South Milwaukee Blog

It’s nearing 24 hours after the end of the most recent snowstorm. Still have snow on your city sidewalks? You had better remove it soon.

Remember, snow and ice must be removed from your sidewalk “within 24 hours of daylight” after the end of a storm, according to Section 12.20 of the municipal code. That means if the snow stops overnight — and the most recent snow did early Friday morning — you have 24 hours from the next sunrise (approximately 7 a.m. Friday) to clear public sidewalks.

If you don’t comply, according to our code, “the Street Superintendent shall without notice have the ice and snow removed therefrom” … and have the service charged to the homeowner “as a special tax against said lot or parcel of land, and the same shall be collected in all respects like other taxes upon real estate.” (Section 12.26).

Now, the vast majority of South Milwaukee property owners take care of this with no problem. But there are more than a few that don’t, and given the number of foreclosed, bank-owned and rental properties in our city, I fear a number of sidewalks won’t be cleared in time.

This is a safety issue, and I strongly encourage residents who see unshoveled sidewalks to call the Street Department and let them know.

The number is 768-8075.

If you ever thought about serving on the South Milwaukee School Board, this might be your chance.

One person — incumbent Theresa C. Travia — has declared to run for School Board this spring. Here’s the problem: Two seats are up for election.

That sets up a scenario where one of the two spots — the one to be vacated by board member Kristin Grenier-Drenzek — will be filled by a write-in candidate, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Surprising news … and disappointing. Apathy is never a good thing.

“I am sure there will be an effort made by private citizens and so forth as it becomes public,” Superintendent David Ewald told the Journal Sentinel.

I hope so. Candidates serve three-year terms.

It’s official — there will be two contested South Milwaukee races this spring … the same two that were contested in 2008.

Richard Raduenz, a former 3rd District alderman, is running against incumbent Mayor Tom Zepecki in a 2008 rematch, as I reported in this post.

City clerk is the other contested race, and it promises to be an intriguing one, as 3rd District Alderman James Shelenske goes up against incumbent Kathleen Lisowski.

City Treasurer Karen Skowronski, City Attorney Joseph Murphy and Municipal Judge William Fenger are running unopposed this spring.

Each position serves two years. 

You can see a complete list of candidates and contact information here. And look for more information on these races as the April 6 general election nears.

If you drove through downtown South Milwaukee over the weekend, you may have noticed 10th Avenue was closed south of Milwaukee Avenue.

The reason? A water main break in front of Tri-City National Bank.

You can read the story on the Today’s TMJ4 website here. Also check out the video. It’s not pretty.

And check out these other headlines of local note:  

• Man Charged with Sex Asssault of Girl
• New SMHS Student Overview Event
• Divided Council OKs License for Adult Bookstore

Still haven’t gotten an H1N1 vaccination? You can do so on Wednesday, January 6, at South Milwaukee City Hall, 2424 15th Avenue, courtesy of the South Milwaukee Health Department.

Vaccines will be given by appointment only from 2 to 6 p.m. Call the Health Department at 768-8055 to schedule a shot.

Learn more at the city’s website here.

So, what will the ballot look like in April? We’ll know more on Tuesday — decision day for those thinking about running for office in South Milwaukee.

Candidates for mayor, city clerk, city treasurer, city attorney and municipal judge have until 5 p.m. on Tuesday to declare their candidacy and submit the necessary nomination petitions.

You can learn more in my earlier post about this … and look for an update on the blog with all declared candidates on Tuesday night, after the filing deadline.

In case you haven’t noticed, and many probably haven’t, South Milwaukee has some great restaurants — and we hopefully have added another one.

Paisano’s Restaurant is now open for business at the site of the former Witt’s at 113 N. Chicago Avenue. I look forward to checking out the new Italian eatery soon, and I hope you will too.

Why dine at a national chain when you can eat local?

Speaking of eating local, I’m a big fan of Nona’s Cafe downtown, and it has a great back story … one told in impressive detail in the Christmas Day edition of The Business Journal. Check out a snippet of the story here. A subscription is required to read the entire version.

The South Milwaukee Chamber of Commerce has come out with its monthly newsletter, and you can check it out here.

I wanted to call out one item in particular: an upcoming business education seminar presented by the South Shore Economic Advancement Consortium and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Small Business Development Center.

The class on small business financial statements and profitability is planned for 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. on Friday, January 15, at the St. Francis Library. The registration deadline is January 12, and you can learn more in the newsletter.

It’s the latest in a series of classes being organized by the SSEAC, which I wrote about in this earlier post. A March class is on website strategies.

These classes can be invaluable for a small business owner or someone thinking about becoming one. And they are concrete examples of the strength of partnerships when it comes to economic development.

The consortium, still in its infancy, seeks to grow the economies of South Milwaukee, Cudahy and St. Francis. The classes give business owners the tools to do that.

Wall Street continues to show its love for Bucyrus International.

Bullish reports from a pair of stock market analysts on Monday drove shares of the South Milwaukee mining equipment company higher less than two weeks after Bucyrus announced it was acquiring the mining division of Terex Corporation.

 From the story on TheStreet.com:

Morgan Stanley’s Robert Wertheimer moved his rating on Bucyrus shares to outperform from not-rated. The company’s recent $1.3 billion acquisition of Terex’s mining machinery unit, to which investors had responded favorably, “has been underappreciated by the market, even given the 15% rise in the stock,” Wertheimer wrote in a note to clients.

You can view the full story here. And check out this one from ABC News.

I’m back from a week in Arizona, refreshed, ready and looking forward to a great 2010 for South Milwaukee and the 4^th District.

I am excited about the year ahead as your alderman. There’s a lot I’d like to accomplish in 2010, a lot of progress I hope we can achieve as a city. I look forward to the challenge … and keeping you informed on key issues via this blog.

In case you missed them, here’s a few headlines from the past week …

• Per Person, Franklin Leads County in Liquor Licenses. South Milwaukee is not as high on this list as you might think. Our ordinance limiting Class A licenses to one for every 2,000 residents – or 10 – ensures we won’t be. You can see our city’s liquor license ordinance here.
• Body Found Along Grant Park Beach Identified. I’ll see if I can get an update on this story in coming days.
• Also, Milwaukee County Supervisor Pat Jursik has published her January E-NEWS update. You can check it out here.

Happy new year, and I hope you had a blessed holiday season.

Well, it looks like State Sen. Jeff Plale, a South Milwaukee Democrat and 4^th District resident, will have a challenger this fall.

Learn more in this post from Blogging Blue … and find out more about Jess Ripp.

You’ll also note that the above post mentions my name in regards to the 21^st District Assembly race. While I’m flattered to be promoted as a potential candidate for that seat, I have no intentions of running. Rather, I am excited about the year ahead as an alderman.

Also, check out this Milwaukee Journal Sentinel story on suburban mayoral races. Richard Raduenz’s challenge of Tom Zepecki gets a mention, as does the intriguing race shaping up in Cudahy between Ryan McCue and a host of challengers. And check out my earlier election update post here.

I want to wish you the warmest of wishes this holiday season.

I will be taking the next week or so off from blogging but look forward to returning to the keyboard after the first of the new year.

Thanks for reading and supporting my first journey into the blogosphere. I hope you like what you’ve seen so far … and I encourage you to come back in 2010.  I am committed to keeping residents of the 4th District informed about what’s happening in their city, and I pledge to deliver on that promise next year and beyond.

I received the following press release on Tuesday from the South Milwaukee Police Department:

On Monday, December 21, 2009, the Tri-City National Bank located at 2115 10th Avenue was robbed at approximately 9:29 a.m. The suspected was located and taken into custody at 9:46 a.m. The suspect, a 45-year-old male/white, acted alone in the robbery. The Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office will review the case for robbery charges. No one was injured during this incident.

Police Chief Ann Wellens says an observant citizen helped lead police to the nearby apartment building where the suspected was arrested.

Well, Wall Street loves the deal.

Check out Journal Sentinel and Reuters stories with some positive reaction to the news Sunday night that Bucyrus International was spending $1.3 billion to purchase the mining division of Terex Corporation … and perhaps move 500 jobs to South Milwaukee.

Now the question is: What does the deal mean for South Milwaukee? More specifically, what does it mean for downtown South Milwaukee?

I hope it means everything — that it’s the tipping for the real revitalization we need downtown.

During my campaign for alderman, I noted that we need to do more to partner with Bucyrus to promote and grow our downtown. It only makes sense.

Bucyrus stands at the heart of our downtown. Draw a four-block circle around the complex, and that’s South Milwaukee’s city center.

This is a huge opportunity for us, a point of difference, a competitive advantage. How many other cities can boast this? Other than Cudahy, I can’t think of another community in the area, maybe the state, in a similar situation.

Let’s seize on this opportunity. Let’s shout from the rooftops that South Milwaukee is home to what is now the world’s largest mining equipment manufacturer, home to a company that is committed to growth even in the worst of economic times.

A few things we could do:

• Call out Bucyrus’ presence as part of our city welcome signs, something like, “Welcome to South Milwaukee: Home of Bucyrus International.”  This, honestly, seems like an easy one, and I wonder why we haven’t done this already.
• Market the Bucyrus complex as a destination for visitors. About a year ago, Bucyrus opened a mining museum as part of its Heritage Building. Didn’t know that? You’re not alone. I see this museum as a nice attraction for the city, if promoted well. I’d also like to see it be open longer. At this point, it’s only open every other Saturday. Regular plant open houses and additional plant tour opportunities could make the facility — and, by extension, downtown South Milwaukee — a true tourist attraction.
• Better promote downtown businesses to Bucyrus employees — those already there and the potentially 500 new ones on their way. The South Milwaukee Chamber of Commerce attempts this with an annual business fair, and the South Milwaukee Downtown Market also reaches out to Bucyrus employees. I’d like to see other activities aimed at getting those employees to shop and eat “local.”
• Develop communications aimed at enticing the new (and existing) Bucyrus employees to buy homes in South Milwaukee. Let’s make South Milwaukee the starting point for their house hunt — not Oak Creek or Franklin.

Of course, these are just a few things we can do. Whatever happens, I hope the Bucyrus announcement at least gets the conversation started about our downtown area — a conversation that right now isn’t happening. I’d love to hear what you think.