At the June 23rd, 2008 meeting of the Community & Economic Development Committee Alderman Bauman brought forward resolution 080293 which cut off funding to the West End Development Corporation.  This was done because of the groups inability to complete the redevelopment of WestPointe Commons despite nearly 7 years of efforts.  Following that resolution the West End Development Corporation board voted to dissolve the corporation ending their efforts.  Due to the dissolving of their efforts resolution 080447 was brought forward to reallocate the Community Block Grant Development (”CBGD”) funds that had been allocated to West End Development Corporation to other organizations.  This resolution was approved by the committee and will go before the full Common Council.

Resolution 080408 approved the Funding Allocation Plan for 2009.  This plan allocates the Community Block Grant Development (”CBDG”) funds to various efforts which benefit low income citizens, by addressing urgent needs with the intent to prevent or eliminate blight.  Joe Davis made a series of amendments adjusting the allocation levels.  The amendment that stood out resulted in the creation of an entitlement allocation for Housing - Graffiti Abatement in the amount of $90,000.  Funding of graffiti abatement programs has in this past year run out prior to the summer months and this new allocation appears to be a response to that funding shortage.  This resolution and its amendments was approved by the committee and will go before the full Common Council.

The final two appointees to Business Improvement District #41 (Downer Ave.) were approved by committee today. Andie Zacher and Brett Grass were added to the newly expanded board bring the total to seven members. Brett Grass from Lighthouse Development expressed that he has a “vested interest in the shopping district staying vibrant” and that his experience at Lighthouse Development should be of value to the board.. These appointments were approved and will now go before the full Common Council.

Also of note was the appointed of first term Alderman Kovac to the Arts Board. He expressed his desire to sit on the Arts Board by saying “I look forward to helping the arts and helping the city at the same time. He conveyed a strong belief that the arts are not only beneficial to the quality of life within the city but also to the economic development of the city. This appointment was approved and will now go before the full Common Council.

The last item on the agenda was resolution 080293 which saw a vigorous discussion over the problematic development effort at 27th and Wells St. known as WestPointe Commons. First funded in Novemeber 2001 the project has yet to be completed and has spent almost $1 million in public funds. The motion before the committee was to freeze access to public funds until an audit was completed which would determine what went wrong and if the project should go forward. Former Alderman Henningsen spoke on behalf of the project making a passioned appeal to allow the project to contiune. He argued that despite its past issues, it is now close to completion and in combination with other projects in the area it could have a catalyitic effect. In the end the committee voted to approve the resolution, essentially freezing public funds, which will now go before the full Common Council.

Dick Lincoln from the Mandel Group presented resolution 071618 which is the job training program portion of The North End development that receives funding from TIF No. 48. He explained that it would be “a little bit different than traditional workforce development” in that in focuses more on mentoring and coaching of emerging businesses to “take them to the next level.” Specifically the program will help emerging business develop business and management skills so these firms can enter into larger contracts and participate in The North End project. This resolution was approved by the committee and will go before the full Common Council.

Resolution 080209 changed the operating plan and structure of Business Improvement Distict No. 41 which represents the Downer Avenue business district. The changes would enlarged the board from five to seven members and it would adjust various line items within the proposed operating plan to allow the BID greater flexibility in their future operations. Although this resolution seems inoucous enough it gives the appearance as though these changes are connected to New Lan Enterprises’ controvsional re-development efforts on Downer Avenue. It appears this way because while Alderman Kovac has worked to expand BID No. 41 both Boris Gokhman and Joel Lee have had their appointments to BID No. 41 held in committee. This resolution was approved by the committee and will go before the full Common Council.

The items that stood out the most on the agenda were resolution 071355 and 071358. These resolutions would appoint Joel Lee and Boris Gokhman respectively to the Business Improvement District Board #41. This BID represents Downer Avenue which has been at the center of a continuous development project by New Land Enterprises. These appointments were approved but at May 20th Common Council meeting because the BID intends to rework some details and BID boundaries.

Resolution 071618 would authorize the terms of a job training program utilizing part of the $500,000 that the North End development received as part of its TIF funding. Dick Lincoln from the Mandel Group presented an overview of the North End development highlighting their environmental remediation efforts, the creation of new public places and then covered the job training component of the project. Dick Lincoln said that “the focus of that job training program was going to be on developing the capacity of existing business rather than job skill training and workforce development. Essentially they will work with Emerging Business Enterprise (EBE)  firms to grow their business with the goal of being able to participate in the development of the North End development in the future. The committee felt this plan needed further review and additionally breakdown of the costs so it was held at the call of the chair.

One item on the agenda that stood out as significant was Dr. Keenan Grenell’s communication from the Regional Task Force on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Education (STEM). The study argues that “increasing the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) pipeline in Wisconsin is a vital part of increasing and maintaining its economic stature” To promote the increasing of the economic stature the study recommends, the need to improve relationships between STEM organizations, to market STEM programs within the M7, and the creation of a “Research Institute for the Theory and Practice of STEM Entrepreneurial Wealth Creation” among other recommendations. This institute would be modeled after the successful IC² Institute at the University of Texas at Austin and whose purpose would be to “create more STEM research, practice, and policies with the M7 region”. This report comes at a critical time as both the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Marquette University are planning expansions of their Engineering schools and shows the value of these developments to the City of Milwaukee and our region.

Professor Marc Levine presented a a communication from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Center for Economic Development regarding employment trends in the country’s cities. Professor Levine presented a fairly bleak view of Milwaukee’s job market and although he thought some of the efforts by the City of Milwaukee were positive he said they were “micro fixes because they’re not market changing”. He went on to say that “we need a bolder market changing strategy” if we hope to improve the job market here in the City of Milwaukee. Much like when he present his report regarding the jobless rate in the inner city he again pointed to a mass transit system, such as Denver’s $4.7 Billion 120 mile regional transit system, as a possible solution to jump start job growth and encourage business development in the future.

Resolution 071451 proposed increasing the Emerging Business Enterprise (EBE) requirements from 18% to 25% for City of Milwaukee funded construction projects. The goal of EBE requirements is to help small business within the City of Milwaukee access opportunities they might not otherwise be afforded. In the past the City of Milwaukee has averaged 22.9% participation for construction projects so this new target represents a higher goal of achievement but one that is obtainable. Alderman Hamilton made the motion to hold the resolution for one cycle to get “all the pieces” in the resolution that the Committee felt were needed.

Milwaukee Department of City Development Commissioner Rocky Marcoux presented a report, file number 070876, on the progress of the Milwaukee 7 initiative. He highlighted the group’s efforts which included 425 site visits, helping to maintain some 2300+ jobs and creating 3300+ news jobs. Another significant highlight of the Milwaukee 7’s progress was the creation of an Immigrant Investment Zone. It gives immigrants permanent resident status if they invest $1,000,000 in new business within the investment zone. During the discussion of the Immigrant Investment Zone a question from the committee asked Rocky Marcoux about the possibility of a new World Trade Center building being constructed in Milwaukee. He responded by saying “There’s obviously going to be a cost associated with that, but I think that it will pay big dividends.”

Alderman Tony Zielinski brought forward a resolution, file number 071136, directing the Office of Environmental Sustainability to study the feasibility of city financing of solar installations. The plan, based on a study in Berkeley, CA, would fund low interest loans to cover the initial capital costs of installing solar panels allowing for wider adoption of this technology. The Environmental Sustainability Director Ann Beier pointed out that as the use of solar panels grows in new construction that “we know there will be a demand for solar installers in the future”. Making the point that this is a program that not only looks at reducing pollution but this plan could lead to new job growth in an emerging market and new development.