Franklin Today

EDC member looks for new options

In a time where an Economic Development Commission could be working proactively to encourage and foster new & re-development in the future, it is still unfortunate to hear from one member that they're still taking two steps back. From Franklin blogger and member of the EDC, John Michlig:

Ridiculous voting by Olson on 51st Street

Those who have read Franklin Today know that I have my issues with 1st District Alderman Steve Olson. I have several blog entries (some would say tens) stating why. Well, his votes tonight added another reason for my frustration!

More land goes up FOR SALE

Heading home, I drove past the usual farmlands along Ryan Road between North Cape and Loomis Roads. Something was different with today's view, however. One of the farms has up a large FOR SALE sign, with MLG Commercial as the broker.

The land this farmer has up for sale for development is 130+ acres. This could easily become a business park with the proper installation of sewer and water services to that portion of Franklin. In comparison, the site that would house the Shoppes at Legend Creek development (aka the "Crossroads") at Hwy 100 & Loomis is a meager 33 acres, according to the "available" sign by MidAmerica Real Estate.

Franklin gets new 2nd representative on 27th Street Steering Committee

Looking over the upcoming 27th Street Steering Committee agenda scheduled for tonight at 5:30 @ Oak Creek City Hall, an item announces a welcome of Franklin's newest representative for the committee. Apparently the Economic Development Commission or Chairman Alderman Ken Skowronski himself appointed fellow EDC member James Kerr to be the replacement for Jim Rhiner on the committee. Franklin's representation on the 27th Street Steering Committee has definitely seen its bumps and rocky roads, starting with the Boomgaard controversy in April, 2008.

Marquette Avenue's fate has now been decided

Last night I sat in the back row of the Common Council Chambers at City Hall, and wasn't anywhere near being alone. Several Franklin bloggers, including John Michlig and Fred Keller, as well as several dozen Franklin residents took seats to speak out and listen to debate relating to the future of Marquette Avenue.

This issue took an interesting turn of events when the Franklin Public School Board's Buildings & Grounds Committee, chaired by Board Member David Works, stepped in and asked politely if the Common Council could delay acting on this matter until the School Board made a recommendation. This was crucial because the primary reason as to why Marquette's extension is being brought up is due to the safety and accessibility of emergency vehicles to and from Pleasant View Elementary School.

On the other side of things, Alderwoman Kristen Wilhelm did her homework and found tons of documentation that supported her viewpoints on the matter. She has worked hard since her election in April, 2008 to ensure that Marquette Avenue would be extended westward, with the ultimate goal of reaching 51st Street. This way, fire engines, ambulances, and police squads could get to Pleasant View with little hassle, and perhaps a minute earlier. When you take a look at serious injuries or incidents at home, workplace, or public facility, a minute could mean life or death depending on what happened to (in this case) a student, parent, or faculty member.

Knowing Alderwoman Wilhelm very well since our days serving together on the Environmental Commission, I knew that she was feeling pretty exhausted over the matter altogether. The issue just wouldn't get finalized at the council level, leaving it open for continued debate and discussion. While I can't tell you exactly how she felt going into the meeting last night, I personally felt that she was going to have more of an uphill battle alone. I was extremely pleased, however, to see that I was incorrect. Not only did Common Council President Steve Taylor join with her in pointing out the common sense facts of the issue, but Mayor Tom Taylor set aside the gavel and allowed the CCP to run the meeting for a short 10 minutes while he took up arms and stood alongside Wilhelm. When the votes were needed, Alderman Ken Skowronski provided the extra vote needed to keep the vote a tied 3-3. Since Alderman Sohns called to question, the mayor pointed out that Sohns' motion to go out for bids on the Marquette to Hillendale project failed due to a lack of majority vote.

Alderwoman Wilhelm walked out of the Common Council meeting last night with 3 victories and 1 stalemate regarding Marquette's future. With those victories, Marquette will be going westward, but as of now in the position of being a temporary road for emergency vehicles. Since the council rejected the proposed eastward route, the residents living in the neighboring Countryside Estates subdivision can breathe a sigh of relief; their children can still use the path they created to go to school.

As for the School Board, they're becoming a little more awake these days. Their Buildings & Grounds Committee is aiming for a June 17th meeting in which Aldermen Sohns and WIlhelm will likely be present to discuss the matter. I was told that any action at this committee would go before the entire School Board, which would make a recommendation. Obviously it will be Alderman Sohns' desire to convince the School Board that going east ASAP is the best choice. If Sohns gets this wish, I wouldn't be surprised if he brought the argument back to the Common Council for another go at it. It's my opinion, however, that once the School Board sees the facts regarding the accessibility of emergency vehicles to Pleasant View, on top of the approvals already given by the Common Council, that they will likely stand with Wilhelm, Skowronski, and the two Taylors.

While we always take aim and fire off a bunch of negatives towards our public officials, every once in a while if they do something right they should get some praise. A sincere thanks goes to Mayor Taylor, CCP Taylor, and Alderman Skowronski for their stand in protecting Franklin's children and ensuring their continued safety at Pleasant View Elementary School. Needless to say, I'm sure many of Alderwoman Wilhelm's constituents are very happy for her once again pulling off a victory for the 3rd District. Job well done.

Brookfield's review of elected official appointments should be considered in Franklin

Yesterday the Brookfield NOW newspaper reported that two Brookfield aldermen are submitting legislative referrals regarding appointment on commissions. One of the proposals specifically aims at how long aldermen should have the luxury to be on a certain commission. The alderman proposing this piece, Scott Berg, is quoted in the NOW:

Berg's referral - made Feb. 3 - looks at limiting the terms of aldermanic appointments to city committees, boards and commissions. Berg proposed that no aldermen serve more than four consecutive years on any committee.

Berg said limiting the terms would give aldermen an opportunity to "be a little more rounded and be able to better understand the issues."

"I think the real problem is that people get entrenched on committees," he said.

If limits are enacted, Berg said he would like to see them in place by November, so that those interested in running for the council in 2010 are aware of the changes.

I think Berg is 100% accurate on the fact that some elected officials end up being "entrenched" in specific commissions. Franklin has several aldermen that have dug their trenches deep, including:

• Alderman Steve Olson: Economic Development Commission & Technology Commission
• Alderman Tim Solomon: Park Commission, Licensing Committee, and Finance Committee
• Alderman Ken Skowronski: Plan Commission & Economic Development Commission

The above-named commissions had the above aldermen on them for many, many years. From what I've picked up in City Hall, the thought of potentially putting in a fresher face to move these aldermen elsewhere isn't received very well. What bugs me is the notion that if an elected official keeps getting re-elected and has already planted his/her butt in a specific commission for X number of years, the seat almost becomes something comparable to the US Supreme Court.

I believe certain commissions and committees in Franklin should have some movement with regard to who the aldermanic rep(s) are. Keeping things the same for several years doesn't really promote much of a change or "new blood" for city issues relating to those commissions and committees.

Economic Development Commission approves sick leave mandate ban

Earlier tonight I was in the audience of the Economic Development Commission (EDC) meeting. I was glad to see all the members of the Common Council were present, minus Lyle Sohns. Tonight's agenda was a great one for heavy discussion and potential arguments, and both were quickly fulfilled. I plan on writing about the EDC over the next day or so, so please stay tuned to this blog!

I figured the first item to discuss was rather obvious. The sick leave mandate ban ordinance that was proposed by my alderman, Steve Olson, has triggered a lot of negative entries on the blogs and even sparked a debate between Common Council President Steve Taylor and Alderman Olson, as we saw several days ago. An EDC member, John Michlig of Sprawled Out, also had a lot of entries covering the topic and as expected provided a ton of commentary before the final vote. Here's how it broke down in what I felt was the briefest I could be for this subject:

Alderman Olson stated several facts on the proposed ordinance:

1. If the Council does nothing, direct legislation (like what happened in Milwaukee) could make a significant impact. If his ordinance is passed, however, it prevents direct legislation from creating an ordinance "out of the blue".
2. Direct legislation cannot impact an existing ordinance
3. While the ordinance could exist in a few weeks with Council approval, citizens can still petition the Council to repeal it.
4. He stated he was motivated to do this after seeing how it could affect the business in which he's employed, which is located in Downtown Milwaukee.

According to the Assistant City Attorney, who was present at the meeting, Whitefish Bay and Bayside were named as communities who put a similar ordinance off to the side until further notice. As far as I know, these are the only two suburbs to actually take a stance AGAINST enacting a ban on sick leave mandates.

Commissioner Joe Haselow was the first one to speak.

1. He supports Olson's ordinance proposal
2. It's his belief that mandates like this should come from a larger government, such as the state or federal levels. He doesn't believe municipalities should have this ability.

Enter in John Michlig:

1. Why move quickly on this ordinance when there's nothing pending on this issue?
2. He dubs this a "predatory" ordinance. From what I heard, it sounded like John was describing a "ring" of suburbs around the City of Milwaukee, like vultures surrounding an animal before it dies.
3. Due to the pending court case, why prematurely vote on something that could be dead after the trial?
4. Franklin is in no danger from its residents regarding direct legislation for an issue like this.
5. How could an elected Council truly make a good vote on this matter. If the Council turns away this "predator" of an ordinance, they could become earmarked as anti-business and could harm their "loyalty oath". This issue could be put on campaign literature to promote who is more "pro business". I liked this part of Michlig's opinion. If you don't know what he means by a "loyalty oath", check out the campaign donation sheets from many of the aldermen and the Mayor. I have, and due to this I thought he was spot-on!

Commissioner Jon Zawacki provided a few tidbits against Olson's proposal as well.

1. There was no data presented to the EDC regarding the impacts in cities that have a sick leave mandate in place
2. While he was opposed to the ordinance as it was presently worded, he believed a middleground proposal would do well for both the Council and the people of Franklin.

Olson noted that there is data out there, but when asked why it wasn't at the meeting the response I saw was a simple shrug of the shoulders. This was when Chairman (and alderman) Ken Skowronski noted that a sick leave mandate is interpreted as a threat to small business owners. Commissioner Diane Oleson shared a similar point-of-view with Skowronski, noting a conversation she had with a small business owner in Muskego who wouldn't cross the Milwaukee County line due to this percieved fear.

Now came what I felt was the important points from Commissioner Joe Haeslow. Joe stated some opinions prior to this, but they were basically surrounding his family history and beliefs. His thoughts were:

1. Businesses ARE taxpayers in Franklin
2. He believed the city should leave the issue of sick pay to the businesses to handle themselves and independently
3. As far as he was concerned, with a passing of this ban Franklin has an advantage over the City of Milwaukee

This was when Michlig had several rebutting points.

1. There is currently NO sick leave mandate hanging over the residents of Franklin or their Common Council
2. What is the impact of such a mandate? (Alderman Skowronski chimes in quickly to say that it's big)
3. Passing the mandate ban now could be considered as spiteful towards the City of Milwaukee, going back to his stance on how it's a "predatory" piece of legislation
4. He cites his wife's intimate knowledge of working with students on a daily basis. She works at an area school, and from what he has learned from her it's that people who don't seek treatment(s) for illness(es) fast enough can spread it quick.

Commissioner Rosanne Burac-Englert's comments followed John's.

1. She believes it is the mission of the Economic Development Commissioners to promote economic development.
2. It's one or the other, you're proactive or reactive to proposals like this.
3. Retail spaces currently in the city are geared for small businesses. Smaller businesses = bigger impacts with wages and this mandate
4. Talk about sick pay and health of others is more of a social responsibility issue.

John Michlig responded to that by noting that the loss of wages due to rapidly spreading illness(es) can have a big impact on the local businesses.

Commissioner Mary Karolewicz now had her turn to speak. She really only had a few questions:

1. If this ordinance fails at Council, what happens to businesses in Franklin? Do they get slapped with a mandate? The answer was no.
2. She then asked the threat level of such an ordinance via direct legislation, like Milwaukee's. That answer was diverted into two other issues, thanks to Alderman Olson. Olson noted that Franklin residents passed one direct legislation item; it was an ordinance regarding elected officials' elections. Olson also noted that a group was about to propose direct legislation on big boxes but was quickly stopped because the Council agreed with the group and enacted their own ordinance against big boxes over 125,000 sq ft. Olson called this citizen action "positive". I'm assuming this was in reaction to the Wal-Mart Supercenter proposal on Hwy 100 & Loomis 4 years ago.

It was during this time when Alderwoman Kristen Wilhelm asked for the Assistant City Attorney (ACA)'s legal opinion. The ACA went on to then state the pros and cons of such a ban, and then opined that the chances could be high that the workforce would likely go to cities or communities where the benefits are better. During this response I was rather disappointed with Commissioner Haselow and Alderman Skowronski, who were exchanging notes to each other via a piece of paper while the ACA was stating his thoughts. I found that rather rude of them to do, and Alderwoman Wilhelm did interrupt the ACA noting her displeasure over Commissioners not seeming to be interested in the ACA's advice and thoughts.

In the end of all of this, the final vote was 8-2. Chairman Skowronski decided the issue was so important that he voted YES to this ordinance as well. The two NO votes came from Commissioners Michlig and Zawacki. There was one "YES with reservations" that came from Commissioner Karolewicz. With that said, tonight is the final piece of the citizen group discussion on this proposal with the Finance Committee bringing it up. I have no doubts that it will be recommended to the Council for approval unanimously. The EDC was the biggest challenge, if you want to call it that, to the proposed ordinance. With recommendations from three citizen groups, as noted earlier, the Council is likely to pass it at the next Common Council meeting in February.

The Political Environment examines Buckhorn decision

It's a blog entry worth reading by one of Milwaukee's finest bloggers. I believe this quote is worth repeating, and perhaps Aldermen Olson, Skowronski, Sohns, and Solomon should think about this before they go to bed tonight:

Two lives lost.

A 90-day suspension.

Begs the question of how many people does a patron have to kill for a tavern to lose its license?

It's 4-2

Diane Baranowski for the Environmental Commission? I don't think so! I'm sure Mayor Taylor must have been flustered.

For those who sent e-mails or placed phone calls to your elected officials, give yourselves a pat on the back. Awesome job - - especially with less than 48 hours notice!! Also, if you're a constituent of the following aldermen, I hope you send them a thank you for listening to your thoughts:

• Alderman Steve Olson
• Alderwoman Kristen Wilhelm
• Common Council President Steve Taylor
• Alderman Lyle Sohns (who also serves as aldermanic rep to the EC)

That aldermanic combination, I have to admit, is extremely unique! As far as Aldermen Skowronski and Solomon are concerned, though...shame on them for approving of such a terrible Mayoral agenda for the EC.

But hey - - at the minimum we now know that Mayor Taylor gave her bad advice!!!

Council meetings in digital: Aldermanic concerns

I came across my notes last night, which highlighted what I felt were the Council's primary concerns, thoughts, or suggestions towards "revolutionizing" the way our meetings are showcased in front of the people of Franklin. The bullet points will go in order of Aldermanic District.

1. Alderman Olson: Running before walking might not be a bad idea, since you have to walk before you run? (I'll admit I got real confused over that whole line...)
2. Alderman Solomon: Costs, costs, costs! One should purchase dollar symbols to replace Solomon's normal eyeballs. All the man sees and understands is money, money, money. If the spending for THIS item goes above what he believes should be allotted, I don't think he'll be gung-ho in support.
3. Alderwoman Wilhelm: Demands accountability for any future digital recordings or tapings. She doesn't want to see any politicizing of the digital recordings, such as turning up volume levels towards members who might be pushing for something the "club" doesn't like, for example.
4. CCP Taylor: Long-term goals should be achieved when upgrading the city's technology. He correctly notes that bloggers do digital recordings NOW, and would like to see something on the official side ASAP.
5. Alderman Sohns: Don't forget the alternatives!! Sohns notes that while TV and simple audio are two things, we shouldn't forget about other ways to broadcast meetings, such as webcasts.
6. Alderman Skowronski: I didn't write anything down for him. I'm assuming that was because anything he stated was a combination of items several other aldermen noted.