Don’t forget about the joint meeting of the South Milwaukee City Council and School District on Tuesday at City Hall.
The meeting starts at 6 p.m.
See my previous post here. See you there!
Ranking Local Schools: How Did South Milwaukee Fare?
I’ve written a number of times about how impressed I am with South Milwaukee schools, and that belief is stronger than ever.
It starts with passing the “eye test” — what you see first-hand and every day in how they educate kids and prepare them for future. It’s a difficult test to pass, but what I see from my Rawson Elementary first-grader shows me a lot of what I need to know about our local schools.
Add in the district’s commitment to long-range planning — devising solutions to some of the major problems all area schools face — and my dealings with what I view as a first-class leadership team, and they pass the “eye test” with ease.
But that’s one person’s opinion. It’s nice to see it validated by a (somewhat) scientific report in a respected local publication.
Milwaukee Magazine rated the area’s 33 K-12 school districts in its most recent edition. You can see the story here.
Admittedly, the overall ranking of the South Milwaukee district — based on factors like test scores, spending per pupil and student-teacher ratio — is a bit disappointing. The magazine ranks the district 28th out of the 33.
Then you read more of the article … and see the strongly positive results for our local schools.
- For starters, the overall rankings are clearly influenced by local economics. More low-income communities fared worse. So that is instantly strike one against the South Milwaukee School District.
- But dig deeper, and you see clear signs of hope. According to the piece, our local schools were called perhaps the area’s biggest “After-School All-Star … ranking first in the academic category (among 33 area K-12 districts),with 37 offerings per school, second in athletics with another 37 and third in music with 11.” The quote from Superintendent Rita Olson: “We’ve taken a funding hit like everybody else but we’ve really tried to protect athletics and music and keep the clubs going. In some cases, we rely on volunteers, and a number of teachers are leading clubs without compensation.”
- Then dig even deeper. And the article rates South Milwaukee High School the No. 2 “overperformer” in the area — using statistics that compare districts only to those with similar economic standing.
So, I give South Milwaukee’s showing in the magazine article a solid B. Let’s hope that others read it and recognize that our schools are strong — and a real reason to love living here. They’re certainly at the top of my list.
Of course, I’d like to know what you think about this. Read the article, and check out more on MilwaukeeMagazine.com, and then post your comments below!
Filed under Schools
Caterpillar Integration: Eight Months Later, Leaders Look Back
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has a story in Sunday’s business section about the impacts of Caterpillar’s acquisition of Bucyrus International last year.
It paints an overwhelmingly positive picture.
Check it out here. From it:
Caterpillar has added about 200 jobs in South Milwaukee since it acquired Bucyrus and now has 1,600 employees. The company is spending $6 billion on capital expenditures, much of it in the mining equipment division.
“We have invested hundreds of millions of dollars in our U.S. manufacturing plants. We are confident that, for a lot of our products, it makes sense to have a large North American presence,” Wunning said.
Last July, it seemed as if 131 years of Bucyrus history was wiped clean when Caterpillar took over, dropped the Bucyrus name and rebranded everything in its own name.
The change seemed sudden, but Caterpillar spent months preparing for it.
The Peoria, Ill., company wanted one face for the mining division, not two, Wunning said of dropping the Bucyrus name.
“We can grow our businesses faster together than we could individually,” he said.
I’d like to know what you think. Post your comments below, and vote in the poll!
Filed under Local Business
Rocket Girls Fall To Oak Creek
Update: Here is a lot more detail on Saturday’s game.
The season is over for the South Milwaukee girls’ basketball team.
The Rockets fell to Oak Creek, 42-28, in a WIAA regional final Saturday night at Oak Creek.
From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
An 18-6 fourth quarter was the difference for Oak Creek. It was a slow first half for both teams, as the Knights held a 12-9 lead at the break.
Abby Styczynski and Morgan Kotka each finished with 14 points. Only four girls scored for the Rockets.
The Rockets finish the season 17-8.
Go Rockets! South Milwaukee Girls’ Basketball Regional Final Tonight At Oak Creek
March Madness is upon us, and the march to Madison continues for the South Milwaukee girls’ basketball team tonight against Oak Creek.
Game time is 7 p.m. at Oak Creek High School.
The Rockets are seeded third in their sectional. Oak Creek is a two seed.
The winner of Saturday’s game faces a potential matchup against top-seeded Racine Case on Thursday.
Check out the WIAA Division I bracket here.
By the way, the South Milwaukee boys’ basketball team finished the season 13-10 and lost to Whitefish Bay in the WIAA regionals March 2.
Filed under Sports
Even More Local Headlines
Check out these local headlines:
- The Florentine Opera At The South Milwaukee PAC (NOW)
- Milwaukee Man Busted For Stolen Oxycodone And Valium (Fox Point-Bayside Patch)
- Oak Creek Mayor Says Cities Seeking United Front In Waukesha Water Talks (Oak Creek Patch)
Filed under Headlines
News From Our State Legislators
It’s been a busy few weeks in Madison, and South Milwaukee’s two state lawmakers are weighing in on some of the key issues.
Rep. Mark Honadel put out a press release on Thursday about the positive state jobs news. From it:
“Economic recovery has been my top priority in the State Assembly. The policies we have enacted this session have provided certainty for job creators and created a more stable business environment.”
Meanwhile, Sen. Chris Larson put out this press release on the mining bill and made it the subject of his latest Larson Report. Larson also put out this press release this week on what he is calling the “school voucher loophole.”
Also, Larson was quoted this week in a WISN-TV story about politicians on Twitter
Of course, I’d like to know what you think of these. Post your comments!
Filed under State Lawmakers
Deal Struck: South Milwaukee Council Approves, Union Ratifies New Police Contract
The city and its police officers have a new contract.
Officers ratified the three-year deal on Tuesday night, the same night the South Milwaukee City Council voted unanimously to approve the new contract.
Some highlights:
- The deal includes a 1% pay raise retroactive to Jan. 1, followed by a 1.25% raise to go into effect on July 1. In 2013, the deal calls for a 2% pay raise on Jan. 1 and a 1% raise on July 1. A 3% raise goes into effect on January 1, 2014.
- The contract also calls for union members to pay more for their health insurance and, over time, have their contributions to the lowest cost health plan equal that of the city’s non-union workers (and AFSCME employees starting this summer). So by January 1, 2014, the city will pay 88% of the lowest cost health plan for all city workers, excluding firefighters, who have yet to agree to a new deal with the city. New police hires will contribute 12% immediately, under the new deal. The contribution for current officers is phased in over the next two years to get to that 12%.
- The same phasing approach holds true for retirement contributions, and by July 1, 2014, all police officers will pay 100% of the employee-required contribution to their Wisconsin Retirement Fund pension – the same percentage all non-public safety employees will be paying by then.
This deal is good example of shared sacrifice, and it certainly brings a level of pain to both sides.
For the police officers, as with other public workers who have been forced to pay more for their benefits in the past year, the pay raises won’t be enough to cover the increased health insurance and pension contributions. So, in essence, the deal represents a take-home pay cut.
For the city, the fact we’re providing a pay raise this year negatively impacts our budget to the tune of more than $130,000. We always knew this was a possibility when we approved our 2012 budget last fall, but the reality is sobering, and the pay raises will require significant cuts to a police department budget already cut to the bone. The immediate impact: We likely won’t fill an open officer position for the foreseeable future to help cover the added costs.
In other words, times are as tough as ever with local budgets. And the resulting cuts are real. This contract fairly reflects that.
Filed under City Council, City Services, Police
Sullivan On His New Job, Honadel On The Mining Bill And More Local Headlines
The Business Journal has an interesting story about former Bucyrus CEO Tim Sullivan’s decision not to enter politics (for now).
Check it out here. From it:
The name of Tim Sullivan, former CEO of Bucyrus International Inc. , arose early and often as a possible candidate for U.S. Sen. Herb Kohl’s seat. There also was talk that he might run for governor in a recall election.
He opted instead for a unpaid job as a special consultant to the state of Wisconsin for business and work force development, and he says he has no regrets with the decision.
“I really didn’t want to go out and do the rubber chicken circuit and go through all the pain and suffering and spend a ton of money to get elected to public office,” Sullivan told me during a recent in-person conversation.
And check out these local headlines:
- Honadel Optimistic That Mining Solution Can Be Found (Oak Creek Patch)
- Key Vote Canceled On Bill To Revamp MATC Board (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
- Suspect In Hit-And-Run Arrested After Pursuit (Oak Creek Patch)
- Oak Creek Apartments Sell For $7.6 Million (Journal Sentinel)
- Oak Creek Man Charged With Child Abuse (Oak Creek Patch)
Also, NOW has published a new police blotter.
Bottoms Up, South Milwaukee: What Do You Think?
The new Bottoms Up South location on 5th and Madison (at the former Bickler’s) is causing some controversy with neighbors.
Fox 6 has the story here. What do you think? Post your comments below.
As background: The Legislation & Permits Committee did approve the bar’s license some months ago, but we typically don’t ask much about the concept for a new bar when one is proposed. (I did ask on this one, and the answer I got was pretty open-ended, if I recall.)
And I’m not sure what role, if any, the committee should even play in deciding what is a “right” concept vs. a “wrong” one, short of a concept disallowed by ordinance, of course. Should the council dictate a business plan?
Also, the bar owners — who have successfully opened three other bars in the area, and who include the owner of Milwaukee Harley-Davidson — checked out fine … and in fact had more experience with this than most applicants we see. But even with that, I don’t look at bar-owning experience as a prerequesite for a license, either.
Anyway, check out the Bottoms Up website here. Here is their Facebook page.
Filed under Local Business
South Milwaukee’s Not Alone: More On TID Shortfalls Throughout The South Shore
As I wrote about recently, South Milwaukee is not unique in feeling the impacts of declining property values on its tax incremental financing districts.
In fact, two of our closest neighbors are in a similar situation.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel details the South Shore TID situation well here. From it:
South Milwaukee, Cudahy and St. Francis have common challenges. All three cities are older industrial communities with limited population growth.
In South Milwaukee, two tax districts have debts coming due at the end of 2013, and there’s a possibility that property taxes from new development within the districts would fall short in making those debt payments, said City Administrator Tamara Mayzik.
So the Common Council, at its March 20 meeting, will consider a proposal to sell $1.5 million in bonds and use that newly borrowed cash to refinance the debt tied to those tax districts, Mayzik said. That would allow the city to save money by borrowing at lower interest rates and avoid the possible shortfall, she said.
The tax districts have been hurt by lagging property values at two condominium developments, Marquette Square and Heritage Reserve, said City Engineer Kyle Vandercar.
Marquette Square, 920 Marquette Ave., was completed, but some of its units are being rented as apartments because of a lack of condo buyers, Vandercar said. At Heritage Reserve, in the 2600 block of Ninth Ave., only about one-third of the planned ranch-style units have been built, he said.
Filed under City Council
Winter In March: South Milwaukee’s Snow
With a rare winter storm (at least for this year) upon us, it’s a good time to remind everyone about the city’s snow policies.
Check out a post from 2009 on this topic here and get more information on the Street Department page on the city’s website.
The snow has also caused power outages in Oak Creek and Bay View, so far. Learn more in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Spirit Of Cooperation: South Milwaukee Council, School Board Plan Joint Meeting
The South Milwaukee City Council and South Milwaukee School Board have planned a joint meeting for Tuesday, March 13.
There is just one item on the agenda: a discussion “regarding strengthening school and community partnerships.”
I’m excited for the meeting and look forward to the dialog. I was proud to be a part of district’s long-range visioning and planning process in 2010, and stepping up this type of community collaboration is one of the goals that came out of this work.
Learn more about the district’s “four CEs” — including “community engagement” — in this informative two-pager, which summarizes the district, its students, its vision for the future and its plan to get there.
It tells a great story — a story that only gets better as the city finds new and innovative ways to partner with its first-class schools.
Check out the meeting agenda here. The meeting starts at 6 p.m.
Filed under City Council, Schools
Speeding In South Milwaukee’s 4th District And Other Headlines
Check out these headlines from around the South Shore:
- Catching Speeders Through South Milwaukee (WTMJ-TV)
- DNR Proposes Violations Against We Energies In Coal Ash Bluff Collapse (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
- Church Sues Former Secretary It Says Embezzled $400,000 (Journal Sentinel)
From the WTMJ piece on speeding along Milwaukee Avenue:
Diana Gresser invited Speedbusters down to check out the speeders. It was easy pickings for the Speedbuster gun.
“It’s pretty much bad all the time. Especially in the morning when everyone is rushing and again about 4 or 5 o’clock,” said Gresser
Speedbusters visited Gresser’s street during lunch hour — and clocked the average driver at ten miles over the limit.
Also, the Occupy movement came to South Milwaukee (and Caterpillar) Tuesday. About 20 peaceful protesters showed up. Check out the press release about the protest over “the undue influence they feel the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) exercises over state legislation throughout the country.”
And state Sen. Chris Larson has published a new Larson Report. The headline: “Playing Games With Our Most Vulnerable.”
Great Turnout At Lake Parkway Meeting … And How You Can Still Have Your Voice Heard
Update: Check out coverage from WISN and Oak Creek Patch. And the Journal Sentinel has published a story, too, with comments from a couple South Milwaukeeans.
By my count, more than 200 people attended Wednesday’s public meeting about the proposed Lake Parkway extension at the South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center.
It was a good meeting — and answered some of the most commonly asked questions about the project. Of course, more details will come if and when this project advances beyond the planning stages and into engineering and ultimately construction.
It’s a process that will “optimistically” take at least 10 years, according to the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission — and more than likely 15 or more. So don’t expect to see Highway 794 go beyond Edgerton Avenue anytime soon.
That said, it’s a worthy project and worthy of continued debate. So I credit Milwaukee County Supervisor Pat Jursik and other local leaders for driving this, even if it will soon get much harder as this project advances beyond the drawing board and on to the formal regional transportation plan.
You can learn more about the $207 millions extension plan here. Among the local impacts mentioned at Wednesday’s meeting:
- The project would generally follow the Union Pacific Railroad tracks south of Edgerton to Highway 100, with three interchanges most directly serving South Milwaukee. Two, at Rawson and Drexel, are being planned as grade-separated (either above or below grade). The third, at College, would be a “jug handle” interchange similar to that found currently at 794 and Oklahoma Avenue.
- The extension would reduce traffic on Highway 32 and Pennsylvania/Nicholson through South Milwaukee, eliminating the need for widening of the latter south of Rawson to Milwaukee Avenue.
- Widening between College and Rawson is still planned for this summer and fall — work that I strongly argue is still necessary given the long-range nature of the extension project.
- The Lake Parkway extension would be a safer road. Crash rates on the extension would be about half that of Pennsylvania, the primary arterial that would (and does) carry traffic without the project.
Public comments are still being taken on the project by March 15. You can do so by email, an online website form, mail or fax. Find details here.
Of course, I’d like to know what you think of this project. Post your comments below!
(I also wanted to share a letter of opposition from Michael Timm, a Cudahy resident and former editor of the Bay View Compass, that found its way to my email. While I support this project, Mr. Timm raises some good points against it. Food for thought …)
Filed under Transportation
