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Deer District shows dire warnings about tearing down highways have fallen flat | Opinion

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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.

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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.  

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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:

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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.

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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.



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Milwaukee, WI

Milwaukee Weather: Partly Cloudy with slight chance for a shower

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Milwaukee Weather: Partly Cloudy with slight chance for a shower


Forecast from FOX6 Meteorologist Lisa Michaels

Partly cloudy Halloween. Highs in the low 50s and breezy at times. Temperatures dropping into the low 40s during trick-or-treat hours.
Slight chance for an isolated shower Friday night. Otherwise, better chance for a few showers on Saturday under mostly cloudy skies and temps in the upper 40s.
Breezy winds return to the forecast late Sunday into Monday next week associated with a frontal system.
Warmer temperatures return for the first week of November in the upper 50s to low 60s.

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Today:    Partly cloudy with slight chance of showers
High:     52°
Wind:     NW 5-10

Tonight:  Mostly cloudy w/ a slight chance of showers
Low:      36°
Wind:     W 5-10

Saturday: Mostly cloudy chance of showers
High:     49°
Wind:     N 5-10

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Sunday:   Partly sunny.
AM Low:   33°                    High:  52°
Wind:     SW 10-20

Monday:   Mostly Sunny.
AM Low:   40°                    High:  57°
Wind:     W 10-20

Tuesday:  Mostly Sunny.
AM Low:   36°                    High:  58°
Wind:     S 5-10

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Wednesday:Mostly Sunny.
AM Low:   43°                    High:  60°
Wind:     NW 15-25
 

6-day planner

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FOX6 Weather Extras

Local perspective:

Meanwhile, FOX6Now.com offers a variety of extremely useful weather tools to help you navigate the stormy season. They include the following:  

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FOX6 Storm Center app

FOX LOCAL Mobile app

FOX Weather app

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FOX Weather

Big picture view:

Maps and radar

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We have a host of maps and radars on the FOX6 Weather page that are updating regularly — to provide you the most accurate assessment of the weather. From a county-by-county view to the Midwest regional radar and a national view — it’s all there.

School and business closings

When the weather gets a little dicey, schools and businesses may shut down. Monitor the latest list of closings, cancellations, and delays reported in southeast Wisconsin.

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FOX6 Weather Experts in social media

Daily ForecastWeatherMilwaukee



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Milwaukee, WI

Bastille Days will return to Milwaukee’s Cathedral Square July 9-12

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Bastille Days will return to Milwaukee’s Cathedral Square July 9-12


Bastille Days will return to downtown Milwaukee July 9-12, 2026 – bringing back French food, drink and fun. 

What we know:

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One of the world’s largest French festivals, the four-day celebration will light up Milwaukee with food, entertainment, and vendors, as well as the Storm the Bastille 5K Run/Walk. 

In 2025, the festival welcomed more than 100,000 visitors over four days. The festival’s signature run/walk, Storm the Bastille 5K, also saw its biggest turnout yet, with 5,252 registered runners racing through Downtown Milwaukee. 

FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts in the FOX LOCAL Mobile app for iOS or Android

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What they’re saying:

“As we look ahead to 2026, our nonprofit is thrilled to continue bringing free programming to the heart of Milwaukee’s downtown and celebrating with the community that makes Bastille Days such a special summer tradition,” said Eddie Sturkey, executive director of East Town Association. “Each year, we see the event continue to grow, and we look forward to building on that momentum next summer.”

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What you can do:

Additional event information, including vendor applications and entertainment lineups, will be available in the coming months at easttown.com. 

Individuals and businesses can join for as little as $30 per year. To learn more or become a member, visit easttown.com/membership.

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The Source: The information in this post was provided by the East Town Association. 

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How a Milwaukee Teenager’s Bedroom Became a Worldwide Micronation

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How a Milwaukee Teenager’s Bedroom Became a Worldwide Micronation



READ MORE FROM OUR “HIDDEN MILWAUKEE” FEATURE HERE.


Once upon a time – Dec. 26, 1979, to be specific – 14-year-old Robert Ben Madison declared his bedroom in his house on Prospect Avenue to be a sovereign nation, the Kingdom of Talossa. He named himself, King Robert I, as sole resident. Rather than becoming a passing childhood fantasy, the kingdom slowly grew. 

Madison’s friends soon joined his kingdom and began to create a system of government, a flag, media (a handwritten newsletter titled Støtanneu) and, most impressive, their own Romance-based language that has developed tens of thousands of unique words over the last 46 years. By 1995, Talossa had a couple dozen citizens, many of whom participated and created their own political parties. 


 

The Unity Awards celebrates people and organizations who are working to make Milwaukee a better place for all. Know someone who should be honored?

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Talossa is an early example of what researchers like Chris Roth call “micronations.” Roth, a Milwaukee author who also has studied microstates and separatist movements, says micronations are “usually done for fanciful or hobbyist reasons rather than serious ones,” but motives and types range widely, from avant-garde artist experiments to right-wing militias.

“It allows small people to feel very big and that they’re part of something substantial,” Roth adds. “It’s an escape in many cases.” Some micronations claim a small sliver of land, like Madison did with his bedroom; some are online “cybernations.”

The internet changed Talossa forever. Legions of “cybercitizens” from around the world joined Talossa’s “Old Growthers” (original citizens). Internet infighting led to a separatist group who formed a Republic of Talossa in 2004. It was, to use a Talossan term, ’n aviecă – a slap in the face – to its founder. 

“They … eventually decided they wanted to win all the elections so they just declared themselves the ‘real Talossa’ and deleted everyone’s accounts,” Madison says. It’s an incident referred to as “The Great Theft” in a 194-page report by Madison titled The Kingdom of Talossa.

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Those loyal to Madison tried to regroup, but on July 4, 2011, he declared that Talossa was dissolved and “reunited” with the U.S. Being shut out of his kingdom, Madison says, was “the most catastrophic event of my life.”


Talossan Tariffs?

With the tariff wars raging, King Txec says he invited President Donald Trump to submit an oath of fealty to his kingdom. No response on that, or Talossa’s sanctions – refusing to drink American beer – in response to U.S. immigration policy. The monarch says he hasn’t ruled out “counter-tariffs” if threatened.


What Madison calls the “fake Talossa” has continued on, and since last November has been ruled by King Txec I (pronounced Zheck), a public school teacher in Riverside, California, who joined Talossa about 12 years ago after stumbling across a Wikipedia entry.

Talossa claims all of Milwaukee as its territory, divided into provinces and referred to as the Greater Talossan Area. Its cybercitizens even cheer on our local team but refer to them as the Maricopa Brewers, named after the province in which American Family Field is found. King Txec rules about 200 citizens, working closely with the seneschal (prime minister).

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“I could never become president, or the king of England, but in Talossa I can write laws. It’s a way to experience things you don’t get to do in real life,” King Txec says. He admits “being referred to as ‘Your Majesty’ is a bit weird.” 

As for Madison, a king without a kingdom, he still calls Talo … uh, Milwaukee home and designs roleplaying wargames like Death in the Trenches, a WWI-inspired strategy title.


This story is part of Milwaukee Magazine’s October issue.

Find it on newsstands or buy a copy at milwaukeemag.com/shop.

Be the first to get every new issue. Subscribe.





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