Update: Check out Mike’s obituary here.
Services for Alderman Mike Karbowski, who died this week following an illness, are Friday at Molthen-Bell & Son Funeral Home in South Milwaukee.
Visitation is from 3 to 6 p.m., with a service at 6. A luncheon follows the service at the Knights of Columbus.
Molthen-Bell is located at 700 Milwaukee Ave., and the Knights of Columbus is at 732 Badger Ave.
We will miss you Mike!
Filed under City Council
Update: The City Council will reconsider the tavern’s 2011-12 liquor license at a meeting on Wednesday, June 29. See the agenda here.
The Frozen Rope bar remains open after Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Dennis Moroney granted a temporary restraining order and injunction on Wednesday.
The ruling came one day after the City Council voted to revoke the liquor license of the bar owner and deny his license for 2011-12 — a decision that met with a number of written objections from William Foerman and his attorney.
Here is a copy of the restraining order.
I will do my best to keep you posted on this and what’s next as this case makes it way through the courts.
Filed under Local Business
The Frozen Rope is now closed following the second shooting outside the bar in less than two months.
The South Milwaukee City Council voted unanimously, 6-0, Tuesday to revoke the liquor license issued to M&B Enterprises LLC (the current licensee) and deny the 2011-12 license application of DBF Entperises LLC (the name under which the current agent has applied for a license).
The revocation went into effect immediately and comes a day after the Legislation and Permits Committee held a five-hour hearing on the matter.
View the document prepared by the committee contanining findings of fact, conclusions of law and recommendations here.
And post your comments below.
Filed under Community
Check out these local headlines of interest …
Also, the Journal Sentinel has video of the South Shore Rock ‘n Ride Duathlon, which went through South Milwaukee over the weekend.
Filed under Headlines
First District Alderman Mike Karbowski passed away this afternoon after an illness.
This is a tragic loss, and his leadership, community focus and strong voice for South Milwaukee will be missed dearly.
Please keep Mike’s family and friends in your thoughts and prayers.
I will post more on this soon, as well as information on funeral arrangements.
In the meantime, please post your comments below.
Filed under Community
Filed under Local Business
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel had an interesting story on Sunday about the state’s lack of trained workers — and how it has led to Bucyrus focusing at least part of its expansion in Kilgore, Texas, rather than locally.
Check out the story here. From it:
Finding qualified, factory-grade welders in an old-line industrial city such as Milwaukee had become arduous to near impossible. Calling himself a “killjoy,” Sullivan said he quietly phoned a few contacts in Texas to see whether the Lone Star State could provide him enough welders who are qualified to piece together the colossal mining machines that Bucyrus ships to India, China and elsewhere around the world.
A delegation of senior Texas government authorities met Sullivan at the airport, including the mayor of the town of Kilgore. In a one-hour lunch, they matched Bucyrus with a ready-to-occupy factory with every possible amenity.
More important, they asked Sullivan exactly what sort of workers he needed. Sullivan said 80 with specific skill. The state gave Sullivan a guarantee that the workers would be waiting when the doors opened at the expansion site in Kilgore. State officials customized a recruitment, training and certification program. One year later, when the expansion site in Kilgore opened its doors, the 80 welders were waiting.
In the two years since then, the Texas site has more than doubled to 184 total workers and plans to keep hiring. And back in Milwaukee, Sullivan has said next to nothing in public about the Kilgore expansion.
Thankfully, Bucyrus also continues to invest in South Milwaukee, with the recent expansion and renovation of its visitor center and museum. Also, the Journal Sentinel has this nugget about local jobs …
Bucyrus employs about 1,700 in metro Milwaukee, “going to 2,000,” Sullivan said.
Filed under Local Business
Tim Sullivan for Senate?
The talk has been hard to avoid in the past couple weeks, as more and more media outlets pick up on the story.
Sullivan, for example, sat down with WTMJ-TV over the weekend and said he would not announce any decision on whether or not to run for outgoing Sen. Herb Kohl’s seat until after Catperillar’s acquisition of Bucyrus is completed this summer. He wouldn’t even reveal his political party.
Check out the interview here.
And check out Sullivan stories from the Journal Sentinel, Business Journal and BizTimes.com. Even the Washington Post is weighing in.
Filed under Politics
A closer look at 2010 U.S. Census data has revealed something far from surprising, albeit a bit disappointing, about South Milwaukee …
Our city’s population has remained relatively static the past decade plus.
In 2000, the city had 21,256 people. In 2010, it had 21,156. So it’s a loss of 100 people in 10 years. And those numbers vary year to year.
With that in mind, here is a closer look at population figures over the last decade, with the 2000 and 2010 numbers attributed to actual census data and the other years based on U.S. Census estimates:
Surprising? Not necessarily. We’re not Oak Creek or Franklin. We’re a fully developed city with little room for growth.
That said, we have had some new housing come on line in the past decade (including the Heritage Reserve and Carrington Place condominiums, Marquette Manor, etc.), so you would hope for at least some growth during that time. We’ve gone the other way. That’s concerning.
Of course, it could be worse, much worse. Consider the 1970s. South Milwaukee’s population stood at 23,297 in 1970. By 1980, it was 20,915, a 10.2 percent decline in just one decade. In 1990, it was 20,958, and it has remained relatively stable since then.
And I’ll take stable these days.
Now, population trends are a much more complex issue than just numbers. I get it. And there are larger and longer term demographic issues at play here … one that I won’t pretend to be an expert at or have the space to devote to on this blog.
I will, however, be posting more on census figures in coming weeks and months.
In the meantime, do your own research by checking out the year-over-year Census Bureau figures from the 2000s here. And here is a document from the state’s Department of Administration with more figures (some estimates being a bit different from the census data) dating to 1970.
Also, here is a closer look at the 2010 South Milwaukee census data.
I would like to hear your comments on this. Post them below!
Filed under Community
The Journal Sentinel has an interesting story about the controversial mining bill being authored in the Assembly by South Milwaukee Rep. Mark Honadel.
Interestingly, Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce is running ads in favor of the bill … and it hasn’t even been introduced it.
Check out the story here.
And check out my previous post on this pending legislation.
Filed under State Lawmakers
Check out these headlines from around the South Shore:
Filed under Headlines
Wednesday night’s storms did some damage around the 4th District.
I shot a few photos this morning …
The tree damage is in the 1600 and 1700 block of Milwaukee Avenue. The other shot is from Creative Catering on 17th and Rawson. Apparently, the wind blew out part of their entrance.
Did you suffer any storm damage? Post your comments below!
Filed under Uncategorized
The City Council’s Legislation and Permits Committee voted tonight to set a hearing in The Frozen Rope case for 11:30 a.m. Monday, June 13, at City Hall.
The city received a formal complaint from a neighbor of the bar following the shooting Saturday night — the second shooting outside the tavern in less than two months.
The first incident helped lead to a 14-day suspension of the bar’s license. It remains to be seen what the punishment will be this time around.
I will keep you posted. The hearing is also open to the public.
Filed under Crime
Buddy, the black Labrador retriever best known for helping rescue his South Milwaukee owner stuck in the February blizzard, has died.
Check out the Journal Sentinel story here and learn more.
And check out these other local headlines:
Filed under Headlines
Your property is being reassessed this summer.
State law requires periodic revaluations to ensure that the property tax burden is distributed evenly – so that all property owners pay only their fair share based on the market value of their homes, businesses and other property.
South Milwaukee’s last reassessment was in 2007, but the housing and commercial property market in South Milwaukee and beyond has obviously changed since then … for the worse. The end result? Property values have declined, on average, 10 percent or more in South Milwaukee.
Of course, this is an average. Some will have lost more value, while others may have lost less, and even appreciated.
So, what about your property? You should receive your new assessment in the mail in about a month. This document answering some commonly asked questions will be included.
Here are some key facts from it:
I hope this helps answer some of the questions I’ve been getting about the revaluation. The state Department of Revenue also has some helpful information on its website.
I will keep you posted as the assessment date nears. And, as always, please post your comments below, or contact me anytime.
(Thanks to City Assessor Dan Walker and his team for this information. Once you get your assessment, feel free to contact Dan and his staff at City Hall. Details are in the Q&A.)
South Milwaukee Blog 