Former Plum Lounge chef Adam Pawlak joins Black Sheep
After departing his post at Plum Lounge, Chef Adam Pawlak has taken the reins of the kitchen at Black Sheep, 216 S. 2nd St., effective today. Known for his creative small plates and inventive dishes, many of which are infused with elements from his Italian heritage, Pawlak will continue bolstering the options at the Walker’s Point staple, which is driven by seasonal and local ingredients, along with creative takes on traditional dishes. “I’m excited for the opportunity to lead the food program at Black Sheep,” Pawlak said in a release announcing his new post. “Black Sheep is a great concept to work with … there aren’t any ‘rules’ per say, just a blank canvas to create awesome dishes and continually engage guests with something new.” New menu additions created by Pawlak will include scallop risotto with wild mushrooms, crispy shallot and micro greens salad, cauliflower brava featuring spice cauliflower, roasted peppers, pea shoots and radishes, black and blue filet featuring an 8-ounce grass-fed dry aged filet with heirloom carrots, rosemary red potatoes, blue cheese and cabernet demi-glace. “Chef Pawlak shares our commitment to being a ‘scratch’ kitchen that includes locally sourced ingredients and goods.” noted co-owner Wes Shaver. “Black Sheep is a place for gathering and connecting; through great food, wine, cocktails and brews, Black Sheep continues to be a place for people to come together.” Black Sheep is open seven days a week with dinner service Monday through Saturday, starting at 4 p.m. Brunch is served Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Feb 7th, 2017 by Dave Reid
River Hills landlord behind handful of problem properties in Milwaukee
James H. Herrick lives in a $1.1 million home on a 5-acre estate in River Hills — just 10 miles from an apartment complex in the 1300 block of W. Locust St. that was boarded up after city building inspectors declared it “unfit for human habitation.” Herrick’s home is six miles from an apartment building on N. Hopkins St., where building inspectors in September ordered that bed bugs be exterminated and residents be provided with at least one window screen in each room. The violations are the latest of more than 70 written up at the building since 2014. The neighborhoods have nothing in common. Except, that is, for Herrick, a high-ranking executive at Robert W. Baird & Co.. Herrick, 52, is an owner of a limited liability company that owned the Locust St. property until it was sold this year after a foreclosure suit was filed, according to records reviewed by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. A second Herrick-linked LLC owns two apartment buildings in the 4400 block of N. Hopkins St. As a Baird managing director and co-head of global trading for the company’s Institutional Equity Services group, Herrick is well-known in the securities industry. He has been quoted by The Washington Post, Bloomberg News, TheStreet.com and the Journal Sentinel, among others. But he is an unknown to the city Department of Neighborhood Services — which boarded up the Locust St. property — and other city agencies responsible for enforcing housing laws and collecting property taxes. “He’s not on my radar,” said Erica Lewandowski, manager of the department’s special enforcement section. Mario Hernandez, the inspector who ordered that the Locust St. apartment building be boarded up and evacuated, said he did not know the building was linked to a River Hills address. The 50-unit apartment building, which runs the length of a city block between N. 13th and N. 14th streets, was boarded up because of a variety of problems, including a decision by managers to lock fire doors in the basement, according to Hernandez. Managers indicated this was done to prevent drug dealers from running through the building. “It was in pretty rough shape,” Hernandez said. “There was a noticeable roach infestation. … Sewage in some of the utility rooms” and some residents had to use their ovens to heat their apartments. “It’s not the worst that I’ve seen, but it was close,” Hernandez said. It took two months after the 2011 board-up for enough repairs to be made that the city issued a new occupancy permit. JHH Enterprises bought the building for $525,000 in 2003 and it was sold in September after it went through foreclosure and receivership. In a statement issued through his attorney, Sean Sweeney, Herrick said: “While there are inevitably some challenges associated with investing in distressed real estate, I am encouraged by the progress we have made in improving these buildings.” Like many landlords and real estate investors, Herrick’s identity has remained secret because the properties are owned by LLCs — corporate entities that allow owners to protect their personal assets from liabilities. Claims typically can be filed only against the assets of the individual […]
Dec 4th, 2016 by Dave Reid
Architect & fireman Sebastian Brand
One of them is Sebastian Brand, a German immigrant firefighter and mason turned architect, who is not to be confused with Sebastian Brand, a German immigrant boiler maker, whose 1850s Galena Street home survives out on a leafy green lot out in Oconomowoc. Brand – the former – was born Aug. 22, 1844 to Johannes Brand and Margaretha Wild in Nierstein, Germany (in the Hessen-Darmstadt region), on the banks of the Rhine River. Apparently, Brand – the latter – was also born there, sometimes rendering this research somewhat confusing. Did I mention both Brands also lived on Galena Street? Oy. In November 1865, Brand emigrated to the United States and spent some time in Chicago before landing in Milwaukee, where he married Augusta Gesse on Feb. 19, 1871. The Brands had 13 children, only two of whom outlived their father and researching this part of Brand’s life was really just tracing one tragedy after another. A son Charly was born in 1872 and another, Louis, followed in 1874. A daughter, Anna, was born in 1875. All three died in 1877. George was born that year and died in 1880. Emile, born in ’79, died two years later, a year after Edward died at just one month old. Another son, Henry, died the same year he was born. And on and on. Brand joined the Milwaukee Fire Department on Nov. 16, 1872 and was assigned to Engine Co. 5. On May 2, 1882, he was transferred to Truck No. 3 and on Oct. 22, 1884, he was appointed captain of Engine 9, after having climbed the ladder from pipeman to truckman to foreman to lieutenant. On March 9, 1893, he responded to the Romadka Brothers fire on 3rd, between Kilbourn and Wells. “We had been ordered to scale a ladder placed against the real wall of the building,” Brand later recounted to a newspaperman. “With a roar that was heard several blocks away, the wall caved in and the ladder fell. We were buried beneath an avalanche of bricks and mortar. I woke up in the hospital the next day and they told me that my arm would be useless for the rest of my days.” With that devastating injury to his right arm, which reported hung “useless from its socket,” Brand was retired from active firefighting duty. Luckily for Brand – who had previously worked as a mason but had no formal training as an architect – he’d already been moonlighting for the Milwaukee Fire Department designing firehouses. By the time he was injured, he’d already designed houses for Engine 9 (1885), Ladder 5 (1886), Engine 4 (1888), Engine 11/Ladder 6 (1888), Engine 14 (1889), Engine 16 (1890), Engine 18 (1890), Engine 2 (1892) and Engine 10 (1893, picture just below). Brand received no special distinction and no extra pay for the design work he did while also fighting fires. In 1887, Chief James Foley said that Brand’s work saved the city $1,500 that year. In 1894, reporting on Brand’s […]
Nov 22nd, 2016 by Dave Reid
Henningsen, former alderman, dies at age 70
Paul Henningsen, the colorful and controversial former Milwaukee public servant whose three-decade political career was marked by both trouble and triumph, has died at age 70. Henningsen, who served on the Milwaukee Common Council for almost 20 years after serving on the Milwaukee County Board, was found dead in his home Tuesday after a friend called Milwaukee police to request that they check on his welfare, according to a Milwaukee County medical examiner’s report released Wednesday. He had been battling lung cancer, according to the report, which listed the immediate cause of his death as heart disease. But for years Henningsen, who represented downtown Milwaukee and nearby neighborhoods, also battled depression and alcoholism, challenges that some say led to a 33-month prison sentence for mail fraud in 2003. “He was plagued for his whole career by demons, and unfortunately that caused his political career to fail,” said Carl Mueller, CEO of Mueller Communications, who served as chief of staff to former Milwaukee Mayor John Norquist during a time when Henningsen was an alderman. Henningsen earned a bachelor’s degree in government from Lawrence University in 1968 and a law degree from Marquette University in 1975. After serving eight years on the Milwaukee County Board, Henningsen was elected to the Milwaukee Common Council in 1984, representing the city’s 4th Aldermanic district and eventually chairing the council’s Zoning, Neighborhoods and Development Committee. “He was a rising star in local politics and the Democratic Party,” Mueller remembered. “He was forceful and knowledgeable and had a lot to say about what kinds of development should take place.” Henningsen was a force behind the expansion of the city’s convention center and active in the city’s historic preservation movement, Mueller recalled. He also championed reinvestment in Milwaukee’s near west side and encouraged the purchase of houses in the Concordia neighborhood, Mueller said. Henningsen also gained a reputation for being spread-out and overworked. “I was amazed by how many ideas he had,” recalled retired Milwaukee County judge and former Common Council president Tom Donegan. “He was one of the few people speaking out about racial divisions in the community and the needs of poor people. “He was non-stop.” His workaholic ethic might have played a role in the deterioration of his health, former Common Council president Marvin Pratt, one of Henningsen’s closest political allies, said in 1991, when Henningsen took a five-week leave of absence to seek treatment for depression and to determine if he had a drinking problem. “I think what he does to deal with it isn’t what he should be doing,” said Pratt, who with other council members urged Henningsen not to seek re-election. Henningsen’s political career, however, continued until 2003, when he was sentenced to 33 months in prison after being convicted of four counts of mail fraud for embezzling $25,000 from his campaign fund and for falsifying campaign finance reports. “It was nothing short of a tragedy, the way that happened to a guy with so much potential,” Mueller said. On Wednesday, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said Henningsen was committed to making […]
Oct 19th, 2016 by Jeramey Jannene
Bruce O’Neill, longtime trial attorney, dies
It started with his voice. He began slurring his words. At first doctors couldn’t say why one of Milwaukee’s best-known trial attorneys, Bruce O’Neill — known for his oratory in and out of the courtroom — was having trouble speaking. It wasn’t a stroke. That, they knew. But they couldn’t confirm ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease, until months later, when other motor skills began to fail. His legs gave out and soon he lost the ability to write. Then it hit his respiratory system. On Saturday, less than a year after his formal diagnosis with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, the last thing O’Neill was able to move was his left hand. He used it determinedly to point to letters on a laminated board. First it was a P. Then a U. With all his family gathered around him at the hospital, including a daughter in London who had dialed in on the phone, he went on. L. Then another L. When he finally rested his hand it had all been spelled out. P-U-L-L P-L-U-G. O’Neill was completely awake and lucid, his ability to think and reason intact. It was the muscles and other organs that had failed, leaving him trapped inside his 74-year-old body, unable to breathe or hold his head up on his own. “He was desperately communicating to us that it was time,” said his son Matthew O’Neill. “He did not want anything external helping him live longer.” “It was awful but it was very comforting to know he was making the decision.” Legal heavyweights across Milwaukee mourned the death of O’Neill on Monday, all noting his outstanding smarts, gift for speaking and dedication to the profession. “I learned so much from him about being a lawyer,” said Jeff Kremers, former chief judge of Milwaukee County. “He had the ability to take a complex legal situation and make it understandable to an average person, bring it to a level that clients could understand and that a jury and judges could understand.” Kremers and others said no matter what stories they could tell about O’Neill, none would do him justice. He was just too great. O’Neill was everyone’s first choice to ask to offer a toast at a wedding, birthday or retirement party. “You knew they (the toasts) would go on for a while, but you never got tired of it,” Kremers said. “You waited for what beautiful turn of phrase would come out of his mouth.” Bill Fox, O’Neill’s partner at the law firm of Fox, O’Neill & Shannon for 50 years, described O’Neill as a brilliant and humble man who didn’t care about public notoriety. He loved his family, cared deeply about his clients and had the utmost integrity. “He was the smartest lawyer I ever met,” said Fox. “He had unbelievable compassion. He never lost a client and seldom lost a case.” Outside of law, he had a passion for baseball and aimed to make it to every major league stadium in the country. He called it “one of the worst days of my […]
Sep 5th, 2016 by Dave Reid
Trailblazing reporter was advocate for seniors, the disabled
As a newspaper journalist and a voice for the underdog, Fran Bauer toiled mightily to convey the true essence of the person or issue she was exploring. When Bauer died unexpectedly last week, it was left to others to sum up her lifetime of community contributions. One friend, Patti Keating Kahn, offered this: “A life so broadly lived — in love, friendship, intellect, generosity and sharing, commitment to justice and trailblazing, touching so many in such a personal way.” Bauer would’ve cringed at the compliment, but her friend got it right. She was an inspiration for friends and family and for those advocating for the disadvantaged, for seniors, for people with dementia or disabilities. Over 30 years with the Milwaukee Journal and later Journal Sentinel ending in 2000, Bauer chronicled a diverse stream of strivers in central-city neighborhoods, the uses and abuses of power at City Hall and the renaissance of Milwaukee’s downtown. Along the way, she built a reputation as one of the best-connected and notably big-hearted reporters in town. “She knew every neighborhood in Milwaukee and had dozens of sources feeding her story tips from the north and south and west sides,” recalled Mike Juley, a former editor at the paper. In the office, Bauer took time to mentor cub reporters, including this one, who didn’t know the mayor’s office from the men’s room at City Hall. Her final reporting role was a new beat covering the lives of Wisconsin’s elderly and disabled residents. Bauer’s work was instrumental in eventual passage of state funding for long-term care to help older residents stay in their homes, advocate Tom Frazier recalled. “She was the face and the voice of aging issues in Wisconsin,” Frazier said. Without Bauer, there would not have been a Milwaukee County department just on aging issues, said Stephanie Sue Stein, who led the agency. Bauer had “iconic status” in the field of aging in Wisconsin, Stein said. Her journalism was honored in 2007 with her induction into the Milwaukee Press Club‘s Hall of Fame. A former top Journal editor, Pat Graham, called Bauer the most thoughtful and conscientious person he knew at the paper. “Her heart was in every story she ever wrote and every person she ever met,” Graham said. Matters of the heart were always on Bauer’s mind. She had exercised regularly for years to fend off the heart disease that ran in the family, taking long walks with friends and later doing water aerobics. But on July 19, following heart bypass surgery, she died of complications. She was 79. Women in mind Bauer was born Frances Flower Montgomery in Milwaukee in 1936. She grew up in Wauwatosa, earned a journalism degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, married and later was divorced from Clyde Bauer. Living mainly in Whitefish Bay, she raised three children while nurturing her reporting career in a male-dominated world. Bauer thrived, pecking out stories on tight deadline — typing with a single finger on one hand and wearing her trademark […]
Jul 27th, 2016 by Dave Reid
How the old Ad Lib nightclub rewrote the rules of Milwaukee nightlife
Last week, Downtown Milwaukee welcomed a new convention center hotel. SpringHill Suites, a contemporary urban lifestyle 155-room hotel, has transformed the historic Commerce Building, 744 N. 4th St., into a traveler’s destination. Fifty years ago this summer, the Commerce Building was also welcoming a new tenant. On June 10, 1966, the Ad Lib Nightclub opened at 323 W. Wells St., kicking off 10 years of non-stop go-go drama. Formerly an army surplus store, the Ad Lib storefront was beautifully redesigned as a cocktail lounge, supper club and cabaret. “Richly gilded in golds and scarlets, the Ad Lib is brassy classy with ornate glass chandeliers, a big mirrored wall and soft pink lighting,” said the Milwaukee Journal. “The setting is both plush and posh.” At the time, Downtown was experiencing a nightclub boom, with Fazio’s on Fifth (634 N. 5th St.), Someplace Else (408 N. Water St.), the Attic (641 N. 2nd St.), Nauti-Gal (611 N. Milwaukee St.), the Safe House (779 Front St.), the Knickerbocker Hotel’s Red Lion Room and the Pfister Hotel‘s new Crown Room all featuring live entertainment. Legendary nightclub The Scene, located at 624 N. 2nd St., was already hosting national headliners, including Chuck Berry, Ray Charles and Duke Ellington. The Ad Lib delivered top-notch talent in an intimate and respectable setting. Within its first year, the highly regarded nightclub welcomed Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, Wes Montgomery, Dizzy Gillespie, Count Basie, Herbie Mann, Lionel Hampton, Dorothy Donnegan, Henny Youngman, Rusty Warren, Art Van Damme, Gene Krupa and many, many more. Although multiple people were eventually licensed as the bar’s legal owner, the Ad Lib was always part of Frank Balistrieri‘s nightlife syndicate. Balistrieri, his family and his associates had deep involvement in almost a dozen bars between the 1950s and 1980s. By 1966, Balistrieri was truly one of the most powerful men in Milwaukee, and 4th and Wells was the heart of a growing empire. The Ad Lib’s heart beat like a jazz drum. With a 225-person capacity, the venue was frequently oversold, and reservations became a hot commodity. Keeping up this momentum became very challenging for promoters, and nightlife critics wondered how long they could keep the names coming. And then, just like that, the Ad Lib abruptly switched to an all-striptease format in August 1967. “We’re only doing this temporarily,” promised manager Jimmy Jennaro. “I already have jazzmen booked for September and November.” But this wasn’t exactly true, as the Ad Lib remained a strip joint for the next six years. There was money to be made in the Sexual Revolution. The Ad Lib joined a growing red light district that already included the Brass Rail (744 N. 3rd St.), the Downtowner Bar (340 W. Wells St.), the Princess Theater (738 N. 3rd St.) and many adult bookstores. What had been Milwaukee’s Theater Row was quickly becoming a city of night. At the time, strict ordinances made it illegal for female entertainers to sit at any table, in any booth or elsewhere on the premises […]
Jul 13th, 2016 by Dave Reid
Former Milwaukee County official convicted of misconduct
A former Milwaukee County official has been convicted of two counts of felony misconduct in public office and will be sentenced Sept. 29 in Milwaukee County Circuit Court, according to online state court records. Dennis Dietscher, the former risk manager for the county, on July 1 agreed to plead guilty of accepting bribes and making false statements connected to his handling of contractor work in exchange for the district attorney’s office dropping four other felony charges against him, records show. Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Mark Sanders found Dietscher guilty of the two official misconduct charges. The plea deal avoided the need for a jury trial that had been scheduled to begin July 18. Dietscher, 56, of Hales Corners, had faced six felony counts related to funneling more than $10 million in restoration work to the same contractor for repairs to county property over several years. From 2009 to 2013, Dietscher nearly always chose the same restoration contractor, Belfor USA. In return, Belfor provided hunting and fishing trips, $1,300 worth of tools and other kickbacks, and got work done on Dietscher’s home. Dietscher played a role in coordinating millions of dollars in repairs to the Milwaukee County Courthouse after a July 2013 fire but the charges were not related to that work. He worked for the county from 1986 to March 2014.
Jul 5th, 2016 by Dave Reid
DA candidate represented landlord in 296 eviction cases
Verona Swanigan, a Milwaukee lawyer running for district attorney, filed eviction lawsuits against nearly 300 people on behalf of a landlord who owes about $70,000 in Municipal Court fines and has a history of offering substandard housing, court records show. Swanigan, who is challenging incumbent District Attorney John Chisholm in the Democratic primary, represented companies linked to Elijah Mohammad Rashaed on 296 eviction cases in small claims court in 2012 and 2013, according to online court records. Rashaed, who is also known as Dennis Bell, is linked to about 24 companies that own and rent at least 194 properties, with 670 rental units, in Milwaukee. In addition to the court fines for code violations, as of April, the companies owed $484,472 in delinquent taxes. He was convicted of disorderly conduct in 2007 after he was initially charged with battery for punching a city building inspector. Thirty Rashaed properties are on the city’s monthly reinspection list of homes and apartments that are inspected monthly because the landlord failed repeatedly to correct code violations. Swanigan confirmed Tuesday that she had frequently represented Rashaed companies in eviction court. “I didn’t know what kind of landlord he was,” Swanigan said, adding that during her representation she learned Rashaed had “seriously bad practices” and rented properties that were in poor condition. “It was an eye-opening experience,” Swanigan said in an interview Tuesday. She said that when she brought her concerns up to Rashaed, the conversation did not go well. “That’s one reason I’m not working with him,” she said. “I am a very ethical person … I couldn’t continue” representing Rashaed companies. Asked why it took two years for her to reach that conclusion, Swanigan said that initially she was representing Rashaed in cases where there were no serious complaints about the condition of the properties. “When those issues started to become clear to me, that’s when I got off the cases,” Swanigan said. Chisholm, who will face Swanigan in the August primary, criticized Swanigan for not dropping Rashaed as a client sooner. “Good prosecutors have to be able to make a judgment call on who’s good or bad faster than their 296th case,” Chisholm said in an email statement issued through a spokesman. It is unknown what property companies Rashaed actually owns or how much of the companies he owns. The properties are owned by limited liability corporations, and ownership of LLCs is not public. Government records link Rashaed to about two dozen LLCs. Rashaed disagreed that Swanigan stopped representing companies linked to him because she thought he was a problem landlord. Rather, he said, she stopped because “she had gotten really sick and she wasn’t able to practice.” In May 2014, Swanigan said in an affidavit that she had “suffered from a debilitating illness that impacted my physical and mental capacity.” The sworn statement was filed to explain why she had failed to respond to a motion in a case. During the interview with Rashaed on Tuesday, he called Swanigan and conferenced her into […]
May 4th, 2016 by Dave Reid
Figueroa Stepping Down as Roberto Hernandez Center Director
On March 10, Dr. Enrique Figueroa sent a mass email to the UW-Milwaukee staff, Hispanic leadership, and the Hispanic student body in which he confirmed that he will be stepping down as director of the Roberto Hernandez Center (RHC) on Aug. 21 of this year. Dr. Figueroa received his bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Education from California State University in 1973. After that, he received his two masters’ degrees from UC-Davis in ‘75, and ‘82, as well as his Ph.D. in ‘86. He served as Deputy Under Secretary for the Department of Agriculture from June ’99 to January ’01. After a nationwide search to fill the position of Director for the RHC, he was contacted by Provost, John Wanat, and he was hired in 2002. For over 14 years, Dr. Figueroa has been the chief executive and administrative officer of the Center. His responsibilities as director included: overall management and planning of the student center, including personnel, budget administration, and program development and its implementation. Figueroa said he began thinking of taking some time off back in 2015. But, when he asked the Provost and Vice Chancellor, Johannes Britz, Figueroa was given three options, two of which required him to step down. “We sat down together and evaluated the options at hand,” said Britz. “However, if he wanted to remain as the director for the center, he would have to take the time off without pay.” With the unpaid time off, Figueroa would be stripped of his most of his benefits. Forcing him to pay over $2,000 per month, just on medical insurance payments alone. “It’s not that I wanted to step down, it’s just that I wanted to take some time off,” said Figueroa. “However, my health insurance payments were going to be too much of an economic burden in my life.” Figueroa will be leaving on sabbatical for the fall of ’16, and the spring of ’17. While on sabbatical, he plans develop an “Urban Agriculture” course or program, in order to teach it for the fall of 2017. One of his closest co-workers, Olivia Navarro, was thunderstruck when she heard of the news for the first time. She has been one of the academic advisors of the RHC for the past year and a half. “He has been a great support all along since I started working here, through my development and the growth that I’ve had as a professional,” said Navarro. “There’s so much that he’s done that I feel its going to be a great loss for the center, and the Latino students all across the campus.” Although Navarro said that she is excited to welcome the new director in the fall, she only hopes that they will have the drive and commitment for the Latino students as Dr. Figueroa had. She is anxious to show the new director the mission of the office, with addition of recognizing the opportunity of learning from someone else. As of now, the Provost doesn’t have a plan set forth […]
Apr 7th, 2016 by Dave Reid
UWM fires head coach Rob Jeter after fifth 20-win season in 11 years
After a 20-win campaign that started with promise but ended without a postseason, Rob Jeter‘s 11-year tenure as head coach of the UW-Milwaukee men’s basketball team has ended. Athletic director Amanda Braun announced the firing on Thursday morning. “Rob has always put the interests of our student-athletes first and has represented our program and the university with class over the last 11 years. I thank him and his staff for their contributions,” Braun said in a statement. “After a thorough review, I have decided that a change in leadership of our men’s basketball program is needed to help us achieve our goal of consistently being a top program in the Horizon League.” Jeter, who had one year left on his contract, had a 185-170 overall record over 11 seasons at Milwaukee. The 2011 Horizon League coach of the year, his teams won the regular-season championship twice (2006, 2011) and the conference tournament twice (2006, 2014), earning a pair of NCAA tournament appearances. The Panthers won at least 20 games, a benchmark of moderate success in Division I college basketball, five times in his tenure. In framing the firing, the school’s statement noted that Milwaukee “finished third or higher in the Horizon League regular-season standings twice in the last ten seasons and have not accomplished the feat since 2011-12.” This past season, the Panthers went 9-4 during the nonconference portion of their schedule, including impressive road wins over Big Ten teams Wisconsin and Minnesota. But a 10-8 record in the Horizon League – good for only fifth place in the standings – followed by a second-round loss to Green Bay in the conference tournament, wasn’t enough for Jeter to keep his job. Last year, Milwaukee was banned from participating in a postseason tournament because of poor academic performance. This season, despite returning almost all of its players and reporting significant improvement in the classroom, Braun decided the team’s on-court results were not good enough to warrant a tournament. In an interview with the Journal Sentinel, she said, “In reality, we underperformed this year. We finished fifth in the conference. We also played the 292nd-weakest schedule in the nation. That’s not a season I think merits a postseason.” After those comments, it seemed, the writing was on the wall for Jeter, who was an assistant coach at Wisconsin (2001-05) and Milwaukee (1999-2001) before taking over the Panthers. According to the school’s statement, a national search will begin immediately for the next head coach. “As we begin the process of searching for a new head coach, we will identify candidates who believe in our mission, possess high character and integrity and have a proven track record of continued success,” Braun said. On Thursday, just as some did after learning they wouldn’t be having a postseason, a couple of Milwaukee players used Twitter to express their displeasure with the decision to fire Jeter.
Mar 17th, 2016 by Dave Reid
CRE veteran founds MBH Investment Real Estate in Milwaukee
Matson Holbrook recently founded MBH Investment Real Estate, LLC, in Milwaukee. MBH is a boutique brokerage firm specializing in investment property sales transactions across all real estate sectors, including multifamily, office, retail, industrial and other special asset classes. Holbrook has 16 years of real estate experience, and has participated in about $200 million in completed sales transactions since 2011. Prior to founding MBH, Holbrook was senior vice president of Siegel-Gallagher’s Investment Properties Group.
Mar 15th, 2016 by Dave Reid
