Author: Lee Matz

Mayor Tom Barrett delivered a positive outlook for his annual State of the City address on February 10 at the Potawatomi Hotel & Casino, highlighting Milwaukee’s accompaniments and a roadmap for 2020. From education, to health care, to the Democratic National Convention in July, Mayor Barrett’s upbeat speech covered a range of topics and issues that the city needed to address over the year ahead. “We’re starting to get the attention we deserve because special things are happening in Milwaukee,” said Mayor Barrett, after reading a list of news headlines that all touted the city’s renaissance. In some ways...

The Milwaukee PBS series “Around the Corner with John McGivern” begins its 9th season in 2020, kicking off with a focus on the Story Hill neighborhood of Milwaukee. Story Hill roughly encompasses the area from Doyne Park in the north to Miller Park in the south, and I-94 in the east to Calvary Cemetery in the west. Settled in the 1840s, the neighborhood is perched on a bluff overlooking downtown and the Menomonee Valley. Erhard Brielmaier’s 1899 Calvary Cemetery Chapel was actually built on the highest point of the city. After more than 100 episodes, Emmy Award-Winning Actor John...

Crowds of people crowded the cold shores of Milwaukee’s Bradford Beach to make the annual Polar Bear Plunge on January 1 and welcome the New Year, in a tradition that goes back to 1916. This year the air and water temperatures were the same at 39° and the waves mild. The milder conditions compacted the beachfront area, which was more congested with fire pits and camps placed far closer to the waterline. Rescue divers from the Milwaukee Police and Fire departments were again deployed along the beach, about 50 meters from shore. Lacking any formal sponsors, the free event...