answer questions about project design, and you can reach him at 762-2222.

Of course, you can also let me know of an issues as well.

Safe travels!

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Headlines, Headlines, Headlines

Check out these headlines from around the South Shore …

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Wheaton Plans Expansion Of Franklin Complex And More Headlines

Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare is planning a $49 million expansion of its facility on south 27th Street in Franklin, including erecting a 65,000 square-foot medical office building and other additions that will push the size of the hospital from 32 to 52 beds.

Check out stories in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Oak Creek Patch.

And check out these headlines from around the South Shore:

And the Journal Sentinel, in an editorial, praises County Supervisor Pat Jursik for her work in moving along a proposal for a development in the Park East district that appeared stalled in committee.

Also, state Sen. Chris Larson has published a new Larson Report, with the headline “Tides of Change Reach Wisconsin.”

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Life-Saving Numbers: South Milwaukee Fire Department Files Annual Report, Grades Well On Study

The South Milwaukee Fire Department has filed its 2011 Annual Report, and it provides a great snapshot into all the work the department does throughout the course of a year.

Check out the report, dedicated to the victims of 9-11 and the firefighters who fought to save them, here. The South Milwaukee City Council accepted the report at its meeting Tuesday.

One key statistic: The total number of incidents the department responded to (2,968) stayed basically static from 2010 (and the year earlier).

The report, however, is much more than numbers. More than anything, it celebrates the people that make the department what it is – and why we should be so thankful for their tireless work.

I encourage you to read it, and post your comments below.

In other news, the department recently went through the Insurance Services Office certification process and saw its rating improve from a five to a four.

ISO collects and evaluates information from communities across the country on their “fire suppression capabilities.” Insurance companies in part base their rental, commercial and industrial rates on these ISO findings. So a lower number can mean lower rates … and that’s a practical reason to celebrate this improvement. Even more importantly, however, this report validates the work our department is doing.

See the full ISO report here.

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Headlines, Headlines

Check out these headlines from around the South Shore …

Also, WISN spoke to the South Milwaukee Fire Department for a story on firefighters beating the heat this week. See it here.

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South Milwaukee Fire Department Assists On Milwaukee, Oak Creek Fires … Are They Connected?

You have probably heard about the two major fires in the area today — one near downtown Milwaukee and the other in Oak Creek.

South Milwaukee played a role in fighting both.

Here is the update from Acting South Milwaukee Fire Chief Joe Knitter …

Earlier today (around 10:30), SMFD responded on a MABAS (Mutual Aid Box Alarm System) Box Alarm – 2nd level called by Milwaukee Fire to standby at Milwaukee FD’s Engine 7 firehouse on Chase and Euclid Avenues. This is the 2nd time in history that we have assisted the MFD to protect their city. This time, MFD was fighting the 5-alarm fire on 12th & Vleit Streets. While there, our engine took an EMS call for MFD.

At about noon, the Oak Creek Fire had a working fire in an garage attached to a house that went to a MABAS Box Alarm level due to the heat and limited resources resulting from the Milwaukee fire. Our ladder truck responded to that scene since we had sufficient response from our off duty personnel and could provide the apparatus and stil maintain coverage inour city. You may have seen on the news that there may be some relationship between the owner of the store that burned in Milwaukee and the owner of the house in Oak Creek. At this time, this is what Channel 58 is reporting. The State Fire Marshall’s Office and the Milwaukee office of the ATF are investigating both fires with assistance from local investigators. I have made myself available to the investigation team and have been in contact with the Investigators and may very well be assisting tomorrow when the team assembles again.

I’ll keep you posted on this strange potential connection.

Here is the Oak Creek Patch story. Here is the Channel 58 story, and here is coverage from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

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Parkway Drive/17th Avenue Update: Final Paving This Week

Here is the latest update from the city engineer on the Parkway Drive/17th Avenue work.

The big news: The final surface asphalt will be laid late Wednesday and Thursday nights, so the project will be done in time to accomodate spillover traffic from Pennsylvania/Nicholson, which closes Tuesday for upwards of three months to accomodate the widening project.

Of course, please be patient during this work and consider alternate routes. I’ll keep you posted.

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Deal Reached: City Council Approves Firefighter Contract

The South Milwaukee City Council has approved a new four-year contract with firefighters represented by the South Milwaukee Firefighters Protective Association Local 1633.

I think it’s a fair deal that is reflective of the city’s financial picture – and a strong example of the type of collaboration that can happen among public employee unions and their employers.

The deal is effective Jan. 1 and expires Dec. 31, 2015. Among the highlights:

  • It calls for no pay raise immediately, then a 2% increase on Jan. 1, 2013; 1% increase on July 1, 2013; 2% increase on Jan. 1, 2014; and 1% increase on July 1, 2014. Additionally, the deal calls for a potential “base wage reopener” for Jan. 1, 2105, under which the union notifies the city by Aug. 15, 2014, of its desire to reopen the contract for wage negotiations.
  • Effective July 1, it calls for the city to pay the same amount toward firefighter health insurance as it does for its non-represented and civil service employees – 88%. Workers pay anything above that amount for the lowest cost health plan.
  • It also brings firefighters in line with other workers when it comes to pension contributions, within a year. Under the deal, the city will pay one half of the employee-required pension contribution effective July 1. Effective Jan. 1, 2013, the firefighter will pay that entire amount (about 5.8% of their earnings), the same amount other non-represented workers pay. All new employees will pay the full amount immediately.
  • The deal also relaxes firefighter residency requirements, making their residency standard the same as it is for all non-represented workers. It requires firefighters to live within these boundaries: Highway 20 from Racine west to Highway S; north on S to Highway K; west on K to Highway 164, north on 164 to the Waukesha-Racine County border, east to Highway V (Town Line Road) extended, north on Highway V extended to Silver Spring Road (Highway VV), and east on Silver Spring Road to Whitefish Bay.

The deal also makes some changes to retiree health insurance; sick leave allocation, usage and payouts upon retirement; bereavement leave; and limited duty assignments, among other areas.

Firefighters ratified the contract on Friday.

Of course, I’d like to know what you think of the contract. Post your comments below.

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Headlines: Iconic South Shore Italian Restaurant Closes

Mama DeMarinis in Bay View has closed.

Check out The Business Journal story here, and check out these other headlines of interest from around the area:

Also, NOW has published its police blotter for Cudahy and St. Francis (South Milwaukee not included this week).

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