South Milwaukee Blog

The Brooks family is proud to present a holiday tradition that continues to grow.

We’re again gathering toys, games, etc.  and then delivering those Christmas gifts to three Milwaukee homeless/domestic violence shelters on Christmas Eve. We’ll also donate toys to South Milwaukee Human Concerns before the holidays.

Our family will go shopping for toys in the next few weeks, putting to good use a $250 grant from Thrivent Financial.

So here is the ask: If anyone wants to donate gifts for us to take, or donate money for us to spend on gifts when we go shopping, drop them off with Sarah or me any time before Christmas Eve.

New, unwrapped items, please.

And if you’d like to come with us on Dec. 24 — and show your kids the true meaning of the season — please join us. We’d love to have you. We leave from our house around 9 a.m. and will stop for lunch afterward.

Post a comment here, or feel free to email me at erikbrooks32@gmail.com for more information.

Thanks for helping make a child’s life more merry this Christmas.

From the South Milwaukee Police Department …

Cost of the permits is $30.00 per month or $100.00 for the entire 4 month season.  Any resident who wishes to park on the street between the hours of 3am and 6am must purchase a parking permit. 

Alternate side parking rules also apply.  Winter parking is enforced 7 days a week.

PLAN AHEAD, get your permits early.  Parking permission will not be given because you did not have time to purchase a permit.

More details here.

I’m really enjoying “Growing Up Polish in South Milwaukee,” the new book from former South Milwaukee resident Carol Wagner DeMarco.

From Carol …

The book spans three generations of Polish Americans: the immigrant grandparents at the turn of the century, the parents who grew up immersed in Polish ways, and their three daughters who enjoyed the “happy days” of the 1940’s and 50’s.

The memoir is lightly seasoned with Polish words, recipes and humor, but you don’t have to be Polish to enjoy it. However, if you are a South Milwaukee Pole, there is a good chance your family name is on the cover.

It’s definitely worth the read and would make a great “shop local” Christmas gift.

Buy it locally at …

• Parkway Floral, 1001 Milwaukee Ave.;
• South Milwaukee Historical Society, 717 Milwaukee Ave.; and
• Curves, 2032 E. Rawson Ave.
• A copy is also available at the South Milwaukee Library.

It is also available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Carol will also be at Parkway Floral this Saturday, Dec. 2, for a book signing starting at 10 a.m. So stop by, say hi and pick up a copy!

The South Milwaukee Common Council voted 7-0 last Tuesday to approve the 2018 city budget, which you can see here.

I wrote about the proposed budget extensively here.

I am proud of this budget, and I offer this context.

The tax rate will be $9.65 per $1,000 of assessed value. A homeowner living in a house assessed at $150,000 will pay $1,447.50 in city taxes come December.

For that approximately $120 per month — or about $27.83 per week, $3.96 per day — you receive 24/7 police and fire protection, paramedic service, garbage pick up, snow plowing (including alleys), leaf pick up and free (for the first one) special pickups and chipper jobs. We maintain 70 miles of paved roads (even more when you include alleys), and thousands of street trees. Your taxpayer dollars also fund the South Milwaukee Public Library, Health Department, and Grobschmidt Senior Center.

We support the South Milwaukee Little League, stepped-up beautification efforts and events like the South Milwaukee Downtown Market, Heritage Days, Old Fashioned Christmas, July 4th, the food truck festivals and a variety of Rocketober events. We provide police services in the middle and high schools, and in and around Grant Park.

And that’s just the start of the services and amenities delivered by more than 150 city employees who work hard to give you, our residents, value for your taxpayer dollar.

No one likes paying property taxes, me included. But I always ask, “What do you get for that investment?” The answer: A lot.

From the South Milwaukee Street Department …

The final leaf collection pass is underway. We have started on the north side of town and are working south. This process should take 7 to 10 working days. Please do not add any leaf piles to the gutter, as they may not be picked up. Leaves may also be taken to the Self Deposit Station (SDS), 1106 Blake Avenue (see hours below). The $2.00 user fee will be waived if you are only disposing of leaves. Should a winter storm arrive before our final pass concludes, the leaf collection equipment will be removed from the vehicles to install snow plows and leaf collection will end. Remaining leaves may be taken to the SDS and the $2.00 user fee waived if you are only disposing of leaves. Your patience is much appreciated.

Check out these South Shore headlines, including an article on South Milwaukee’s strong performance in the state school report cards, the potential for a new state office building in South Milwaukee, a celebration of the Rocket boys’ cross-country team, a new operator for Willowcrest Care Center, and more …

• South Milwaukee’s School Report Card Shoots up (NOW)
• South Milwaukee Wants State to Consider Caterpillar Site for New Office Building (BizTimes)
• South Milwaukee Runners Reflect on Third-Place Finish at State Meet (NOW)
• North Shore Takes Over 23 Assisted Living Facilities (Beloit Daily News)
• Cudahy May Restructure Health Department (NOW)
• What’s Next for Oak Creek Water? (NOW)

Also, NOW has published a new police blotter.

More on the school report cards from the article …

I had the pleasure of attending the signing of Senate Bill 99 today, as Gov. Scott Walker made official the naming of an iconic bridge at Lakeshore State Park the “Richard A. Grobschmidt Memorial Bridge.”

I want to thank Barb Grobschmidt, Rick’s wife, for the invitation, and for the opportunity to be a small part of this important effort.

She put it best: Rick spent his life building bridges, working with students and in state government to bring people together to make South Milwaukee, the South Shore and all of Wisconsin a better place. It’s a perfect tribute.

Congratulations to the entire Grobschmidt family for this special honor.

Our Light up South Milwaukee holiday lights awards program is underway, and it’s time to start nominating the city’s top displays!

Learn more on the city’s website — smwi.org/lightup. From it …

This year, Santa’s Elves will be looking to honor the South Milwaukee homes and businesses with the best outdoor holiday lights displays.  Winners will receive small cash prizes, a yard sign, and recognition on the city website and Facebook pages – and be the envy of your block, and city.

Beautification Committee members will judge entries for first and second place in the following categories:

• Griswold – You light up the whole neighborhood.
• Classical – Traditional decorations from holidays past.
• Themed – You have a running theme happening with your lighted display.

You can enter more than one address.  The more, the merrier!

All entries must be submitted by December 15th.  Judging will occur starting December 16th.

Winners will be notified by the contact information provided by the Facebook submission or the contact information provided on the entry form.

Let’s deck South Milwaukee streets with holiday cheer!

There are three ways to enter…

• Via an online form
• Email entries to lights@smwi.org
• Also, look for the pinned post on our City’s Facebook page, and post entries there.

Enter a property or three or five or more (maybe your own) and spread the word!

I am thankful for so many things this holiday — family, friends, food on the table, a roof over my family’s heads.

I know it could be very different. We are blessed.

I am also thankful for the opportunity to lead this city. We’ve accomplished a lot, and there is much more to come in the days, months and years ahead. I’m excited for the future. But, for today, and every day, let’s be thankful for what we’ve done, together.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Here is the full schedule, and flyers for everything. See you around town!

Great news from a great corporate citizen.

From the press release …

Northwestern Mutual, through its Foundation, is dedicating its support to causes that are meaningful to the company’s employees with grants totaling $225,000. Twenty-five local nonprofits will receive $1,000 to $10,000 on behalf of Northwestern Mutual employees through the company’s Days of Sharingprogram, now in its 10th year.

“We continually strive to cultivate a culture focused on giving back, and our employees are a key part of this,” said Eric Christophersen, president, Northwestern Mutual Foundation. “Our Days of Sharing program provides an opportunity to celebrate the season of giving while honoring the volunteer service and community support given by dedicated employees.”

Beginning in October, employees nominated their nonprofits of choice. From that group, 25 organizations were chosen at random.

Two are from South Milwaukee: Human Concerns will receive $3,000, while Growing South Milwaukee — which is planning to bring a community garden to downtown South Milwaukee in 2018 — received $1,000.

Thanks, Northwestern Mutual. The donations are richly deserved.

And congratulations to Human Concerns and Growing South Milwaukee!

I’m always happy to see partnerships like this in delivering our services. We are stronger together, especially in the fight against drug abuse.

From the Oak Creek Health Department …

The Oak Creek Health Department and a local Boy Scout are creating a mobile Wake Up Call room in partnership with South Milwaukee and Cudahy Health Departments. Adolescent and teen drug use is on the rise throughout the U.S. and an issue we face here in Milwaukee County. The Mobile Wake Up Call room is a trailer that contains a life-size exhibit of a teen’s bedroom with more than 20 “red flags” that can signal drug or alcohol use. The bedroom identifies spots where teens may hide drugs, household items that can be used as drug paraphernalia and ways teens try to cover up drug and alcohol use. The Mobile Wake Up room will be used in our communities to educate parents and caregivers about the signs of drug or alcohol addiction and prevent and stop abuse. Eagle Scout Joe Schissler started a GoFundMe to raise funds to support the construction of the Wake Up Call room for his Eagle Scout project.

Donate here. 

Local woodworker Larry Oleson is hard at work on the Little Free Libraries, and a few are still available to loving homes.

Interested? Email me at erikbrooks32@gmail.com, and let me know why we should add your name to the list. I don’t need a thesis — just a sentence or three on your plans for the library and why it would make a great fit for your neighborhood.

I want to thank our partners for their support of this.

• That list starts with Larry. He has been so gracious to lend his talents to this twice now. He is making these for free, and this couldn’t happen without him. Take a look at his progress in the image with this post.
• South Milwaukee Library. As in 2015, they donated all the wood for the libraries, from their collection of retired bookshelves.
• South Milwaukee Ace Hardware. They are donating a number of materials for the project, including the doors and windows, hinges and latches, nails, screws and more. Very cool.
• Bliffert Lumber in Cudahy. They recently stepped up to donate posts. We also had a private donation of shingles.

The South Milwaukee Police and Fire Commission has chosen our next Police Chief: longstanding Milwaukee Police Department leader William Jessup.

The commission offered Jessup the job at its meeting on Thursday night, contingent on standard pre-employment testing.

Jessup has been with the Milwaukee Police Department for 27 years and currently serves as an assistant chief for MPD, heading its Investigations & Intelligence and Risk Management Bureaus, which include the Training Academy, Human Resources, Information Technology, Communications, Internal Affairs, Public Relations, and budgeting.  Mr. Jessup has commanded MPD’s District 7 operations on the city’s northwest side, and has previously served as an MPD inspector, deputy inspector, lieutenant, detective and officer.

Jessup also has personal ties to the South Shore, having grown up in Cudahy, and working as a paid on call firefighter and emergency medical technician there before beginning his professional career in law enforcement.

William Jessup will officially start in January, and replace Ann Wellens, who is retiring after 28 years on the SMPD, including 12 as its chief. We wish Ann well, and welcome Bill to South Milwaukee.