Author: NNS

The Residents Preference Program (RPP) could be a tool to address some of the most pressing issues Milwaukee is facing. One example is the Northwestern Mutual Commons, a $325 million project that has employed RPP workers. In January 2013, Fabian Hinkle had just been caught with five grams of crack cocaine. The charge, possession with intent to sell, would have put Hinkle, who had already served a total of 15 months for two earlier marijuana-related cases, behind bars for 11 years. While he was awaiting sentencing in the Milwaukee Secure Detention Facility, Hinkle learned his ex-girlfriend was pregnant. “Honestly, I prayed,”...

Fabian Hinkle talks about why he decided to start his apprenticeship a second time after being dismissed by his training board.

Adam Dokes, a second-year plumbing apprentice who is certified under RPP, talks about the poor choices he made in his youth and the positive steps that led to a training program at WRTP/Big Step.

A new city law that will take effect on Oct. 28 prohibits panhandling on street medians narrower than 5 feet, or any highway ramp that might be dangerous for pedestrians. Panhandling itself is not illegal. All 15 members of the council voted in favor of the measure, which the mayor signed into law Wednesday. According to the ordinance, violators can be fined $50 to $200 plus court costs or imprisoned if unable to pay. Faith Kohler, director of “30 Seconds Away: Breaking the Cycle,” a documentary film about homelessness in Milwaukee, supports the ordinance because panhandling on medians and...

When Bennie Smith opened Daddy’s Soul Food and Grille on North 27th Street in November 2014, he had three main goals: optimal customer service, an inviting atmosphere and excellent food. “It was always my dream, to open a restaurant. You know you’re going to do something someday but you just don’t know how or when or where,” Smith said, referring to the period before he was offered space in Avenues West to start his business. At Daddy’s Soul Food and Grille, Smith makes sure all of the food is up to his quality standards, and most of the time...

More than 70,000 lead water service lines provide water to residents of Milwaukee homes built before 1951. Despite continued pressure from the Freshwater for Life Action Coalition, a resident group that has been hosting meetings across the city to warn people about the dangerous levels of lead in their drinking water, the city is taking a deliberate approach to addressing the issue. Alderman Jim Bohl Jr., who represents the 5th District and chairs the Water Quality Task Force, said the group is moving in a timely manner to make recommendations on what to do with the city’s 70,000 lead...