Mitchell Park lagoon. Photo by Graham Kilmer.

It is easy to romanticize the history of Milwaukee County’s parks. Charles B. Whitnall, a Socialist civic leader dubbed the “father of Milwaukee County Parks,” was a former florist and banker who lived in a modest Riverwest home on Locust St. and created a 1923 plan for parks and parkways to encircle the county like an “emerald necklace.”

Whitnall served as secretary of the Milwaukee County Park Commission from its inception in 1907 until his retirement in 1941, and the commission was a powerful force that helped drive the growth of the parks for 75 years, with some of the last additions being the Mitchell Park Domes (1967), McKinley Marina (1979), and the beginning of a countywide network of bicycle trails (1976). Today, Milwaukee’s parks encompass 15,000 acres, 144 parks and 13 parkways.

A key reason for the commission’s power is that it was an independent board with a dedicated portion of the county property tax. But in 1982, the commission was abolished when Milwaukee County moved to a cabinet form of government, as a historical analysis by the Wisconsin Policy Forum (WPF) noted. A new county parks department was established, with its director reporting directly to the county executive.

This placed the parks budget in more direct competition with other county departments for funding and “marked the beginning of major staff cuts, funding cuts, rate hikes, increased user fees, and fewer services provided by the county parks,” the WPF report noted. “With most of the county budget going toward social services and criminal justice, the parks became a luxury and were the first to see the budget ax.”

There is no doubt the cost of the county’s infamous 2000-2001 pension plan enhancements left less money to fund the parks, as did two decades of declining state shared revenue flowing to the county going back to 2003. But the decline in county funding began long before this. The WPF found that county park employment had declined from 1,195 full-time equivalent positions in 1985 to 802 in 2002. That decline has continued, with the number now down to 309 employees.

“In 1980, the tax levy for parks was 47% of the entire county tax levy; in 2003 it was down to 10% and in 2020 it is 5%,” noted a 2025 analysis by Jeremy Lucas, director of administration and planning at Milwaukee County Parks, published by Urban Milwaukee. Had the parks budget kept with inflation over this period, Lucas noted, it would have been $100 million by then rather than an anemic $36 million.

The result is a park system that has been falling apart for 40 years and now has an estimated $500 million in deferred maintenance. “That means pools don’t open, playgrounds need repairs, tennis courts with no nets, and trails covered in invasive plants,” noted the Milwaukee Parks Foundation.

Even before the old Parks Commission was abolished it had begun to lose power and there were some citizens who feared it needed more support. The nonprofit Parks People was founded in 1978 to engage volunteers to improve the parks and raise dollars to help support them. Its budget peaked at $593,000 in 2018, its federal tax reports show, but that dropped to $270,000 in 2025.

Since then, a long list of parks support groups have sprung up. Preserve Our Parks was founded in 1999 and has a tiny budget, most recently listed at $22,000. The Milwaukee Parks Foundation was founded in 2019 and has an annual budget of $1.1 million and a staff of five paid some $333,000 in salaries, including $93,000 for its executive director, Rebecca Stoner. It raised $4.5 million in five years to support the parks, and seeks to raise another $10 million by 2029, Stoner told Urban Milwaukee.

Then there are the friends groups of particular parks or institutions. The big one is the Milwaukee Domes Alliance, founded in 1989 (under a different name), which has assets of $3.5 million, an annual budget of about $1.5 million and spends some $700,000 on staff salaries. Its assets and annual expenses have grown tremendously as the effort to save the Mitchell Park Domes has ramped up.

Also notable are the Friends of the Boerner Botanical Gardens, founded in 1984, which has assets of $2.8 million, an annual budget of nearly $600,000 and some $380,000 in salaries; the Friends of the Wehr Nature Center, founded in 1982, with an annual budget of about $288,000; and the Lake Park Friends, founded in 1996, with a budget of about $256,000.

Beyond that is a long list of parks groups, with little or no budget, that are mostly volunteers who weed, do cleanup and perform other tasks at the parks. Never has the parks system had more friends and less funding.

All of these nonprofits are trying as best they can to make up for the drastic decline in the county parks budget and staff. But the sheer number of organizations raises the question: Isn’t there some overlap in administrative costs between all these groups and with the county parks department as well?

Stoner says the total parks groups have different missions: Her group raises funds, Preserve our Parks advocates to prevent privatization of the parks and lakefront, and the Parks People provides support (an umbrella liability policy, legal help, etc.) to small friends groups helping just one park, like the Gordon, Grant, Lincoln and Sheridan park friends. But the Parks People also raise money, its website says.

Certainly, all these organizations are helping to increase citizen support for the parks, but the situation seems confusing for potential donors. And the combined impact of all the funds raised still leaves the parks far behind the golden era of the old Milwaukee Parks Commission. Charles Whitnall should be rolling over in his grave.

Early voting booth. Photo taken July 28, 2026 by Sophie Bolich.

The Department of Homeland Security is launching a criminal investigation focused on alleged voter fraud in multiple states, including Wisconsin, according to a report from CNN.

According to internal federal guidance cited by CNN, the investigative “surge” will take place in nine states beginning on Tuesday and run until mid-October.

That probe comes ahead of November’s elections, which will determine control of Congress. Sinceree Dixon, a spokesperson for Wisconsin’s League of Women Voters, said the timing is concerning.

“We feel like they were intentionally doing this ahead of the midterms to stir more controversy, to continue to try to control the narrative and stoke fear and division in people about election fraud,” Dixon said. “It’s really a waste of our tax dollars, a waste of resources to be looking into something that is a complete non-issue.”

Voter fraud is extremely rare in the U.S., research shows. Nonetheless, President Donald Trump has repeatedly cast unsubstantiated aspersions about the legitimacy of U.S. elections. That includes denying that he lost the 2020 presidential election, even after Joe Biden’s victory was affirmed by a series of recounts and multiple state and federal courts.

A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said the agency could not comment on any active investigations but said the department’s Homeland Security Investigations division “is actively rooting out and investigating election fraud wherever it can be found.”

The statement continued, “Under President Trump, HSI is committed to restoring integrity to our election systems and ensuring that American citizens and only American citizens are electing American leaders.”

The Department of Homeland Security is a federal agency that oversees immigration and border control. It’s also involved with countering transnational crime, such as terrorism and drug smuggling.

As the midterm elections approach, Trump has continued to amplify claims about noncitizens voting in U.S. elections. Doing so is illegal in federal and almost all local elections, and it could result in a felony charge. Research from the Brennan Center for Justice and other sources has found that voting by noncitizens is exceedingly rare.

Report: Feds launching voter fraud investigation in Wisconsin was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

Principal Tonya Love shows off improvements at Starms Discovery Learning Center. Photo from Milwaukee Public Schools.

Milwaukee Public Schools is pouring more than $18 million into six north side schools, refreshing aging buildings, expanding specialized programs and, in four cases, preparing schools to accommodate more students if the district moves forward with a long-discussed consolidation plan.

The work was on display last week at Frances Brock Starms Discovery Learning Center, 2035 N. 25th St., where MPS officials showed off new flooring, lighting, murals, playground improvements and a renovated gymnasium.

MPS Superintendent Brenda Cassellius, speaking at an Aug. 27 news conference, said the improvements are intended to send students a message about what the district expects for them.

“These improvements matter because the environment in which children learn sends a message, a very clear message about what we expect for them and how we care for them,” Cassellius said.

Starms is one of six schools receiving major capital investments this year. The others are Brown Street Academy, Andrew S. Douglas School, Gwen T. Jackson Early Childhood and Elementary School, North Division High School and River Trail School of Agricultural Science.

The total to be invested includes $2.3 million at Starms, $2.6 million at Brown Street, $5.7 million at Douglas, $2 million at Jackson and $2.4 million at North Division. The River Trail project was previously estimated at about $3.5 million, bringing the six-school investment to about $18.5 million.

The money is coming from Fund 46, MPS’ long-term capital improvement trust fund, rather than the district’s operating budget.

That distinction was noted since MPS is grappling with substantial financial pressure, including a previously identified $46 million operating budget deficit, staffing challenges and a backlog of deferred building maintenance.

Possible Receiving Schools

The investments also overlap with another difficult issue facing the district.

Four of the schools — Starms, Brown Street, Douglas and Jackson — were identified by facilities consultant Perkins Eastman as potential receiving schools if MPS closes five nearby, under-enrolled schools.

The consultant proposed closing Clarke Street School and moving its students to Starms, closing Siefert School and moving its students to Brown Street, combining Hopkins Lloyd Community School with Jackson and closing Auer Avenue and Keefe Avenue schools while moving their students to Douglas.

Perkins Eastman recommended improving potential receiving schools before any consolidation, reasoning that families could have more confidence in a merger if they could see investments being made in the schools their children would attend.

MPS has not approved those closures and Cassellius has not explicitly endorsed the consultant’s recommendations. But she has repeatedly said the district will eventually need to close buildings as enrollment declines and the cost of maintaining excess space grows.

The district is expected to convene an advisory group this year before making a decision. A final decision is subject to school board approval.

The investments already make some of the potential receiving schools better positioned for expansion.

Douglas, 3620 N. 18th St., is being converted from a middle school into a K-8 school. MPS says it will initially operate with one classroom at each grade level, with room to grow to two sections as enrollment increases. The $5.7 million project includes four kindergarten classrooms with dedicated bathrooms, a fenced kindergarten play area, a sensory and intervention space, renovated gym and library spaces, and a new before- and after-school care center.

At Brown Street Academy, 2029 N. 20th St., work includes a new playground and fencing, improved exterior lighting and security, restroom and classroom improvements, and renovations to the gymnasium and cafeteria.

Starms received new flooring in classrooms and common areas, improved lighting and acoustics, new signage and fencing, murals and other cosmetic upgrades.

Jackson, 2121 W. Hadley St., is receiving a new entrance canopy and signage intended to make the relatively low-profile school more visible from the surrounding neighborhood. Playground improvements, new lighting, fencing, acoustic upgrades, and a new interior color scheme are also part of the project.

Investments In Specialized Programs

The projects at North Division and River Trail are not part of the consultant’s proposed school consolidation plan.

At North Division, 1011 W. Center St., MPS is investing $2.4 million to expand career and technical education. The work includes new or renovated dental and welding labs, expanded computer science and information technology space, and improvements to the high school’s certified nursing assistant program. A new automotive lab is planned for 2027.

The school is also working with the UW-Milwaukee School of Architecture on exterior and interior improvements, including landscaping, outdoor gathering spaces and an eventual redesign intended to give portions of the building a more collegiate feel.

At River Trail, 12021 W. Florist Ave., the district is investing in the school’s growing agricultural science program, including a greenhouse and changes to classroom space.

River Trail and Vincent High School of Agricultural Sciences together operate what MPS says is one of the nation’s few public, urban K-12 agriculture programs. River Trail students use gardens, hydroponic equipment, greenhouses, small animals and a two-acre food forest as part of classroom instruction.

The six investments are part of a broader effort Cassellius is pitching under the district’s “Expect Great Things” campaign.

“This year, we are asking everyone in Milwaukee to expect great things from MPS and then to do the work to make those great things happen,” Cassellius said. “Our students deserve nothing less. They deserve great teaching, great opportunities and great schools, and our educators and staff are ready to deliver.”

“Our teachers, principals, school staff, district team, and union partners have been working day and night to make sure our schools are ready to welcome back students,” said Missy Zombor, school board president. “MPS has the people and the passion to give all of our students a safe, enriching and joyful school experience.”

While MPS welcomed students back to school Monday, students and staff from one school found themselves in an unfamiliar location. Following a devastating June fire, students and staff from Lincoln Avenue Elementary School will spend the school year housed at Casimir Pulaski High School.

Files. (Pixabay License).

A few weeks ago, Wisconsin State Journal reporter Chris Rickert was using his cell phone to scan records in the office of the Dane County Clerk of Circuit Court, when an office staffer informed him that this was not allowed.

Rickert complied, but followed up with an email to the office’s clerk of courts, Jeff Okazaki, noting that he and the paper’s former courts reporter had routinely done this to avoid the mandatory $1.25 per-page charge for copies made by office staff. “We have not been secretive about scanning the documents and no one else has ever told us not to,” he wrote.

Okazaki, in reply, explained that while the public can inspect documents for free using the office’s terminals, any copies must be made by staff for the statutory fee. He cited a 2014 opinion by then-state Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen stating that clerks of court and registers in probate cannot charge for copies made using personal devices such as a camera phone or handheld scanner, but can “choose whether to allow an individual to make copies in this manner.” Okazaki said most county clerk’s offices, including Dane’s, promptly disallowed this practice, noting that the office has long had “No Cell Phones!” sign posted in its records room.

But Carlo Esqueda, who headed the office from 2007 to late 2023, shortly before Okazaki was appointed to the post, says it “wasn’t my policy to prohibit people from taking photos of the screens in the records center.” He says the sign about cell phones likely predated the 2014 opinion and was not about preventing people from using them to scan court records: “My recollection is that we just didn’t want folks carrying on phone conversations in that room where people are trying to concentrate on reading.”

In my four decades as a reporter, always working for cash-strapped media outlets, I have rarely forked over the $1.25 per-page copy fee set by statute for court records. In recent years, that has meant snapping photos of court records, mostly in Dane County. If anyone had objected, and no one ever did, I would have simply resumed doing what I did, back in the days before everyone had cell phones equipped with cameras — copy relevant sections from the records by hand.

In other words, barring frugal requesters like me from making copies means additional labor and inconvenience, and potentially hours spent at terminals others might be waiting to use. But it will not necessarily generate additional revenue for the clerk’s office. (Rickert says he is now paying the per-page fee for some records and “taking notes on other, less important stuff.)

Okazaki, who is running unopposed for a four-year term this fall, insists he has “provided no changes, updates or new policies regarding or related to the use of personal electronic devices to copy court records” and that any enforcement has come from “staff operating under existing policy and training.” He says there may have been instances in which violations went “unnoticed at the time.” And he wonders how anyone could see the “No Cell Phones!” sign and think it was OK to use a cell phone to take photos of records. (Well, one reason might be that this sign goes on to ask visitors to “respect others” in the room by exiting to the lobby to use their phones.)

But even if clerks are within their rights to adopt this prohibition, consistently or otherwise, that doesn’t make it a good idea. Letting people make their own copies, as AG’s opinion expressly allows, is a harmless practice that reduces the workload of office staff and removes a potential barrier from people seeking to obtain public records for which they are, as taxpayers, already paying. A commitment to openness should trump the ability of government agencies to rake in money.

Court records are among the most important public records we have. Clerks of court should not be making it harder or cost-prohibitive for members of the public to access them.

Your Right to Know is a monthly column distributed by the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council (wisfoic.org), a nonprofit, nonpartisan group dedicated to open government. Bill Lueders, editor-at-large of The Progressive magazine, is the group’s president.

Partially collapsed building at 531 S. Water St. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

A large portion of a seven-story warehouse structure at 531 S. Water St. collapsed Monday and an emergency demolition is imminent.

The brick building is part of the National Warehouse Corp. complex, a series of structures used for office space and storage.

The collapse of the building occurred in two phases. The southern facade and a portion of the bottom three floors first fell; several hours later, the upper portion collapsed, bringing down large portions of the floors below.

The structure was vacant, and no one was believed to be in the building, according to the Milwaukee Fire Department. No injuries were reported, and individuals working in an attached structure were evacuated.

The collapsed structure’s exact date of construction isn’t immediately available in online records. Maps from 1894 and 1910 for the Sanborn Fire Insurance Co. show a structure with the same footprint on the site, labeled “malt house” for the Kraus and Merkel Malting Co. and later the American Malting Co. City assessment records place a 1925 date on the multi-building property. The structure is believed to be made of Cream City brick.

An emergency raze order was issued by the Department of Neighborhood Services after the first collapse.

A property manager was on-site Tuesday morning to meet with a prospective demolition contractor. As of this story’s publication, no raze permit had been submitted to the city.

On Tuesday morning, the Milwaukee Police Department had multiple officers closing a two-block section of S. Water Street with fencing planned.

It was not immediately clear what triggered the collapse.

In recent months, a piece of the metal sheathing on a connecting structure between the now-collapsed structure and a building to the east had been removed or fallen off, exposing severely slanted floors.

A small National Warehouse building to the west of the collapsed structure has long had a substantial amount of foliage growing out of what remains of the structure.

A fire occurred in 2024 in the “middle building” of the four-building parcel at 531 S. Water St., according to DNS online records, and the condition was listed as abated after a follow-up inspection. Online records do not suggest any complaints or structural code violations in recent years.

City records indicate the Water Street property includes structures totaling 136,254 square feet.

A property just to the west, at 408 E. Bruce St., also includes multiple structures owned by the National Warehouse Corp. Those buildings total 98,072 square feet.

An order was issued on Monday requiring a facade inspection of all structures on the two properties.

The first collapse occurred around noon Monday.

CBS 58, by chance, captured the second collapse on camera when it occurred around 7 p.m.

Grafton-based attorney Robert L. Feind, Jr. is the registered agent for National Warehouse. He did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday.

The area is undergoing substantial change, with redevelopment of multiple properties to the north planned or underway.

The Milwaukee Health Department is monitoring air quality in the area but recommends occupants of nearby properties consider using an air purifier to reduce the impact of dust and debris.

Photos

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Building Complex

National Warehouse Corp. Building Complex in April 2025. Photo by Urban Milwaukee staff.

A Flock Safety automated license plate reading camera. Photo by Tony Webster, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley is seeking limits and a policy framework for the county’s use of controversial Flock surveillance cameras, which passively capture license plates for all passing vehicles and store them in a searchable database.

The county executive sent a memo Tuesday to county government leaders, law enforcement and court officials calling for the development of a policy framework for Flock surveillance cameras that limits when they are used, who can use them, how long data is stored and who has access to the data. Crowley’s memo comes a day after Mayor Cavalier Johnson released new rules for Flock cameras, eliminating access for rank-and-file Milwaukee Police Department (MPD) officers.

The memo went out to Sheriff Denita Ball, District Attorney Kent Lovern, Wisconsin State Public Defender Regional Manager Angel Johnson, County Board Chairwoman Marcelia Nicholson-Bovell and county department heads.

“Public safety partners should have the right tools to keep Milwaukee County safe, but unchecked surveillance isn’t the answer,” Crowley said in a statement Tuesday. “We have seen what can happen when this technology operates without clear rules, transparency and accountability. Protecting our residents’ privacy and maintaining the public’s trust is a responsibility I take seriously. That is why I am directing all county departments to limit the usage of all Flock camera systems and establish safeguards proactively, before a breach of public trust can occur.”

Flock cameras capture and store license plate numbers in a searchable database, recording the time and place the plate was captured. Law enforcement can track the movement of a particular vehicle by searching it in the Flock database. The company Flock Safety owns the cameras and sells access to their system and data to local governments and law enforcement agencies.

Law enforcement officers have been caught using the system to stalk people, including ex-girlfriends and wives, across the country, including in Milwaukee. The technology has also engendered significant pushback and criticism from the public and increasingly from elected officials.

In his memo, Crowley noted that there has not yet been a documented instance of the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) misusing Flock cameras, but said it is important to put guardrails on use of the technology “before a breach of public trust can occur.”

Two MPD officers have been charged for misusing the cameras and a third is currently under investigation.

There are 42 Flock cameras permitted for use on county parkland. Another six cameras are set up on county roads and equipment, but they are being used by local municipal police departments and permitted by the Milwaukee County Department of Transportation (MCDOT), according to the county executive’s office.

Crowley does not have the authority to direct MCSO policy. Under state law, only Sheriff Ball has the discretion to change and establish departmental policies. His memo asks the MCSO to develop a policy for Flock use that puts restrictions on permissible uses, authorized personnel, data retention and data sharing.

The contract for the county’s Flock cameras is held by the county’s technology and IT department, called the Information Management Services Division (IMSD), Crowley’s memo noted. The cameras are owned by Flock and the sheriff’s office has access to the data they collect.

The county executive has asked IMSD to evaluate the MCSO policy for any conflicts with a previously adopted framework for the department’s use of facial recognition technology. In February, Ball backtracked from plans to acquire and deploy facial recognition technology.

The county executive is also calling for a publicly accessible portal “to provide residents with information regarding the deployment and use of Flock camera systems.” He also called on municipalities in the county to “reevaluate their own use of this technology.”

Under the city’s new policy, only supervisors will be allowed to use the automated license plate-reading system, and searches will be limited to a narrower list of crimes and investigations. MPD will also stop sharing access to its camera data with outside agencies, create a public dashboard and undergo independent audits twice a year. The mayor issued the new guidance following a public letter from Alderwoman Marina Dimitrijevic and a majority of the Milwaukee Common Council expressing concern.

Flock cameras have become a flashpoint in U.S. politics. In Wisconsin, several communities have already canceled contracts with the company Flock Safety, including Dane County and the City of Oshkosh. Recently, the City of Sheboygan moved to end its contract with Flock after the company allegedly violated the terms of their agreement, according to Sheboygan Mayor Ryan Sorenson.

Crowley is running for governor against Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany. During his primary campaign, he responded to questions about Flock use with a response similar to the one he issued Tuesday, saying, “Law enforcement and public safety partners need resources to keep our neighborhoods safe. At the same time, those tools must not infringe on the rights and privacy of Wisconsinites,” as the Milwaukee Courier reported.

Sheriff Announces Flock Policy Changes

After publishing, Sheriff Ball released a statement announcing MCSO would implement a series of Flock camera policy changes, as well as some of the MCSO’s existing Flock policies. Though, it was not specified which policies are new.

Ball did say a new public portal would be rolled out in the coming days and that data retention would be reduced from 30 says to seven days.

Other policies MCSO has, or will implement, include limiting automated alerts will be limited to “stolen vehicles/license plates, violent crime, and missing or endangered persons,”; prohibiting data sharing with law enforcement outside of Wisconsin and searching statewide or nationwide data; Enabling Flock’s audit-assistance tool and automatically locking user accounts when a search is flagged; prohibiting searches related to immigration or reproductive health; requiring documentation of case number, search justification and the nature of the alleged offense when using the system for a search; only allowing MCSO personnel to use MCSO Flock technology.

Supervisor Announces Resolution to Ban Flock Cameras

Sup. Justin Bielinski announced he and other supervisors plan to introduce a resolution banning Flock cameras from Milwaukee County Parks.

“Simply visiting a public place is not probable cause of committing a crime. Flock safety has proven themselves an unreliable partner, and we need look no further than the Milwaukee Police Department to find multiple cases of officers misusing this technology to inappropriately track people,” Bielinski said in a Facebook post.

Some technical colleges around Wisconsin are experiencing long waitlist for high demand programs like welding.

This week classes get underway, or already have,  for many college students around the state. At Wisconsin’s 16 technical schools, more than 296,000 students are getting fall coursework underway.

At the same time, higher education institutions face looming questions of how to deal with budget constraints, affordability issues and adapting  to changing job markets.

WPR’s “Wisconsin Today” spoke with Layla Merrifield, the president of the Wisconsin Technical College System.

This conversation has been edited for clarity and brevity

KAK: What financial pressures are the technical colleges facing?

LM: Like most Wisconsin families we’re dealing with the effects of inflation over the last five years. That is creating a number of pressure points on our campuses. We’ve also seen really subpar investments by the state Legislature in the Wisconsin Technical College System over the last 10 years. People always say, aren’t Wisconsin technical colleges partially funded with property taxes? And that is a relatively small portion of our funding but that access has been capped since 2014.

All of that combined has created some pressures and so you start to see around half of our campuses or so, have waiting lists for really high demand, high cost programs, which is unfortunate for our employers as well as our students..

KAK: What areas are experiencing waiting lists? 

LM: It totally depends on the region and the campus. But we’ve seen waiting lists for programs that are essential like welding, as well as things like ultrasound technicians.

All of our (ultrasound technician) programs have two to three year waiting lists across the state and yet that is one area where our hospitals are saying we need more ultrasound techs.

KAK: Do you anticipate cuts to programs or cuts to the workforce?

LM:  We discontinue programs pretty regularly in our system but we prefer to do that when they’re no longer relevant in the marketplace versus having to do it due to budget constraints.

We’ve always offered small programs that are nonetheless essential to local employers. They count on that pipeline and we’re starting to have to trim back on those things.

We continue to do things like sharing programming and trimming our administrators, as well as finding savings on healthcare plans, just anything we can do that doesn’t harm the classroom.

KAK: About 294,000 students are enrolled in technical colleges around Wisconsin, but we have seen enrollment in decline for more than a decade. What are you doing about declining enrollment?

LM: We really try to meet our students where they are. Eighty percent of our students overall are part time, so it’s not really a matter of fewer students accessing the Wisconsin Technical College System, it’s a matter of how many credits can they afford to take at any given time. So our part time students might decline sometimes. But I think it’s largely a function of the barriers that our students are facing and how busy their lives are overall.

KAK: Artificial intelligence is expected to reshape the job industry. Gateway Technical College partnered with Microsoft last year on a data center academy. Do you anticipate more programs like that that will be developed around the state?

LM: AI is sort of all encompassing. We’re training our faculty so that they can relay to our students what’s an ethical approach to using AI, as well as understanding how AI is expected to affect whatever industry they’re going into, whether that’s manufacturing, whether that’s healthcare, whether that’s marketing and business.

Wisconsin technical colleges says some high demand programs have 2-3 year waiting list was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

Boxes of ballots wait to be counted at Milwaukee’s central count on Election Day 2024. (Photo by Henry Redman/Wisconsin Examiner)

The Wisconsin Elections Commission on Monday weighed how it should manage the response to election administration errors made by the cities of Milwaukee and Green Bay in recent months.

During the August and April elections this year, Green Bay City Clerk Celestine Jeffreys mistakenly sent duplicate absentee ballots to some voters after the labels were printed twice.

In Milwaukee, during the August primary, election results were delayed after officials mistakenly downloaded the wrong file, then had to return to the city’s central count location to retrieve the actual results.

The errors in the two cities, in addition to the city of Madison misplacing nearly 200 absentee ballots during the 2024 election, triggered scrutiny of election administration in Wisconsin’s three largest cities as Republicans in the state and across the country have spent the last six years casting doubt on the security of the state’s election systems.

While Republicans have not uncovered large-scale fraud or an effort to sway the results of any elections, the errors have given election skeptics a foothold for further criticism.

At Monday’s meeting, commissioner Bob Spindell, the most right-wing member of the body and a frequent election critic, said that the commission needs to take action against Milwaukee because Republicans are skeptical and accused the Democrats on the committee and city election officials of conducting a “cover up” of what happened while allowing problems to “fester.” He also said he would bet $100 that the city will have a problem counting ballots during the November election.

“I believe we are taking our responsibility extremely seriously by looking into this and what has turned into a national concern by many, at least Republicans, which make up a large portion of Wisconsin and the U.S. population,” Spindell said.

After the mistake was made, the commission put a discussion of the error on the agenda for Monday’s meeting and agency staff wrote a draft letter to send to the city requesting an explanation of what occurred. Before the commission met or sent the letter, the city responded.

On Monday, the commission was specifically debating if it should still send a letter to the city, and if so what it should say — ultimately voting to draft a second letter that thanks the city for its initial response and reasserts a request for the audit logs of the voting equipment.

Mark Thomsen, a Democrat, said that the reporting of results gets delayed in other communities across the state without any problems, so the commission shouldn’t impugn Milwaukee’s election officials over this issue.

“If it wasn’t Milwaukee, and if it wasn’t for this ongoing, I think unfair, attack on the city and county of Milwaukee, nobody would have even paid attention to an hour delay,” Thomsen said.

In Green Bay, the city sending duplicate absentee ballots in two elections has already resulted in the resignation of Jeffreys, the city clerk. WEC Attorney Angela Sharpe said during the meeting that some outstanding questions about the issue are “unknowable” because it’s impossible to track down each duplicate ballot once it has been put in the mail. But, she said the WEC investigation into the matter has satisfactorily determined what happened and why the mistake was made.

In the meeting, the commission was voting to determine if the staff should continue investigating or begin drafting a final determination of whether any laws were broken.

“I think we have a good understanding of the factors that led to the April incident and the June incident, but like I said, it does seem clear, and especially since Clerk Jeffreys is no longer in the role of city clerk, that there are going to be some actions that we just can’t know, and that the city of Green Bay can’t know,” Sharpe said. “But I do think, based on my assessment, that Green Bay has provided a lot of information. I think the city has responded at least to everything that the commission wanted to know, and then they also responded to the couple of questions that I had just based on their first response. So I think we know what we can about the situation.”

Commissioner Ann Jacobs said that her main concern was that the error was repeated, but that given that Jeffreys is no longer the clerk and the city has changed its procedures — including changing where ballot mailing labels are printed — there’s nothing to gain from endlessly investigating.

“I think our investigation part of this has concluded. I agree with Attorney Sharpe that we learned what happened. They’ve put new processes in place, which I think was our concern about it happening the second time,” Jacobs said.

Elections commission considers how to handle Milwaukee, Green Bay election errors was originally published by Wisconsin Examiner.

A sign on UW-Platteville’s campus. Miranda Suarez/WPR

The University of Wisconsin-Platteville is asking students to voluntarily submit their vaccination status as the number of measles cases continues to rise in southwestern Wisconsin.

As of Aug. 28, there were 92 confirmed and six probable measles cases in Grant, Iowa and Lafayette counties, according to the Department of Health Services. There have been a total of 100 cases in Wisconsin so far in 2026.

No cases have been reported on UW-Platteville’s campus so far, but high-density campus environments present unique vulnerabilities for rapid airborne transmission of measles, according to DHS.

DHS is recommending that college campuses actively verify student measles immunization status and proactively recommend MMR vaccination for all students who do not have documentation of receiving two doses of the vaccine.

In an interview with WPR’s “Wisconsin Today,” UW-Platteville Chancellor Tammy Evetovich said students will not be penalized for not sharing their records or not being vaccinated.

Evetovich said she respects people’s different views on vaccinations.

“We are simply preparing,” Evetovich said. “We’re preparing our measles prevention and response plan. The health and safety of our campus community, our students, faculty, and staff is our highest priority, and so we’re working with public health officials to make sure that we have a strong plan in place.”

The Universities of Wisconsin Board of Regents have left it up to individual campuses and chancellors to decide vaccine policies.

In February, UW-Madison was the first Wisconsin campus to make an announcement concerning vaccines after a measles case was confirmed at the university.

Madison students are now required to share their vaccination status for multiple diseases. If they don’t, UW-Madison students will be prohibited from registering for classes.

Madison students don’t have to be vaccinated. They only have to report their status.

Measles is a highly contagious disease caused by a virus that can spread through the air and person-to-person contact. The disease can cause serious health problems, including pneumonia, brain damage and deafness, according to DHS.

Symptoms include a runny nose; a high fever; fatigue; cough; red, watery eyes or conjunctivitis (pink eye); and a red rash with raised bumps that begins at the hairline and moves to the arms and legs three to five days after symptoms begin.

Universities of Wisconsin spokesperson Mark Pitsch said in recent months, other UW campuses have started to have discussions about MMR vaccination and disclosure policies.

UW-Platteville asks if students are vaccinated for measles as regional cases rise was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

Milwaukee Intermodal Station. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

Strategic development of I-794 and the Milwaukee Area-Racine-Kenosha (MARK) passenger rail project can transform Milwaukee’s economy for decades. But only if we plan for it. In contrast, WisDOT’s 794 “improvement,’’ as some call it, actually stalls growth and forgoes $2 billion in economic gains. Some leaders believe, implausibly, that WisDOT’s “improved” 794 keeps commerce flowing. This approach is reactive, not proactive. Strategically, MARK’s passenger rail will be the heart of an urban- centric district that turbocharges real improvement.

But train platforms alone are not enough. To grow Milwaukee’s heart, we also need the social and economic lifeblood flowing from a complete passenger rail system and robust station district. This district begins with the MARK engineering forecast of 2.3 million annual riders for Kenosha, Racine and Milwaukee. A planned gateway district should surround Milwaukee’s Intermodal Station, modeled after successful station districts in comparable cities.

In successful train station districts, riders seek nearby places to live, work and play. Passengers leave and arrive on foot, by auto, by bus or streetcar, via Uber, on bikes and scooters. Businesses gravitate to locations within walking distance — businesses that include startups, branch offices, franchises and corporate newcomers. A growing gateway district can bring jobs, housing, entertainment, public revenues and links to environmental amenities on our lakefront, river and Menomonee Valley.

A thriving gateway district cannot emerge, however, if our Intermodal Station remains strangled on four sides by current obstacles — an inaccessible canal on the south, the monumental post office on the east, an uninviting viaduct on the west and, most obvious, the unappealing 250-foot-wide freeway barricade on the north. Walkways under an overwhelming, dismal freeway never work.

Instead, Milwaukee should plan a balanced, feasible, cooperative solution. Let’s “measure twice and cut once” rather than so quickly moving to rebuild I-794. Unfortunately, with the potential WisDOT recommendation to keep the freeway running through Downtown, balanced opportunities vanish and we face a zero-sum game — a freeway race where only cars can win.

If, however, WisDOT pauses a final recommendation, then within one year the community can plan for balanced costs and benefits. Communitywide planning is not like most WisDOT studies that prioritize transportation and treat land use as a cursory sideline. Communitywide planning goes far beyond “public involvement.” Effective community planning requires shared plan creation by multiple stakeholders with multiple areas of expertise.

With a balanced plan, a rebuilt freeway can still occur, but so too can other ideas for a strong Milwaukee gateway district. A balanced plan will get commuters to work on time, build great neighborhoods on both sides of the river, reduce costs and gain revenue. We should not buy into the current “zero-sum” partisan game where almost everyone loses. We must pause, support the MARK train study, take a strategic look at I-794, consider a gateway district, and then see if we can fix the heart of Milwaukee so all stakeholders benefit.

Larry Witzling, Professor Emeritus UW-Milwaukee 

Milwaukee County Jail and Criminal Justice Facility on Tuesday, Aug. 25. (Photo by Jonathan Aguilar / Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service / CatchLight Local)

A man who was being held at the Milwaukee County Jail is disputing the account from the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office about the events leading up to the in-custody death last week of Kourtney Edwards, a 45-year-old Milwaukee man.

Alex Williams, 33, said officials at the jail ignored initial pleas to help Edwards.

He said he heard people in a nearby holding cell banging on the door and yelling through a slot that someone was vomiting, wasn’t doing well and needed help.

“Those calls went ignored for a while,” Williams said, estimating that they lasted several minutes.

Williams said officers eventually removed the man from the holding cell and began walking him toward the nurses’ station. He said Edwards made it about halfway there before appearing to have a seizure and collapsing. Williams said he was foaming at the mouth.

“He was not assessed by nurses until he was passed out on the ground,” Williams said. “I wouldn’t even call that an assessment. That was them trying to save his life.”

Williams said he arrived at the jail around 2 p.m. Monday, Aug. 17 and remained in the booking area until early Wednesday morning. He said he was still going through the booking process when Edwards became ill Tuesday morning.

Timeline from sheriff’s office

Rooms line the booking area at the Milwaukee County Jail. (NNS file photo)

The account from the sheriff’s office previously reported by NNS stated that Edwards was brought to the jail the morning of Tuesday, Aug. 18, had been initially medically cleared and was awaiting a secondary screening when he reported vomiting and feeling ill shortly before 8:30 a.m.

Nurses then assessed him and determined he needed to be taken to a hospital. While an ambulance crew and two deputies prepared to transport the man to the hospital, he experienced a medical emergency.

He lost his pulse and stopped breathing.

Emergency personnel attempted life-saving measures, but he was pronounced dead at 9:30 a.m.

A representative from the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office told NNS Tuesday that it would “be a while” before the cause and manner of Edwards’ death was determined.

Concerns about in-jail deaths

Alan Chavoya, treasurer and organizer for the Milwaukee Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, said Williams’ account reaffirms concerns he already had about Edwards’ death.

“It’s deeply upsetting and infuriating if he was able to be assisted sooner – if that would have saved his life,” Chavoya said. “Could this have been prevented? It seems like yes.”

The sheriff’s office told NNS Friday that it had no comment beyond saying that it is an active, ongoing investigation and that questions should be directed to the Waukesha County Sheriff’s Office, which is conducting the investigation.

The Waukesha County Sheriff’s Office has not responded to a request for comment.

Edwards’ death is at least the 10th of a person in Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office custody since June 2022, including six deaths during a 14-month period in 2022 and 2023 and three in 2025.

Other allegations

Williams also said the man’s death took place amid overcrowding, booking delays and repeated instances in which staff failed to promptly respond to requests for assistance.

He described the cells as hot, with little or no airflow, and said people repeatedly yelled through slots in the cell doors that they needed water or to use the bathroom.

“It was often ignored,” Williams said.

He said the jail was overcrowded.

His holding cell was marked for 12 people but held between 13 and 20 people at different points, he said. Williams said the overcrowding made the toilet difficult to access because people were sleeping or standing around it.

Williams also described significant booking delays, made worse because there was no third-shift booking staff Monday night.

He said his bail was posted at 6:30 a.m. Tuesday, but that he was not booked into the system until about 2:30 p.m. that day and was not released until around 1 a.m. Wednesday.

Nothing changed after death

Jail safety advocate Omar Flores confronts Milwaukee County Sheriff Denita Ball outside an event at the Milwaukee Press Club in April 2023. Flores and other organizers with the Milwaukee Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression have pushed for greater transparency following deaths at the Milwaukee County Jail. (Photo by Devin Blake)

Williams said he noticed no real changes after Edwards died during the time he spent in custody until he was released. He said officers still sometimes ignored pleas for assistance.

Williams believes the conditions at the jail contributed to the man’s death.

“They should take every call for help seriously,” he said.

Chavoya said the allegations from Williams fit what he sees as a broader pattern at the jail, including neglect and perhaps abuse “of the people who are supposed to be, as we’re reminded, under their care.”

Chavoya said he wants investigators to determine what happened and for the sheriff’s office to release video of the incident.

Last Friday, a spokesperson for the Office of Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley told NNS in a written statement that the incident doesn’t raise concerns about medical care at the jail.

“The jail’s medical staff and Milwaukee Fire Department EMS performed lifesaving measures, but, despite best efforts, the individual died,” the spokesperson for Crowley’s office said.

When NNS reached out with Williams’ account, a spokesperson for Crowley’s office said that the initial report from the sheriff’s office of the incident did not indicate cause for immediate concern.

“The matter is now under review by the Waukesha County Sheriff’s Office,” the spokesperson said.

Williams said he is worried about potential retaliation for speaking publicly about what he witnessed but believes coming forward is important.

He said he wants “to model morals, bravery and humanitarianism” for his family.

Jonathan Aguilar is a visual journalist at Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service who is supported through a partnership between CatchLight Local and Report for America.

This article first appeared on Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

The entrance to the Wisconsin Supreme Court chambers is seen at the Wisconsin State Capitol on Nov. 18, 2024, in Madison, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)

The Wisconsin Supreme Court begins oral arguments in September under a new 5-2 liberal majority and faces a term that could feature politically charged cases, including those challenging the state’s congressional maps and seeking to restore collective bargaining rights for many public sector unions.

The pending cases before the high court so far, and other legal issues that may arise over the course of the term, provide ample opportunity to observe how the justices operate under a new liberal supermajority, court watchers said. Will they accept more cases following a streak of fewer decisions in recent years than in prior terms? How will the justices respond in real time to election issues during the midterms? Will they change the long-standing approach the court uses to interpret state statutes?

“Now that there is a clear majority, not just a one-vote majority, it’s entirely possible that the justices will start to differentiate themselves from one another more,” said Chad Oldfather, a professor at the Marquette University Law School. “Because there’s less of a pressure to act as a bloc.”

The high court’s liberal majority grew to five after Chris Taylor’s dominant April victory in the 2026 Wisconsin Supreme Court race to replace conservative Justice Rebecca Bradley. Liberal justices have won five of the last six Wisconsin Supreme Court elections, shifting the court from a 5-2 conservative majority in 2018.

Wisconsin Appeals Court Judge Chris Taylor celebrates winning the Wisconsin Supreme Court election at the Madison Concourse Hotel and Governor’s Club on April 7, 2026, in Madison, Wis. Taylor, backed by Democrats, faced off against Appeals Court judge Maria Lazar, backed by Republicans. Taylor’s win expands the Wisconsin Supreme Court liberal majority to five justices and cements liberal control until at least 2030. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)

The liberal wing includes Taylor, Chief Justice Jill Karofsky and justices Rebecca Dallet, Janet Protasiewicz and Susan Crawford. The conservatives include justices Annette Ziegler and Brian Hagedorn, who is often a swing vote.

“I’m guessing that it’s going to not seem like a 5-2 court this coming term,” said Alan Ball, a Marquette University professor who operates the SCOWstats blog that analyzes Wisconsin Supreme Court statistics. “Maybe like a 5-1-1: five liberals and then Ziegler is a conservative, and then Hagedorn, you know, who knows?”

During the 2025 term, Hagedorn voted more often with the liberal wing of the court in split decisions than Crawford did in her first year as a justice, according to Ball’s review of the previous term. But Crawford aligned more with fellow liberals and Hagedorn with conservatives on more political issues, such as a case in the last term between Attorney General Josh Kaul and the Legislature over who controls settlement funds, Ball noted.

Justices are scheduled to hear oral arguments in 16 cases across seven days between Sept. 8 and Oct. 13. More cases could rise to the high court over the course of the new term.

What decisions will justices make about the congressional map?

Justices will hear oral arguments related to two lawsuits challenging Wisconsin’s congressional map on Sept. 16, but any decisions are not expected to impact the 2026 midterm elections, in which primary elections have already set up the candidates in races this November.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court last November tapped two three-judge panels to hear the cases challenging the congressional maps as unconstitutional. One case, brought by a group of voters, argued the maps are a partisan gerrymander. The other case, brought by the Wisconsin Business Leaders for Democracy, argues the congressional maps are an anti-competitive gerrymander.

Both panels dismissed the challenges in separate rulings this spring, writing that only the high court could make decisions about the existing congressional maps. The voters and the business group appealed the decisions.

The issues before the justices in September for the voter-brought case include whether Wisconsin’s constitution allows partisan gerrymandering and, for the Wisconsin Business Leaders case, whether the three-judge panel was wrong in considering “anti-competitive” and partisan gerrymandering as the same argument.

Lucas Vebber, deputy counsel at the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, who is representing multiple intervenors in both maps cases, said their position remains that the Wisconsin constitution does not allow the groups in these cases to bring their gerrymandering claims.

“This is a primary function of the Legislature,” Vebber explained. “Courts have a role to play, but they should stay within that role and not go beyond.”

Jeff Mandell, general counsel for Law Forward, a progressive law firm representing the Wisconsin Business Leaders for Democracy in its case, said attorneys have asked the justices to issue a decision by the end of this year ahead of jury trial dates in April in that case.

“If we’re able to hold that trial in April, that should provide time for the trial court to do its work, and for there to be an appeal if need be,” Mandell said. “And for there to be new districts that are constitutional for the 2028 congressional elections.”

There would be no need for a trial if the high court affirms the three-judge panel’s dismissal, which would leave the existing maps in place.

Will emergency election issues rise to the high court?

While the court considers issues in the congressional maps case, legal experts say the stakes of the 2026 midterm elections make it likely that the justices could face potential fast-moving cases on voting and election-related issues.

“We’ve had these fights over ballot boxes and whether you need to have a witness see your vote if you’re disabled. There was a whole issue of what has to be available for a disabled voter,” said Janine Geske, a former Wisconsin Supreme Court justice and professor at the Marquette University Law School. “Those kinds of things people can go right to the court and say ‘We’re going to bypass everybody. This is an emergency. We need the court to issue a ruling.’ I suspect, especially with all the talk of voting integrity or voting fraud … that we’re going to see that.”

Recently, the high court ordered an expedited process for briefings in an appeal filed by the Democratic National Committee about a 2024 case that sought answers to whether a circuit court has the authority to extend hours at a polling location past 8 p.m.

The Waukesha-based 2nd District Court of Appeals this summer reversed a Walworth County judge’s order from the 2024 presidential election that allowed polling locations at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater campus to stay open until 10:30 p.m. on Election Day. The 2nd District in July reversed the decision, arguing it is up to the Legislature to determine polling hours.

Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Annette Ziegler hears oral arguments in a case at the Wisconsin State Capitol on Nov. 18, 2024, in Madison, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)

The court has yet to accept the DNC’s petition for review, but Ziegler questioned the majority’s motives in her lone dissent against speeding up the briefing process. The majority did not offer an explanation for expediting that timeline.

“We know not why this matter races to the front of the line. One would think further explanation would be forthcoming,” wrote Ziegler, who is not seeking reelection and is in her final year on the court. “One would think the majority would be more cautious to not appear to favor the political party that spent seemingly endless amounts of money to get them elected.”

Will justices accept a case to restore pre-Act 10 collective bargaining rights?

In late July, the 2nd District Court of Appeals reversed a 2024 Dane County Circuit Court ruling that restored collective bargaining rights for many public sector unions and employees. The unions in the case appealed to the Wisconsin Supreme Court less than three weeks later.

The issues in this case stem from whether portions of Act 10 — the 2011 law signed by former Republican Gov. Scott Walker that spurred massive protests at the Capitol — that separate public safety and general public employees violate equal protection guarantees in Wisconsin’s constitution.

Geske said she sees a stronger argument in this case than past legal challenges to Act 10. But the justices will have to determine whether the court is held to previous opinions it has made related to Act 10, she said.

“I think that most of the justices who felt that are gone or no longer in the majority,” Geske said.

Mandell, who is among the attorneys representing the unions in the case, said he expects the high court to decide whether to take the case sometime this fall.

“If the court takes the case in the fall, then there’s ample time for it to be briefed and argued this term,” Mandell said. “Which means that by around the Fourth of July, we should have a final answer in Wisconsin about Act 10.”

If the petition is accepted, the case would move forward without Hagedorn, who in January 2025 said he would not participate in the case. Hagedorn was chief legal counsel for Walker when Act 10 was drafted.

Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Brian Hagedorn hears oral arguments in a case at the State Capitol in Madison, Wis., on Nov. 18, 2024. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)

What should courts use to interpret state laws?

In a seemingly minor case about whether a former salesperson for a window company was eligible for unemployment insurance, the high court is expected to determine if it should use a new framework to interpret state statutes.

For years, the courts have relied on a 2004 case that placed limits on when to use outside evidence, such as legislative history, to understand state statutes. Justices and legal experts have described the case, Kalal v. Circuit Court for Dane County, as the most cited in Wisconsin Supreme Court history.

The question before the high court is whether justices should take “a broader, holistic approach” to interpret state laws than what the Kalal case allows.

“It’s really about how much we trust judges, or in this case, judges trust themselves to adequately or accurately assess things that legislators say,” Oldfather said. “Because the fear, of course, is that legislators will say self-serving things about what they pass into law.”

The case has not been scheduled for oral arguments, but is among pending cases before the justices. Oldfather said it’s likely the majority will take the approach that Dallet wrote about in a 2021 case about conditions in a pollution discharge permit issued by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Rebecca Dallet waves while being announced as Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers prepares to deliver his final State of the State address at the Wisconsin State Capitol on Feb. 17, 2026, in Madison, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)

In 2021, Dallet wrote that the court’s approach to statutory interpretation should be “more comprehensive,” although she acknowledged that some sources may be more reliable than others.

“Such a holistic methodology would lead to more transparent analyses in which the court is upfront and honest about considering relevant extrinsic sources to interpret a statute’s meaning,” Dallet wrote in 2021. “That includes being transparent about those sources’ actual analytical value when they support more than one reasonable inference.”

Dallet brought up that approach again in a 2025 concurring opinion for a case that determined employees of University of Wisconsin hospitals and clinics did not have the ability to collectively bargain under Act 10.

Bradley, who left the court in July, in the same 2025 decision criticized Dallet’s effort and said a “holistic” approach “would remove any remaining constraints on judicial overreach.”

“It’s an open appeal for judges in this state to legislate from the bench,” Bradley wrote. “This court should stay the course and reject Justice Dallet’s invitation to unmoor the judiciary from the rule of law.”

This article first appeared on Wisconsin Watch and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

A Flock Safety automated license plate reading camera. Photo by Tony Webster, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Rank-and-file Milwaukee police officers and detectives will lose direct access to the city’s Flock camera system under a series of restrictions announced Monday by Mayor Cavalier Johnson.

“In consultation with the Chief of the Milwaukee Police Department and the Executive Director of the Fire and Police Commission, along with communications with Milwaukee County officials, I am insisting on significant policy adjustments,” the mayor’s statement declared, making clear he expects Police Chief Jeffrey Norman to carry out the changes as outlined.

MPD issued its own release affirming the changes.

”We are working with our City leadership to create robust guardrails to ensure that Flock is used exclusively as a crime solving tool for the benefit of crime victims who have been harmed in our community,” said the police department.

Under the new policy, only supervisors will be allowed to use the automated license plate-reading system, and searches will be limited to a narrower list of crimes and investigations. The Milwaukee Police Department (MPD) will also stop sharing access to its camera data with outside agencies, create a public dashboard and undergo independent audits twice a year.

The Aug. 31 announcement comes as the city is being forced to grapple with the benefits and potential dangers of the expanding surveillance system following allegations that three MPD members misused it.

“Changes in the way the Milwaukee Police Department uses Flock cameras are necessary and appropriate,” Johnson said in a statement.

The changes come six days after 12 of the Common Council’s 15 members signed a letter demanding that MPD and the Fire & Police Commission review the system and consider a lengthy list of safeguards.

The number of signatures is politically significant. State law requires 10 votes for the council to impose procedural changes on the police department. The council members also threatened to scrutinize funding for Flock during deliberations on the city’s 2027 budget.

Johnson said technology has made police more effective in investigations, communications and accountability, but acknowledged that it also presents dangers to individual rights.

“At all times, law enforcement must fully protect the rights of individuals so that devices such as automated license plate reader technology, through Flock cameras, do not compromise the liberties we all embrace,” he said.

Flock cameras photograph passing vehicles, automatically read their license plates and preserve information that can be searched by law enforcement. The cameras can be linked into a broader network, allowing agencies to search information collected by cameras they do not operate.

Milwaukee has contracted with Flock Safety since 2022. MPD currently operates 31 fixed cameras, and other public agencies and private businesses operate additional cameras in the area.

Johnson said the cameras have helped locate missing people and apprehend individuals suspected of violent crimes. But he also acknowledged “several notable instances” of misuse in Milwaukee and elsewhere.

The mayor said he nailed down the new restrictions in discussions with Police Chief Norman and FPC Executive Director Leon W. Todd III.

Under the new policy, only MPD supervisors will be permitted to access the Flock system. Officers and detectives will no longer have access “at this time,” Johnson said.

Searches will be limited to Part I crimes, critical missing persons, abductions and investigations involving drug trafficking organizations. Part I crimes include homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, motor vehicle theft, arson and human trafficking.

MPD will also restrict access to information collected by Milwaukee’s cameras to the department itself. Outside law enforcement agencies will no longer be permitted to access MPD’s Flock data, allowing auditing and oversight to remain under the department’s control, according to the mayor.

The department, said Johnson, will create a publicly accessible dashboard detailing its use of the technology.

The FPC has already launched an audit of the system. Johnson said he directed Todd, the executive director, to arrange independent audits every six months, with the results provided to the mayor’s office and released publicly.

“My office will continuously monitor the use of Flock cameras on a regular basis,” Johnson said. “I am committed to regularly reviewing our use of Flock cameras and will make further decisions when and if necessary.”

Three Misuse Investigations

The policy changes follow allegations that multiple MPD members abused their access to the system.

Former officer Josue Ayala was criminally charged in February after investigators alleged that he repeatedly used Flock to track a romantic partner and another individual. He subsequently pleaded guilty to misconduct in public office.

In July, Detective Tehrangi Chapman was charged with felony misconduct in public office and misdemeanor misuse of a GPS device. Chapman, who was assigned to investigate Ayala’s conduct, is accused of using Flock to track two people for an unauthorized purpose.

A third MPD member is now under investigation for potential misuse of the system.

In May, following the Ayala case, MPD said it reduced the number of system users from approximately 370 to 100 and established a data-driven auditing process intended to flag potentially improper searches. The latest changes go substantially further by eliminating access for officers and detectives.

Council Forced Issue

The council’s Aug. 25 letter was led by Alderwoman Marina Dimitrijevic and represented a sharp increase in concern over the technology.

Only four council members had signed a similar letter in March. The new request last week drew support from Dimitrijevic, Common Council President José G. Pérez, Alex Brower, Sharlen P. Moore, Andrea Pratt, Mark Chambers, Jr., Robert Bauman, Lamont Westmoreland, Milele A. Coggs, DiAndre Jackson, JoCasta Zamarripa and Scott Spiker.

The members asked for independent auditing, restrictions on interagency access, automated misuse detection, better documentation of searches and regular public reporting. They also sought protections against the system’s use for civil immigration enforcement and immediate suspension of access when credible evidence of intentional misuse emerges.

Several of those demands are addressed by Johnson’s announcement. But unanswered questions remain, including whether MPD will shorten its retention period for routine license plate information, require case or computer-aided dispatch numbers for every search and provide the council with a complete history of searches by MPD and outside agencies.

The council’s letter gave MPD and the FPC until Sept. 30 to respond.

The Common Council is expected to consider the matter again during budget deliberations in October. Members have specifically raised concerns about the waivers used to execute Flock contracts without direct council approval.

Police Union Urges Balance

The Milwaukee Police Association responded Monday by supporting safeguards against misuse while defending Flock as an important investigative tool.

“We do not condone the misuse of law enforcement tools for personal, improper, or unauthorized purposes,” said MPA President Alexander Ayala in a statement. “Officers entrusted with access to these systems have a responsibility to use them only for legitimate law enforcement purposes, and those who violate that trust must be held accountable.”

Ayala said the cameras have helped officers solve crimes and protect Milwaukee residents. He praised the city for distinguishing between individual misuse and legitimate use by officers who follow department rules.

“Reasonable safeguards and accountability can coexist with giving police officers the technology they need to do their jobs effectively,” he said. “The MPA believes that is the appropriate balance.”

UPDATE: An earlier version of this article misstated the number of votes required to modify MPD policy.

Marissa Johnson, a member of South Wood County Neighbors for Responsible Development, photographed with her dog, Bella, has organized opposition to a data center in Wisconsin Rapids. (Drake White-Bergey for Wisconsin Watch)

Update: The city of Wisconsin Rapids announced Aug. 28 that its planning commission on Sept. 16 will hold a hearing and make a recommendation to the city council on the request for a conditional use permit for the proposed data center. 

No matter where in the U.S. an artificial intelligence data center is proposed, communities express the same worries.

Water scarcity and contamination, electricity rates and reliability, air pollution, noise.

Residents are voicing those same concerns 100 miles north of Madison in Wisconsin Rapids, where developers want to replace a former paper mill with a 210-acre data center.

But there’s another worry in Rapids that makes the situation different from other Wisconsin communities where data centers have been proposed:

Russians.

“I hear it from other people; people bring it up very often,” data center opponent Mary Olson said.

Ruslan Zinurov, the man who first proposed the data center, was born in Russia.

Anton Voronkin, who has since taken over the project, was born and educated in Russia and worked there for years.

Marissa Johnson, a leader of a group fighting the data center, said that while residents have environmental concerns, the Russian ties are “a sticking point for people.” Some residents don’t say so publicly, out of fear of being perceived as xenophobic, but they worry about the developers’ past business practices, she said.

Marissa Johnson, a member of South Wood County Neighbors for Responsible Development in Wisconsin Rapids, Wis., holds a zoning proposal by industrial real estate development firm PNK Group detailing a plan to develop a large-scale data center campus on the site of the former Wisconsin Rapids paper mill. (Drake White-Bergey for Wisconsin Watch)

The questions aren’t limited to whispering.

At public meetings, residents mostly express common fears: How much water will the data center use? Will my electricity rates go up? How can we know it won’t cause air and noise pollution?

One woman urged city officials to “just do the right damn thing” and find any way to block data centers.

But at a city meeting in July, a woman said a “Russian national” had applied to the city for a permit for the data center.

In August, at a meeting organized by the team proposing the data center, one audience member drew applause from the audience when he said to Voronkin:

“We like to know who’s running this operation. And from what I understand, you, sir, are not an American citizen; you’re Russian. Am I right or wrong?”

Voronkin’s reply didn’t seem to satisfy the crowd. “I have worked in many countries overseas,” he said.

Russian born, Green Bay ties

The first record of the data center proposal is an email sent Dec. 16 by Zinurov to Wisconsin Rapids city planner Kyle Kearns. He wrote that he was looking to acquire a site in the city of 19,000 to convert into a data center.

The location turned out to be part of a former paper mill site near downtown and the Wisconsin River.

Kearns replied the next day, writing: “It is exciting to hear about your interest!”

By February, Zinurov had met with Kearns and Mayor Matt Zacher. He said in an email that he was working to acquire part of the mill site. He wondered if the city could help secure electricity and natural gas for the operation.

The proposal didn’t make news until April, when the city planning commission announced a public hearing on Zinurov’s application for what is known as a conditional use permit.

The 43-year-old Zinurov identified himself as being with California-based Performance Computing Holdings. In a 2020 article about a Zinurov-led investment in Ukraine, Zinurov told the Kyiv Post he was born in Russia, his wife is Ukrainian and he had been living in the U.S. more than 15 years.

He also has Wisconsin ties.

Zinurov’s cellphone number has a 920 area code, which covers Green Bay. According to his LinkedIn profile, he has a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, plus a master’s degree in the same subject from the University of California, Berkeley.

Zinurov’s profile also says he founded a company originally known as Consensus Technology Group. In a 2024 interview, he said that company operates data centers in North Dakota, South Dakota, Pennsylvania and Missouri.

According to news reports, Zinurov also partnered with Chinese tech company Bitmain to convert a former paper mill in Washington state into a cryptocurrency-mining business.

Vinurov declined Wisconsin Watch’s requests for an interview, noting in a text that Voronkin has taken over the Wisconsin Rapids project.

Vinurov wrote that he “spent a good chunk of my life in Green Bay, so Wisconsin indeed has a special place in my heart. Go Pack.”

New face of the project

As Zinurov has worked behind the scenes, Voronkin, 42, has become the public face of the Rapids proposal.

By early May, a week after Zinurov filed the permit application, city planner Kearns had turned to emailing with Voronkin instead. Kearns noted that Voronkin and one of his team members, former New York City Mayor Eric Adams, had made plans to visit Wisconsin Rapids.

Adams’ background has also riled some residents. While mayor, he was indicted on federal conspiracy charges, which he denied. In April 2025, the charges were dismissed at the request of the U.S. Justice Department.

Voronkin, who was born in Russia, says in his LinkedIn profile that he earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in St. Petersburg, Russia. The profile says he worked in commercial development in Russia from 2009 to 2022, when he began development work on Neom, a $500 billion ​mega-project in Saudi Arabia.

The nonprofit group Human Rights Watch reported in December 2024 that Neom workers suffered abuse, such as being paid less than they were promised. The same month, a Wall Street Journal investigation found Neom employees reported incidents of gang rape, suicide, attempted murder and drug dealing on the site.

In 2026, Voronkin became chief development officer, including for data centers, at PNK Group, a New York-based developer of industrial buildings.

The site of a former paper mill in Wisconsin Rapids, Wis., is photographed on Aug. 12, 2026. Industrial real estate development firm PNK Group proposed a plan to develop the site into a large-scale data center campus. (Drake White-Bergey for Wisconsin Watch)

PNK began operations in Russia around 2003, according to the Scranton Times-Tribune in Pennsylvania, where PNK is proposing a data center.

Voronkin said at the August meeting in Wisconsin Rapids hosted by his team that PNK “withdrew the brand from Russia in 2024.”

Data center opponent Mike Schmidt, a local attorney, said he doesn’t trust PNK because of Voronkin’s work with Neom and what Schmidt described as corruption allegations against PNK owner Andrey Sharkov.

In two federal court lawsuits over business matters, Sharkov was accused of fraud in Pennsylvania and is the subject of a racketeer/corrupt organization lawsuit in Utah. Both cases are pending, but the fraud allegation in the Pennsylvania case has been dismissed, and Sharkov has denied the allegations.

“It’s not just that they’re Russian, it’s that they’re behaving in a corrupt fashion,” Schmidt said of Voronkin and Sharkov.

Voronkin declined Wisconsin Watch requests for an interview. In messages, he wrote:

“I am not aware of such concern about my work for Neom. I am proud to be a part of the biggest development in the world and most likely in history. I wish more people had same level of ambitions and could think about the future same way as Neom. There are no corruption charges against Andrey Sharkov.”

He added:

“I have indeed worked on some unique projects, but I don’t think my background is the most exciting subject for Wisconsin Rapids.”

The site of a former paper mill in Wisconsin Rapids, Wis., is photographed from across the Wisconsin River on Aug. 12, 2026. The former paper mill site is the location of a proposed large-scale data center by industrial real estate development firm PNK Group. (Drake White-Bergey for Wisconsin Watch)

City nearly poised to act?

Mayor Zacher told Wisconsin Watch that perhaps 15 data center developers and another 15 manufacturers have explored the former mill site but most didn’t move forward. According to his understanding, most data center developers didn’t think enough electricity was available.

Zacher said he has tried to remain neutral as the current data center proposal has advanced and opposition has increased. The city must consider business proposals based on the project’s merits, not who makes them, he said.

Voronkin’s group has continued to try to build local support, holding a series of four webinars in August.

Zacher said the city is waiting for Voronkin’s group to provide more details on their proposal before it acts on their application for a conditional use permit and indicated the waiting time is limited.

“I would say we don’t want to go months,” he said.

This article first appeared on Wisconsin Watch and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Daniel Petry. Photo taken September 28th, 2019 by Michael Horne.

Dan Petry was a leading supporter of classical music in Milwaukee.

The longtime marketing and financial development professional, who was a key person behind the scenes for nearly four decades for such groups as the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Present Music and Florentine Opera, died at age 70 sometime last week in his apartment at the Astor Hotel Apartments. The cause of death is unknown at this time.

“We are deeply saddened by the passing of Daniel Petry, whose commitment to the arts and to our community made a lasting impact,” said the symphony’s executive director Mark Niehaus in a statement. “Dan was a tireless champion of music, a gifted fundraiser, and truly one of a kind. He had a remarkable ability to connect with people and cared deeply about his donors and the community he served.”

Petry served for more than four years, from 2018 to 2022, as campaign gifts officer. “His passion and persistence helped advance the Grand Future campaign and the vision that became the Bradley Symphony Center,” Niehaus said. “His contributions are part of the MSO’s lasting legacy.”

Petry’s longest and perhaps most impactful work was for Present Music. He served as its managing director from 1989 to 1997, at a time when its founder and musical director, Kevin Stalheim, was building the group’s national reputation and international standing as a contemporary music ensemble that commissioned many original works by a wide range of composers. He returned to work for the group in 2022 after Stalheim had retired, helping the new co-artistic directors, Eric Segnitz and David Bloom, with strategic planning while serving as development director.

In between those two stints, Petry served in marketing and financial development positions with the Florentine Opera, Early Music Now, the UW-Milwaukee Peck School of the Arts, and the symphony.

While working for UWM, Petry worked closely with philanthropist John Shannon and his wife, artist and philanthropist Jan Serr, who donated $1 million to create the Jan Serr Studio for the arts in the UWM Kenilworth Square East Building, which opened in 2017.

“He was as practical as he was passionate about music,” Shannon told Urban Milwaukee. “When working with Jan and me on UWM’s Jan Serr Studio, Dan helped create a self-sustaining business model. By using revenue from private rentals, the studio funded its own upgrades — including a new dance floor, seating and top-tier sound and video systems — without taking a dime from the university’s budget.”

Dan Petry received a bachelor’s degree in music from UW-Madison in 1977 and later earned a master’s degree in arts administration from Columbia University in 1988. He was a passionate and knowledgeable fan of classical music, and also an accomplished pianist with a varied repertoire who played at Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport for several years.

Petry’s mother, Marilyn “Pat” Petry, was “a patron extraordinaire” of jazz music and the Jazz Institute at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music, as a story by Kevin Lynch reported. “She grew up in Menomonee Falls, married and raised three sons on a dairy farm and in the 1970s began travel industry work, which allowed her to travel to favorite cities, New York, Hong Kong, London, San Francisco and New Orleans, while deeply cultivating her appreciation of jazz.”

Pat Petry became a fixture at Milwaukee’s jazz clubs and a supporter of the jazz faculty and students of the Conservatory, including Berkeley Fudge, Manty Ellis, David Hazeltine, Brian Lynch, Mark Davis, Juli Wood, Adekola Adedapo and many more. As a travel consultant, she arranged travel trips for some of those musicians. In recognition of her support, the Jazz Institute created a scholarship in her name after her death in 2021.

Her love of music was clearly shared by Dan, who brought his mother as a guest to the grand opening of the Jan Serr Studio in 2017.

“That guy loved music and the enterprise of making music happen more than anyone else I’ve known on the business side,” said Tom Strini, who covered Milwaukee’s classical music scene for more than three decades for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Third Coast Digest, in remarks to Urban Milwaukee. “The proof — beyond his hard, effective work for Present Music, the Florentine and the MSO — was in his presence at concerts by groups beyond his own. Dan Petry was everywhere, supporting the whole scene, making connections, all out of a deep love for the arts. His passing is a loss for the entire Milwaukee scene, and he is irreplaceable.”

This is a developing story and additional reporting may be added later. 

Sweet Smoke BBQ at Chill on the Hill in 2023. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

Sweet Smoke BBQ, the food trailer known for bringing Texas-style barbecue to Milwaukee, will close after more than four years in business.

Owners Adam and Cindi Beilke announced Monday that Sweet Smoke’s final day of service will be Sunday, Dec. 6. The couple said they would release a schedule of the trailer’s remaining appearances soon, giving customers time to redeem gift cards or make a final visit.

“There isn’t any one single reason that’s moved us to make this decision — it’s no secret how hard life is in the restaurant business right now,” the couple wrote on social media. “We care so much and pour everything we have into trying to give people a special experience when they come out to the truck.”

The Beilkes said the demanding nature of running the business ultimately took its toll.

“In the end, we’re mostly just tired and miss seeing our friends and families,” they wrote.

Sweet Smoke officially launched in April 2022, making regular appearances at breweries, markets and other events throughout the Milwaukee area. Its menu centered on slow-smoked brisket, pulled pork, ribs and turkey, along with smash burgers and a rotating lineup of homemade sides.

Adam, a former accountant, was inspired to launch the business after eating at Franklin Barbecue in Austin, Texas. The meal began what he described in a 2022 interview with Urban Milwaukee as a decade-long effort to master cooking with live fire.

“I quickly became obsessed with trying to recreate it,” he said at the time.

The couple entered the restaurant business without professional experience, leaving their previous jobs to launch Sweet Smoke.

“We are not risk takers, so to quit our jobs and start a food truck with no experience was a massive leap,” they wrote Monday.

The business endured a major setback only months after opening when a June 2022 fire heavily damaged Common Cookhouse in Oak Creek, where Sweet Smoke rented commercial kitchen space. The fire displaced nearly 20 food businesses.

Sweet Smoke subsequently operated from Hawthorne Coffee Roasters, 4177 S. Howell Ave., while continuing to build a following through pop-ups and events. The business became especially well known for appearances in Bay View, including at Chill on the Hill at Humboldt Park and the now-shuttered Enlightened Brewing Company.

In announcing the closure, the Beilkes thanked customers who supported the business and recommended it to others.

“This all happened so organically, and without all of you that just doesn’t happen,” they wrote. “We will greatly miss those windows of service every week.”

The couple added that they will be less nostalgic about the behind-the-scenes work, including cleaning, taxes, inspections and license renewals.

“We love you Milwaukee and hope to see you around,” they wrote.

MPS Superintendent Brenda Cassellius meets with media on Aug. 27, 2026 to outline her goals for the upcoming school year. Photo by WUWM

Milwaukee Public Schools will welcome 60,000 students back to the classroom on Tuesday.

Superintendent Brenda Cassellius says this school year there will be a renewed focus on reading proficiency, building upgrades — particularly for schools located on the city’s North Side — and transparency.

“This year, we are asking everyone in Milwaukee to expect great things from MPS and then to do the work to make those great things happen,” Cassellius said. “Our students deserve nothing less. They deserve great teaching, great opportunities and great schools, and our educators and staff are ready to deliver.”

Here are five things to watch over the next year.

Teacher vacancies are down but some classrooms will not have an instructor

At this point last year, MPS had 120 teacher vacancies. The district is starting the school year with 60 vacancies.

The number would be less, but the 2026-27 budget added more than 159 teaching positions and paraprofessionals to reduce class sizes.

Cassellius said there is still a lot of work to do and 60 openings is not where the district wants to be. But she says MPS is starting the school year in a much stronger position than in years past.

“Our goal is straightforward,” she said. “Every classroom should have a certified, qualified teacher, caring and competent, who is ready to help students learn and succeed.”

There will be classrooms that don’t have a teacher, Cassellius said. Those rooms will utilize long-term substitutes and paraprofessionals.

“We have 4,500 teachers, so we’re constantly having teachers who retire, who are going out on sick leave or maternity leave,” Cassellius said. “So it is not unusual for a district of our size to have teacher vacancies.”

MPS is investing is central city schools

Last week, MPS officials invited media to Starms Discovery Learning Center, which is one of six schools getting about $13 million worth of updates.

Starms Discovery Learning Center Principal Tonya Love gives a tour of updates at her school. Corrinne Hess/WPR

Renovations at Starms, which will cost about $2.5 million, include new flooring, murals in the hallways, an updated gymnasium and smartboards in classrooms.

“These improvements matter because the environment in which children learn sends a message, a very clear message, about what we expect for them and how we care for them,” Cassellius said. “We are telling our students, you matter, your school matters and your future matters.”

Starms Principal Tonya Love said she expects about 291 students this year, but the building has capacity for “several more classrooms.”

The district’s long-range facilities plan includes closing five northside schools. Those students will be moved to Starms and other underutilized northside schools that are currently being updated — Brown Street Academy, Douglas Middle School and Gwen T. Jackson School.

MPS has also invested $3.5 million at River Trail School of Agricultural Science and $2.5 million at North Division High School.

Cassellius said in September an advisory group will discuss possible closures under the long-range facilities plan.

“I don’t think we need to study it anymore. I think we need to make a decision,” she said.

MPS could go to referendum again

Cassellius said MPS might need to ask voters to support another referendum if the state does not “fully fund schools.”

“I just don’t see another way around it,” she said. “Costs continue to go up, inflation continues to go up. We want to stay competitive and pay our teachers a fair wage, and so that is going to require resources.”

Cassellius said she will wait until a new governor and Legislature is seated in November to decide if a referendum is needed. She said MPS has already “tightened its belt” by cutting 264 staff members last year, but the district can’t continue to make cuts.

“I hope as soon as the legislature gets in, the very first thing they do is pass special ed.,” Cassellius said. “That is like a very simple no-brainer thing to do for our students with disabilities to make sure that they get everything that they need and that it doesn’t come off the top.”

Cassellius said if special education reimbursement would have been 42 percent, as promised instead of 35 percent, the district would have gotten another $36 million this year.

Voters narrowly passed a $252 million referendum for MPS in April 2024.

Reading proficiency a continued focus

MPS launched a new elementary literacy curriculum in January and the district plans to introduce a new curriculum for high school students this school year.

Over the summer, more than 1,000 teachers, principals and support staff took part in literacy training.

Cassellius said she is excited to see state test results in September.

“We’re hoping to see some growth,” she said. “Obviously, we have a long way to go. What I came into was not something anybody would want to have to see with the level of proficiency that our students were at, and we are committed to making sure that our students are learning literacy.”

Lead remediation is still underway in some buildings

MPS spent 2025 removing lead from nearly 100 schools, costing about $43 million.

The district has 106 schools that were built before 1978, when lead-based paint was banned. Lead dust is often formed as lead paint chips and wears down, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Last week, Cassellius said some areas of the district still need to be remediated.

“We have a number of buildings underutilized and of course remediating lead is extremely expensive,” she said, adding that classrooms that have not yet been cleaned have been closed.

“If you have a building that can hold 500 kids, but only 100 kids were in there, and you’re only using seven classrooms, then we closed off those classrooms,” she said. “But most of them are getting finished, and we had a big push on some of our auditoriums this summer as well, so we are close.”

Here are 5 things to watch for in Milwaukee Public Schools this year was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

Enbridge says around 2,000 barrels, or 84,000 gallons, of natural gas liquids are contained at the site of a gas leak that began Tuesday on Sitan Road in Iron County. The Canadian energy firm has brought in equipment to burn off the remaining gas in a controlled manner. Photo courtesy of Enbridge

Enbridge says it’s temporarily halting work on rerouting its Line 5 oil and gas pipeline following a gas leak in Iron County on Tuesday.

The move comes after the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources asked the company to halt work until a gas leak is resolved and measures are in place to prevent future spills.

Enbridge estimates around 31,000 barrels, or 1.3 million gallons, of natural gas liquids containing mainly propane and butane vaporized into the atmosphere after a subcontractor’s unoccupied truck rolled into an excavation site, striking the pipeline on Sitan Road near Saxon.

Enbridge spokesperson Juli Kellner said in a statement that the safety of people, property and the environment is at the forefront of its activities.

“This 48-hour period will commence on August 31, 2026, and will reinforce our existing safety practices and identify opportunities to further enhance our strong safety culture,” Kellner wrote.

The company said around 150 people are responding to the leak. Local emergency crews have left the site as a private contractor has arrived to support the response. No injuries have been reported. A nearby home was evacuated, and power was shut off to 55 residents. Electricity was restored Thursday to all but five homeowners. Line 5 remains shut down.

Enbridge says 31,000 barrels of natural gas liquids, mainly propane and butane, vaporized into the atmosphere when Line 5 was struck after a subcontractor’s unoccupied flatbed truck rolled into an open excavation site. Photo courtesy of Enbridge

Enbridge began using trailer-mounted flare stacks that were brought in over the weekend to begin burning off around 2,000 barrels, or 84,000 gallons, of remaining natural gas liquids in a safe and controlled manner.

“Extensive air monitoring will continue during this work, at the flare site, the incident site, and in the surrounding area,” Kellner said. “While monitoring continues to show safe air quality where crews are working, the half mile evacuation zone around the incident remains in place, as does the ‘no-fly’ zone over the site issued by the Iron County Sheriff.”

The company has been working with refineries to reduce the effects of the shutdown and hopes to restore service to the pipeline by Sept. 5. Enbridge’s Line 5 carries up to 23 million gallons of crude oil and natural gas liquids daily from Superior to Sarnia, Ontario.

Construction of Enbridge’s $1 billion reroute of Line 5 has been ongoing. The company is building a new 41-mile stretch around the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa’s reservation in Ashland and Iron counties. The 30-inch pipeline runs 645 miles from Superior through northern Wisconsin and Michigan to Sarnia, Ontario.

Enbridge said construction crews have completed about 65 percent of the Line 5 reroute around the reservation of the Bad River tribe. Crews have finished boring 25 underground tunnels to install the pipe and completed horizontal directional drilling at three sites. The company has now reached peak construction with around 700 workers on the project.

Enbridge crews work at night to resolve a gas leak. The Canadian energy firm says 31,000 barrels, or 1.3 million gallons, of mainly propane and butane, vaporized into the atmosphere when Line 5 was struck after a subcontractor’s unoccupied flatbed truck rolled into an open excavation site. Photo courtesy of Enbridge

Details of the leak still remain unknown. It’s not clear what led the truck to roll into the excavation site. In a Thursday letter, DNR Secretary Karen Hyun said the agency is “deeply concerned” by the spill and “immensely frustrated” by other events where the company has failed to comply with state regulations.

The DNR has asked for multiple details on the release. On Friday, the agency said it may halt work on the company’s project to enforce compliance with state permits granted to Enbridge.

The DNR said it hasn’t been authorized to access the site due to safety concerns, and the federal Pipeline Hazardous Materials Safety Administration is the lead agency on site. An investigator from PHMSA has been deployed to investigate the incident.

In 2020, Enbridge proposed the reroute after the Bad River tribe sued the company in 2019 to shut down and remove Line 5 from tribal lands where Enbridge lacked easements for the pipeline.

Three years ago, a federal judge found the company was trespassing and ordered Enbridge to pay roughly $5 million and shut down or reroute Line 5 by June of this year. The tribe and Enbridge appealed the decision, and the shutdown order was placed on hold this year.

Earlier this month, a federal appeals panel ruled that Enbridge has been trespassing and must remove the pipeline from the Bad River reservation, but it gave the company more time to complete the Line 5 reroute.

At least four releases of drilling fluid, or frac-outs, have occurred on the Line 5 project, ranging from roughly 5 gallons to up to 1,900 gallons spilled in late June. A DNR spokesperson said the agency has issued four notices of non-compliance on the project, all of which have been resolved.

Enbridge temporarily halts work on Line 5 reroute after 1.3M gallon gas leak was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

Sunshine. (CC0 Public Domain).

Whew. It’s been a summer of nonstop news and a lot of issues to keep track of, much less understand their significance. Here’s a quick guide to recent developments:

Tariffs on Canada could hurt Wisconsin: Gov. Tony Evers says President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canadian products will especially hurt Wisconsin, since Canada is Wisconsin’s largest trading partner.

In his weekly radio address, Evers said, “President Trump has started a trade war with Wisconsin’s largest export partner, Canada, leaving farmers and producers here in America’s Dairyland in the lurch…. Republicans in Congress, including every Republican of Wisconsin’s own Congressional delegation, are enabling him. They have caved to him on his erratic tariffs and rubber stamped his reckless policies one by one, leaving Wisconsin families and farmers behind.”

A Canadian government agency lists four facts about that nation’s trading relationship with Wisconsin: “146 Canadian-owned businesses employ 23,950 workers in Wisconsin. Wisconsin exports $7.5 billion in goods to Canada annually. Wisconsin imports $5.7 billion in goods from Canada annually. Wisconsin exports $777 million in services to Canada annually.”

That report lists Wisconsin’s top imports from Canada as plastics, $540 million; paper and paperboard, $486 million; wood pulp, $329 million; wood, semi-finished wood products, $220 million; natural gas, other gases, $180 million; fuel oil, $179 million; softwood lumber, $166 million; aluminum, aluminum articles, $155 million; iron, steel alloys and related products, $139 million; and automobiles, $120 million.

Wisconsin’s top exports to Canada are plastics, $566 million; paper and paperboard, $523 million; electric motors and generators, $423 million; beverages and alcohol, $231 million; motor vehicle parts, $206 million; engines and turbines, $188 million; iron and steel tubes, $181 million; and optical, medical and precision instruments, $181 million.

No charges for Musk: In a statement, La Crosse County District Attorney Tim Gruenke, a Democrat, said he won’t charge billionaire Elon Musk with offering a bribe for his $1 million prize for voters in the April 2005 election for state Supreme Court justice. Musk and groups he funds spent more than $22 million backing the losing campaign of former Republican Attorney General Brad Schimel.

A March 2025 social media post from Musk “could be seen as an offer to pay someone the possibility of winning a lottery…by voting,” Gruenke said, but a second social media post “apparently recognized that potential violation and corrected it.”

“Even if I could convince a jury that the original post was still a bribe, I do not believe that a jury would convict Elon Musk of a crime after considering the intent, the second post, and the fact nothing of value was ever given to anyone for voting,” Gruenke added.

The state Elections Commission referred Musk’s $1 million offer to prosecutors.

Inmates petition for commutations: Being one of the 10 members of Gov. Tony Evers’ advisory board on commutations is a tough, thankless job. They must decide if any petitioning prison inmates convicted of major crimes 20 and 30 years ago — when some were juveniles — have truly changed, no longer pose a threat to public safety, and deserve a get-out-of-prison commutation from Evers.

The 10 began hearing personal appeals from inmates who offered compelling apologies for their murders, assaults and thefts many years ago. The public process, which included statements opposing their release from victims and their relatives, was broadcast online.

The 10 advisory board members include Evers’ chief counsel, a former Corrections Department administrator, a former district attorney, a retired Dane County judge, a former inmate who works with those being released from prison, and a UW-Madison Law School faculty member.

Because any commutation by Evers would be controversial, don’t expect announcements before the Nov. 3 elections.

Who’s on my November ballot? The Aug. 11 primary decided who will be on your Nov. 3 ballot for statewide offices.

These are the major-party candidates for statewide offices: Governor/lieutenant governor: Republicans Tom Tiffany and David Varnum, Democrats David Crowley and Sarah Godlewski; attorney general: Republican Eric Toney and Democrat Josh Kaul (incumbent); state treasurer: Republican John Leiber (incumbent) and Democrat Yee Leng Xiong; and secretary of state: Republican Jay Schroeder and Democrat JoCasta Zamarripa.

There are contests for seven of the state’s eight U.S. House seats (2nd District Democrat Mark Pocan is the only incumbent without opposition); 17 of the 33 seats in the state Senate and all 99 seats in the Assembly are up on Nov. 3.

Candidates were certified by the state Elections Commission, which also formally approved three proposed changes to the state Constitution forwarded by Republican legislators.

The first Marquette University Law School poll since the primary had Crowley and Tiffany tied at 44% among registered voters. Crowley had a 49% to 44% lead among likely voters.

In the same poll, 67% of registered voters favored a one-year ban on new data centers. Opposition to data centers has been growing, pollster Charles Franklin noted. It’s already emerging as an issue in the governor’s race.

Steven Walters started covering the Capitol in 1988. Contact him at stevenscotwalters@gmail.com.

Lowcountry, 1114 N. Water St. Photo taken September 22nd, 2020, by Mariiana Tzotcheva.

Farewell, lowcountry.

The southern-style seafood restaurant abruptly closed its Milwaukee location Sunday.

“Five years, thousands of tables and a whole lot of good nights. We’re grateful for every one of you who walked in, sat down and made this place feel like ours together,” the business said in a social media post.

The restaurant was located at 1114 N. Water St.

The business’s four other locations, all in the Chicago area, continue to operate.

Known for its seafood boils, the bar and restaurant opened in 2021 as the city emerged from its COVID-19 restrictions.

The closure is just the latest change for the Water Street entertainment district, which saw Silk on Water announce a multi-month “temporary” closure Friday, Vagabond, a Mexican restaurant, close in July, and Duke’s on Water close in May. Another bar is openly for sale. The district has been plagued by violence and loitering in recent years.

The chain launched in Chicago in 2015 under the ownership of Pan and Dana Hompluem. The Milwaukee location’s current license shows it is solely owned by Che Mei Wong of Chicago.

The lowcountry property was previously occupied by Bar Louie, another Illinois chain, and Brew City Barbecue. It is owned by SSG Property Holdings, which lists Matthew Spellman as its registered agent. Prior to its use as a restaurant, the building housed a wholesale florist.

The restaurant occupied the entire first floor of the 12,778-square-foot building and its large patio. The second floor is leased to other tenants.

Former Montgomery Ward department store. Photo by Evan Wohrman from Mission Viejo, CA, United States of America, (CC BY-SA 2.0), via Wikimedia Commons

Every day at The Overhead Wire we sort through over 1,500 news items about cities and share the best ones with our email list. Each week, we take some of the most popular stories and share them with Urban Milwaukee readers. They are national (or international) links, sometimes entertaining and sometimes absurd, but hopefully useful.

Reform is hard in car oriented cities: Transportation policy change is hard to make in very car oriented environments argues Hamid Iravani in the Journal World Transport Policy in Practice. To think differently and resolve auto oriented contradictions, he looks at Thomas Kuhn‘s theory of paradigms and how they could be used to chart a different policy path towards multimodal transportation with access as the main metric. (Hamid Iravani | Journal of World Transport Policy)

Charlotte’s lost opportunity: Charlotte’s light rail system has been wildly successful at attracting riders and encouraging new development. Increased density and new neighborhoods have sprung up along the line but from the beginning none of the value generated by the line has been captured for the public good. Benjamin Schneider argues that this represents a missed opportunity that should be rectified in the future. (Benjamin Schneider | Planetizen)

Why do dead malls persist? Many dead malls remain that way because of covenants and other agreements that were made far into the future when the properties were initially developed. In order to realize re-use of the land, Nolan Grey argues changes must be made that allow for changing times. Covenants, many of which last forever are “stale” and should be updated to reflect current needs, especially if a mall has been dead and empty for a long period of time. (Nolan Grey | Arbitrary Lines)

Cities need their own sovereign wealth funds: With federal funding dwindling and cities underestimating the value of their assets, greater consideration should be given to the creation of municipal wealth funds that could help cities weather fiscal crisis and liquidity issues. These funds, argue Jeff Fong, would be less like a rainy day fund for emergencies, and more like sovereign wealth funds in Norway and Alaska which allow governments to spend during tighter times. (Jeff Fong | Urban Proxima)

EV’s have dampened global oil demand: As the Iran war continues to drive global oil prices up, Asia has seen increased impacts as a major importer of middle eastern oil. But prices haven’t gone as high as experts have predicted because a boom in electric vehicles and other investments in China has dampened demand by at least 10%. While China’s domestic market has slowed slightly, more exports are pushing the greater market towards electric vehicles that will impact oil consumption into the future. (Dana Nuccitelli | Yale Climate Connections)

Quote of the Week

You can’t complain about the price of housing if you refuse to move hundreds of miles away to a city I just learned about for the purposes of this bad-faith argument.

–Devin Wallace in McSweeney’s, a satire outlet.

This week on the Talking Headways podcast we’re finally doing it! We’re going to Kingwood Texas and talking about the greenbelt trail system I’ve been telling everyone about for years. This is a storytelling episode, featuring guests John Walsh, Jerry Lunow, and Bill Neuhaus so I hope folks enjoy hearing about NASA, timber companies, bike trails, and Houston’s bayous.  But also, stick around to hear how a suburban development in Texas from the 1970’s mirrors and pre-dated Dutch bike planning with special guest, Streetsblog Chicago’s Steve Vance.

Want more links to read? Visit The Overhead Wire and signup.

Flock Safety license plate readers are typically mounted on tall poles, with a camera and solar panel on top. The company says its technology is used in more than 6,000 communities across 49 states in partnership with thousands of law enforcement agencies nationwide. (Photo courtesy of Flock Safety)

Flock Safety, the multibillion-dollar producer of Flock automatic license plate reader cameras, spent $102,000 last year lobbying for state legislation to increase its nationwide surveillance network. That’s according to a report by OpenSecrets, which found that the controversial company dedicated over $2 million on lobbying efforts across the country in 2025.

The findings come as communities continue pushing back against Flock cameras. Some areas have cancelled contracts and removed the cameras altogether, while others have opted to increase oversight and auditing of how the cameras are used by police.

Flock cameras work by photographing every vehicle and license plate that passes by their view. The images and information are stored in a database that can be searched by law enforcement officers who work at agencies with Flock contracts. In many cases, police officers may query tens of thousands of cameras at once to determine whether any have sighted a vehicle sought by law enforcement. Using the captured data, police departments can also use Flock to keep track of a vehicle’s regular movement patterns.

A Flock camera outside of Washington Park in Milwaukee, WI. (Photo by Isiah Holmes/Wisconsin Examiner)

In Wisconsin, Flock spent the $102,000 lobbying for a pair of Republican bills, Assembly Bill 300 and Senate Bill 299, which would have provided grants to allow local law enforcement agencies to obtain and install automatic license plate reader cameras. The legislation failed to pass in 2025.

Police departments have defended Flock cameras as valuable tools to combat crime from homicides to car theft. Critics, however have pointed to cases of officers searching Flock’s network for questionable or illegal reasons. Some departments have used Flock for immigration enforcement as the Trump administration ramped up its plans to carry out mass deportations. One sheriff’s deputy in Texas used Flock to locate a woman who’d recently had an abortion, fueling fears that local law enforcement were working to criminalize reproductive healthcare following the overturning of Roe v. Wade. In many other cases, male officers used Flock to monitor or stalk people, particularly current or former romantic partners.

Several of these cases have played out in Wisconsin. Earlier this month, former Menasha officer Cristian Morales was sentenced to six months in jail and three months probation for misusing Flock to stalk his ex-girlfriend. Meanwhile, new felony charges have been levied against former Kenosha County sheriff’s deputy Frank McGrath, who was found to have used Flock and a squad car tracking system to monitor his girlfriend, also a Kenosha sheriff deputy.

Josue Ayala, a former Milwaukee officer, was charged for the same behavior. Ayala avoided jail time and instead received a year of probation after taking a guilty plea. More recently, Milwaukee Detective Tehrangi Chapman was charged with using Flock to monitor someone he has been accused of stalking since 2019, years before Flock came to Milwaukee. Chapman was one of the internal affairs detectives who investigated the allegations of Ayala’s Flock misuse.

Each of the officers in these cases were charged with felony misconduct in public office, except for Ayala, who was charged with a misdemeanor.

Questions around how the cameras are used have led to a distrust of the Flock Safety technology itself. Wisconsin communities including Kaukauna, Sturgeon Bay, Verona, Appleton, Oshkosh, Dane County and Stoughton have all cancelled their Flock camera contracts.

A City of Verona Flock camera which has been covered by local officials after the city’s contract with Flock Safety ended. (Photo courtesy of Mayor Luke Diaz).

Despite having several officers charged with misusing Flock and sustained calls from the public to stop using the technology, Milwaukee has retained its Flock contract. The police department has cited it as an asset in quickly developing leads and solving crimes. On Tuesday, however, 12 of Milwaukee’s 15 common council members signed a letter asking both the Fire and Police Commission and Police Chief Jeffrey Norman to review the department’s use of Flock cameras and to consider additional safeguards before the city begins to shape its 2027 budget — three times the number of alders who signed a similar letter in March.

The council is asking for more information on how the Flock system is used, including a list of every agency that shares license plate reader data with the Milwaukee Police Department, and every agency with which the department shares its own data. The council is also demanding a complete accounting of searches by outside agencies using Milwaukee’s Flock network, as well as those conducted by the department on behalf of another agency. The letter also is requesting a list of all system users and their searches.

In June, as controversy over Flock grew, the Milwaukee Police Department took steps to increase auditing procedures to flag suspicious searches, and restrict the number of officers who had access to the Flock system. The department also said that it shares its Flock network with state partners, but not with federal agencies.

But the common council letter asks for more, including for case numbers and specific justifications for every Flock search, automated misuse detection, independent auditing, prohibitions on using Flock for immigration enforcement without a judicial warrant and regular public reporting to both the Fire and Police Commission and council.

The letter also urges that, as discussions begin over the 2027 city budget, the city examines how Milwaukee’s Flock camera network has been funded over recent years, including how the contracts were granted multiple waivers as they were renewed. The city’s waivers, along with the use of sole source contracts with Flock, has made it possible for Milwaukee’s camera network to grow without approval from the council.

In response to the letter, MPD said in a statement that it will work with the commission and council to respond to concerns, and that it is committed to transparency and dialogue.

Flock Safety spent $102,000 lobbying last year. Today cities are demanding safeguards. was originally published by Wisconsin Examiner.

Waupun Correctional Institution is shown on Aug. 29, 2024, in Waupun, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)

Wisconsin’s prison population hit a record high this week, a new milestone for a system that has for decades held thousands more people than it was designed for.

According to figures released Friday, the state’s Department of Corrections held 23,854 people in custody. That’s 28 above the record set in 2019 and nearly 6,000 beyond the prisons’ intended capacity.

Wisconsin’s prisons have been severely over capacity for at least 20 years, prompting officials to add bunk beds and increase the number of people per cell. The three prisons that house only women are particularly overcrowded. There, staff have converted offices to dorms and, at times, set up beds in gyms.

Sarah Buckingham, who is incarcerated at Robert E. Ellsworth Correctional Center in Racine, told Wisconsin Watch in May that prison officials “just cram us in wherever they can.” That minimum-security women’s prison was designed to house 230 people. As of Friday, it held 495, more than twice its design capacity. The state’s other minimum-security women’s prison, the Milwaukee Women’s Center, was designed for 42 but now holds 104, making it Wisconsin’s  most crowded prison.

Contacted for comment, Department of Corrections spokesperson Kevin Hoffman said the department has “extremely limited statutory authority on its own to reduce the prison population.”

The new record comes years after Gov. Tony Evers vowed to ease prison crowding in a state that stands out nationally for disproportionately incarcerating Black residents. In a 2018 Democratic gubernatorial debate, Evers — who has spoken of “second chances” and “redemption” — called a goal by activists to cut Wisconsin’s prison population by half  “worth accomplishing.”

But the Republican-led Legislature has stymied such efforts, spokesperson Britt Cudaback said, pointing to the governor’s “eight years of budget requests to reform our state’s justice system.”

The governor doesn’t choose who goes to prison or for how long, Cudaback added. In 1998, Wisconsin legislators adopted one of the country’s most punitive “truth-in-sentencing” laws, requiring most prisoners to spend their full sentence behind bars, without the possibility of parole. Republican Gov. Tommy Thompson signed the bipartisan legislation into law.

Policy changes such as reducing sentences or diverting more people to treatment would require action by judges or the Legislature, though the governor’s administration can singlehandedly address revocations, a common way people end up in prison.

People on court-ordered supervision can end up back in prison if they allegedly violate the rules of their release, even without committing a new crime. In 2021, the Department of Corrections raised the threshold for revocations in certain circumstances, which corresponded with an initial dip in technical revocations.

Evers recently took another unilateral step that could reduce the prison population, though likely modestly. In April, he signed executive orders allowing eligible Wisconsin prisoners to apply to have their sentences shortened for the first time in 25 years.

It’s unclear how many people might receive commutations or how much their sentences might be shortened. The Commutation Advisory Board heard testimony from a dozen applicants at its inaugural hearing on Aug. 21. A second hearing, featuring another dozen applicants, is scheduled for Sept. 18.

Not just tight quarters

Overcrowding stresses prisons in a variety of ways, increasing dangers and reducing quality of life for both prisoners and correctional officers. A higher prison population requires more officers, who can be tough to recruit and retain. In 2023, officials locked down Waupun Correctional Institution — canceling programs and confining prisoners to their cells for months — because they didn’t have enough officers to operate normally, Wisconsin Watch reporting revealed.

Today, the state’s adult prison system is short about 658 full-time correctional officers and sergeants, the latest DOC figures show. The system has 35 fewer people in those positions than it did in May, even as the prison population grew by about 250.

A higher prison population can increase competition for limited spots in treatment, education and work programs designed to prepare prisoners for release.

Already, many prisoners wait months or years for those opportunities, and advocates say increased crowding could keep people in prison longer or contribute to their return — a cycle that could further pack prisons.

A prisoner at Taycheedah Correctional Institution in Fond du Lac told Wisconsin Watch that crowded conditions make it harder to offer a key type of counseling. Since 2019, the maximum-security women’s prison has allowed prisoners to meet with certified peer support specialists, fellow prisoners trained and paid by the Department of Corrections to share their own experiences and support others navigating challenges behind bars.

Converting more spaces into dorms leaves fewer places for peer specialists to hold one-on-one meetings, said Natalie Murphy, who has worked as a peer specialist for seven years. Fewer than 10 peer specialists serve the 1,074-person facility, Murphy said.

“There’s a huge waitlist, and we are trying to accommodate all of the people, because we want to help people,” Murphy said. “But one of the biggest problems is that we can’t hire anybody because we do not have physical space to work in.”

Solutions elusive

Policymakers and prisoner advocates disagree about how to ease crowding. In the major revamp he proposed last year, Evers called for, among other things:

• Closing the nearly 130-year-old Green Bay Correctional Institution.
• Transforming Waupun Correctional Institution into a “vocational village.”
• Converting the troubled Lincoln Hills School from a juvenile prison to an adult prison.
• Converting John C. Burke Correctional Center in Waupun into a women’s prison.
• Expanding a program that allows some people incarcerated for nonviolent crimes to qualify for early release by completing substance use treatment.

Together the changes would reduce the state’s prison capacity by 700, the governor’s office said. The plan drew criticism from Republican lawmakers, who pointed to the state’s crowded prisons as a sign that the state needs more space in its prisons, not less.

State Sen. Van Wanggaard, R-Racine, said the answer is “right-sizing” the population by “adding additional beds, reducing overcrowding and making facilities safer for not only our inmates, but for our staff,” WPR reported.

Last October, the State of Wisconsin Building Commission released $15 million to plan for Evers’ proposed changes.

“The governor’s corrections proposal would have paved the way for much-needed facilities upgrades and expanded programming to address many of the challenges we face today,” DOC spokesperson Hoffman said. “Unfortunately, the Legislature did not fully fund the plan and only provided $15 million for planning.”

Wisconsin spends about $1.06 billion a year on its prisons, or 5% of the state budget. State officials estimate it costs roughly $50,000 to incarcerate one person for a year in Wisconsin. By comparison, the state spends around $15,000 a year per student in the public K-12 school system.

Meanwhile, some states have significantly reduced their prison populations in recent decades. New York has cut the number of people behind bars by half since 2008 as a result of various factors, including ending incarceration for most technical violations of supervision rules. Republican-led Texas has closed several prisons as a result of bipartisan criminal justice reforms, including a greater focus on substance abuse treatment and diversion.

Brittany Carloni contributed reporting.

This article first appeared on Wisconsin Watch and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

One of the Oak Leaf Trail bridges Milwaukee County Parks plans to replace. Photo by Graham Kilmer.

Milwaukee County has $3 million to invest in bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure thanks to a recent federal grant award.

“This funding will allow us to make strategic, multifaceted investments that improve the safety, efficiency, and accessibility of our transportation system by improving the bicycle and pedestrian networks that connect communities,” Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley said after the award was announced. “These investments help make our streets safer, our economy more vibrant, and our community more mobile.”

Funding arrives via the Federal Highway Administration‘s (FHWA) Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) grant. The federal money is awarded by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) and is intended for small-scale pedestrian and bicycle projects, historic preservation or stormwater management.

The county will use $2 million to improve pedestrian and bicycle crossings along county-owned roads in Greendale, Greenfield, Bayside, Fox Point and Glendale. The county will use a mix of bump-outs, curb ramps, signage, pavement markings and, in some areas, flashing beacons to create safer areas for pedestrians to cross.

Oak Leaf Trail Bridge Replacements

Milwaukee County Parks will receive $1 million to help fund the replacement of two critical bridges along the Oak Leaf Trail.

The aging bridges span I-43 and N. Port Washington Road in Glendale. They were originally part of the Union Pacific railway corridor. A rails-to-trails project in 2015 added them to the network as part of The Zip Line.

They were originally built in 1936 and full replacement will bring them within modern standards for clearance and materials. Parks estimated the project would cost approximately $2.7 million in 2023.

Intersections Receiving Pedestrian Improvements

Locations were chosen from among 20 intersections identified in the 2025 Milwaukee County Pedestrian and Bicycle Crossing Assessment.

• N. Port Washington Rd. & W. Fairy Chasm Rd.
• N. Port Washington Rd. & N. Indian Creek Pkwy.
• 6900 block of N. Port Washington Rd.
• S. 76th St. & W. Parkview Dr. 
• S. 76th St. & W. Root River Pkwy
• W. College Ave. & College Park Elementary School
• S. 76th St. & W. Wilbur Ave./W. Wedgewood Ave
• W. Layton Ave. & S. 72nd St.
• W. Layton Ave. 600 feet west of S. 51st St.

Wisconsin State Capitol (Baylor Spears | Wisconsin Examiner)

The state of Wisconsin collected $23.13 billion in taxes in the 2025-25 fiscal year, a 3.4% increase from the prior year, according to a preliminary report released Thursday by the Department of Revenue.

The amount collected was $450.8 million above the $22.6 billion that the DOR projected the state would collect earlier this year, a 2% gain.

The state brought in $231.3 million more than expected in income taxes as well as $79.9 million more than expected in the general sales and use tax and $83.9 million more than expected in the corporate income tax.

The higher than projected revenue could grow the state’s budget surplus to over $3 billion in a critical election year and ahead of the next state budget process. Legislative Fiscal Bureau estimated in January that the state would finish the 2025-27 biennium with a nearly $2.5 billion surplus.

State Sen. Howard Marklein (R-Spring Green), who co-chairs the Joint Finance Committee, said in a statement that he is “not surprised” by the latest numbers.

“I have been watching the revenue numbers each month and they were indicating we would have a larger surplus than originally thought,” he said, adding that he is disappointed lawmakers could not pass a bipartisan agreement negotiated by Gov. Tony Evers and Republican lawmakers earlier this year.

Following the initial projection, Evers and GOP lawmakers negotiated a $1.8 billion school funding and tax cut deal that would have provided additional special education funding to schools, property tax relief through the school tax credit, $600 rebate checks and the elimination of taxes on tips and overtime. The deal failed in the state Senate in May.

“Our families and taxpayers could use the relief now,” Marklein said.

Rep. Mark Born (R-Beaver Dam), co-chair of the Joint Finance Committee, said in a statement that he would be open to returning to session to do something with the surplus soon.

“If  we can reach an agreement that delivers meaningful tax relief for Wisconsin families and can pass both houses, I’m ready to get it done,” he said.

Without further action, the surplus will be dealt with by the next governor and state Legislature. Control of both are up for grabs in November.

U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, the Republican gubernatorial candidate, said in a post on social media that the growth in the state’s budget surplus is a sign that Wisconsin residents are being overtaxed. He claimed that his Democratic opponent, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, would keep the surplus in Madison and “make government bigger.”

“I’ll send every dollar of the surplus back to you and deliver permanent tax relief for working families,” Tiffany said. Tiffany lobbied Republicans in the state Senate to vote against the earlier deal, which contributed to its defeat.

Crowley said in a statement about the surplus that he would “consider the long-term investments we can make and work with the legislature to bring costs down for all Wisconsinites.”

“What I won’t do is defund our schools, our healthcare system, or the basic services working families rely on like Congressman Tom Tiffany has done his entire political career,” he said.

Wisconsin tax collections 2% higher than expected, putting budget surplus at nearly $3 billion was originally published by Wisconsin Examiner.

1. New Owner for Nine Milwaukee-Area Popeyes Restaurants

Fast-growing franchisee acquires all of the Milwaukee Popeyes.

Aug 27th, 2026 by Jeramey Jannene

2. Don’t ‘Milwaukee County’ Wisconsin, Says Tiffany

Republican candidate for governor blasts David Crowley’s record, promises tax refund.

Aug 25th, 2026 by Jeramey Jannene

3. The Hop Changes Tracks To Two-Route Configuration

Festival Line set to sunset for the season. Plus: Year-over-year ridership is up.

Aug 28th, 2026 by Jeramey Jannene

4. Back in the News: Sean Duffy and Family Lay an Egg

Nobody is watching ‘The Great America Road Trip.’

Aug 24th, 2026 by Bruce Murphy

5. Big Blue Building Joins Downtown Office-To-Housing Boom

310W would follow 100 East and 633 W. Wisconsin with a 220-unit conversion.

Aug 25th, 2026 by Jeramey Jannene

6. Shuttered Grocery Store Sold To Prominent Business Owner

Sale comes as plans emerged to open a new store.

Aug 27th, 2026 by Jeramey Jannene

7. 21,000 Expected As Jehovah’s Witness Convention Transforms Downtown Milwaukee

Volunteers say they aim to leave the Baird Center and surrounding streets cleaner than they found them.

Aug 28th, 2026 by Elissa Eaton

8. 911 Officials Pledge Transparency, Then Walk Out

Briefing on botched response to 99-year-old woman’s beating raises new doubts.

Aug 26th, 2026 by Jeramey Jannene

9. Once In Foreclosure, East Side Towers Sell For $94 Million

Park Lafayette Towers sold to Utah investment trust with 13,050 units across the U.S.

Aug 26th, 2026 by Jeramey Jannene

10. Uppa Yard Opens Water Street Location

Second location for popular Jamaican restaurant is now open.

Aug 20th, 2026 by Graham Kilmer

Press Releases

Most popular press releases in the past week.

1. Dairy Business Association Endorses Tom Tiffany for Wisconsin Governor

 

Aug 24th, 2026 by Tom Tiffany

2. Wisconsin’s Richest Person Maxes Out to Maga Billionaire Trained Jim Croft

 

Aug 19th, 2026 by A Better Wisconsin Together

3. Gov. Evers Appoints Malinda Eskra to the Milwaukee County Circuit Court

 

Aug 24th, 2026 by Gov. Tony Evers

4. LuLu Café and Bar Celebrates 25 Years with Free Bay View Street Festival Featuring WMSE Broadcast and Live Milwaukee Music

 

Jul 27th, 2026 by Lulu Café and Bar

5. Gov. Evers Appoints Jay Pucek to the Milwaukee County Circuit Court

 

Aug 24th, 2026 by Gov. Tony Evers

6. Tom Tiffany Unveils Eight-Point Plan to Lower Costs and Let Wisconsinites Keep More of Their Hard-Earned Money

 

Aug 25th, 2026 by Tom Tiffany

7. Game On: Supervisor Capriolo Invites Elected Officials and Residents to Pickleball Showdown at Jackson Park

 

Aug 26th, 2026 by Sup. Sky Z. Capriolo

8. Gov. Evers Blasts President Trump, Republicans in Congress for Trade War With Wisconsin’s Largest Export Partner, Leaving America’s Dairyland in the Lurch

Governor says Republicans in Congress caving to Trump on erratic tariffs and reckless trade wars are leaving Wisconsin farmers and producers behind

Aug 24th, 2026 by Gov. Tony Evers

9. MKE Yoga Social and Light the Hoan Bring “Lit From Within” to Milwaukee August 27

 

Aug 23rd, 2026 by MKE Yoga Social

10. Baldwin, Booker Demand FTC Investigate Sysco–Restaurant Depot Merger, Protect Consumers & Small Businesses From Higher Costs

 

Aug 26th, 2026 by U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin

The Couture and US Bank Center. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

Think you know what happened in Milwaukee last week? Take Urban Milwaukee’s weekly news quiz.

The quiz is available in our bulletins section for Urban Milwaukee members.

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Sup. Sheldon Wasserman Releases Survey on Lakefront Pay-to-Park [Reporting Update]

Sup. Sheldon Wasserman sent an online survey to constituents Friday asking whether they support Milwaukee County Parks‘ proposal to institute paid parking in select, high-traffic areas in the parks system.

Specifically, Parks is considering paid parking in areas along the lakefront and around American Family Field. The revenue from this limited paid parking program could prevent further cuts to aquatics and the department’s already tight-budget. In future years, if revenue projections are correct, the paid parking could pay for park improvements. Parks spends million each year on vehicle infrastructure and the department views paid parking as a way to also have drivers shoulder more of the cost of park infrastructure that only they use.

Most of the paid parking spots would be located in Sup. Sheldon Wasserman’s district, who has declined to take a position yet on the proposal.

“I understand the financial challenge Parks is facing, while also recognizing the concerns many residents have about charging for parking at our public parks,” Wasserman said. Access to our lakefront should not become financially burdensome or inaccessible to any resident. If changes are considered, we should carefully examine where and when fees might be appropriate, preserve meaningful free parking options, and consider how any changes would affect nearby neighborhoods and businesses.”

Take the survey.

– Graham Kilmer, August 28 1:59 pm

More: Read our coverage of the proposal

What New Memory Trick Will We Use For the Great Lakes? [Short Take]

In the wake of President Donald Trump‘s executive order that attempts to rename Lake Ontario to Lake America, an astute reader offers a suggestion to remember all of the Great Lakes’ names.

Out goes HOMES: Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie and Superior. In comes SHAME.

The name Ontario, of course, isn’t a creation of Canada, but a Native American word from the Huron (Wyandot) Wendat language, which is believed to mean “lake of shining waters.”

– Jeramey Jannene, August 28 1:26 pm

Compost Crusader Sold [Short Take]

One of the leading private compost providers in the Milwaukee area is under new ownership.

St. Francis-based Compost Crusader was sold to Sun Prairie-based Green Box Compost.

“I have been honored to service this community for the last 12 years and am excited to see composting grow in the state of WI. Compost Crusader will continue to service the Southeastern WI area with pride. Keep composting,” said owner Melissa Tashjian in an Aug. 12 Facebook post.

Compost Crusader provides bins to customers to fill with food scraps and other organic waste. It also sells compost resulting from its operation. Green Box operates a similar operation, albeit with smaller collection bins.

Until 2020, Compost Crusader was the operator of the City of Milwaukee’s pilot composting program.

– Jeramey Jannene, August 26 12:41 pm

Michels’ R1VER Complex Lands Two New Tenants [Short Take]

R1VER

Photo taken April 11, 2025 by Jeramey Jannene. All Rights Reserved.

Two downtown firms are moving into the R1VER complex, adding new life to the eight-story office building along the Kinnickinnic River.

Building permits reveal office buildouts for wealth management firm Beauchamp Maleki Group and national health care-focused law firm Hall, Render, Killian, Heath & Lyman P.C. at 210 W. Becher St.

Beauchamp Maleki Group has already moved into approximately 6,000 square feet on the building’s first floor. The Northwestern Mutual-affiliated wealth management firm relocated from 731 N. Jackson St., ending a roughly 25-year run of being located Downtown.

The new office is designed to accommodate approximately 25 employees and includes private offices, conference rooms, employee workspaces and areas for hosting clients. Milwaukee architecture firm RINKA, which designed the building, designed the space.

Hall Render is preparing a substantially larger office on the building’s third floor.

The law firm will occupy just under 13,000 square feet, approximately half of the floor, and is expected to relocate later this year from the 330 Kilbourn complex Downtown. The new space will include private offices, collaborative areas and extensive interior glass intended to spread natural light through the office.

Hall Render opened its Milwaukee office in 2005 and has more than 20 attorneys locally, plus approximately 15 administrative and support employees. The firm has been located in its current office since 2019 and previously operated from the Associated Bank River Center.

The two moves add momentum to the office component of R1ver, a six-acre mixed-use development completed in 2022 by Michels Corp.

Michels is also the office tower’s anchor tenant, occupying its top three floors. The riverfront campus includes apartments, public gathering spaces and a boardwalk along the Kinnickinnic River, as well as Bridgewater Modern Grill and Casera Cafe & Bakery. Ian’s Pizza is planning to join the two businesses in the coming months.

– Jeramey Jannene, August 26 10:16 am

New Gym Takes Flight [News Catchup]

FLIGHT gym on the first floor of Ascent. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

Rarely does a retail tenant’s name so smoothly align with the building it occupies as it does Downtown.

FLIGHT is now open inside Ascent.

“Wisconsin’s first-ever Stairmaster & strength training group fitness studio now open in Milwaukee!” says the FLIGHT website.

The 1,400-square-foot gym at 930 N. Van Buren St. is located on the first floor of Ascent, the world-record-setting 25-story mass-timber apartment tower.

Membership, according to its website, starts at $82 per month, with a discount for Ascent residents. Drop-in classes cost $32.

The business also has three locations in the Minneapolis area.

The space was built out by Oxeland Group.

It opened in May.

When you’re done climbing the stairs, you can head next door to Aya, the high-end Mediterranean restaurant from the owners of Saffron.

– Jeramey Jannene, August 25 10:02 am

Portion of 16th Street Bridge Reopens [News Catchup]

James E. Groppi Unity Bridge. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

There is now one less traffic problem on the south side.

The southern half of the James E. Groppi Unity Bridge, formerly the 16th Street Bridge, is open again.

On Aug. 13, the city reopened the portion south of W. Canal Street after completing an emergency replacement of a deteriorated floor beam that forced the entire bridge to close in December.

The reopening comes later than previously expected. In April, the Department of Public Works anticipated reopening the southern portion sometime in July.

The reopening restores an important connection across the Menomonee Valley at a particularly difficult time for those moving about the city. The 27th Street bridge remains closed as part of the Interstate 94 East-West reconstruction, freeway backups are common as work continues on I-94 and National Avenue is also being reconstructed. Several other southside road projects took place over the summer.

The 1929-built viaduct was abruptly closed Dec. 5 after an inspection found a floor beam with “accelerated wear.” A replacement steel beam was subsequently designed, fabricated and installed.

The southern portion has also been restriped to one travel lane in each direction between W. Pierce and W. Canal streets.

Work continues on the northern half, where the city is converting the long-unused movable bascule bridge into a fixed span while preserving the historic structure’s appearance. The broader rehabilitation is now expected to continue into December, months later than a once-announced October completion.

– Jeramey Jannene, August 24 2:22 pm

Wy’east Pizza Remains Closed After Storm [Short Take]

Washington Heights staple Wy’east Pizza remains closed after a tree fell on the business, 5601 W. Vliet St., during a storm on Aug. 18.

But the business isn’t launching a fundraiser to reopen, at least not yet.

“We have insurance and are waiting to hear what we need and what will be covered,” said the business in a social media post Sunday. “We appreciate offers of fundraising, but we would like to wait and get all the information first. We feel loved, thank you.”

Wy’east opened in a one-story, suburban-style building in 2016. The property is owned by the business.

– Jeramey Jannene, August 24 12:39 pm

Rep. Tom Tiffany, who is running for Wisconsin governor, speaks before President Donald Trump arrives at a roundtable event Friday, June 5, 2026, in Chippewa Falls, Wis. Angela Major/WPR

Republican candidate for governor Tom Tiffany said Thursday he doesn’t support President Donald Trump renaming Lake Ontario as a trade war intensifies with Wisconsin’s biggest trading partner.

Trump signed an executive order that directs the Interior Secretary and Board on Geographic Names to update the lake’s name to “Lake America.”

At a Thursday campaign event in Green Bay, the GOP congressman and Trump-backed candidate for Wisconsin’s governor told reporters that the names of the Great Lakes should remain unchanged.

“I believe the Great Lakes are the Great Lakes and should stay Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, Lake Ontario — I mean, unless you’re suggesting we name Lake Michigan, Lake Wisconsin,” Tiffany joked.

Tiffany’s remarks come as a new Marquette poll shows Democrat and Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley leading Tiffany by five points among likely voters. However, Crowley’s advantage shrinks when polling all registered voters. Tiffany shares close ties with Trump, who has record low approval ratings.

Trump had been considering the name change as trade talks collapsed and the U.S. imposed 50 percent tariffs on $20 billion worth of Canadian goods over the weekend. On Tuesday, Canada responded with about $20 billion in retaliatory tariffs on U.S. imports that take effect on Sept. 8. They target steel and aluminum, agricultural equipment, pulp and paper, plastics and electronics among other items.

“If this is the issue that gives Congressman Tom Tiffany the courage to stand up to Donald Trump, then he does not have what it takes to lead our state forward,” Crowley said, adding the new round of tariffs would result in retaliation and pain for Wisconsin farming communities.

Canada is the top market for exports of Wisconsin agricultural products, totaling $1.38 billion in 2025, which was down nearly 5 percent from 2024 as the Trump administration has imposed tariffs.

Last year, Wisconsin exported roughly $7.5 billion worth of goods to Canada while importing $5.7 billion, according to the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation. The nation was the largest purchaser of Wisconsin paper products last year, accounting for more than two thirds of $762.9 million in exports.

Gov. Tony Evers blasted Trump and Republicans in a statement this week over the tariffs.

“Time and time again, President Trump and Republicans are causing costs to go up and making life even harder for ranchers, farmers and producers across America, including here in America’s Dairyland,” Evers said Monday.

Evers is also a member of the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Governors & Premiers, which works to protect the Great Lakes and the region’s nearly $9.3 trillion economy. He made light of Trump’s order renaming Lake Ontario in a social media post Thursday.

Canadian officials have dismissed Trump’s renaming bid, including Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. In a social media post on X, he noted the Indigenous origins of Lake Ontario that predates the Confederation of Canada and Declaration of Independence.

“Canadians also know that naming reality means calling it Lake Ontario — then, now and always,” Carney wrote.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford echoed that sentiment, saying it’s Lake Ontario “now and forever.”

Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson is chair of the board for the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Cities Initiative, a group representing mayors and Indigenous leaders in the region. Under the name change, he noted the acronym for the Great Lakes would change from “HOMES” to “SHAME.” He said the president is “screwing” Great Lakes states by imposing tariffs on Canada.

“We should be still negotiating with the Canadians,” Johnson said. “Certainly, a huge trading partner for us in the state of Wisconsin, and for other Midwestern states, Great Lakes states. We should be trying to make this work, not trying to twist the knife or trying to further aggravate.”

Sheboygan Mayor Ryan Sorenson, the group’s past board chair, said he hopes U.S. and Canadian leaders can focus on hammering out a trade deal.

“I think the nonsense of changing names of lakes that no one’s asking for isn’t productive. It just comes across as very petty,” Sorenson said. “To not figure this out, especially with our neighboring country to the north of us, is hurting folks right here in our neck of the woods.”

The nonprofit Midwest Economic Policy Institute and the Project for Middle Class Renewal at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign released a report in July on the effects of tariffs in the Midwest. The report found tariffs imposed by the Trump administration last year raised average household costs by more than $2,000 in the Midwest and $1,500 in Wisconsin.

The report also found tariffs reduced Wisconsin’s manufacturing employment by 6,100 jobs.

Tiffany splits with Trump on renaming Lake Ontario amid growing trade tensions was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

A skin rash is observed on a patient’s abdomen 3-days after the onset of a measles infection. The image was captured at New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center in 1958. Photo by Heinz F. Eichenwald, MD /CDC Public Health Image Library.

The measles outbreak in southwest Wisconsin is continuing to grow.

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services said today it confirmed 22 additional cases this week.

State data show there are now 98 reported cases in Grant, Iowa and Lafayette counties. Those data include six cases listed as probable. All but three are in Iowa and Lafayette counties.

All but one of the reported cases are in people who are unvaccinated.

Most of those affected are children.

The number of cases has grown quickly since the first two were reported by DHS on Aug. 11. But state officials have said the illness has been concentrated in communities with low vaccination rates.

DHS says transmission of the highly contagious virus has been in people connected with previously identified cases.

The department said the increasing number of people infected does not “necessarily indicate an increase in exposure risk to the broader public.”

Measles is highly contagious and can be spread through the air. The virus can even stay in the air for hours after a sick person coughs or sneezes. The disease can cause serious health complications including pneumonia and brain damage, and can be deadly.

The outbreak comes as new data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed Wisconsin had low measles vaccination rates for kindergarten students. An estimated 85.1 percent of kindergarten students in Wisconsin had MMR vaccine coverage during the 2025-2026 school year, according to the CDC data.

Measles outbreak grows to 98 cases in Wisconsin was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

Photo taken on Sep 4, 2020 by Mariiana Tzotcheva

Silk is temporarily closing one of its two downtown strip clubs, blaming persistent violence in the surrounding Water Street entertainment district.

Silk on Water is closed.

It continues to operates another downtown club just 0.7 miles away on N. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr., a location it has historically positioned as a more upscale establishment.

The closure also comes while the building that houses Silk on Water, 144 E. Juneau Ave., remains on the market.

Silk announced Friday night in a press release that it was closing the Juneau Avenue establishment “effective immediately,” saying shootings, gun violence and other public safety problems have made it unwilling to continue putting employees and customers at risk.

“This is a decision we never wanted to make, but there comes a point when you have to put people ahead of business,” the company said. “Our employees matter. Our customers matter. Their safety comes before revenue.”

The company said it intends for the closure to be temporary and plans to reassess the situation in early November.

Silk’s announcement places responsibility for the closure squarely on conditions outside the club.

“We can control what happens inside our establishment and immediately around our property. We cannot control what happens several doors down, across the street or as our employees and customers walk to their cars,” the company said.

The Water Street and Old World Third Street nightlife districts have been the site of repeated shootings and other late-night incidents in recent years, prompting additional police deployments and a series of proposals from city officials and nearby property owners.

Silk continues to operate Silk Exotic at 730 N. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr., approximately 0.7 miles from the Juneau Avenue club. The King Drive location has historically been positioned as a higher-end club.

Silk also operates Silk Platinum at 11400 W. Silver Spring Rd. and a Middleton location.

The press release does not mention any of the other clubs.

The King Drive club opened in 2018 following years of controversy and litigation involving the City of Milwaukee, Silk Exotic and other prospective strip club operators. Its eventual approval coincided with the settlement of several lawsuits after a lengthy period in which city officials repeatedly rejected proposals for new downtown adult entertainment establishments.

Meanwhile, the 1,760-square-foot building occupied by Silk on Water has been offered for sale since at least 2025.

The property was initially listed for just under $1.2 million. It is owned by Lyle Messinger, the former owner of Art’s Performing Center, which previously operated in the building. It is now listed for $875,000.

When Urban Milwaukee reported on the listing in July 2025, a Silk representative said the business itself was not part of the property sale, had a long-term lease and intended to continue operating as usual.

Silk took over the longtime strip club property in 2019. The building, constructed in 1890, has housed adult entertainment businesses for more than half a century, including Art’s Performing Center and Grand Prix Lounge.

In announcing the closure, Silk did not cite the building sale, its lease or any other business issue as contributing to the decision.

At the same time, another Water Street property owner is making an investment specifically aimed at addressing the public safety problems Silk cites.

Real estate investor Kendall Breunig has purchased the four-story building at 1207 N. Water St., formerly home to Duke’s on Water and Varsity.

Breunig is making a portion of the former Duke’s space available to the Milwaukee Police Department for a new round-the-clock presence in the entertainment district.

According to a city occupancy permit, MPD is leasing approximately 1,150 square feet of the building for a “24/7” operation. The permit does not disclose precisely how the department intends to use the space.

Duke’s closed in May after approximately two decades in the space. The neighboring Varsity bar, formerly known as Scooter’s, also closed. MPD will occupy only the former Duke’s portion, with the opening connecting it to Varsity to be closed off. The upper floors of the building contain 18 apartments.

Breunig has been involved in discussions about Water Street safety through his role as a board member at the Milwaukee School of Engineering, which owns multiple properties on the east side of Water Street directly across from the bar district.

The new police presence would give MPD a permanent foothold in an area where officers are already deployed in greater numbers on busy nights.

Silk, meanwhile, is calling for Milwaukee officials, police, property owners and neighboring businesses to develop “immediate, measurable steps” to improve safety. Its suggestions include a more visible police presence during nightlife hours, coordinated security efforts, youth outreach and stronger enforcement against illegal guns and disorder.

“This is not about pointing fingers,” Silk said. “It is about recognizing that what we are doing today is not enough. We need solutions, accountability and measurable improvement.”

Finding a lasting strategy for controlling late-night violence in the district has proven difficult.

Earlier this year, downtown Ald. Robert Bauman proposed studying the creation of a controlled security perimeter around portions of Water Street and Old World Third Street. The concept could potentially include fencing, controlled access points and weapons screening similar to measures used in Memphis’ Beale Street entertainment district.

The Milwaukee Police Department expressed interest in studying the concept, but the Common Council sent the proposal back to committee in May after Bauman said he wanted other downtown stakeholders to publicly take a position on it. No subsequent action has been taken.

The city has for years closed Water Street to vehicles on busy nights and increased the number of police officers present through its Code RED, or Responsible Entertainment Districts, program. It has also reduced nearby parking availability and restricted scooter use.

City officials have discussed stricter enforcement of the city’s youth curfew, but police raised concerns about the amount of time officers would spend transporting juveniles from Water Street to the department’s District One station on the west side of Downtown.

The Common Council also attempted to prohibit food trucks from operating Downtown after 10 p.m., a measure intended in part to discourage crowds from lingering after bars close. The restriction remains blocked by a court injunction. A hearing is scheduled for Sept. 2.

Silk said even substantial private security at its own establishment cannot address problems occurring throughout the larger district.

“No individual business can solve a public safety problem that extends throughout an entertainment district,” the company said.

The club said it will consider what actions the city and law enforcement take when deciding whether to reopen in November.

“We want to reopen,” Silk said. “We want our employees back at work. We want to welcome our customers back through our doors. But we need to be confident that reopening is the responsible thing to do.”

Silk’s clubs have not all uniform ownership stemming from the 2018 settlements over opening a new downtown strip club. According to its license, Silk on Water operates under manager Craig Ploetz, with Scott Krahn as agent and Kyle Zubke as director of operations. The license notes that Sow Properties, LLC, with Zubke as registered agent, has 100% ownership of the business.

Midtown Commons. Rendering by Gorman & Co.

An environmental cleanup loan fund controlled by the Redevelopment Authority of the City of Milwaukee will be used to help close a financial hole in the development of 200 units of affordable housing atop a former Walmart parking lot. It comes in addition to a city subsidy through a tax incremental financing district.

A $1 million loan from the Brownfield Cleanup Revolving Loan Fund will allow Gorman & Company and development partner One Five Olive to remove an underground storage tank installed for the long-demolished Capitol Court mall, haul away contaminated soil and install a vapor mitigation system and soil cap.

The RACM board unanimously approved the loan at its Aug. 20 meeting.

“The main environmental concern with this site is that there was an underground storage tank,” said RACM senior environmental project engineer Tory Kress during a presentation to the board.

The Midtown Commons development calls for two 100-unit affordable apartment buildings on 6.31 acres of parking lot at 5825 W. Hope Ave., immediately north of the vacant former Walmart store at Midtown Center.

The site has a long commercial history. Kress said it was first developed in 1937, with the Capitol Court shopping center constructed in 1955. The mall was eventually demolished as part of a redevelopment that included construction of the Walmart, which opened in 2002 and closed in 2016.

The underground storage tank was located along N. 60th Street, where the first apartment building is planned.

Despite the newly identified environmental work, Gorman Wisconsin market president Ted Matkom said the development itself has not been redesigned.

“We did not change anything,” Matkom said.

Construction is expected to begin by the end of August, he said.

The cleanup assistance adds another layer of public financing to a project already receiving substantial government support.

The city approved a tax incremental financing subsidy in July for what was then projected as a $61.1 million development. The financing package could provide the developer with up to $3.95 million over as many as 20 years.

Unlike an upfront city grant, the TIF assistance functions as an effective property tax rebate. The developer would receive payments from the incremental property tax revenue generated by the project.

A primary financing source for Midtown Commons is low-income housing tax credits from the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority.

Gorman previously secured tax credits for the first 100-unit building. The developer intends to construct a second, virtually identical building as a second phase.

Each building is planned with 25 one-bedroom, 40 two-bedroom and 35 three-bedroom apartments. The development would also include community and fitness rooms, on-site property management and a social service office.

The brownfield loan carries a 5% interest rate, with Gorman guaranteeing the interest-only payments. The arrangement is expected to continue for approximately 15 years while the development pays off a deferred developer fee.

“We want to pay off the loan,” Matkom told the RACM board.

Any principal remaining at the conclusion of the loan’s 20-year term would be due as a balloon payment. Such a structure is common for the cleanup loans.

The fund has received $17.4 million from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency since 2002, with another $500,000 expected in October, and has executed 28 loans, she said. Several additional loans are currently under development but have not yet closed, creating what Kress described as a “balancing act” in managing the available funds.

Projects supported by the program have leveraged approximately $929 million in development and resulted in the cleanup of 298 acres, according to Kress.

Midtown Commons is part of a broader effort to redevelop the former Walmart property and reactivate Midtown Center.

Affordable Family Storage is pursuing a redevelopment of the former big-box store that would include approximately 108,000 square feet of indoor self-storage. The city would receive a long-term lease for approximately 51,000 square feet at the front of the building for $1, providing space for a replacement Capitol Library and another community-serving tenant.

The City Plan Commission approved that proposal in July after Affordable Family Storage dropped a controversial plan for a 19,000-square-foot computing facility, derided as a “data center.”

The housing development represents the first residential construction within the Midtown Center complex.

Gorman’s involvement emerged after city officials rejected an earlier proposal to convert the former Walmart almost entirely into self-storage. Area Ald. Mark Chambers, Jr. and Department of City Development officials pushed for a broader redevelopment that would add housing and other community uses to the struggling shopping center.

Gorman is partnering with One Five Olive on the development.

Photos and Site Plan

Unloading of the Federal Champlain. Photo by Jack Fennimore.

On Saturday, the Trump administration rolled out a 50 percent tariff on many Canadian imports after failed trade talks.

These latest tariffs cover a range of Canadian goods including dairy and paper products and alcoholic beverages. And they are in addition to existing tariffs on Canadian steel, aluminum, auto parts and lumber.

Tuesday, Canada announced retaliatory tariffs of between 15 and 50 percent on about 700 U.S. products that will go into effect right after Labor Day.

Chris Wojtowicz is an international trade consultant with the Wisconsin Small Business Development Center and chair of the Wisconsin District Export Council. He spoke with WPR’s “Wisconsin Today” about how the impact of this trade war is being felt in Wisconsin.

The following interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.

Rob Ferrett: It’s been a roller coaster. “Hey, it looks like we have a deal. We don’t have a deal.” American tariffs on Canadian stuff. Now Canadian tariffs on American stuff. What have you been hearing from Wisconsin businesses you work with over these last few days? Chris Wojtowicz: When costs go up at the border, small businesses feel it — their purchasing departments — long before a consumer notices it. But it’s the uncertainty that is often worse than the tariff itself.

RF: I was looking at charts of where Wisconsin exports stuff to and imports stuff from. Canada is a pretty big trading partner. How big a deal is our connection with our neighbors to the north?

CW: Around 28 percent of the state’s goods are exported to Canada. That’s roughly $7.5 billion. It puts Canada at no. 1 as our most important trade partner.

RF: What kinds of things are we sending north to Canada? What kind of products are making up a lot of that $7.5 billion? 

CW: We have major paper and packaging. We’re a manufacturing state, so all the good, cool stuff manufactured here. Furniture and wood products. And, of course, dairy. All of that goes north.

RF: Supply chain-wise, we’re not just selling stuff to Canada. We’re importing things. Some of that we’re selling directly to consumers. Some of it manufacturers might be using, like aluminum and other products. How big is the import side of things? How much do Wisconsin businesses rely on that? 

CW: That’s where it really takes the hit. One of the major exports out of Canada that we import is lumber and wood. And that’s going to affect home builders, cabinet makers, furniture and packaging companies.

I look at myself. We’re remodeling our kitchen, and the last thing I want to do is go down to the lumber store now and pay 50 percent more potentially for a two-by-four. So that is going to have its impact on our contractors.

RF: What do you recommend large or small businesses do to prepare as the price of key ingredients for their work might be going up? 

CW: I think that the small businesses shouldn’t navigate any of these trade changes alone. They should have a really good partner in that with a customs broker, a logistics provider or a trade advisor. Evaluate your options. Develop a contingency plan. I understand not everybody makes a two-by-four, but there are other suppliers of wood and wood products, and dairy products and (other) inputs into your manufactured products.

When you have these big companies out there — like Harley Davidson or Kohler or Milwaukee Tool — they have staff on hand that helps them through with navigating these murky waters. But small businesses do not, so they have to rely on communication with their customers — can they forward these expenses, how they’re going to recover. A lot of times, that shows up in not being able to hire additional help or to improve their own businesses, upgrade tools or things of that nature. So it’s really difficult for the small businesses.

RF: The president and supporters of tariffs say, “Yeah, this might be rocky in the short run. The goal here is to develop more production in America.” So, if I’m a distiller and I’m looking at these tariffs on Canadian beverages, well, maybe I should start making a Canadian whiskey. Do you see opportunities for Wisconsin businesses? 

CW: That’s really great that you bring that up because not every impact is negative. Wisconsin companies that compete directly with Canadian suppliers may gain that market share, especially if those Canadian imports become more expensive. So now we flip the tables. Domestic lumber mills, domestic wood product manufacturers, some paper producers could see increased demand — but that’s just a gamble.

Analysts expect some U.S. producers to benefit from trade protections. I do have Wisconsin small business stories of companies that have actually benefited from the tariffs. That’s kind of hard to believe, but they’ve benefited and they’ve increased their market share.

If I were a company, I would look at this as an opportunity. I would do what I could to take that market share and maintain that market share. It’s not that I made a better Canadian whiskey, but maybe I made a Wisconsin whiskey and promote that.

Wisconsin businesses brace for impact as trade war with Canada heats up was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

Volunteers clean thousands of chairs at the Baird Center in preparation for the Jehovah’s Witness convention on Aug. 28-30. Organizers say they see the Baird Center as a place of worship during the event and want to leave it better than they found it. Elissa Eaton/WPR

With thousands of people expected to arrive in Milwaukee this weekend for an international Jehovah’s Witness convention, an army of volunteers has been busy cleaning up around the Baird Center downtown.

Wearing blue vests and lanyards, they’ve spent days pressure washing the streets and picking up trash before moving on to prepare the venue itself.

Tyrell Whiting is the spokesperson for the Jehovah’s Witness international convention. He said they are expecting over 21,000 people, including 5,000 international guests, for the event that runs through Sunday.

Inside the Baird Center, volunteers cleaned thousands of chairs and precisely spaced them into rows. Whiting said cleaning is an important part of the preparation.

“Jehovah’s Witnesses view the Baird Center as a place of worship while we are here, so whatever we can do to dignify the space and the event is worth the effort,” he said. “We want to leave it in better condition than we found it.”

The last time Milwaukee hosted this convention was in 1978. Tyrell said the city was capable of handling an event at this scale.

“Jehovah’s Witnesses will select a handful of cities around the world to host these very special conventions, and Milwaukee was one of two locations selected this year in the United States,” Whiting said. “We felt like it was a city that offers a welcoming environment for the thousands of international visitors.”

There are about 9.2 million members of the Jehovah’s Witness religion worldwide, 1.25 million being from the United States. Theo Vande Casteele traveled to the United States from France for the event.

“It’s pretty special to see that unity, and to see that in the city is pretty special. I guess it’s not really common for the local people, so it’s really nice to see their reaction too,” he said.

Bethel Breeden is from northern Illinois — she came to help prepare the Baird although she doesn’t plan to attend the convention. She said she has volunteered in other countries for Jehovah’s Witness conventions.

“I know how it’s affected my life, it made me a better person,” Breeden said. “Maybe we don’t speak the same verbal language or visual language, but the language of the truth, the language of serving Jehovah is the same.”

Erinn Christon is a volunteer and Jehovah’s Witness member from Milwaukee. She said there are kingdom halls, the name for places of worship and study in the religion, concentrated in Milwaukee and Madison, but they are few and far between in the rest of the state. She said she was surprised when she found out that the event was going to be hosted in her city.

“We’re right by Chicago, which is much bigger and I think more well known to the world,” she said. “But here in Milwaukee, it’s nice because it is smaller, and I think it’s easier to navigate just as a first timer here.”

Christon said that the event has given her more appreciation for her hometown.

“I think just being home is a different feeling than being somewhere else,” she said. “It really is emotional because people from all over the world get to really love your home.”

Over 21K people expected to be in Milwaukee for international Jehovah’s Witness convention  was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

Bikers and runners on the Oak Leaf Trail. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

Milwaukee County Parks is planning to regulate the use of increasingly powerful electronic bikes (e-bikes) on the Oak Leaf Trail.

As electronic motor technology advances and prices fall, a growing number of e-bikes on the market have more in common with motorcycles or mopeds than they do with a traditional bicycle. It’s creating problems for the county parks department, as some trail users are operating electric bicycles and motorcycles at high rates of speed or recklessly, according to a new report by Deputy Director James Tarantino.

Under Wisconsin law, there are three classes of e-bikes based on the level of assistance the rider receives from an electric motor. The fastest e-bike, a Class 3, provides assistance to the rider up to 28 mph. Above that, bikes become out-of-class electric vehicle (OCEV). Some actually meet the standard of e-motos, which are essentially motor vehicles that should be properly licensed. What’s more, Parks has found that many e-motos used in the parks system are driven by young people who who don’t have any training, or licensing, for vehicle operation.

Nationwide, the rate of emergency room visits for e-bike and e-scooter injuries among teenagers has increased 650%, according to research by Truveta, a health data and analytics company. That increase translates to a growing number of traumatic brain injuries and neck and head injuries from electric bike and scooter accidents. While injuries with these devices are increasing among the general population, the rate of growth among teenagers and young adults is far outpacing older age groups.

While e-bikes have “revolutionized accessibility”  and provided new opportunities for transportation and mobility, they have also “pushed the limits of regulation in terms of safe operating speed, the appropriate qualifications and training of users, and where these devices can operate,” according to the report.

The solution: a speed limit.

Parks is seeking a change to county ordinances governing the use of motor vehicles in county parks and the regulation of bicycle riders. Specifically, it wants a 15 mph speed limit on the Oak Leaf Trail and park pathways, which is the speed limit the state uses for the Hank Aaron State Trail. Rentable electric scooters are limited to that speed by state law. Motor vehicles already can’t be driven on the trail network, so e-motos are already prohibited.

That doesn’t mean Parks is planning to set up speed traps at the bottom of hills to catch speeding cyclists. Rather, the department plans to deploy its limited resources to congested areas of the trail network, where crashes and conflicts are most likely to occur.

An example in the report is the section of trail running through the South Shore Terrace beer garden in South Shore Park. Parks would post lower speed limits signs there. In general, enforcement would only occur where speed limits are posted. The department has rangers who enforce county ordinances.

The Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors will consider the ordinance changes in September.

Two The Hop streetcars pass each on E. St. Paul Ave. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

Milwaukee’s streetcar will return to its standard two-line configuration next week, ending a summer configuration that sent every streetcar to the lakefront.

The most notable impact is to eliminate a delay for northbound riders from the Historic Third Ward and Milwaukee Intermodal Station who are going to Wisconsin Avenue or points north by eliminating the use of the lakefront spur. But riders attempting to get to the stops along the lakefront spur will now need to pay attention to which streetcar they board.

The Hop will resume separate M-Line and L-Line service on Tuesday, Sept. 1, following the conclusion of Milwaukee’s summer festival season.

Since June 15, the streetcar has operated as the temporary Festival, or F, Line, combining its two routes so every streetcar stopped at the lakefront station inside The Couture. The seasonal configuration was intended to make the system easier for festivalgoers traveling to Henry Maier Festival Park to navigate.

The M-Line will operate between Milwaukee Intermodal Station and Burns Commons on its 2.1-mile route through downtown, the Historic Third Ward and East Town. It does not serve the lakefront.

The L-Line will connect the Historic Third Ward and central downtown area with the lakefront extension, which opened for passenger service in 2024.

Passengers can transfer between the two routes at five shared stations: Wisconsin Avenue northbound, City Hall northbound, City Hall southbound, Wisconsin Avenue southbound and Historic Third Ward eastbound.

Streetcars are marked with the route they are serving, and riders headed to or from the lakefront will need to use an L-Line vehicle or transfer between the two routes.

The seasonal F-Line configuration eliminated that distinction. A rider could board any streetcar and eventually reach the lakefront, but the arrangement also added approximately 10 minutes to northbound M-Line trips because every vehicle was routed through the 0.4-mile lakefront loop.

The change back comes as The Hop is recording higher ridership than it did a year ago.

Automated passenger counters recorded 301,634 trips through July, already surpassing the 301,170 rides recorded during all of 2021.

The system recorded 65,382 rides in July, up from 60,413 during the same month in 2025 and 63,373 in July 2024.

The Hop recorded 494,557 rides for all of 2025, down from 532,460 in 2024. Its busiest year remains 2019, its first full calendar year of operation, when the streetcar recorded 760,321 rides.

The return of the separate routes also restores the operating pattern envisioned when the lakefront extension opened.

Under normal service, two vehicles operate on the M-Line, while an additional vehicle operates on the L-Line. The L-Line uses portions of the existing tracks on N. Broadway and N. Milwaukee Street before traveling east to the lakefront, but does not extend to either Burns Commons or the Intermodal Station.

The L-Line has experienced operational challenges since opening, including issues involving track switches used to move streetcars between routes. Before the summer-long F-Line configuration began, The Hop had periodically substituted F-Line service for the L-Line because of digging near a portion of the track.

Riders can use the TransLoc app to see the real-time location of streetcars and determine which route an approaching vehicle is serving.

The Hop remains free to ride.

The 2026 city budget calls for The Hop to cost $6.5 million to operate. That expense is to be offset by $2.7 million in revenue, including $833,300 from a Potawatomi Casino Hotel sponsorship agreement and $1.8 million in federal grants. The remaining cost is to be offset by revenue from the city’s parking operations.

The Hop’s M Line (blue) and L Line (yellow). Image from The Hop.

The sun shines through leaves in the Medford City Park on Friday Oct. 6, 2023, in Medford, Wis. Angela Major/WPR

Scientists say the strengthening El Niño is likely to be the largest ever recorded, increasing the chances of a warmer fall and winter in Wisconsin.

This week, scientists announced they measured the highest ocean temperatures on record, those temperatures driven by a strong El Niño developing in the tropical Pacific along with decades of global warming.

El Niño is a warming that occurs in the equatorial Pacific Ocean, and a very strong or super El Niño occurs when the ocean is 2 degrees Celsius — 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit — warmer than usual.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is predicting a greater than 90 percent chance of a “very strong” El Niño during the fall and winter.

While it may not seem significant, the effects of warming can ripple far beyond the tropical Pacific, said Dan Vimont, a professor of atmospheric and oceanic sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison who studies the climate pattern.

“This is likely to be the largest El Niño event in recorded history,” Vimont said. “In the tropical Pacific, this is an enormous event, and that definitely weights the dice here in Wisconsin.”

Vimont said strong El Niño events tend to mean warmer winters in Wisconsin, but it’s not yet clear how it will play out this year. Typically, the effects are strongest in the winter while it’s been more of a mixed bag during fall, said Bridgette Mason, assistant state climatologist with the Wisconsin State Climatology Office.

“It’s been a mix of slightly warmer and slightly cooler than average during these events, and so there’s not a very strong signal for fall temperatures looking back at past El Niño events,” Mason said.

Wisconsin previously saw strong El Niño events in the falls of 1982, 1997 and 2015. The state had cooler-than-normal weather in 1982 and 1987, but temperatures were up to 4.5 degrees warmer than normal in 2015. Meanwhile, it was over 2 inches wetter than normal in 1982 and 2015, but drier than normal in 1997.

Even so, NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center slightly favors above normal temperatures with equal chances for above or below normal rainfall in Wisconsin over the next three months. Mason said it’s not the only factor that can influence seasonal outlooks or day-to-day weather, and El Nino’s effects typically aren’t felt until later in the fall.

“It’s a little bit unprecedented how strong and early this El Niño event is happening, so it could be a little bit of a surprise for for what actually comes,” she said.

Plants and grass are dead or drying out in northwestern Wisconsin, and some leaves are beginning to turn near Lake Nebagamon in Douglas County. The area is experiencing extreme drought. Danielle Kaeding/WPR

Warmer than normal fall wouldn’t help ease drought conditions

If it remains warmer than normal through fall, Mason said that doesn’t bode well for improving drought conditions in Wisconsin. The latest report from the U.S Drought Monitor shows most of the state is abnormally dry and more than 42 percent is experiencing severe drought. This month, extreme drought returned to Wisconsin for the first time in two years and now affects eight northwestern Wisconsin counties.

The Hayward area typically sees an average of about 11 inches of rain from June to date, but it’s about four inches below normal. The same is true for the Ashland area, said Josh Sandstrom, meteorologist with the National Weather Service Office in Duluth.

“Northwest Wisconsin, at least at the beginning of the summer, we had some places getting around average rainfall, but it’s been really in the past month or so that it’s kind of flatlined for a lot of places,” Sandstrom said. “We just have not seen a lot of rain.”

Much of northern and central Wisconsin has seen roughly half to 75 percent of their normal rainfall since May 1, said Mason. Northwestern and north central Wisconsin would need 15 to 16 inches of rain to end drought conditions this fall, which is almost double their normal rainfall for the season.

West central and northeastern Wisconsin would also need about three inches more rain than normal. Jerry Clark is a regional crops and soils educator for Chippewa, Dunn and Eau Claire counties with the Division of Extension at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He said corn for silage was harvested about two to three weeks earlier than normal in some areas because plants were dead or drying up.

“I think for corn and soybeans especially, we’re probably going to be down, maybe looking at a drought-stressed crop versus maybe a normal crop,” Clark said. “It looks like that is down about a third from what might be normal.”

He said the size of soybeans are going to be small compared to normal and ears of corn aren’t quite filled out, noting areas with sandier soils have been more affected. Lower yields on drought-stressed fields means there won’t be as much grain to sell for feed for cows and cattle, and farmers may have to dip into their stored inventory.

However, warmer temperatures may extend the boating season for some. Drought conditions could disrupt that with lower water levels on lakes and reservoirs, which has prompted some utilities to adjust operations at their hydroelectric facilities.

Mason added that the combination of drought conditions and a strong El Niño may also play a role in leaves changing their colors earlier and falling faster than normal this fall.

Strong El Niño may bring greater chances of warmer fall and winter in Wisconsin was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

Cristy Garcia-Thomas. Photo provided.

The Greater Milwaukee Committee has selected Cristy Garcia-Thomas as its permanent president and CEO, ending the uncertainty over the influential civic organization’s leadership following former president Joel Brennan’s unsuccessful run for governor.

The GMC board of directors announced Garcia-Thomas’s appointment Friday morning. She has led the organization on an interim basis for the past eight months.

Garcia-Thomas took over in December after Brennan stepped away to launch his campaign for the Democratic nomination for governor. At the time, Brennan’s departure left open the possibility that he could return to the organization after the campaign.

He won’t.

“As the Board considered the organization’s future, one priority remained clear: identifying the leader best positioned to build on the GMC’s momentum and lead our work in the years ahead,” said GMC board chair Dave Anderson in a statement.

“We appreciate the leadership and dedication that Joel brought to the organization,” Anderson said. “We also look forward to Cristy continuing to build on the momentum created over the past eight months reinforcing the GMC’s role as a trusted convener focused on improving the economic vitality and quality of life throughout the Milwaukee region.”

Brennan, who had led the GMC since late 2021, finished with 4.7% of the vote in the crowded Aug. 11 Democratic gubernatorial primary. Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley narrowly won the nomination.

Brennan has not announced what he intends to do next. Before leading the GMC, he served as secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Administration under Gov. Tony Evers, one of the most powerful positions in state government. One source suggested to Urban Milwaukee that Brennan could be a candidate for a state government position should Crowley win the November general election.

Garcia-Thomas, meanwhile, enters the permanent position with a long record of executive and civic leadership in Milwaukee.

She previously held senior leadership roles at Advocate Health and its predecessor organizations, served as president and CEO of the United Performing Arts Fund and worked as a publishing executive at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Garcia-Thomas said her initial priorities as permanent CEO would include listening to members and partners and strengthening relationships inside and outside the organization.

“Transformational leadership begins with a clear vision, but it succeeds through collaboration,” she said. “It means bringing people together around common purpose, embracing innovation, making difficult decisions when necessary, and creating lasting impact that extends well beyond any one leader or organization.”

“My goal is to help position Milwaukee not only to respond to change, but to lead it,” Garcia-Thomas said.

The Greater Milwaukee Committee, a nonprofit civic organization whose membership includes many of the region’s leading business, nonprofit, education and philanthropic executives, intends to maintain its focus on four broad areas: fiscal strength, education, infrastructure and public safety.

A 501(c)(3) organization, its 2024 tax filing shows revenue of $1.61 million, almost all of which came from members. Brennan was paid $364,000 that year.

Garcia-Thomas was on the 2021 selection committee that recommended hiring Brennan.

The group has historically sought to use its connections and influence of its membership to convene leaders around major Milwaukee-area challenges and advance initiatives that cross public- and private-sector boundaries.

Garcia-Thomas said that approach would continue.

“I am excited to work alongside our members and partners to strengthen our economy, expand opportunity, and ensure that our region continues to be a place where businesses thrive, families succeed, and future generations choose to build their lives,” she said. “Together, we have an opportunity not only to address today’s challenges, but to define what Milwaukee can become over the next generation.”

Construction equipment can be seen in the background of pipes staged for Enbridge’s Line 5 reroute in Iron County on June 28, 2026. Danielle Kaeding/WPR

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is asking Enbridge to halt work on its Line 5 reroute in response to a gas leak that began Tuesday.

The DNR sent an Aug. 27 letter to Enbridge officials that highlights frustration among state regulators over the lack of details that have been released regarding the gas leak that occurred Tuesday on Enbridge’s Line 5 in Iron County.

Enbridge has said a parked, unoccupied semi truck rolled into an open excavation site on a Line 5 valve project Tuesday morning, striking the pipe and releasing natural gas liquids. The company has said crews continue to work with local emergency response teams to stabilize the site. No one was injured, and a nearby home was evacuated as a precaution. Line 5 remains shut down as the response continues.

In the letter, DNR Secretary Karen Hyun said the agency is “deeply concerned” by the spill and “immensely frustrated” by other events where the company has failed to comply with state regulations.

“The department requests that you halt work on the pipeline re-routing project until this event on the existing pipeline is sufficiently resolved and Enbridge has demonstrated that measures are in place to prevent future spill events related to all pipeline work,” Hyun wrote.

An Enbridge spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The DNR also asked Enbridge to address more than 20 questions regarding the leak that include the estimates of the volume and the worst-case release of propane and butane vapors during the spill, as well as the company’s estimated timeline for implementing measures to control the release. Late Wednesday, Enbridge said in a statement that it anticipated returning the pipeline to service between Aug. 31 and Sept. 5.

WPR previously reported the leak remains ongoing.

“The people of Wisconsin expect Enbridge to be transparent and accountable, and so do we,” said Gov. Tony Evers in a statement. “We’re exceedingly concerned about the recent events involving Enbridge, and it’s important that we receive answers expeditiously to our questions so we can ensure this situation is being taken seriously.”

The DNR is also seeking the results of air modeling that’s being performed and what substances are included in air monitoring data that’s being collected by Enbridge’s consultant and local authorities. The DNR is collaborating with the Wisconsin Department of Health Services to assess potential impacts to public health.

WPR previously reported that air monitoring conducted by the Ashland Fire Department’s haz-mat team on Wednesday found no hazardous levels or flammable gas within a one-mile radius of the incident. The team used a five-gas meter to detect levels of oxygen, combustible gases, carbon monoxide, hydrogen sulfide and volatile organic compounds.

Air monitoring is ongoing. The Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa advised residents that levels remain below harmful levels, but an odor like gasoline may be present south and west of the site over the next several days due to shifts in the weather.

The DNR is seeking meteorological details of the vapor plume and odors present along with details on groundwater depth at the site, as well as when monitoring wells may be installed.

Regulators also want any information on the evacuation radius and details shared with the federal Pipeline Hazardous Materials Safety Administration and other federal agencies. An investigator from PHMSA has been deployed to investigate the incident.

The letter states that Wisconsin tribes and the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission have also raised questions and concerns about the spill near Saxon, as well as other incidents that have occurred over the past several weeks and months.

The DNR sought information on how Enbridge plans to maintain communication with tribal nations and GLIFWC throughout the response, and the agency urged the company to maintain “frequent and ongoing” communication with local officials.

Enbridge’s Line 5 carries up to 23 million gallons of crude oil and natural gas liquids daily.

Construction of Enbridge’s $1 billion reroute of Line 5 has been ongoing. The company is building a new 41-mile stretch around the Bad River tribe’s reservation in Ashland and Iron counties. The 30-inch pipeline runs 645 miles from Superior through northern Wisconsin and Michigan to Sarnia, Ontario.

At least four releases of drilling fluid, or frac-outs, have occurred on the Line 5 project, ranging from roughly 5 gallons to up to 1,900 gallons spilled in late June. A DNR spokesperson said the agency has issued four notices of non-compliance on the project, all of which have been resolved.

In 2019, the Bad River tribe sued Enbridge to shut down and remove Line 5 from the reservation after pipeline easements expired on a dozen parcels of tribal land. Three years ago, a federal judge found the company was trespassing and ordered Enbridge to pay $5 million and shut down or reroute Line 5 by June of this year. The tribe and Enbridge appealed the decision, and the shutdown order was later placed on hold.

Earlier this month, a federal appeals panel ruled that Enbridge has been trespassing and must remove the pipeline from the Bad River reservation, but it gave the company more time to complete the Line 5 reroute.

Wisconsin DNR asks Enbridge to halt work on Line 5 reroute amid gas leak was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden and Rebecca Cooke. Angela Major/WPR and Hope Kirwan/WPR

As artificial intelligence makes it easy to generate realistic-looking depictions of just about anyone, these tools are creeping into campaigns, too.

In Wisconsin, a recent example can be found on the campaign social media of U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Prairie du Chien, who is running a competitive reelection bid.

In the weeks since the Democratic primary affirmed that his opponent will be Rebecca Cooke, Van Orden has criticized her for receiving support from national Democratic groups. He has described her as being “anointed” by an elite establishment based in Washington, D.C.

And with the help of Grok, the AI companion built into X, formerly Twitter, he recently created and published a video of a red-headed and freckled young woman — strongly resembling Cooke — ordering “peasants” to vote for her.

“I am the Anointed One. You will comply and you will vote for me,” the synthetic figure says. “That is an order from your D.C. masters.”

While Wisconsin has a law in place, passed with bipartisan support and signed in 2024, that requires campaign advertisements to disclose if they use AI-generated content, there’s no such restriction on social media content.

That would be hard to regulate with the wide protections given to political speech, said Peter Loge, who directs the School of Media and Public Affairs at the George Washington University, and its Project on Ethics and Political Communication.

But Loge says that, while AI-generated “deep fakes” is new, the art of lying about a political opponent may be as old as democracy itself.

“AI makes it easier to create fake videos and fake audio, and it makes it easier to spread those than ever before,” he said.

But “the issue isn’t whether or not they’re AI-generated or deep fakes,” he added. “It’s that the Republican incumbent is making stuff up about his Democratic challenger, and regardless of the technology, you shouldn’t make stuff up about your challenger.”

The race for Van Orden’s seat is the most competitive Congressional race in Wisconsin, and in the crosshairs of national Democrats looking to flip Republicans’ narrow majority in the U.S. House.

In a statement, the Van Orden campaign pointed out that the video has a disclaimer about being AI-generated directly below it. The video is intended as satire, said campaign spokesperson Grace Kim.

“Democrats seem to be awfully upset that the Congressman is satirizing things that are grounded in reality,” Kim said. “Rebecca Cooke has spent three campaign cycles lying to voters about who she is, so it’s pretty rich to see her suddenly outraged over this obviously AI-generated joke about her own record.”

In a statement, Cooke said she’d advocate for stricter regulations on using AI-generated content in elections, such as the Protect Elections from Deceptive AI bill, which would ban the distributions of videos just like the Van Orden clip.

“This sort of slop is what frustrates people on both sides of the aisle. It’s nasty mudslinging and character defamation,” Cooke said. “Deception like this should be illegal.  But unfortunately, Congress hasn’t passed any laws to help that stand up in court. We need leaders in Congress to put guardrails on this technology to protect our communities.”

Legal vs. appropriate

Loge argued that those kinds of regulations are harder to enact than it may seem. How can lawmakers decide how much AI is too much? Instead, he said, voters should demand a higher and more informative level of civil discourse, regardless of legality.

“Whether that thing’s legal doesn’t mean it’s always appropriate, right?” he said. “You could dress up in a bunny suit and stand across the street from an elementary school yelling slander about Santa Claus. That’s probably legal, but you really shouldn’t do it.”

Voters should be hearing about the candidates’ records, he said, and where they stand on the issues of the day: immigration, tariffs, education, farm policy.

The risk of using deep fakes to score points, he added, is that it trains voters not to trust anything they see.

“We’ve always been skeptical. We should be skeptical. But if nobody believes politics, politics goes away,” he said. “If we believe that everything could be a lie, we then believe that things that are true could be lies.”

A national debate

States across the country are grappling with how to keep deep fakes from deceiving or confusing voters in the face of this growing technology. Twenty-eight states, including Wisconsin, have disclosure laws about AI-generated content, and three have some kind of ban on political deep fakes, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

And some states, including Wisconsin, have separate laws — long predating the advent of common AI tools — that bar impersonating public officials.

But candidates nationwide are using these tools anyway. In Tennessee, which has a disclosure law, two Republicans in a recent congressional primary used AI to attack one another. One candidate portrayed the other cavorting with drag queens and Nancy Pelosi. The other portrayed his opponent driving a campaign bus into a swamp. According to local reporting, the use of AI was not disclosed in the ads.

In Kentucky, which also has a disclosure law, national PACs created ads in a Republican congressional primary, each accusing the other of being too liberal. One of the Republicans was depicted holding hands with left-wing U.S. Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar. The other was depicted as running away from a rally for President Donald Trump. According to local reporting, the use of AI was not disclosed in the ads.

But in Oregon, a similar situation is seen as a test case for their disclosure laws. There, the Secretary of State is investigating a former Republican candidate for Congress, whose failed campaign included AI videos posted to social media.

Video in competitive congressional race spotlights challenge of regulating AI-generated political content was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

Lincoln Avenue in the Lincoln Village. Photo by Urban Milwaukee staff.

Business and commercial property owners on a key southside street are voting to tax themselves to improve their neighborhood.

A new business improvement district, or BID, is proposed for Lincoln Avenue.

The Lincoln Village BID would run from S. 5th Street near Interstate 43/94 west to W. Forest Home Avenue and S. 25th Street.

The BID would effectively provide resources to the all-volunteer Lincoln Village Business Association.

“We have had a lot of concerns with Lincoln Avenue as far as beautification, safety and many other things. We’ve seen it come up and down. It hit its breaking point, I want to say, two years ago, and the amount of work we have put in has shown a lot of changes lately,” said Maribel Franco, association president and owner of Hideout Lash Room at 1130 W. Lincoln Ave., to the City Plan Commission on Aug. 17.

“I feel like we have plateaued with what we can do with all-volunteer work and no money,” said Don Rambadt, an association member, area resident and artist.

The funding would be used to expand existing beautification efforts, which Rambadt said include 54 planters.

If approved by the Common Council, the district would have a $57,424 operating budget in its first year. Commercial property owners would pay a minimum of $300 and a maximum of $1,200 annually.

An additional property tax of $2 per $1,000 of assessed value would be levied on commercial and manufacturing properties. A property would need to be assessed at $150,000 to reach the minimum and $600,000 to reach the maximum. Residential and tax-exempt properties would not be taxed.

“We have seen many other districts have their BIDs go very well,” said Franco. Rambadt said the BID would also bring businesses together fairly.

The district has the support of John Rozga, the fourth generation of Rozga Funeral & Cremation Services at 703 W. Lincoln Ave. “I have never seen such an enthusiastic, such an energetic, such a capable group of people that I feel safe investing my BID money in,” he said.

Pastor Bob Cook, head of the Basilica of St. Josaphat at 2333 S. 6th St., said the church strongly supports the district’s creation. The church would be exempt from paying into the BID, but Cook said the district would improve the neighborhood’s image and the church’s role as a tourist destination.

An operating plan calls for $18,000 to be spent on safety, including a part-time ambassador or patrols.

A total of $16,000 is earmarked for administration and coordination, with $9,250 for beautification, $5,000 for marketing, $2,500 for a website and $3,000 for events.

Franco said the BID would support two new events that have proven successful: LincolnFest and a winter market.

The plan commission unanimously endorsed its creation.

The Common Council must still approve the district. But state law provides a 30-day period from the date of the plan commission hearing for property owners to object to its creation. The BID cannot be formed if 40% of property owners, by value, in the district file a petition in opposition.

According to the city’s online legislative records, only Steven Arenzon, owner of Wisconsin Knitwear at 1111 W. Lincoln Ave., has filed a letter in opposition.

If approved, Mayor Cavalier Johnson would need to appoint up to 11 members to the BID’s governing board.

BIDs work closely with the Commercial Corridor Team within the Department of City Development on their operation and must file an annual operating plan with the Common Council.

The city has 31 active BIDs. Many are small, like Lincoln Village, but a handful have full-time staff and multi-million-dollar budgets, including Milwaukee Downtown, Business Improvement District #21, and Historic Third Ward – Business Improvement District #2.

The district could quickly find itself needing to use its organizing power. Milwaukee Public Schools must determine what it will do with the Lincoln Avenue Elementary School property at 1817 W. Lincoln Ave. after the school was destroyed by a fire in July.

UPDATE: The name of Wisconsin Knitwear has been updated to correct a typo.

2025 Riverwest Cat Tour. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

Hopefully you’re hanging in there and still enjoying summer, because even though it’s almost September, there’s still plenty of summer fun to be had in Milwaukee. And while there aren’t any major street festivals or fairs to check out this weekend, there’s still much to see and do.

LuLu Cafe is celebrating 25 years of business and is hosting a block party that will feature food, drinks and live music. SWANS will bring a unique art and musical performance to Veterans Park, and Black Husky Brewing will showcase kittens up for adoption and help raise funds for Cats at Large.

August 29: Riverwest Cat Tour

Black Husky Brewing is hosting the Riverwest Cat Tour, an event that will bring kittens to the normally dog-themed brewery. Guests can meet adoptable kittens while sipping on craft beer and learning about fundraising and donation opportunities for Cats at Large, an organization that focuses on managing Milwaukee’s outdoor cat population. The event will also feature DJ sets, brats, raffles and more. The tour will start at 2 p.m. but the event organizers recommend showing up at 1 p.m.

August 28-29: ‘Graceful Warrior’ at Skylight Music Theatre

Inspired by Gary Sinise’s son McCanna’s battle with cancer, “Graceful Warrior” is an orchestral performance that will feature members of the Milwaukee Jazz Orchestra, singers from Skylight Music Theatre and members of Sinise’s Lt. Dan Band. The show will use personal stories and accompanying video elements to help tell the story, and the performance will be guided by narration from Sinise himself. Proceeds from this concert will benefit Skylight Music Theatre. Tickets are $45 and can be purchased on the Skylight Music Theatre website.

August 29: LuLu’s 25th Anniversary Street Festival

Lulu Cafe & Bar is celebrating 25 years of being a Bay View staple with a block party. The festival will feature food and drinks,family-friendly activities and live entertainment starting at noon. WMSE 91.7 FM will kick off the party with its Boogie Bang program followed by local acts like Sleepersound and The Wisconsin Space Program. The festival is free to attend and will run until 9 p.m.

August 29: 414BigFrank at The Rave

The Garage on Brady Street recently went viral for its (now rescinded) policy on playing music by local rappers. It was a reminder that we need to be supporting our local artists as much as possible, and Milwaukee will have a chance to do just that by catching 414BigFrank at The Rave. The popular Milwaukee rapper will make an appearance as part of his Takeover Tour. Tickets range from $26.75 to $53 and can be purchased on The Rave’s website. The show will begin at 8 p.m.

August 30: Out There Presents: SWANS

As part of the Out There music series, composer Lia Kohl and visual artist Jess Bass are teaming up for SWANS, an outdoor musical and art performance show. The show will take place at Veterans Park and dancers and musicians will climb aboard swan boats, navigating the lagoon in choreographed patterns. The show will feature dancers and musicians from both Chicago and Milwaukee. SWANS is free to attend and will begin at 2 p.m.

August 30: The 4th Annual Wildflowers on the Water

Lakeshore State Park is hosting the fourth annual Wildflowers on the Water, an event that aims to help support the preservation efforts of the Friends of Lakeshore State Park. This family-friendly event will feature live music, sound bowl healing exercises, goat yoga and more. Wildflowers on the Water is free to attend and will run from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Popeyes at 2399 W. North Ave.. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

Love that chicken from… Indiana?

Aby Groups, an Indiana-based fast-food franchisee, is the new owner of nine Milwaukee-area Popeyes restaurants.

The company is purchasing the locations from Amin Dhanani‘s Texas-based Dhanani Group.

Occupancy permit requests reveal the company acquired all eight restaurants in Milwaukee and the lone suburban location in Wauwatosa.

Fast-growing Aby is led by Aby Mohamed. Prior news coverage pegs the company as owning 34 restaurants in 2022, 56 in 2024 and 68 in 2025, with a goal to reach 100 by the end of 2026. The company also owns Checkers restaurants and Circle K stores.

Aby owns locations in Michigan, Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin. The company owns Popeyes restaurants in Madison, Beloit and Kenosha. The franchisee is also developing a new restaurant in Menomonee Falls.

The franchisee, according to city assessment records, does not own the underlying real estate in most locations. Of the eight city locations, two are owned by an affiliate of Dhanani. According to city assessment records, five are owned by Milwaukee-based John Brodersen‘s Brodersen Management Corp. Brodersen once owned dozens of Popeyes and Wendy’s restaurants, but sold most of the locations, including all of them in Milwaukee. The eighth property is owned by California-based Benerjee Properties. Brodersen owned all eight properties until 2021.

Originally called Chicken on the Run, Popeyes was founded in 1972 by Al Copeland in Louisiana. The company, which operates more than 5,400 locations worldwide, is known for its crispy, New Orleans-style fried chicken sandwiches.

Dhanani bills itself as having a “growing presence in casual and fine dining” and one of the nation’s top quick-service research franchisees on its websites, but it now finds itself shrinking. The company reports owning 824 restaurants, including 152 Popeyes. The vast majority of its Popeyes holdings are reported to be in Texas.

A representative of Aby did not respond to a request for comment.

Milwaukee locations

• 4209 W. Greenfield Ave.
• 6120 W. Silver Spring Dr.
• 7525 W. Good Hope Rd.
• 2910 W. Capitol Dr.
• 2399 W. North Ave.
• 207 E. Capitol Dr.
• 7458 W. Appleton Ave.
• 1567 W. National Ave.

Land purchased by Microsoft in Kenosha for a data center project is seen here on Aug. 26, 2026. Evan Casey/WPR

Some Kenosha area residents are pushing for local officials to pause a proposed Microsoft data center development there.

In early 2025, Microsoft announced the company had purchased around 240 acres in Kenosha for a data center development. The property is around eight miles southwest of the tech company’s data center campus in Mount Pleasant.

At the time of the sale, Kenosha Mayor David Bogdala called the plan a “transformative moment” for the city.

“This groundbreaking investment solidifies Kenosha’s position as a hub for innovation and economic growth,” Bogdala said in a statement at the time.

But few details have been shared about the project since that sale was announced. A “Data Center FAQs” webpage on the city website said the tech company still needs to finish a “site plan process before building permits proceed.”

Residents have shown up to city meetings to speak out against the project, raising environmental and noise concerns, along with worries about energy and water demand. Some are calling for city officials to follow the lead of other Wisconsin communities and pass a data center moratorium to pause the project.

“I think this should be done by referendum,” said Howard Gussis, a town of Paris resident. “This should not be jammed down our throats.”

Kenoshans Unite Against Microsoft Data Center is leading the charge against the project.

“Lack of transparency is one of the biggest issues for a lot of us,” said Sage Holloway, a member of the group. “I feel like there is a world where the residents of Kenosha who oppose this data center could have enough information to feel confident moving forward, and we just don’t feel that way.”

The FAQ webpage said the city and the company signed a non-disclosure agreement in May of 2024. According to the city, the company terminated the NDA on June 22, 2026.

In a Tuesday email, Daniel Gaitan, a spokesperson for the city, said Mayor Bogdala had no comment.

“At this time, there are no new developments to share regarding the proposed Microsoft data center project, and the mayor does not have a comment at this time,” Gaitan said.

Holloway, a resident of Kenosha, said she understands it would be difficult to stop the development from moving forward.

“A moratorium is a little bit more feasible and would just give us time as a community to understand all of the effects of the data center,” Holloway said. “Potentially, even give us time to get a referendum on the ballot for November.”

A Microsoft data center in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin appears in a June 2026 photo. Photo courtesy of Microsoft

Gussis and his wife, Lesley Brown, own Woofman’s Lodge Pet Resort, which is near the planned development. Gussis said he’s not against development in the area, but he is against a data center going up there.

“A data center is not a fit for that area,” Gussis said at the council meeting.

He said he’s also worried about noise pollution.

“Everyone’s talked about the pollution, the energy, water — we all know about that,” he said. “My concern really is the constant noise.”

Microsoft recently announced its data center facility in Mount Pleasant, known as “Fairwater,” is now operational in neighboring Racine County. The company was sued in July due to noise complaints from residents who live near that site. Some people who live near the development have also complained about construction noise and dust, light pollution, traffic and a changing rural landscape.

Brown, who said she believes the project is being “pushed through” in Kenosha, also called for a moratorium.

“What’s the rush?” Brown asked.

Jacqueline Semm of Kenosha is also pushing for a moratorium. She said there are too many unknowns around how many people could work at the site and the water usage.

“We do not want Kenosha to become another caution story for Wisconsin,” Semm said during a city meeting. “Kenosha County should not be Microsoft’s guinea pig. I urge this council to listen to the people who live here, protect our resources, and pass a moratorium to shut this project down.”

Other communities across the state have passed moratoriums on data center construction, including Madison and Superior. In June, the Dane County Board of Supervisors approved a “temporary halt on permits for hyperscale data centers in unincorporated areas of the county,” according to a county statement. The Manitowoc County Board also passed a similar measure in the spring. 

In a Tuesday email, a Microsoft spokesperson said the company purchased the land in Kenosha, “for the purpose of datacenter development.”

“We’re fully committed to advancing and operating datacenters responsibly, in a way that strengthens local communities and generates economic opportunity for the area,” the spokesperson said. “We’ll be sure to share more information with the community as soon as we have a development plan for this site.”

The city’s FAQ webpage says the project “would increase the city’s tax base, as well as the tax base of other taxing jurisdictions, including Kenosha County, the Paris and Westosha school districts and Gateway Technical College.”

Bogdala’s statement after the sale was announced mentioned “job creation to strengthening our local economy,” as other positive opportunities for the area.

“We are honored to work with Microsoft and look forward to future opportunities to collaborate, including joint research initiatives, talent development programs, and community engagement activities,” Bogdala wrote that that time.

Kenosha area residents push for data center moratorium to pause proposed Microsoft development  was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

School lockers. Photo by Phil Roeder (CC BY 2.0)

A Racine Unified school board member — and candidate for the state assembly — is facing a formal complaint after attacking his opponent and other women online using a derogatory and profane slur.

Kelly Gallaher, chair of the Democratic Party of Racine County, filed a complaint Wednesday with the Racine Unified School District, requesting immediate censure proceedings against Mike Bellagio.

In a Facebook post on Monday, Bellagio, acting online under the name Mike Vincent, referred to Gallaher, State Rep. Angelina Cruz, D-Racine and local reporters Denise Lockwood and Heather Asiyanbi using a slang phrase with an acronym that spells out a profane slur for women

He called Gallaher the “ring leader” of the most vile women in the county, referring to her as a “vile lady” who “should be imprisoned for her tactics.”

“These five women are responsible for the fake local news, pushing the commie agenda and rallying the unemployed for their bogus protests with false narratives,” Bellagio wrote.

“They are whats wrong with the country. They attack and defame good people, while pushing the whack job candidates the push anti American agendas.”

He did not say who the fifth “vile woman” is.

Bellagio did not respond to multiple requests for comment from WPR.

Mike Bellagio. Photo courtesy of Racine Unified School District

Gallaher is asking the RUSD Board of Education to place a formal resolution of censure against Bellagio on the next agenda and hold a roll-call vote to officially “condemn his misogynistic and defamatory statements.”

She would also like the board to remove Bellagio from his position as board clerk and any committee assignments or district representation roles.

“The school board would not put up with behavior like this from a student,” Gallaher said in an interview with WPR. “I don’t see why they put up with it from him.”

In an email to WPR, board president Jane Barbian said she was disappointed to see Bellagio’s post on social media. But she said he wrote it as a private citizen.

“It certainly does not reflect the thoughts or opinions of the other board members,” Barbian wrote. “In no way had he indicated in his post that he is, or is acting as a board member. In my opinion, this is a matter of free speech as an individual citizen.”

Barbian continued that as an elected official, Bellagio’s constituents must determine if they find his comments inappropriate.

Bellagio was re-elected to the school board April 2025, after serving a one-year term.

He is challenging Cruz as a Republican for her Assembly seat in November.

According to state campaign finance records, Bellagio had not raised any money as of Aug. 8.

In an interview with WPR, Cruz said she is not familiar with Bellagio or what his platform is.

“I am doing the work of knocking on doors and connecting with people in the community over issues that they’re really struggling with right now,” Cruz said. “People want to know that they have a representative that is committed to strong public schools, lowering property taxes and dealing with issues related to affordability. That is what I’m focused on right now.”

This is not the first time Bellagio and Gallaher have been at odds.

In August 2025, the Democratic Party of Racine County alleged Bellagio mocked protesters, including retired teachers, during weekly party events. Gallaher said Bellagio also called protesters “pathetic,” “uneducated,” and “fools,” in a social media post.

Bellagio did not respond to requests for comment from WPR about the alleged incidents.

But in in August 2025 he wrote a two-page written response to a complaint filed by Gallaher at that time about his online response to local protests.

He blamed Gallaher for “propagating divisive rhetoric” in Racine.

“I am not a politician, just a dad compelled to advocate for the injustices and rhetoric being pushed,” he wrote. “It is regrettable that the administrator off the Racine County Democratic Party’s Facebook Page appears to be engage in practices that undermine transparency, potentially fostering unwarranted anger, fear and apprehension among their audience.”

Complaint filed against Racine school board member, state Assembly candidate following profane post against women was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

Urban Milwaukee skyline image

Urban Milwaukee is looking for a highly motivated reporter to join our growing news team.

The full-time position entails writing articles, contacting sources, checking public documents, and being part of a growing independent publication that champions Milwaukee.

This position is for someone who wants to learn all aspects of online news, has strong writing skills, and is passionate about journalism. The position will grow and evolve based on the individual’s strengths and the publication’s growth.

The ideal candidate is someone who brings a new dynamic to our team, has a desire to learn, is excited about covering the city and can move quickly.

Duties and responsibilities:

The primary job responsibility is writing articles on small businesses in the city of Milwaukee, particularly bars and restaurants, but it could include stories about arts groups and breaking news. As we are a small staff versatility is important.

Additional functions include:

• Attending press conferences and other “in the field” work, such as conducting interviews, taking photos, and developing sources;
• Supporting our publisher in the assembly and formatting of articles and press releases for publication;
• Supporting our paid membership program by interacting with readers online and in person;
• Using data skills and data resources to bring depth and clarity to the content produced.

Qualifications:

• Excellent writing, editing, and verbal communication skills;
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in journalism, English, communications, or a related field preferred;
• Highly organized and detail-oriented with an ability to effectively juggle multiple tasks;
• Familiarity with WordPress or another content management system is a positive but not a requirement; and
• Ability to speak a second language, such as Spanish, is a plus but not a requirement.

To apply:

Send a cover letter, résumé, and clips for review to jeramey@urbanmilwaukee.com with the subject line “Urban Milwaukee Job Opening.”

Some great candidates may not check all the boxes for this role. If you’re a dedicated worker who’s interested in journalism, but don’t have all the skills listed here, please still reach out and tell us more about what you bring to the table.

This full-time job includes benefits (401k with match, health insurance stipend) and is based in Urban Milwaukee’s downtown Milwaukee office. A hybrid work arrangement is available.

Details on salary will be shared with serious candidates.

Grocery store aisle. Photo by Sophie Bolich.

A former Aldi grocery store on Milwaukee’s northwest side has a new owner as plans remain pending to restore a full-service grocery store to the property.

Aldi Inc. sold the property at 5301 N. Hopkins St. for $1.05 million to a limited liability company controlled by Anup ‘Andy’ Khullar, according to state real estate records posted Aug. 25.

Khullar owns several Milwaukee area gas stations and convenience stores, often under the “Andy’s” name.

The sale comes a little more than a month after Urban Milwaukee reported that Gurdev Singh, co-owner of Galst Food Market, was pursuing plans to open Hopkins Grocery in the vacant building.

Singh submitted license and occupancy permit applications in July for a full-service grocery store selling fruits, vegetables, meat, fish, dairy and frozen foods. The proposed business would also sell cigarettes, tobacco products and liquor.

An opening was targeted for September, according to the application.

The Aldi store closed Jan. 11 after operating for approximately two decades at the site. The chain said the closure was part of “a strategic effort to better allocate resources.”

The closure drew concern from area Alderwoman Andrea Pratt, who said at the time that losing the store would make groceries and other necessities harder to obtain, particularly for residents without vehicles.

City officials have responded with several efforts aimed at preserving and expanding food access, including a grant program and legislation declaring “food apartheid” a public health and economic emergency.

Khullar, meanwhile, is already involved in the redevelopment of another former large-format retailer in northwest Milwaukee.

An ownership group involving Khullar acquired the former Walmart property at 10330 W. Silver Spring Dr. in 2025. Plans for that 17-acre property call for a mixed-use redevelopment that includes Restaurant Depot, an indoor adventure park and potentially a grocery store, gas station and apartments.

The Hopkins Street property, built in 2006, occupies approximately 2.7 acres in the Old North Milwaukee neighborhood.

Singh’s license application remains subject to city approval.

Facebook. Photo by Anthony Quintano. (CC BY 2.0)

Wisconsin expects to get hundreds of millions of dollars from a recently announced settlement with the company that owns Instagram and Facebook.

That’s after multiple states sued, accusing Meta of harming kids’ mental health. Among other allegations, the lawsuit contended that Meta designed its apps to be addictive to children, and that it hid known risks from parents and the public.

In all, the states that sued will receive up to $17 billion over 10 years. For its share, Wisconsin will get at least $219 million, and could receive up to $313 million, according to Wisconsin’s Department of Justice.

The total payout is one of the largest consumer protection settlements ever reached between states and a single company — second only to settlements with tobacco companies, Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul said.

“What I’m going to be doing is everything I can to put these funds toward keeping kids safe in Wisconsin,” Kaul told reporters on Wednesday.

The proposed settlement says that at least 50 percent of Wisconsin’s payout must go to promoting youth mental health and to addressing harms caused by social media. It also says that allocating Wisconsin’s share is under the “sole discretion of the (state) Attorney General.”

The multi-state agreement gives several examples of what states can spend the money on, including:

• Youth mental health programing

• Support the hiring of digital literacy counselors or implementing phone-free school zones
• Crisis intervention services, specifically the expansion and operation of the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline and text-based youth crisis lines
• After school or summer programs, such as sports, literacy, dance and other activities
• Public health advertising

Facebook and Instagram users are supposed to be at least 13 years old, but many young kids get around those restrictions. As part of the agreement Meta has promised to impose stronger age verification measures.

For users between 13 and 17, the company has also agreed to make changes including disabling “cosmetic surgery and extreme makeup filters,” commonly referred to as beauty filters. For those young users, Meta says most notifications will be muted by default during school hours and that there will be a mandatory daily limit of two hours, for Instagram and Facebook combined. That time cap can only be turned off with a parent’s permission, according to Meta.

“The goal of that is to help interrupt what my kids would refer to as doomscrolling,” Kaul said, adding that Meta has agreed to make many of the changes within six months.

“Ensuring teens have a safe and productive experience on our platforms is an absolute imperative for Meta,” the company said in a statement on Wednesday. “We want to get this right for parents and teens, and that’s why we partnered with state attorneys general to set a new industry standard.”

The agreement is pending approval by a federal judge. It involves 47 states, the District of Colombia and several U.S. territories.

During a news conference Wednesday, Kaul urged other social media companies to adopt the changes underlined in Meta’s settlement.

“They are on notice,” Kaul said. “They are going to be held accountable for the conduct they’re engaging in.”

Wisconsin to get more than $200M from settlement with Meta was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

Vogel Park playground. Photo taken July 30, 2024 by Graham Kilmer.

Supervisor Shawn Rolland is advocating a slate of projects in the upcoming budget he believes would materially improve residents’ quality of life.

The list, which totals approximately $13 million, includes funding for playgrounds, splash pads, safety barriers for bus drivers and repairs to parking lots, county roadways and walking paths.

The Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors will begin vetting County Executive David Crowley‘s recommended budget in October. But on Wednesday, the county’s ad hoc Capital Improvements Committee gave its stamp of approval to Rolland’s proposal for the county’s infrastructure projects.

Rolland found the money for his proposal by shifting money out of projects that would fix unseen infrastructure that wouldn’t directly impact county residents’ day-to-day lives. The delayed projects include a $12.9 million new service yard and building for Washington Park, nearly $1 million for new irrigation at the Whitnall Golf Course and $2.4 million to rebuild the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office Academy parking lot.

“What people often say to me is they wonder where their tax money goes, because we’re often fixing a lot of things that are like back-of-the-house problems, like laptops and HVAC systems and electrical equipment and all the stuff that they can’t see,” Rolland said. “This [proposal] would invest money where people live their lives in our parks, on our buses, in our senior centers that our families use every day.”

A particular focus of the proposal is playground replacement. Rolland’s pushing new playgrounds for Jacobus Park, Zablocki Park, Cudahy Park, Greene Park, Mitchell Boulevard Park, Noyes Park, Hales Corners Park, Maitland Park and the Park Manor playground on the Menomonee River Parkway.

The capital budget is part of the larger county budget. Crowley is expected to release a budget proposal which would raise the county’s propery tax levy and make cuts to county services and spending in order to close a projected $50.8 million budget gap.

The Capital Improvements Committee is composed of supervisors, administration officials and elected leaders. It independently vets the county’s annual infrastructure spending and makes a recommendation to the county executive ahead of budget deliberations.

Milwaukee County Parks has a long list of playgrounds it would like to replace over the next five years. The seven parks identified are at the top of the list, said Jim Tarantino, deputy parks director.

In Hales Corners Park, the playground would be replaced with a sprayground, which incorporates water features like a splash pad. The park’s pool closed in 2020 and has never reopened. It’s on a list of pools parks is targeting for eventual removal due to budget shortages.

Along with the sprayground, the list includes funding to resurface playgrounds and splash pads, and to build a new splash pad at the Underwood Wil-O-Way facility, which serves children with disabilities. There’s funding for tennis and pickleball courts in Brown Deer Park and court improvements in LaFollette Park.

The steel arch bridge in Lake Park would receive funding for repairs. Clinton Rose Senior Center would see HVAC improvements. The Root River Parkway between W. Oklahoma Avenue and W. Morgan Avenue would be repaired. The primary building at the Milwaukee County Zoo would receive a new air conditioning system. The Milwaukee County Jail would receive funding for life-detection sensors. MCTS’s newer Gillig buses would have driver protection barriers installed.

Rolland’s proposal received near-unanimous backing from the ad hoc committee, but Milwaukee County Comptroller Liz Sumner voted against the move after asking questions about the process for selecting the projects. The committee typically reviews projects one at a time for elimination or removal from the recommendation to the county executive, whereas Rolland’s proposal came as an amendment to the committee’s final recommendation.

The proposal received support from supervisors Sky Capriolo and Steve Taylor, who serve on the committee. Taylor is the chair.

“We know how important our parks are to everyone who lives in Milwaukee County, and these investments focus on tangible improvements that increase access, safety, and enjoyment in parks across the County,” Capriolo said in a statement after the committee voted. “With special attention to our playgrounds, we’re emphasizing the importance of families and area youth to us all.”

Whether Crowley includes the amendment in his final recommendation remains to be seen. But Rolland reportedly coordinated his amendment with administration officials and department heads, and Crowley’s budget director, Nick Sinram, backed the proposal at the meeting Wednesday.

Site of Clarion Hotel, 6331 S. 13th St. Photo taken April 16, 2023 by Sophie Bolich.

A long-shuttered hotel near Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport has a new owner, potentially clearing the way for the 152-room property to finally reopen.

Windson Hotel MKE LLC purchased the former Clarion hotel, 6331 S. 13th St., from Grinnell State Bank for $1.784 million on Aug. 17, according to state real estate transfer records.

The sale follows years of financial and legal problems surrounding the hotel, which has been closed since 2023.

Windson lists Dhruvkumar Patel as its registered agent. It is not yet clear what Patel intends to do with the property or whether a hotel reopening is imminent. No building permits have been requested.

But the transaction gives the property something it has lacked for years: an owner that isn’t entangled in a bankruptcy proceeding or foreclosure battle.

The property was previously owned by Baba Nanak Hospitality Group Corp., led by Hardeep Arora and Parmeet Arora. The couple purchased the hotel and approximately five-acre property for $3.3 million in 2021.

Their financial troubles ultimately resulted in two bankruptcy cases and a foreclosure action by Grinnell State Bank.

Baba Nanak filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection in 2024. After a court-appointed trustee moved to abandon the Milwaukee hotel and another property in Oshkosh from the bankruptcy estate, foreclosure proceedings were allowed to resume.

But in October 2025, Baba Nanak made another attempt to halt the process by filing for Chapter 11 protection.

“This filing is curious,” wrote bankruptcy judge Rachel M. Blise at the time, questioning whether the company was attempting to use two separate bankruptcy cases to address the same debts.

That second effort didn’t last long.

In December 2025, Blise dismissed the Chapter 11 case. In her ruling, the judge found that Hardeep knowingly lied about the insurance status of the Milwaukee hotel, which was a condition of remaining in bankruptcy. In 2017, he was found guilty of two counts of felony insurance fraud. In 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor sanctioned him for failing to comply with subpoenas.

Both hotel bankruptcy cases were subsequently closed by early 2026, removing the bankruptcy barriers that had complicated the foreclosure process.

Grinnell State Bank had been owed approximately $3.4 million on its mortgage, according to court filings. The City of Milwaukee was also owed approximately $470,000 in unpaid property taxes, while other creditors included former employees with unpaid wage judgments and state and federal taxing authorities. The property tax balance was paid on March 30, according to city records.

The bank ultimately took control of the property before selling it to Windson.

The $1.784 million purchase price is substantially below both what Baba Nanak paid in 2021 and the property’s assessed value. City assessment records value the property at approximately $3.6 million. It had most recently been marketed for $4 million.

The Aroras also filed for bankruptcy related to gas stations it owns in Fond du Lac, Greenville and Appleton.

Restaurant Plans Come And Go

Although hotel guests haven’t occupied the building for approximately three years, the property hasn’t been entirely dormant.

Cafe 94 India Fusion opened in the hotel’s restaurant space in 2023 as part of GGI Real Estate Group’s effort to revive the property.

At the time, the restaurant’s opening was supposed to coincide with a reopening of the hotel under GGI’s management. The restaurant opened, but the hotel never did.

The arrangement later deteriorated into claims and counterclaims between GGI and Baba Nanak, including an eviction case filed against the restaurant operator.

Cafe 94 continued operating while the hotel remained closed, but the eviction case was dismissed in February. The restaurant has since relocated to Cudahy.

Meanwhile, the Arora family pursued plans for another restaurant, Tandoori Tikka & Tap, in the same space. A license application filed late last year called for the restaurant to operate daily and serve a mix of Indian and American food, along with alcohol. Parmeet Arora was listed as the operator. Tandoori Tikka never opened.

That leaves Windson with an empty hotel and restaurant complex, but also a property designed to accommodate significantly more activity than it has seen in recent years.

Built in 1967, the three-story hotel contains 152 rooms along with a restaurant, ballroom, indoor pool and hundreds of parking spaces. It sits just south of W. College Avenue along Interstate 43/94, approximately three miles southwest of Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport.

The hotel has cycled through a number of brands and owners during the past two decades. Since 2007, it has operated under the Radisson, Ramada Plaza Airport Milwaukee, Days Inn & Suites, GrandStay Hotel & Suites and Clarion names.

Photos

A home on 3rd Street is sunken into the ground after being damaged by a tornado Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026, in Menasha, Wis. Angela Major/WPR

Gov. Tony Evers has formally requested a disaster declaration from President Donald Trump in response to a tornado that ripped through the Fox Valley in late July, the governor’s office announced Wednesday.

The EF3 tornado was among the severe storms on July 27 that carried strong rain and hail with them, causing widespread damage across the Fox Cities area. Evers is seeking federal individual assistance for Forest, Outagamie, Vilas and Winnebago counties and public assistance for Vilas and Winnebago counties.

According to the governor’s report to the president, 2,346 residential buildings were damaged, including 84 that were destroyed, 412 with major damage, 1,331 with minor damage and 519 others affected.

The total cost of the damage to residential buildings is estimated to be more than $8.2 million, while government property suffered another $13.8 million in damage, according to preliminary assessments.

Tyler Byrnes, a senior research associate, said state and local governments generally don’t have enough money available to address those costs on their own.

“There’s not really — other than the federal government — anybody that has the kind of resources that are needed to deal with this sort of event,” he said.

The roof of a home sits on the front lawn due to tornado damage Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026, in Menasha, Wis. Angela Major/WPR

In a statement, Evers said he met with many who were affected by the storms and saw their strength and resiliency. He said the disaster highlighted that “Wisconsinites always show up for each other.”

“But we know goodwill, grit, and volunteers alone can’t fix this disaster, and we’ll need emergency disaster aid from the federal government to make it happen,” he stated. “Wisconsin has been hit especially hard by severe weather over the last few years, and we cannot afford for the federal government not to step up to the plate.”

Winnebago County Executive Gordon Hintz said the scale of destruction in Menasha, Neenah and Fox Crossing was far bigger than the capacity of those communities to respond.

A sign hangs on the exterior of a home damaged by a tornado Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026, in Menasha, Wis. Angela Major/WPR

He said disasters like this are why the Federal Emergency Management Agency exists, saying the recovery will likely be measured in years rather than months.

“When you have these natural disasters, these kinds of resources are needed to assist those individuals and hopefully help get them on their feet and in a direction to rebuild and recover,” Hintz said.

The city of Menasha had the most severe damage in the region, according to Evers’ letter to Trump. More than 660 homes were damaged there, with 140 considered unsafe and likely requiring demolition, the letter states. Nearly 240 of the damaged residential properties were rental units.

“The hardest hit area of the storm includes census tracts with a high concentration of uninsured homes,” the report to the president reads. “The large renter population within portions of the impacted area creates an additional concern.”

Menasha Mayor Austin Hammond said the impact of the storm to the city was “monumental,” destroying homes, businesses and public spaces. He said federal assistance is “paramount” to ensuring the community can rebuild in a timely manner.

“This storm really turned our community upside down in a lot of ways, just with the utter destruction that it caused,” he said. “It’s a God-given miracle that there weren’t any fatalities.”

According to the report, damaged public facilities include an elementary school in Menasha and a totaled fire station in the village of Fox Crossing.

Additionally, Menasha’s water treatment facility and high-lift pumping station remain out of service and “it’s going to take a lot of funding to rebuild that,” Hammond said.

A home in Doty Island is still damaged from a severe tornado Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026, in Menasha, Wis. Angela Major/WPR

He said an interconnection with the city of Neenah prevented Menasha residents from having to worry about accessible drinking water following the storm.

The governor’s request also highlighted the local and state recovery effort that followed the tornado.

More than 6,000 volunteers helped with the relief effort in the Fox Cities, while the Wisconsin National Guard deployed troops to assist with traffic control, debris clearance and welfare checks in Menasha, Neenah and Fox Crossing.

“People always say, ‘Look for the helpers,’ and, in this case, they were everywhere,” Hintz said. “They’re still everywhere because … there’s a lot of unmet needs that are out there, and we’re still working to try to fill those.”

The president needs to approve the governor’s request before federal aid becomes available.

Residents in the Doty Island neighborhood display signs thanking their community and workers who have helped repair damage caused by a July tornado Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026, in Menasha, Wis. Angela Major/WPR

In March, Politico reported it was three times harder for Democrat-led states to receive disaster declarations than Republican-led states under the Trump administration. But in July, the administration approved disaster relief for parts of the state affected by severe storms, tornadoes and flooding this spring.

In response to flooding last summer, FEMA approved the state’s request for assistance to affected residents, but denied a request for aid to repair public infrastructure.

Hintz said he’s had encouraging conversations with U.S. Sens. Tammy Baldwin and Ron Johnson, as well as U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman, about the need for federal disaster assistance.

“They are really going to bat,” he said. “They’ve already had some contact with the administration on this, so I’m hopeful.”

Dishes can be seen inside a kitchen cabinet of a home damaged by a tornado Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026, in Menasha, Wis. Angela Major/WPR

Gov. Evers asks Trump administration for federal disaster declaration for July tornado was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

Conceptual rendering of new courthouse and historic courthouse with new entrance on MacArthur Square.

A proposal for a new criminal courthouse in Milwaukee County, with a price tag of nearly $900 million, received its first official approval Wednesday.

The county’s ad hoc Capital Improvements Committee independently vets the government’s annual list of government infrastructure projects and provides a recommendation to the county executive ahead of budget deliberations. The committee is composed of supervisors, administration officials and local elected leaders. They recommended approval of the massive public works project, which will replace the nearly 96-year-old Safety Building, at 821 W. State St.

The Safety Building, which handles the county’s felony criminal cases, is in poor condition and was not originally designed for use as a courthouse. Confined courtrooms and a single set of shared hallways leave defendants, victims, attorneys, jurors and the public packed together and create opportunities for outbursts of violence and mistrials during the often tense criminal cases working through the Milwaukee County Circuit Court system.

“This is a generational investment, looking to build a building for 100 more years, and a building that is flexible and executes the justice system effectively and efficiently,” Jeremy Lucas, acting deputy chief of staff told the ad hoc committee Wednesday.

County officials have been discussing how to repair or replace the Safety Building for more than a decade. Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley‘s administration began planning a replacement in 2024. In 2025, the administration secured $20 million in annual state funding for the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) highway patrol, which freed up money to provide cash for the courthouse project. The plan is to continue using that offset cash to pay down the substantial debt that will be issued to build the new courthouse.

In total, it’s estimated the new building will cost approximately $897 million. Inflation has raised the price tag roughly 50% over the past decade, Aaron Hertzberg, Department of Administrative Services director, previously said. The county has already budgeted $38.6 million since 2024 and will need to borrow $857 million, according to the administration.

The county would borrow the money in chunks between 2027 and 2029, Lucas said. In total, the interest on the debt is estimated to hit approximately $621 million, bringing the project’s total cost, with principal and interest, to approximately $1.5 billion.

The first debt issuance in 2027 would be approximately $125 million, which is well over the county’s self-imposed annual borrowing limit. It’s also more than the county typically spends on its entire annual infrastructure budget in a given year. In 2026, the county budgeted about $108 million for infrastructure projects across the entire government.

Despite this, the project remains within the county’s state-imposed debt limit, and state law allows the county to raise property taxes to pay back public debt. Property tax hikes specifically for the courthouse would begin in 2028, with an estimated $20 impact on $250,000 of assessed value. The figure steadily increases until reaching a maximum of $137 in 2030, holding there until 2047, then steadily coming back down each year.

However, the property tax impact does not factor in the cash freed up by the state highway patrol funding. Those funds would help the county pay off approximately $411 million of the project cost over the life of the debt.

The administration is bringing the project to the county board for authorization in September. By the end of the month, supervisors will also receive Crowley’s recommended budget for 2027, which will need to close a $50.8 million budget gap.

Crowley needs two-thirds of the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors to support the courthouse project and the accompanying property tax increase. At the same time, supervisors will be looking at a budget with cuts to core public services and a 25% cut to the Milwaukee County Transit System as the county’s longstanding structural deficit, driven by a disastrously pricey pension system and frozen state funding, eats away at the government’s bottom line.

Safety Building

A Flock Safety automated license plate reading camera. Photo by Tony Webster, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

A push to tighten oversight of the Milwaukee Police Department’s use of a controversial license plate-reading camera system is gaining significant support on the Common Council.

Led by Alderwoman Marina Dimitrijevic, 12 of the council’s 15 members signed an Aug. 25 letter asking the Fire & Police Commission and Police Chief Jeffrey Norman to review the MPD’s use of Flock Safety license plate-reading cameras and respond to a series of proposed safeguards before the council begins deliberating the city’s 2027 budget.

The letter represents a substantial expansion of council concern. A March letter raising concerns about Flock was signed by only four members: Dimitrijevic, Common Council President José G. Pérez, Alex Brower and Sharlen Moore.

The new letter, which is more explicit in its request, includes those four and eight additional council members: Andrea Pratt, Mark Chambers, Jr., Robert Bauman, Lamont Westmoreland, Milele A. Coggs, DiAndre Jackson, JoCasta Zamarripa and Scott Spiker.

It also indicates that there may be political support — with 10 votes required under state law — to modify the police department’s use of Flock technology.

The growing scrutiny follows a series of alleged abuses involving MPD personnel and a growing national backlash against the technology.

“In March of this year, members of the Common Council raised concerns about… use of Flock Safety technology after an MPD officer was charged with misconduct,” says the new letter. It notes that a second officer, an Internal Affairs Division member assigned to investigate the first case, was charged in July and that MPD has since opened an investigation into a third officer for potential misuse of the system.

Former officer Josue Ayala was criminally charged in February after investigators alleged he repeatedly used Flock to track a romantic partner and another individual. Ayala ultimately pleaded guilty to misconduct in public office.

Then, in July, Detective Tehrangi Chapman was charged with felony misconduct in public office and misdemeanor misuse of a GPS device. Chapman was one of the investigators assigned to the Ayala case and is alleged to have improperly used Flock to track two people.

A third, more limited, investigation is underway.

The council members say the incidents expose broader concerns about a surveillance system that can track vehicle movements across a network of cameras.

“These incidents of abuse, which pose serious risks to the safety and privacy of civilians, as well as to their First and Fourth Amendment rights, are not limited to Milwaukee,” says the letter. It notes that other Wisconsin governments, including Dane County, Oshkosh and Sturgeon Bay, have severed ties with Flock.

Public perception of Flock and its potential for abuse has shifted dramatically in the past year, including among members of the Common Council. In April 2025, Dimitrijevic and Spiker supported Flock: they were part of a group of council members asking MPD to explore partnering with area business improvement districts and neighborhood associations to expand the use of the camera system.

Adding more fuel to the change in views, the cameras have become a target for vandalism.

Milwaukee has contracted with Flock since 2022. MPD currently operates 31 fixed cameras, while private businesses and other public agencies operate additional cameras. The cameras can function as a network, with users able to access data from others’ cameras.

Flock cameras photograph passing vehicles and automatically read their license plates, creating a database searchable by law enforcement.

MPD officials have defended the technology as a valuable investigative tool. In May, after the Ayala case, the department said it had reduced the number of users with access to Flock from 370 to 100 and implemented a data-driven audit system intended to flag potentially improper searches.

But the council members say they have not received an adequate response to the recommendations made in March.

“It does not appear that these concerns have been heard as no substantive changes have been made or response offered,” says the new letter. “We therefore again request that the Commission review these proposed reforms and provide recommendations relating to them.”

MPD, via a statement, said it is working to respond to the council’s concerns.

The only council members who did not sign the new letter are Ald. Larresa Taylor, Ald. Peter Burgelis and Ald. Russell W. Stamper, II.

Council Wants Data

The council members are asking MPD and the commission for substantially more information about how the system is used and shared.

Among other things, they want a list of every agency that shares automated license plate data with MPD and every agency with which MPD shares its own information. They are also seeking a complete history of searches conducted by outside agencies using MPD camera data, or by MPD personnel acting on behalf of an outside agency, including the reason provided for each search, the agency involved and the number of matches returned.

The council is also requesting a list of all system users and their searches, including timestamps, and information on whether MPD has implemented Flock’s new recommendation to retain routine license plate data for only seven days.

And the letter proposes a broader set of policy changes.

Among them are requirements for case or CAD numbers and specific justifications for every search, automated misuse detection and independent auditing, restrictions on interagency and federal access, a prohibition on use for civil immigration enforcement without a judicial warrant or other legal requirement, and regular public reporting to the Fire & Police Commission and council. The members also want immediate suspension of Flock access when there is credible evidence of intentional personal or unauthorized use.

Another proposed change would generally restrict access to department-managed devices, require multifactor authentication and log session information.

The March letter had raised many of the same issues, calling for independent auditing, better documentation of searches, real-time flagging of suspicious activity, protections against use for immigration enforcement, recurring oversight hearings and greater public reporting. It warned that the alleged misuse of Flock demonstrated “a systemic oversight gap rather than an isolated failure.”

At that time, the four council members said the technology could be used to track movements and store sensitive location data and warned that inadequate safeguards could allow it to be weaponized against domestic violence survivors, journalists, advocates and other residents.

Budget Fight Looms

The new letter gives Norman and the commission a Sept. 30 deadline to respond, explicitly tying the request to the upcoming city budget.

“This is an urgent moment, and a problem that will not correct itself,” the council members wrote.

They noted that the Common Council has the authority to make procedural changes itself, but said such changes would be better informed with input from the FPC. They said they want the response in time for the findings and recommendations to be considered during deliberations on the 2027 budget.

The council is scheduled to debate the budget in October, with final approval expected in November.

The letter also puts the future of the Flock contracts themselves on the table.

“One of the issues certain to arise in our deliberation of the budget is the manner in which these cameras have been funded in recent years,” the members wrote. “The multiple waivers granted for these contracts and future funding will be discussed.”

Council records show that MPD most recently approved a $30,000 Flock Safety contract in 2025 for 10 cameras. The contract was executed as a single-source commodity contract with a waiver, bypassing the need for council approval.

“[MPD] respects and values the concerns and positions of our elected officials. We will work with the FPC to address our Council members’ concerns and respond to the Council after we have carefully reviewed their request and can provide a factual and thoughtful response. The exchange of information, positions and ideas between MPD and our elected officials is important as we both serve the same community. MPD is committed to transparency and engaging in important dialogue such as this,” said MPD in a statement.

Amorphic Beer. Image from Amorphic Beer.

Join us for an Urban Milwaukee members-only beer bash. The 2026 edition of the free event series (RSVP required) continues on Friday, Aug. 28 at Amorphic Beer in Riverwest.

Come and enjoy a pint and chat with some of your favorite journalists and fellow Urban Milwaukee members.

Amorphic, located at 3700 N. Fratney St., opened in December 2021. A partnership of Ron Hockersmith, Alan Willhite and Joe Broeckert, the brewery focuses on “beer without shape” that is “engineered through scientific experimentation.”

Each attendee will receive one free beer. Urban Milwaukee members are welcome to bring a guest, but must claim a ticket for that guest. Capacity is limited. RSVPs are required.

The informal event begins at 5:30 p.m. in Amorphic’s taproom. The tour starts at 6:15 p.m. A representative of the brewery will explain the story behind the beer, and what makes Amorphic special.

Join us at Amorphic, as we’d love to have a locally-made craft beer with you.

And once you’ve had your fill, Double Dubs food truck will be out front selling their wings and tots.

So, RSVP today. Capacity is limited.

Not a Member, But Still Want to Come?

Urban Milwaukee offers the city’s most robust membership program, with many perks such as this one. By becoming a member, not only will you help support Urban Milwaukee’s journalism, but you’ll help us continue to grow our publication, which publishes more than 75 stories and 100 press releases per week.

This event is only one of the great perks you get by becoming an Urban Milwaukee member. Here are just a few others:

• Completely ad-free content on our website and a configurable email newsletter
• Bypass the paywall and get access to all Urban Milwaukee stories
• Free access to News Bulletins with insider scoops of interest to anyone following the Milwaukee scene.
• A chance to provide the support that assures Urban Milwaukee can continue focusing on smart, substantive news coverage rather than clickbait
• Free tickets to concerts, festivals, and other great events as they become available through our partners
• A 10% discount on all merchandise at Urban Milwaukee: The Store
• The ability to comment on articles
• A faster photo browser

We’d love to have you join us. Simply sign-up to become a member for just $9/month or $99 per year and you will immediately be able to reserve your Beer Bash tickets.

David Crowley and Tom Tiffany.

A new poll matching up the two candidates for Wisconsin governor shows Democrat David Crowley leading Republican Tom Tiffany by five points among likely voters.

But the Crowley advantage shrinks when polling all registered voters, according to the first Marquette Law School poll since Crowley and Tiffany emerged from the Aug. 11 primary.

“You could either come away with a modest Crowley advantage … or a dead tie,” said pollster Charles Franklin at an event sharing the poll results on Wednesday.

The poll interviewed 891 registered voters from Aug. 12 through Aug. 20, and had a 4 percent margin of error. Among likely voters, Crowley was ahead of Tiffany 49-44.

It’s the first head-to-head comparison of Crowley and Tiffany by Marquette, because Crowley was excluded from polling for the 10 days that he was out of the race — before he reentered and clinched the nomination.

And Crowley has an advantage among likely independent voters, with 55 percent choosing Crowley and 16 percent choosing Tiffany. But about a third of those coveted general election voters remain undecided.

The results are murkier among all registered voters, which finds a tie of 44-44 for both candidates. Almost half of all registered independent voters, 47 percent, were undecided.

Democratic Party challenges after long primary battle

Other polling in these early days of the general election has indicated a slight lead for Crowley, in a year when Democrats nationally have an overall advantage. That’s because midterm elections tend to favor the party that’s not in power in Washington, and because President Donald Trump — with whom Tiffany is closely allied — has historically low approval ratings.

But that doesn’t indicate a slam dunk for Democratic candidates, because the Democratic party as a whole is unpopular — including among Democrats. Whereas Wisconsin Republicans have a net positive feeling about their party of 85 percent, Democrats have a 74 percent favorability rating of their own party.

“This is where most of the difference comes between why Democrats are viewed more unfavorably than Republicans. It’s coming from inside the house,” said Franklin.

National and state polling has consistently shown that the GOP is more popular than the Democratic party, he said, but “this pattern has shown up all year, that it’s (because of) Democrats frustrated with their own party.”

Democratic voters also have a bit less enthusiasm going into November than Republican voters, at 49 percent of Democrats compared to 55 percent of Republicans identifying as “very enthusiastic.”

Franklin attributes that enthusiasm gap to the heated Democratic primary, whereas Tiffany more or less had the field to himself from January onwards. Supporters of U.S. Rep. Francesca Hong, who narrowly lost to Crowley, are less enthusiastic about their nominee than supporters of other candidates.

“I think it’s pretty obvious that it’s within the stronger supporters of Francesca Hong that you’re seeing a little bit lower enthusiasm among Democrats,” Franklin said. “While Democrats are pretty united behind their candidate, you do see this difference coming from enthusiasm, depending on how you felt about the candidates.”

But the poll also indicates that disaffected Democrats and disappointed Hong supporters still intend to vote for Crowley.

Those feelings are “not translating into voting across the aisle,” said Franklin.

Both sides need to build name recognition to appeal to independents

Still, both camps have their work cut out for them. Neither Tiffany, a U.S. Congressman, or Crowley, the Milwaukee County executive, have enormous statewide name recognition.

In a measure of the candidates’ favorability, Crowley came out at 33 percent favorable and 29 percent unfavorable, with 38 percent of voters saying they didn’t know enough to have an opinion.

“This is going to be important over the next 70 some-odd days till Election Day, because it means that, despite the primary, there’s still an awful lot of people that don’t have a clear impression of Crowley,” said Franklin. “And his side will be trying to convince people of one image from that, and Tom Tiffany’s side will be trying to convince voters of a different image from that, but they’re working with a pretty sizable group of people here available for being convinced.”

By contrast, Tiffany had a higher favorability rating – 39 percent – and a much higher unfavorability rating, at 42 percent. A much smaller share of voters at 18 percent, said they didn’t know enough to have an opinion.

The study finds that Democrats’ partisan support for Crowley, at 98 percent, is stronger than Republicans’ partisan support for Tiffany, at 91 percent.

“So after an exciting primary, shall we call it? It’s interesting that Democrats do appear to be completely unified behind their candidate, and Republicans quite unified but not quite as much as Democrats are,” Franklin said.

Crowley leading Tiffany in first Marquette head-to-head poll of governor’s race was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

Construction equipment can be seen in the background of pipes staged for Enbridge’s Line 5 reroute in Iron County on June 28, 2026. Danielle Kaeding/WPR

Homes have been evacuated as a precaution after a gas leak occurred during work on Enbridge’s Line 5 oil and gas pipeline in rural northern Wisconsin.

The incident occurred around 10 a.m. near Sitan Road in the town of Saxon in rural Iron County, according to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

Enbridge spokesperson Juli Kellner said a parked, unoccupied semi truck rolled over into an open excavation site on a Line 5 valve project in rural Iron County, striking the pipe and releasing natural gas liquids.

“No one was injured. As a precaution, nearby rural homes have been evacuated,” Kellner wrote. “The section of pipe was immediately isolated, and local emergency response crews are on site.”

Only one person was evacuated, according to Enbridge. Drone footage showed plumes of gas escaping from the line. A DNR spokesperson says the volume of the release has yet to be determined.

Natural gas liquids are hydrocarbons that include ethane, propane, butane, isobutane and gasoline. They are separated from natural gas during processing and used as fuels and feedstock in production of plastics, medical supplies, fertilizers and other products.

The DNR said the line has been shut down to prevent any further release until repairs are made.

Environmental consulting firm Stantec is also on site to perform air monitoring.

In a Facebook post, Iron County Sheriff Paul Samardich said Sitan Road has been closed until further notice, adding that haz-mat teams are on site.

“A temporary no-fly zone has also been established in the area. Due to safety concerns, power in the affected area has been shut down, and arrangements are being made to assist those affected by the temporary power outage. The public is asked to avoid the area and follow instructions from emergency personnel,” Samardich wrote.

Elizabeth Arbuckle with the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa said in a statement to community members that the tribe’s fire and first responder services were among crews that remained on standby at the site, which is roughly 5 miles east of the tribe’s reservation.

“Based on current conditions and evaluations, the natural gas released is not moving towards the reservation; we will continue to monitor and reevaluate if conditions change,” Arbuckle said.

Enbridge notified the National Response Center of the release at 11:02 a.m. and the DNR spills hotline at 11:15 a.m., according to the DNR.

Construction of Enbridge’s $1 billion reroute of Line 5 has been ongoing. The company is building a new 41-mile stretch around the tribe’s reservation in Ashland and Iron counties. The pipeline carries up to 23 million gallons of oil per day from Superior through northern Wisconsin and Michigan to Sarnia, Ontario.

Enbridge proposed the Line 5 reroute after the Bad River tribe sued the company in 2019 to shut down and remove the pipeline from tribal lands where easements had expired.

Supporters say the project creates up to 700 jobs and a $135 million economic impact, but opponents highlight the company’s environmental track record. Enbridge is responsible for some of the largest inland oil spills, including a 2010 spill into Michigan’s Kalamazoo River.

At least four releases of drilling fluid, or frac-outs, have occurred on the Line 5 project, ranging from roughly 5 gallons to up to 1,900 gallons spilled in late June.

Homes evacuated after gas leak occurs during work on Enbridge’s Line 5 was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

Crowley said he would not vote for the constitutional amendment that would limit the executive veto power. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

Democratic gubernatorial candidate David Crowley told reporters Tuesday in Madison that he would not vote for a change in the state Constitution to prohibit using the partial veto to create or increase a tax or fee.

Voters in November will have the final say on the constitutional amendment proposal that could further limit Wisconsin’s uniquely strong executive partial veto power. The proposal was introduced in reaction to Gov. Tony Evers’ 2023 state budget partial veto that extended annual school revenue limit increases for 400 years.

The Milwaukee County executive, who has won the endorsement of Evers, said he would “absolutely not” vote for the amendment. He said that what Republicans in the Legislature are “trying to do is just rig the system.”

The partial veto power has been a recurring issue throughout the Evers’ two terms in office. He often used it in creative ways to shape policy sent to him by Republican lawmakers, who in return worked painstakingly to make their legislation veto-proof.

In 2023, Republicans were shocked to find that Evers had used the power on the state budget to increase school districts’ ability to raise property taxes. Republicans and their allies have often referred to the governor’s action as implementing a “400-year tax increase,” though the veto did not automatically mean taxes would increase. The increase in revenue limits allows schools the option to bring in additional revenue through property taxes or state revenue, though Republicans have declined to provide funds to backfill the revenue limit increases. School boards still have to opt in to increase property taxes.

That use of the veto pen was upheld by the state Supreme Court in 2025 as constitutional, which led to Republicans’ decision to put the issue up to voters. Constitutional amendment proposals in Wisconsin must pass two consecutive sessions of the state Legislature before they go to voters for the final say.

Crowley, who previously served in the state Assembly while Democrats held a minority of seats, noted his time in the state Legislature.

“What I’ve seen from the Republican-controlled legislatures is that, anytime that there’s a stop gap on all the policies, dangerous policies, that they want to push through, they want to eliminate the power of the governor,” Crowley said.

U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, the Republican candidate for governor, has made repealing the veto alongside freezing property taxes a central promise of his campaign. It was one of the points in his housing plan and one of the points of his affordability plan released on Tuesday.

Tiffany said in a statement about his plan that “Wisconsin families work hard for every dollar they earn, but government at every level keeps taking more” and that “property taxes are too high, utility bills have soared and everyday purchases cost more.” He criticized Crowley for supporting a sales tax increase in Milwaukee, which was implemented to help address financial challenges in the state’s largest county, and recent property tax increases in the county.

Tiffany told the Wisconsin Examiner in a statement that he plans to vote for the constitutional amendment and promised not to use the veto pen to increase taxes or fees.

“No governor should have the power to raise your taxes with the stroke of a pen,” Tiffany said in a statement. “David Crowley opposes this referendum because he wants the authority to raise taxes on Wisconsin families statewide, and that should scare every taxpayer who has paid attention to his record in Milwaukee County. Crowley has never met a tax hike he didn’t like, and now he wants a veto pen to make it even easier to take more of your money. We’ve already seen the damage this kind of unchecked power can do. It’s how Wisconsin got stuck with a 400-year property tax increase.”

Crowley said Tiffany has “done absolutely nothing to lower costs here in the state of Wisconsin.”

“[Tiffany] has not grown a backbone. He has not stood up to this particular president, and he hasn’t authored one particular bill that’s actually helping out Wisconsinites. Unfortunately, he has been carrying the water of Donald Trump,” Crowley said.

Crowley also said he would use the partial veto power as governor to ensure that “there’s no harm being placed or forced on Wisconsinites.”

If passed, this would not be the first time the Wisconsin executive veto power has been restricted. During his first term in office, the state Supreme Court limited the governor’s veto power after a lawsuit challenging his vetoes on the 2019 state budget.

The executive partial veto power has also been previously been restricted through constitutional amendments. In 1990, voters approved prohibiting the “Vanna White” veto, eliminating single letters within words, and in 2008, voters approved eliminating the “Frankenstein veto” — the ability for governors to create new sentences by combining parts of two or more sentences.

Voters will see the question on their ballots on Nov. 3: “Shall section 10 (1) (c) of article V of the constitution be amended to prohibit the governor, in exercising his or her partial veto authority, from creating or increasing or authorizing the creation or increase of any tax or fee?”

Crowley says he won’t vote to limit governor’s veto pen was originally published by Wisconsin Examiner.

A portion of the Big Cain Creek Preserve in Marathon County. Photo courtesy of the North Central Conservancy Trust

A new 30-acre nature preserve in northern Marathon County is now open to the public, giving visitors access to a protected stretch of trout stream, forest and wetlands.

The North Central Conservancy Trust recently opened Big Cain Creek Preserve, a property donated in spring 2025 by Mary Binkley, who grew up in Wausau. Her parents bought the land in the 1960s for recreation, said Chris Radford, executive director of the North Central Conservancy Trust.

“Our primary interest is protecting the natural resources that make it so special, but we also want to provide access for gentle recreation activities such as hiking, bird-watching and exploring,” Radford said in an interview on WPR’s “Morning Edition.”

The nonprofit land trust protects natural areas across central Wisconsin through conservation easements and land ownership. Radford said NCCT conservation easements protect more than 5,500 acres across more than 60 privately owned properties. The organization also owns four preserves that are open to the public.

Big Cain Creek runs for more than a quarter-mile through the new preserve. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources classifies the creek as a Class 1 trout stream, meaning it supports a self-sustaining trout population, and as an Exceptional Resource Water, a designation for waterways with high water quality and significant ecological or recreational value.

Before opening the preserve, NCCT volunteers, staff and partners surveyed the property and planned public access around sensitive areas.

“We established the trail route based on what would provide a good visitor experience while having the least impact on the natural resources there,” Radford said.

The preserve now includes a roughly half-mile trail leading toward the creek, several benches and an interpretive kiosk with a trail map and information about the property.

The preserve is open during daylight hours. Motorized vehicles are prohibited, and visitors are asked to respect the property’s natural features so it can remain open for public recreation while continuing to serve its conservation purpose.

The following interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.

Shereen Siewert: What is a land trust, exactly?

Chris Radford: A land trust is a community nonprofit dedicated to the protection of land. We are the North Central Conservancy Trust, or NCCT, a nonprofit conservation organization. Our mission is to conserve the natural heritage of central Wisconsin through the protection of land.

We do this primarily by working with landowners to develop permanent conservation easements that protect the natural resources found on their properties — forests, wetlands, portions of farmland, prairies and shoreline. We also own properties like these as nature preserves.

We’re one of about 40 land trusts in Wisconsin and roughly 1,400 across the country, all with a similar mission of protecting land and natural resources. Each organization has its own geographic service area.

SS: How did you decide where to place trails, benches and signs while protecting the most sensitive parts of the property?

CR: All of the work accomplished through our land trust happens with the support of incredible volunteers, our board and committee members, our three staff members and our many partners and supporters.

That includes people with different areas of expertise — ecologists, botanists and people with a lot of experience in trail installation and maintenance.

We visited the preserve and conducted an inventory of the natural resources on the property.

SS: Tell me what makes Big Cain Creek and the surrounding forest ecologically significant. What is it about this place?

CR: This property has a lot of wonderful features from a conservation perspective.

First, there’s more than a quarter-mile of Big Cain Creek flowing through the middle of the property. The creek is classified as a Class 1 trout stream and an Exceptional Resource Water, or ERW, by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

In addition to all of that, the habitat surrounding the creek consists of diverse forests with oak, spruce, elm, sugar maple, red maple and yellow birch. There are sections of forested wetlands with a lot of balsam fir, tag alder and many other species.

Collectively, that provides good potential habitat for a wide variety of local and migratory wildlife. It also provides an excellent natural buffer around the creek to help maintain water quality.

SS: The conservancy describes the preserve as a place for “gentle recreation.” What does that mean for people who visit?

CR: For us, it means no motorized vehicles on the property. We have some basic rules, and what we’re really trying to do is ensure that public use and our conservation initiatives can continue to coexist at this property.

The only real infrastructure is the hiking trail, a few benches and the kiosk at the entrance. Other than that, it’s a natural place that we plan to continue to protect.

Listen to the WPR report

New central Wisconsin nature preserve opens along protected trout stream was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

An absentee ballot. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

A U.S. Supreme Court decision allowing President Donald Trump to advance his plan to restrict voting by mail won’t be the final word ahead of Wisconsin’s November election, Wisconsin election officials say.

But they warn the back-and-forth over election rules — 10 weeks out from consequential midterm elections — and the open question of whether more changes are forthcoming before then sows confusion.

“I think that the real concern is that the clock is ticking,” said Derek Clinger, with the State Democracy Research Initiative at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Law School. “Really, any last minute change to mail voting procedures this close to the election could create a lot of chaos and confusion for election administrators and for voters.”

A Monday emergency opinion from the high court paused a lower court ruling that blocked parts of Trump’s March executive order directing the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to create state lists of U.S. citizens eligible to vote. The order also directs the U.S. Postal Service to prevent mail-in ballots from going to anyone not on those lists.

The unsigned decision didn’t get into the legality of Trump’s order and focused instead on the timing of the challenge brought by 23 states, including Wisconsin. Justices said the states couldn’t show they’ve been harmed because the president’s voting rules haven’t yet taken effect.

The Supreme Court’s three liberal members dissented, with Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson saying the order “needlessly injects chaos and uncertainty into the upcoming midterm elections.”Wisconsin Elections Commission member Ann Jacobs, a Democrat, told WPR it is possible, but unlikely, that Trump’s order restricting voting by mail would go into effect before the November midterm election.

“We are going to see, I think, litigation,” said Jacobs. “But hopefully it’ll become clear to the voters that this is a situation where the courts are going to stay it and the election will move forward as it has in the past.”

Democratic Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul said the Supreme Court “has kicked the can down the road” by not deciding the legality of Trump’s order. He said another federal district court order blocking the president’s directive in another case still stands and will likely be amended soon.

“I remain very confident that this executive order is not ultimately going to impact the way that absentee voting works in Wisconsin for the upcoming election,” said Kaul. “That’s going to depend on what happens in court and what actions the Trump administration takes. But I do remain very confident about that.”Kaul said it’s disappointing to see Supreme Court justices acting on cases like this so near an election, when they’ve previously avoided making changes on such tight timelines.

Dane County Clerk Scott McDonell told WPR the court is telling states like Wisconsin that they can’t challenge the Trump order because they haven’t been ordered to do anything yet. On Friday, the U.S Postal Service published its final rule on which voters can receive mail-in ballots, if the high court rules in favor of Trump’s executive order.“I mean, I don’t know how else you read that,” said McDonell.He said the lack of clarity surrounding voting by mail has left him unsure what to tell voters.“What I’m hoping for is that the Supreme Court moves quickly on this and has a decision within the next week or so because we’re designing the ballot as we speak,” he said. “It’s going to go to the printer … and then there’s deadlines coming up to mail them out.”

“So yeah, this timeline is very tight,” he added.

Clinger, the democracy researcher, said he expects the Massachusetts district court, which originally blocked parts of the Trump order, to rule on the merits of the finalized USPS rule. Even that, he added, won’t answer the question.

“That (lower) court has already said that the rule would be unconstitutional,” he said. “But whichever way it goes, that matter’s almost certainly headed back to the Supreme Court very soon, and it’s that kind of coming litigation that will be the most important step.”

McDonell noted his office is currently designing and printing ballots that must be sent early to voters who are in the military or overseas. Federal law dictates that those must be mailed 45 days out from an election, which is Sept. 19 this year.

Supreme Court order on mail-in voting won’t immediately affect Wisconsin ballots was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.