Supervisor Taylor Says Park East Sale Lacks Transparency

Milwaukee County Board Supervisor Steve F. Taylor today said that the process for selling the Park East to the Milwaukee Bucks for $1 lacked transparency, but he said he was happy it would lead the Bucks to stay in Milwaukee.

“This is not about Milwaukee County selling the Park East for $1, this is about Chris Abele selling the Park East for $1,” said Taylor, Chairman of the Economic and Community Development Committee. “The County Executive and his administration managed to freeze the Board out of a vote on this proposal, which means a thorough public discussion did not take place, except through a public hearing held by the Board.

“There are certainly questions about transparency surrounding this sale on the County Executive’s part. The County Executive agreed to this sale without holding a public hearing or without a public vetting.”

Taylor called the sale a “momentous development,” but he said he hoped the taxpayers would see a return on the sale.

“As chairman of the Economic and Community Development Committee, naturally I want to see economic enhancements to the County,” Taylor said. “But we won’t know for almost a decade whether this particular sale was the right thing to do. I’m happy the Bucks will stay, but I want the best deal for taxpayers and I don’t know whether this is it. A public vetting of the proposal would have helped the public to know whether this was a good deal.”

Taylor also questioned how future land sales would be handled since the County Board has been cut out of the process.

“I hope the County Executive will be more open to public comment the next time he decides to sell county land,” Taylor said.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.

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