Archive for Waukesha News Highlights
Lake Michigan water sale to Waukesha backed by some Milwaukee officials
Posted by: | CommentsThe Journal Sentinel reports some Milwaukee water officials favor selling lake water to Waukesha.
A Milwaukee Common Council committee called Wednesday for the city to formally declare its interest in selling water to Waukesha.
Environmentalists and civil rights advocates urged the panel to wait until the state Department of Natural Resources has written rules to govern the process. But aldermen and Milwaukee Water Works Superintendent Carrie Lewis said the resolution was needed to keep the city in competition with Racine and Oak Creek to supply water to Waukesha.
Waukesha is seeking to buy Lake Michigan water to replace its groundwater wells, which are contaminated with radium. Because the community is outside the Great Lakes basin – but in a county that straddles the subcontinental divide – the Great Lakes Compact requires it to follow an intricate application process that includes winning the approval of all eight Great Lakes governors.
As part of that application process, Waukesha officials have asked communities willing to sell water to Waukesha to submit letters of interest by Jan. 31. Waukesha Mayor Larry Nelson said his city already has received letters of interest from the Racine and Oak Creek water utilities.
But Waukesha officials prefer to buy water from Milwaukee for cost reasons. Milwaukee’s water already is distributed to nearby suburbs, and the connection would not require miles of new pipeline.
As endorsed by the Milwaukee council’s Public Works Committee, Milwaukee’s letter would spell out the compact’s requirement for Waukesha to develop a plan to return water to the Great Lakes basin.
Waukesha is already working on a plan to do that, using Underwood Creek. The water return plan is crucial to the deal, said Ald. Michael Murphy and Leslie Silletti, an aide to Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett.
Environmental advocates Jodi Habush Sinykin and Peter McAvoy said the application would be premature without DNR rules governing the process. Barrett and Murphy originally wanted to wait for the DNR rules, too. But Natural Resources Secretary Matt Frank has said the compact provides sufficient guidance to move forward without the rules.
Ald. Bob Bauman, the committee chairman, accused the DNR of “foot-dragging,” and Murphy said the department was being swayed by “political winds” rather than science.
The letter also would reiterate Milwaukee’s policy linking water sales to a suburb’s land use, affordable housing and public transit.
Karyn Rotker, attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin, accused Waukesha of moving backward on affordable housing. She said the city’s Plan Commission had supported reducing the number of apartments in the housing mix, despite warnings that the move could disproportionately affect minorities.
Nelson said he would be sharing information on Waukesha’s housing mix and transportation programs with Milwaukee officials as they continue to discuss a water sale. He said his city offers more apartments and other affordable housing than any other Waukesha County community and is likely second only to the city of Milwaukee in the metropolitan area.
The criticism might have been spurred by a long-term goal of increasing the number of owner-occupied homes and condos in the city by 5% in the next 20 years, he said.
Nelson described the committee’s action as “a first step toward a positive response from Milwaukee.” He has been meeting with city officials in recent weeks to discuss the project and is optimistic that the Milwaukee council will agree to send the letter, he said.
Waukesha is not yet asking the three possible suppliers to make a commitment, Nelson said. When the Waukesha Common Council early next year approves an application for Great Lakes water, Nelson said, he will begin seriously negotiating with a seller.
Lewis, Bauman and Milwaukee council President Willie Hines Jr. also said the letter would just start the process and that details would be worked out in negotiations. The full Milwaukee council will consider the issue Dec. 22.
School redistricting on Wed. board agenda
Posted by: | CommentsThe School Board will consider three high-profile topics at its Wednesday meeting at 7 p.m. at the Lindholm Building, 222 W. Maple Ave.
It will examine administration’s recommendations to change feeder patterns for middle schools beinning in the 2010-2011 school year. It will consider the open-choice period for the new STEM School beginning in January, and it will consider changing the health insurance provider for emplyees, which they were notified of late Friday.
The feeder issue is linked to the controversial proposal to close three elementary school, including the largely Hispanic White Rock.
Here are parts of the explanatory letter from Superintendent Todd Gray:
The primary reason for this plan is to provide an improved educational structure for all students. A secondary reason is to proactively plan for operating efficiencies and budget constraints in the coming years.
The district has held community input sessions to provide additional information, answer questions, and provide an opportunity to offer feedback to the Board of Education prior to their final decision. A number of parent recommendations will be implemented in this plan.
Building Repurpose:
Randall will close as an attendance area school and become a Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM) school. Students within the Randall attendance area will go to neighboring attendance areas.
Saratoga will close as an attendance area school and become a grade 6-8 STEM annex. Students within the Saratoga attendance area will go to Whittier or Rose Glen.
White Rock will close as an attendance area school. The site will be used for alternative education programs, iQ Academy and administration. Many of the White Rock attendance area students will go to their neighborhood schools. Students receiving ESL/Bilingual services may receive services in their attendance area school or another school dependent on type of service needed.
La Casa de Esperanza, Waukesha’s Hispanic community agency disapproves of the proposed changes for White Rock.
Pleasant Hill will close as an attendance area school and may or may not remain vacant for one year while a district team explores possible use as a future charter school site. Pleasant Hill attendance area will go to Hillcrest.
The Lindholm Office will close as a district building. Administration will be moved to White Rock building during the 2011-2012 school year.
Dual Language programs provide instruction in Spanish to both English and Spanish speaking students. This allows students to learn a second language. The program will continue at Banting and is proposed to begin at Bethesda in 2010.
Developmental Bilingual Programs provide instruction for students that speak Spanish as their primary language. The program will continue at Blair and begin at Heyer. The program at Banting and Whittier may be phased out over time.
Intensive ESL Programs provide instruction for students that speak a primary language other than English. The program will continue at Hadfield and may begin at Hawthorne.
Waukesha senior dining centers to consolidate
Posted by: | CommentsThe Waukesha County Aging and Disability Resource Center of Waukesha County will consolidate its three senior dining centers in the Waukesha to one.
As of Jan. 1, 2010, the La Casa Village senior dining center will be the single senior dining center in the city and the centers currently located in the Saratoga Heights and Willow Park apartment buildings will close.
Additionally, the Waukesha County Exposition Center will house the Home Delivered Meal program within the City of Waukesha. As of Jan. 1, all meals will be assembled at and distributed from the Expo Center.
The consolidation, which became finalized with the passage of the Waukesha County 2010 budget in November, is part of an effort to increase efficiency, minimize costs and allow for future growth of the home delivered meal program which, over the past few years, has seen consistent and progressive growth.
Seniors, age 60 and over, previously receiving meals at Saratoga Heights and Willow Park locations, are able to attend the senior dining center at La Casa Village.
All Waukesha County residents age 60 and over, regardless of income, are eligible to receive the meals, which are funded by the federal government through the “Older Americans Act,” at senior dining centers. Transportation may be available for $1, each way, for seniors to attend the dining center. Homebound seniors are encouraged to contact the ADRC regarding home delivery of the meals.
“It was a very difficult decision to make these changes,” said Cathy Bellovary, Director of the ADRC, “but the decision was made strategically. After thorough deliberation, the La Casa Village senior dining center was chosen because it is a community friendly center with a large room available for future growth, plenty of parking and availability five days a week.”
Bellovary said that La Casa de Esperanza, the organization which owns and operates La Casa Village, has been a longtime partner of Waukesha County and the ADRC.
Seniors with questions about the senior dining center changes or those who would like information regarding meals through the home delivered meal program are encourage to contact the ADRC by calling 262-548-7848.
Waukesha man charged with homicide in driving death of Vernon man
Posted by: | CommentsThis from Journal Sentinel:
Christopher M. Conner, 20, of Waukesha, was charged Friday with homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle stemming from an early morning crash Tuesday that killed passenger Michael Zippel, 23, of Vernon.
According to the criminal complaint, Conner told police at the scene that he had had five beers before driving off Cheri Ave. at Sunset View Drive in Vernon shortly before 2 a.m. Dec. 1. The car traveled down a ditch, became airborne and hit a large tree about 7 feet off the ground before coming to rest 300 feet from the tree, the complaint says.
Zippel, who was in the back seat, was thrown from the car and pronounced dead at the scene from internal injuries. Conner and passenger Lauren Thiesenhusen, 19, of Waukesha, were treated for minor injuries.
Judge J. Mac Davis set cash bail of $250,000 and scheduled a preliminary hearing for Dec. 10.
The felony carries punishment of up to 25 years in prison and up to $100,000 fine, plus loss of driving privileges for five years.
Conner was also charged with two misdemeanors – drunken driving causing injury, in connection with Thiesenhusen’s injuries and possession of marijuana, which emergency personnel said they found on him as they transported him to a hospital.
Bike rider snatches woman’s purse in Waukesha
Posted by: | CommentsA woman had her purse snatched by a passing male bicyclist around 9 p.m. Wednesday while she walking east bound on the sidewalk on Sunset Drive, near East Ave., Waukesha police blotter says
The man riding a dark colored mountain bike came at her and grabbed the purse. He was wearing dark clothes and white shoes, the police bloytter says.
Police used dog to try and track down the bicyclist, but he was not found.
Waukesha water meeting delayed
Posted by: | CommentsThis from Don Behm of JS.
Mayor Larry Nelson has canceled a Dec. 8 public hearing and special Common Council meeting on the city’s proposed switch to Lake Michigan water.
The meeting will be rescheduled in early January to give city staff more time to complete a draft application, officials said.
Waukesha intends to seek the approval of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and each of the governors of the seven other Great Lakes states to buy Lake Michigan water.
It would cost the city around $78 million to make the switch from ground water wells to a lake supply. The price tag includes building a pipeline to discharge treated wastewater to Underwood Creek in Wauwatosa.
One piece of the application that was not done in time for a Dec. 8 meeting is an analysis of the impact to Underwood Creek’s water quality if the city discharges to the small stream.
Underwood Creek is a tributary of the Menomonee River and the waterways would return the treated waste water back to Lake Michigan, as required under a Great Lakes protection compact.
United Way in Waukesha County extends fund drive
Posted by: | CommentsThis in from the Business Journal:
With only 10 days left in its fundraising campaign, United Way of Greater Milwaukee officials said Tuesday that it is still $5 million short of its $45 million target.
The organization said it has so far raised $40,342,057, or 89.6 percent of goal. The United Way reports more unexpected losses than anticipated, specifically in the small-to-medium business sector. As a result, the campaign overall is running 1.4 percent behind last year.
The United Way campaign, which raises funds for social and human services programming that serves hundreds of thousands of Milwaukee-area residents, ends Dec. 10.
To help with its final push for donations, United Way of Greater Milwaukee is launching “Give $10. Inspire $100.”, a grassroots strategy encouraging people to give an additional or new end-of-campaign gift of $10 and to ask 10 friends to do the same.
“Today’s urgency to give translates to community results in 2010,” said Elizabeth Brenner, president and publisher, Journal Sentinel Inc. and 2009 United Way of Greater Milwaukee Community Campaign co-chair. “A recent U.S. Department of Agriculture study found that in 2008 nearly 20 percent of American households worried that their food would run out before they had money to buy more.”
Because of slow fundraising and greater need, the United Way in Waukesha County extended its campaign by another month. That campaign, however, still had more than half of its $5.14 million goal to raise with just two weeks remaining before its last day Nov. 30. In mid-November, organizers extended the campaign to Dec. 31.
La Casa opposes White Rock closing
Posted by: | CommentsAnselmo Villarreal, executive director of Waukesha’s La Casa de Esperanza, said Tuesday that he and his agency were backing efforts to stop the closure of White Rock Elementary School, a facility known for its bilingual program for Hispanics.
School District Administration is proposing to parcel White Rock pupils among three other elementary schools as part of its larger plan to move 6th graders into middle school. The shakeup would provide the cash strapped district more than $1 million in savings on building use and transportation costs, school officials say.
At a morning meeting at La Casa, Villarreal said school administration has not provided his agency nor concerned parents with details that are needed to justify the proposed closing. His support for the parents puts a powerful voice in their corner.
“The School District wants to maximize use of facilities and resources,” Villarreal said. “But what’s more important than anything else is the education of our children.”
Villarreal called the staff and the school “remarkable.”
“We cannot support the closing of White Rock,” he said. “We need to know that the great successes of White Rock will be duplicated. We don’t have answers for that and we don’t know where our children will go.”
No one from district administration or the School Board was there.
Villarreal said he sent a letter to the district last week that says he would not support the closing of White Rock.
Tony Baez, president of the Council for Spanish Speaking Inc., said the closure proposal falls into an economic strategy among school district administrators nationwide to “tighten up.”
“We’ve spent too much time building bilingual schools to let a school superintendent who basically lasts (in the district) for about three years,” Baez said. “Superintendents come and go but not the community.”
The district has held several neighborhood meetings, some at La Casa, to explain its rationale for the proposed closure, saying the school would have too few students and transportation costs could be cut because only one-third of the school’s pupils live inside its enrollment boundaries.
Parent Jose Lopez said at the meeting that he was confused by all of the facts and figures the district is using to justify the closing.
“There are so many official arguments,” Lopez said. “I get confused. I feel lied to.”
The proposal has yet to be a ted on the School Board, which reportedly is conflicted about the idea.
New Waukesha Walmart to open late summer, early fall
Posted by: | CommentsLisa Nelson, a public affairs director with Walmart, said over the holiday that the new store being built at West Ave. and the bypass should be open by late summer or early fall.
Waukesha-based Generac partners with Fiat
Posted by: | CommentsThis in from the Milwaukee Small Business Times:
Generac Power Systems Inc., and Fiat Powertrain Technologies have reached a new strategic partnership that will begin early next year, by which Fiat will supply Generac with a wide range of industrial diesel engines to be used in power generation stations designed and built by Generac.
The power stations will be capable of producing between 60 kW to 350 kW, and will use engines that will increase productivity, efficiency and lower operational costs, both companies said.
Fiat’s engines use about 37 percent less oil than its competitors’ designs and require less frequent oil and filter changes. Although Fiat’s engines are smaller than many other diesel engines used in power generation, they create more power by incorporating turbochargers and enhanced injection systems. Those designs use less fuel, while generating the same or more power than the engines designed by Fiat’s competition.
“FPT engines have many superior technology and performance advantages that Generac seeks to utilize in its gensets,” states Allen Gillette, senior vice president, engineering, Generac. “Using FPT engines will enable us to offer our customers superior products and technology. In addition, as FPT products are developed to reduce engine emissions while improving fuel consumption, they will aid Generac in continuing to meet the new exhaust emissions standards required by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and providing the most innovative engine technologies on the market today.”
Generac has also launched a new hybrid electrical system for recreational vehicles. Because today’s motor coaches have all the bells and whistles and comforts of the home, they are using far more energy than ever before, the company says. The appliances and accessories that need to be powered are increasingly more sophisticated and advanced and need a dependable, clean power source.
Generac has partnered with Magnum Energy and Precision Circuits Inc. to introduce the first Hybrid Electrical System to deliver all the power needed for large RVs without having to install a larger, more costly generator.
“For more than 50 years, Generac has garnered considerable expertise in producing small engines, providing innovative and value-driven generator products for the residential, commercial and RV industries. Generac’s staff of talented engineers is responsible for creating this opportunity to expand the company’s RV product offerings, developing a cutting-edge system to answer consumer needs for a better power solution on the road,” said Bill Slavik, director of RV OEM, Generac. “This new power management system allows consumers to now have all the comforts of home without the increased energy costs.”
