Mr. Gary Peterson, APA-WI Chapter President

Ms. Karin Wolf, Arts Program Administrator, Madison Arts Commission

The Finance and Personnel Committee considers appropriations, finances, taxation, revenues, labor relations, personnel, pensions and other benefits, insurance, audits and city budget.

The Finance and Personnel Committee meetings are held in the Room 301-B, City Hall, unless otherwise noted.

Agenda

The Zoning, Neighborhoods and Development Committee reviews issues relating to city development, zoning, historic preservation, incremental tax financing, building codes and housing projects.

The Zoning, Neighborhoods and Development Committee meetings start at 9:00 a.m. and are held in the Room 301-B, City Hall, unless otherwise noted.

Agenda

The Community and Economic Development Committee hears matters relating to community development, block grants, job development, business improvement districts, city public relations, industrial land banks and revenue bonds, emerging business enterprises, recreation, cultural arts and the library system.

The Community and Economic Development Committee meetings start at 9:00 a.m. and are held in the Room 301-B, City Hall, unless otherwise noted.

Agenda

The Board of Zoning Appeals (BOZA) is in independent agency authorized to hear appeals in matters relating to all zoning ordinances and to review zoning ordinance interpretations made by the Department of City Development. Because the Board acts somewhat like a court, it is called a quasi-judicial body and is required to follow accepted procedures and to fairly evaluate the relevant facts in each case that comes before it. The Board schedules approximately 15 hearings per year (one every three to four weeks) and hears roughly 700 cases each year.

Agenda

The City Plan Commission (CPC) is the City’s official planning body established under State statute and is responsible for master planning activities. The CPC advises the Common Council on a variety of land development issues including zoning map changes, revisions in the zoning ordinance, subdivision approvals, business improvement districts, street and alley vacations, public land disposition and acquisition, new streets and the approval of development plans in certain overlay districts.

City Plan Commission (CPC) meetings are held in the First Floor Boardroom at the Department of City Development, 809 North Broadway, unless otherwise noted.

Agenda

Charting New Waters: A Call to Action to Address U.S. Freshwater Challenges is a groundbreaking report released by The Johnson Foundation at Wingspread and its partners on September 15, 2010, and presented to the Obama Administration at a meeting of federal agencies convened by the White House Council on Environmental Quality. This report is the culmination of an intensive two-year, diverse collaboration of leaders from business, nongovernmental organizations, agriculture, academia, government, foundations, and communities, and is believed to be the first such comprehensive, cross-sector examination of U.S. freshwater challenges and solutions. It explores the nature and breadth of these challenges, articulates potential solutions, and offers recommendations to ensure our freshwater resources are secure for the 21st century. In her presentation, Ms. Seidelman will outline this report’s findings, what lies ahead, and how this pertains to our region.

SPEAKERS:

Susie Seidelman, Environmental Program Associate
The Johnson Foundation at Wingspread, Racine

EXTRAS:

See the Charting New Waters report at http://www.johnsonfdn.org/chartingnewwaters.

LOCATION:

UWM Union 240
2200 E. Kenwood Blvd.
Milwaukee, WI 53201

It’s time to start thinking about original live music, high flying Division BMX stunt teams, Milwaukee’s dodge ball competition and enjoying an ice-cold Miller Beer on North Avenue! Summer Soulstice Music Festival, Milwaukee’s best street music festival, is back for our eleventh time – Saturday, June 18 on Milwaukee’s East Side.

Now accepting band kits and dodge ball team inquiries. Vendor applications will be available in March. Contact Lisa Liljegren at 414.224.0212 or lliljegren@meyerwallis.com for more information.

“That’s our story. Now it’s probably not the one you have been reading in the papers, the one being written by folks who’ve never even been here.”

The Chrysler 200 Super Bowl commercial resonated with urbanists from Cinncinati to Chicago, no doubt an odd event for a car commercial.  But it was because it exhibited the pride, spirit, and toughness that Detroit and our cities have in common. The imagery from the commercial shows steam pouring through the vents on a cold winter evening, moments of ruin porn contrasted with upscale neighborhoods, stark imagery of Detroit’s industrial history, and all set to Eminem’s workman like march “Lose Yourself”.  These contrasts made the cold, hard, rough edge of Detroit look desirable, if not noble.  Clearly the commercial wasn’t as much about the Chrysler 200, as it was about the branding of Detroit as a tough, imperfect city with a rebellious attitude, and most importantly one that hasn’t given up. But more than just Detroit, this was a rallying call for our post-industrial cities, to push on because our place, our history, and our future matters.

(if the video doesn’t show in your browser it is available here)

It is not to say Detroit, or any Rust Belt city for that matter, doesn’t have its fair share of problems, they do. Further, this commercial isn’t the silver bullet that is going to bring Detroit back, and quite frankly the automobile industry both built and destroyed Detroit, but it should act as a reminder to those who’ve never even been here that our cities matter.

What does this say about Milwaukee? We know our roads aren’t great, our schools are in desperate need of improvement, and that we have a divided region.  But for those of us who’ve been here we know that we have amazing parks, diverse neighborhoods, a built environment prime for continued development, and even a little history in adventurous public policy. Unfortunately, in recent years all too often when an adventurous idea, such as the proposed streetcar system or commuter rail connecting our region together, is proposed we hear “we can’t do that, we’re not Chicago.”  So it is our turn to remind those who’ve never even been here that although we are not the Windy City, we are the Brew City and quite frankly Milwaukee matters.