Milwaukee, WI
Deer District shows dire warnings about tearing down highways have fallen flat | Opinion
WisDOT is considering several options for I-794 that fall into three buckets: improve it, replace it or tear it down entirely.
Something about getting rid of interstate highways gets people talking
As the Wisconsin DOT evaluates options for repairing or razing I-794 downtown, it’s clear there is no shortage of strong feelings on its future.
There are a handful of topics you know will rile people up: abortion, gun control, and, if you live in Southeast Wisconsin, what to do with I-794.
If you’ve somehow managed to be in the dark on this debate, there is a question of what to do with the aging infrastructure of the I-794 lake interchange, which cuts through the heart of Milwaukee’s downtown. WisDOT is considering several options that fall into these three buckets: improve it, replace it or tear it down entirely.
Last week, a study was released to the public that gave a first look at where traffic would be diverted to if the mile stretch were to be torn down. While WisDOT has not made a decision yet, during a presentation last Tuesday, one of the project consultants noted that tearing down that mile stretch of 794 appears to be “the most feasible option”. If X/Twitter commentary and Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Letters to the Editor on this topic are any indicators, tearing down the freeway will elate many while leaving plenty of people outraged.
But in order to gauge whether or not that outrage is justified, we should turn back the pages of Milwaukee history twenty years to the last time people were outraged about the removal of a mile stretch of road: Park East freeway.
One man, George Watts, was so angry about the potential of tearing it down that he first tried to recall Mayor John Norquist over it. When that didn’t work, he ran against Norquist and centered this issues in his campaign. In one of his letters to the editor to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel he went so far to say that “taking away freeways like this would “give us the same despair that Third World countries have now.”
More perspectives on I-794 options:
7 reasons why: Removing I-794 would be a boon for downtown Milwaukee
Who wins from I-794 removal? Developers. Rest of us will be stuck in traffic.
Removing roads like I-794 can work: Just look at the Fiserv Forum.
794 removal would hurt Bay View. And revive the bridge to nowhere.
Looking around the Deer District today doesn’t quite paint the image of the despair of a developing country. In the four years I’ve lived in Milwaukee, I’m not sure I have gotten into a traffic jam once around the McKinley and Knapp intersection, except that one time Disney on Ice was at the Fiserv. It’s safe to say, no one misses the Park East Freeway.
As WisDOT continues to do their due diligence by developing alternative plans and producing more studies, they would be wise to also take history into account. This city has played almost this exact record before. As City of Milwaukee planner Peter Park has stated, historically, “every single time a freeway came down, a neighborhood got better and access got better.” For once, here’s hoping we let history repeat itself.
Kristin Brey is the “My Take” columnist for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Milwaukee, WI
Storms expected bring heavy rain to Milwaukee this weekend, severe weather possible
Heavy wind, rain and lightning seen during Wisconsin storm
Footage filmed in Sun Prairie showed severe weather impacting the area.
Milwaukee’s weekend revelers should plan to pack an umbrella, that’s because the latest forecast from the National Weather Service shows a potential for severe weather and heavy rains on Friday and Saturday.
The latest projections from the NWS show scattered thunderstorms are expected to occur as a warm front from the south travels north through the state on Friday. Friday’s potential for severe weather, while low, could bring damaging wind, small hail and heavy rains.
“For downtown Milwaukee, we are looking at the potential for isolated thunderstorms and showers through the afternoon hours.,” said Michaela Heeren, a meteorologist at the local NWS office in Sullivan. “Going into the evening, that’s going to bring the potential for the (severe weather.)”
The peak of the storms are expected to occur in the late afternoon to early evening, between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. and the storms are forecast to end by 9 p.m., according to the NWS.
Heeren said that Milwaukee is forecast for up to an inch of rain on Friday, with rates potentially reaching one inch per hour if conditions are met.
The NWS rates Milwaukee and other parts of southeastern and eastern Milwaukee as rated at a one-out-of-five chance for severe weather. To the west, in central and western Wisconsin, the NWS forecasts a two-out-of-five chance.
There is uncertainty with how powerful the storms will develop, because of the lack of instability in the environment, Heeren said.
“Our environment is a little bit weaker than what we prefer for a typical severe set up, we don’t have a lot of ingredients to keep storms alive long enough to produce significant severe weather,” she said.
On Saturday, the NWS forecasts another round of potential severe weather that will bring even more rain.
That system is forming behind a cold weather front traveling southeast across the state and brings a one out of five risk for severe weather to Milwaukee.
However, the rest of the state will be in a two out of five rating, with Heeren describing it was “more traditional” severe weather conditions. Saturday’s conditions will bring a chance of damaging wind, large hail, heavy rain and a small chance of tornadoes.
Through Saturday, the NWS forecasts up to 1.5 inches of rain for Milwaukee.
Milwaukee, WI
Pursuit of Milwaukee carjacking suspects ends with police shooting 2 teens in stolen vehicle
A police pursuit of carjacking suspects in Milwaukee ended with police firing into the vehicle, injuring two teens, one of whom was pregnant and lost her baby
MILWAUKEE — A police pursuit of carjacking suspects in Milwaukee ended Thursday with police firing into the vehicle and injuring two teens, one of whom was pregnant and lost her baby, Milwaukee police said.
Officers tried to stop the stolen vehicle just before 2:30 p.m. on Interstate 43 north of Milwaukee. The pursuit ended when the driver moved into a construction lane and the vehicle was blocked by construction work and a cement truck, Police Chief Jeffrey B. Norman said.
Police officers ordered the driver to stop and ordered the passengers out of the vehicle, but the driver twice backed into a marked SWAT car, once while an officer was standing behind it. Another officer fired shots into the vehicle, injuring an 18-year-old woman and a 17-year-old boy, Norman said.
The woman suffered life-threatening injuries and “unfortunately, the baby did not survive,” Norman said at a news conference.
The 17-year-old has serious injuries, he said.
A total of six suspects were in the vehicle, which had been stolen, Norman said. The other four, who range in age from 15 to 18, were taken to the hospital to be treated for minor injuries.
The officer involved is a 25-year-old man with over four years of service. He was placed on administrative duty, which is routine in an officer involved shooting, Norman said.
The suspects were being pursued in connection with an armed robbery and carjacking and an attempted armed robbery and carjacking. A gun was found in the vehicle, Norman said.
Milwaukee, WI
Biden campaign: Milwaukee Democratic leaders slam Trump for trashing Wisconsin’s most diverse city
Today, State Representative Kalan Haywood and Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley held a press conference slamming Donald Trump for insulting Milwaukee and highlighting the RNC’s abandoned outreach to minority communities. The press conference was held at a local brewery that is now selling their “(not so) Horrible City” IPA after Trump disparaged Milwaukee.
The press conference follows reports that Donald Trump called Milwaukee “horrible” in a closed-door meeting last week and then planned to avoid spending time in Wisconsin’s most diverse city by staying at Trump Tower in Chicago during the Republican National Convention.
Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley speaking at the press conference
State Representative Kalan Haywood speaking at the press conference
“Here’s the truth: Donald Trump looks down on Milwaukee, on Wisconsin, on anyone who isn’t one of his billionaire donors. If he bothered to come to Milwaukee and actually listen to or respect voters here, he’d learn that we are fed up with his efforts to strip away reproductive rights from women, to raise health care costs for working families, to cut the Social Security and Medicare our moms and dads rely on,” said Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley. “President Biden would never disparage this city. He loves us, he respects us, and more than that, he’s a decent man. A person of character, who wants to be a president for all Americans – including Wisconsinites. So, to Trump, I say, ‘You think our city is so horrible? This November, we’re going to send you packing – just like we did in 2020.’”
“Our Black and Latino communities are what make us strong – and this November, it will be us who decide the presidential election here in Wisconsin, and likely in the country as a whole. So, when Trump called our city ‘horrible’ in a closed-door meeting with MAGA Republicans last week, we knew what that was. Yet another racist dog whistle,” said State Representative Kalan Haywood. “Trump ignoring our communities was already insulting – and then he went and actually insulted our city. I’ll be voting for President Biden, and I know I’m not the only one who’s fed up with Trump’s racist attacks.”
“When I heard about Donald Trump calling my city ‘horrible’ last week, I was not just surprised, but truly shocked and angered by this. It’s enough that he is so terrible on all the issues that matter to me – protecting Social Security and Medicare, creating good jobs and strengthening the economy, safeguarding our democracy. But to also disrespect us? It’s just adding insult to injury,” said Sabrina Jordan, Biden-Harris 2024 volunteer. “I think he fears the coalition we formed in 2020 – the one that roundly rejected him and is the reason he lost that year. He recognizes the strength of the city he dismisses as ‘horrible,’ and is deeply afraid of it.”
While Trump tries to get away with spending as little time as possible in Wisconsin, the Biden-Harris campaign, Democrats, and the DNC are building the infrastructure to win with over 100 staff on the ground and 47 coordinated campaign offices across the state. Unlike Trump, Team Biden-Harris loves Milwaukee – for the first time in 20 years, the Democratic Coordinated HQ is based in Milwaukee, underscoring the importance of key constituencies in the city, including minority voters.
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