Forgotten Civil War veterans buried in County’s Poor Farm Cemetery finally honored on Memorial Day 2023
Memorial Day 2023 decorations at the Milwaukee County Poor Farm Cemetery #3 marks what is thought to be the first time three Civil War veterans buried in cemeteries on County Grounds were honorably recognized with a Memorial Day flag for their service to the nation....
Acts of Hate: Local family faces lengthy legal battle with neighbors over alleged racial harassment
A heated lawsuit is underway in the quiet suburban neighborhood of Mount Pleasant as Carlos J. Amaya and Laura V. Amaya filed a lawsuit against their neighbors, James I. Coots and Cindy J. Coots on May 23. The lawsuit also includes ABC Insurance Company, alleging...
CONNECT 1 Service: MCTS launches summer route changes along with new BRT line on June 4
Milwaukee County Transit System (MCTS) summer schedules go into effect on June 4, and include the launch of the new CONNECT 1. Wisconsin’s first Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line, CONNECT 1, will deliver a premium level of transit service that improves mobility and...
Milwaukee Mile prepares for return of NASCAR series with safety training and track upgrades
Before the NASCAR Craftsman Truck series could return to the Milwaukee Mile for the Clean Harbors 175 race, after a 14-year absence, the racing association demanded some track repairs and retraining for the Fire and Safety crews. Even though the series is not...
Milwaukee Independent earns 3 of its 11 Gridiron Awards for first-hand reporting of Ukraine War
The Milwaukee Independent earned eleven top distinctions on May 12 from the Milwaukee Press Club for Excellence in Wisconsin Journalism, during the 2023 Gridiron Awards at the Pfister Hotel. The journalism honors follow multiple years of double-digit recognition for...
Milwaukee-based “Friends of Be an Angel” is saving lives and offering hope in war-damaged Ukraine
Entire cities in Ukraine have been destroyed, displacing more than 14 million residents from their homes, schools, and livelihoods for the past year. Since the early days of the war, Milwaukee-based nonprofit Friends of Be an Angel has made extraordinary efforts in...
Governor Evers signs legislation to increase penalties for carjacking and reckless driving in Wisconsin
Governor Tony Evers signed a pair of bipartisan bills on May 10 that would increase penalties for carjacking and reckless driving. The bills come as part of a Republican-backed push to crack down on dangerous driving across the state but particularly in Milwaukee,...
Milwaukee community mourns migrant deaths in Brownsville after SUV driver hits crowd at bus stop
Milwaukee Independent was embedded with a delegation from Forward Latino for a fact-finding mission to the Mexico-United States border, that started at City of Brownsville in June 2022. Nearly a year later on May 7, at least seven people were killed and up to ten were...
Striping of a new dedicated bus lane for Milwaukee County’s BRT begins installation across downtown
As Milwaukee County’s first-ever Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line enters the final construction stage, streets along the downtown route will undergo a visual transformation by being painted with dedicated lane stripes. The dedicated bus lanes, a collaboration between MCTS...
20 Days in Mariupol: Milwaukee Film Festival screens Ukrainian documentary that won praise at Sundance
The visceral documentary “20 Days in Mariupol” produced by the Associated Press and Frontline (PBS) was awarded the Sundance Film Festival’s World Cinema Documentary Competition Audience Award in January. It will be showcased locally during the 2023 Milwaukee Film...
Homes MKE: Initiative begins renovating vacant City-owned houses to build stronger neighborhoods
City of Milwaukee officials, elected leaders, and local stakeholders formally kicked off the Homes MKE initiative on April 19 in the North Division area of the Lindsay Heights neighborhood. In 2021, Mayor Cavalier Johnson and members of the Milwaukee Common Council...
Historic Milwaukee: What it takes for Pabst Mansion to preserve its 1893 pavilion for future generations
The Pabst Mansion announced publicly on March 24 that it plans to submit an application for a Certificate of Appropriateness (COA) from the City of Milwaukee’s Historic Preservation Commission. The purpose of the COA was to meticulously deconstruct and preserve...
