Council Ends Battle Over Couture, City Attorney

The Milwaukee Common Council pulled the plug on its $90,000 fight with City Attorney Tearman Spencer over whether it acted legally in requiring a $100,000 private donation. It has spent approximately $30,000 on the matter already.

Spencer, in March 2021, refused to sign off on the complicated agreement for the $190 million The Couture after Alderman Robert Bauman added an amendment that required the development team to contribute $100,000 to the anti-displacement fund administered by the nonprofit MKE United. Bauman negotiated the amendment directly with developer Rick Barrett after Barrett Lo Visionary Development failed to start construction by the prior agreement’s start date and was seeking a liability shield for its investors. Spencer has repeatedly accused Bauman of breaking the law and committing ethical violations for making the council-approved deal.

Common Council President Cavalier Johnson, in early 2021, negotiated a deal where the apartment tower could move forward while Spencer and the council continued their fight. A third-party attorney would be paid up to $45,000 to rule on the case while the council would spend $45,000 on hiring an outside attorney.

But after the third-party attorney, retired judge Chuck Kahn, had to pull out on the case, Bauman sought to end the deal.

“Basically this has gone for a year now,” said Bauman on Feb. 22 to the Zoning, Neighborhoods & Development Committee. “We are no closer to a decision than we were a year ago.” The council has spent approximately $30,000 on its outside counsel Michael Maistelman.

Johnson, now acting mayor, first publicly opposed ending the fight.

“There is an important issue that ought to be resolved regarding the council’s role in finalizing and approving city agreements,” said Johnson in statement. “This process needs to proceed without heightened emotions, accusations, or legislative modifications.”

But after the council unanimously voted to end the fight Tuesday, Johnson reversed his position and said he would not veto the file.

“The mayor believes city government should not spend additional money on this topic,” said a spokesperson via email after Tuesday’s vote. “He looks forward to clarifying the role of the council in future development agreements in a way that better protects taxpayers.”

Spencer meanwhile has accused Bauman of multiple legal and ethical violations and said the alderman, one of the most outspoken critics of the turmoil in the City Attorney’s office, is moving to cancel the process only after seeing Spencer’s written position.

In a press conference on Feb. 21, the City Attorney reiterated his position that Bauman violated city, state and federal law by negotiating the amendment and committed ethics violations in the process, even if he didn’t personally benefit. Spencer is maintaining his position that only the Department of City Development may negotiate and propose tax incremental financing agreements, while council members maintain they have the authority to amend the agreements.

Spencer also accused Johnson and the council of being complicit with Bauman’s plan to engage in a “cover up.”

Bauman’s idea to require the displacement fund donation, which would be used to support a private program that offsets rising tax bills for low-income homeowners in neighborhoods surrounding Downtown, was first floated to other city officials before being given to Barrett. In an email obtained by Urban Milwaukee, City Development Commissioner Lafayette Crump backed Bauman’s idea before raising concerns about it when a council committee publicly debated it.

Spencer’s refusal to sign the agreement wasn’t without consequence. The council, over the objections of then-mayor Tom Barrett, unanimously stripped the City Attorney’s Office of its contract review power, with Bauman and others arguing Spencer overstepped his authority. Other attempts to limit Spencer’s power or staff size have failed.

Kahn had to pull out of the agreement after a November water main break flooded a downtown office building he owns. Kahn is going to be filing a claim against the city, giving him a conflict of interest. He has not billed the city for any work. Retired federal judge Charles Clevert was poised to replace Kahn.

Construction is underway on The Couture, but is behind schedule as laid out in the agreement and imperiling the streetcar extension’s completion as required in an expiring federal grant. The city is providing $19.5 million for public infrastructure costs related to the project, 909 E. Michigan St., via a tax incremental financing district.

The $100,000 donation, held in escrow, will be returned to Rick Barrett.