Author: NNS

As the city enters a development boom valued at more than $3 billion, which will include a number of large projects downtown, city leaders said struggling central city residents must benefit from those projects as well. “As much as I love being a cheerleader for all the great things that are going on in the City of Milwaukee, when I lie awake at night, it’s about the challenges that we face,” said Mayor Tom Barrett. “At the end of the day, if you don’t have permanent jobs, you are going to have permanent problems.” The comments came at a...

Policy experts warn that a decision not to implement a vehicle registration fee could have profound consequences for Milwaukee bus riders. A $60 county vehicle registration fee, known as the “wheel tax,” may be unpopular, but it is necessary to maintain public transportation services for people who rely on the bus, experts say. A decision not to implement such a fee could have profound consequences for low-income Milwaukee residents, according to University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Associate Professor of Urban Planning Robert Schneider. Citing census data, he stated that more than 54,000 households in the county, approximately 14 percent, do not...

More than a dozen information booths provided resources to neighbors on subjects such as jobs, safety, housing and voter education. Kelly Lor, who volunteered during Make A Difference Day in Sherman Park, animatedly described the unexpected fun she had while filling garbage bag after garbage bag full of trash. Lor was one of the several dozen members from City of Light Church in Wauwatosa who participated in the cleanup, celebration and resource fair during Make A Difference Day. Pastor Timothy Perkins of Bethel-Bethany Church reiterated Lor’s sentiment, saying that the event allowed him to connect with people in the...

Dignitaries, community leaders and residents came together recently to celebrate the opening of Journey House’s newest campus housing property, located at 2033 W. Scott Street. “This home was an eyesore, dangerous, and was only still standing because the city didn’t have the resources at the time to raze it,” Mayor Tom Barrett said to the crowd gathered at the south end of Longfellow School’s playground. Each unit of the four-unit building, which had been a city-owned foreclosure, will house a teen who has aged out of the foster care system as part of the Campus Housing Initiative, a partnership...

Researchers at the Marquette University Department of Psychology are working to improve treatment for Latino children diagnosed with ADHD. When Alyson Gerdes of the Marquette University Department of Psychology met Al Castro, program director of the health research department at the United Community Center (UCC), they found that they were unknowingly working toward the same goal. Gerdes, whose clinical and research specialty at Marquette deals while childhood Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), said that they were asking themselves how they could reach families in the city that do not have access to mental health care. “This project resonated with...

It is a very difficult time in Milwaukee. Yet with this difficulty, comes great opportunity. We have the opportunity to see our challenges more clearly and to speak with honesty about the issues we face. We also have an opportunity to work with each other to solve problems and to find our way toward peace together. The past few months have brought struggle, fear and sadness, and the frustration in our city continues to be intense. While the conditions that have led to this violence are not new, finding solutions that will bring lasting peace demands that we look...