Tag Archives: South Milwaukee City Council

A few other items on Tuesday’s agenda, in addition to the ownership change for Grant Park Plaza …

• The council voted unanimously to deny a liquor license and (separately) a conditional use permit for the Iron Breed Motorcycle Club at 428 Marion Ave. (corner of 5th and Marion). I had voted against the conditional use permit at the Plan Commission level.
• The council also voted to make some changes to how we run meetings. It was mostly housekeeping and making changes to our ordinances to reflect our current practices. One change: The council decide to put an end to the “committee of the whole” concept — something we haven’t done in years anyway. Under this concept, the mayor can call a meeting of the council for “informal discussion” of various matters, without voting on them. I support the decision. We can (and do) already use regular council meetings to debate issues, with that debate at times not leading to a vote. You can see the updated ordinance here.
• The council also voted to clarify how we handle complaints about the keeping of pit bulls. It put enforcement in the hands of the Health Department and laid out the process for complaints and appeals regarding the dogs. See the updated ordinance here.
• And the council voted to add Jerome Bzdawka to the Board of Health.

It was a busy council meeting Tuesday night …

• The council voted 7-0 to approve a memorandum of understanding with Milwaukee County on maintenance responsibilities for Oak Creek inside the City of South Milwaukee. This was an agreement years in the making and puts in writing verbal agreements and past practice from previous decades around who is responsible for duties like creek bed vegetation removal. I thank our city staff, attorney, County Supervisor Pat Jursik and others for their work in pulling this together. Of course, this is just the start. We still need to figure out bigger and longer term solutions for the entire Oak Creek watershed, and there is significant progress being made on that front, too. Stay tuned for more details soon.
• The council approved the nomination of Nate Keller to the Plan Commission. With his background in construction project management (including the Potawatomi Hotel) and engineering, Nate will be a terrific fit for this important committee. I welcome him on board. I also wish Dave Friedrich well and thank him for his years of service. Do you want to serve on one of our boards or commissions? Fill out an application, and we’ll keep it on file.
• The council also voted to unanimously endorse the League of Wisconsin Municipalities’ Partnership for Prosperity legislative agenda. As mayor, I want to see South Milwaukee have a stronger role in state legislative matters, and putting our support behind this common-sense agenda makes sense. Let’s hope some of this sees the light of day in Madison in the upcoming session, as we seek to fuel the true economic engine of our state: the work happening in our incorporated communities.
• We also honored three Eagle Scouts: Jake Simuncak, Dan Rolefson and Chris Sobczak.

News and notes from Tuesday’s meeting, in addition to the South Milwaukee Pink Day activities …

• Police deal. The council voted to approve a new three-year labor agreement with the South Milwaukee Professional Police Association Local 201. The deal — which would run from Jan. 1, 2015, through Dec. 31, 2017 — includes a 2% pay raise each year over the life of the contract and other minor changes from the current deal. The union still must ratify the deal.
• Downtown Committee. The council also discussed a proposal to form downtown advisory committee and referred the matter back to the Legislation & Permits Committee to work out more details and draft an ordinance, likely for action at our Nov. 25 meeting. I brought this proposal forward as another opportunity to drive downtown redevelopment. This committee — which I propose to be a mix of business/property owners and residents — would be out front in helping develop our downtown plan while also regularly advising the council, administration and others on issues related to our city center. More to come soon on this, the downtown plan and the hiring of an economic development to assist in all of this … and stay tuned for opportunities for you to get involved! I’m excited about where we’re headed in downtown South Milwaukee. I hope you are too.
• New police captain. I want to congratulate Peter Jaske, who has been named a new South Milwaukee police captain by the Police and Fire Commission. The council recognized the promotion Tuesday night. Jaske, who previously was a lieutenant, replaces Terry Olson, who has retired.
• Eagle Scout. We honored another Eagle Scout, Joel Dereszynski. I congratulate this fellow (soon to be) St. Thomas More graduate and am happy to recognize his accomplishments. Here is the proclamation we gave Joel.

The council next meets Nov. 25 to consider the 2015 budget. The budget will be published next week — look for a post on the budget in coming days — with a public hearing scheduled for Nov. 24.

Quick roundup from Tuesday’s South Milwaukee City Council meeting …

• The South Milwaukee Police Department formally received its WILEAG accreditation, as I wrote about.
• The council accepted, with regrets, the retirement of South Milwaukee Police Capt. Terry Olson, a 29-year veteran of the department. Wrote Capt. Olson in his note to the council: “I can only hope that the contributions I have made during my career were enough to justify the bounty that I have received.” His contributions were significant, he will be missed.
• The council also voted to increase recycling fees by 5% both in 2015 and 2016. By doing this, we expect will be able to fully fund the program without requiring the use of budget fund balance come 2016. With the changes, the annual recycling fee will be $53.04 per single family residence in 2015, plus a $4.41 hazardous waste disposal fee per dwelling per year. Those fees move to $55.69 and $4.66 per year, respectively, in 2016.
• The council also voted to change City Hall hours, effective Feb. 9, 2015 — following the end of the initial tax collection season. The new hours will be 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., with a half-hour lunch for employees. Hours are currently 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., with an hour lunch for employees. We believe the earlier start will better serve residents.

From Tuesday’s South Milwaukee City Council meeting …

• The council agreed to keep our police and fire dispatch services in-house — and invest what could be more than $400,000 on new dispatch equipment in coming months. This was a decision a long time in coming, and it’s one I know the council (and the city administrator and me) did not take lightly. I generally support exploring consolidation and contracting as options for select city services — I think you have to in this era of lean budgets — and we certainly did our homework in this case. But you need a willing partner in discussions about sharing services, and we had trouble finding one. Meanwhile, risks increased with our outdated equipment coming to the end of its useful life. So we decided to invest in what we’re doing in South Milwaukee. And now that we’re committed to providing this service long-term, it’s up to us to find ways to enhance it where and when possible. We will try our hardest to do that.
• We also heard a few details about a development proposed for the former St. Adalbert’s school, gymnasium, church and rectory. Gorman & Co. is proposing 31 apartments for the existing buildings, to be funded in part with historic building tax credits from the state. Formal plans will be presented before the Plan Commission at our meeting Monday (tomorrow), with plans for a public information meeting and formal public hearing in the days and weeks after that. I’ll keep you posted.
• We also gave a proclamation to the South Milwaukee School District, for their AdvancED accreditation. Congratulations again to the district for this terrific honor.

Additional news and notes from Tuesday’s South Milwaukee City Council meeting …

• The council gave final passage to a $50 monthly pay raise spread over the next three years. It would take effect after the April 2015 election. The vote was 7-0, with one abstaining.
• The council also voted 7-1 to give final approval to the Burger King restaurant proposed for the Walmart outlot on North Chicago Avenue. Construction is expected to begin this fall, with an opening yet this winter. I welcome Burger King to town.

The council also approved a shift in how we handle the “fire hydrant rental fee.”

Fire hydrants cost money to maintain, and we have traditionally put that cost on the tax levy. In an era of strict levy limits, that has been a burden on our city budget, as these costs increase. (For example, between 2009 and 2011, the actual expense for hydrant rental went up by more than $160,000, so our budgets had to reflect this increase – and the increase over the levy limit had to be absorbed in other parts of the budget.)

Going forward, these fees will shift from the levy and be added as a fee on your water bill.

What does this mean for you? The average homeowners will now see a fee which is estimated to be $26.12 each trimester ($78.36 annually) on their water bill, with the rate set on the size of their water meters. The fee is actually smaller than what homeowners are currently paying through the levy. That can happen because nonprofits — exempt from property taxes — will now begin paying this fee, thus “spreading out” this cost across more entities, similar to how we handle other water and wastewater fees.

While I recognize the added burden this will place on nonprofits, I support this shift from levy to fee as a more sustainable approach for our budget. Shifting this expense to the water/wastewater bill does mean the 2015 levy will have to decrease by the same amount (more than $600,000). But by moving the hydrant rental fee now, the levy reduction will be based on the current year’s hydrant expense … avoiding the impact of future water rate increases.

The Public Service Commission will determine the exact rate to be charged for each meter size in the coming months. And I’ll keep you posted.

Recapping last Monday’s special South Milwaukee City Council meeting, primarily held to ensure two late-filing local bars get their liquor licenses in time to stay open effective July 1 … which they did.

Topping the agenda was approval by the council to move ahead with significant road projects, including …

• Advertising for bids for reconstruction of 17th Avenue between Milwaukee and Rawson later this summer.
• Spending more than $485,000 for various asphalt pavement repairs. In all, at least 59 areas throughout the city were identified as needing repair, some with longstanding issues and some due to the terrible winter. About 25 of the repair areas are “frost boils,” while the others are deteriorated asphalt.
• The council also voted to spend $93,350 to synchronize the traffic lights on Rawson Avenue, which is great news for people (like me) who drive this road often. A federal grant is covering $57,000 of the construction costs.

The council also gave final approval to an ordinance banning rummage sales downtown — on Milwaukee Avenue between Ninth and 13th and 10th Avenue between Rawson and Marquette.