MILWAUKEE — Leaking ceilings, cracked walls and big holes are the conditions Carolyn Ferguson has been living in for years at the home she rents from Highgrove Holdings, LLC.

READ ALSO | Milwaukee tenants, Common Ground push city leaders for more landlord accountability over nuisance violations

“It rains in here, it rains in the dining room in there,” Ferguson said.

Ferguson is one of several tenants working with community nonprofit Common Ground and the city of Milwaukee to sue her landlord over alleged neglect, code violations, vacancy and unpaid property taxes.

The mother of 17 is raising her last daughter and is fighting cancer. The condition of her home is another burden.

“I’ve got to worry about that, and worry about the surgery, and all this other stuff and I mean he’s just making it even worse for me than it is,” Ferguson said.

On Monday, during an unrelated press conference by Common Ground, Highgrove Holdings owner David Tomblin made a surprise appearance and faced questions from TMJ4 chief investigative reporter Jenna Rae. While he didn’t answer many of them, he did say the group has made progress.

Watch: Milwaukee tenants react after landlord makes first public remarks since being sued by city

Milwaukee tenants react after landlord makes first public remarks since being sued

When asked about the city of Milwaukee’s lawsuit over issues at his properties that he is not addressing, Tomblin responded.

“Well, we are addressing them, but in the proper time,” Tomblin said.

Brendyn Jones/TMJ4

Ferguson said she has not seen any of those fixes.

“He hasn’t fixed anything, like I said, out of the nine years I’ve been here, he’s had at least seven years and nothing, nothing at all,” Ferguson said.

The issues are impacting multiple generations of the Ferguson family. Carolyn’s daughter used to live at the property until she moved out after poor conditions were never addressed. More than a year later, that unit is still boarded up.

“When is he going to fix my momma’s ceiling? When is he going to do something about the roof? When are you going to do something about that basement downstairs? I would ask him a lot of questions,” Edwina Ferguson said.

Brendyn Jones/TMJ4

TMJ4 reporter Brendyn Jones called Tomblin Monday night. He picked up and requested to know the names of the tenants who were interviewed. Jones said that information would be available after the story was published, so he declined to answer questions.

While Tomblin said there will be a press conference with tenants soon, he did not commit to a date or time.

Common Ground’s Kevin Solomon said the pressure on Tomblin is working.

“It’s political, and it shows that our pressure is clearly getting under his skin. The lawsuit will play out; Common Ground will stay on it,” Solomon said.

The next court date for the lawsuit is at the end of July.

This story was reported on-air by Brendyn Jones and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

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MILWAUKEE – The Milwaukee Police Department says it will do monthly reviews of call data to identify nuisance properties.

It follows efforts by a local group that says thousands of properties should have been cited under the city’s nuisance ordinance.

Chronic nuisance property ordinance

What we know:

The ordinance was created in 2001 to address nuisance properties in the city, and the impact they can have on quality of life.

But in recent years, the ordinance has been used less and less.

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It was one of the issues before the steering and rules committee on Monday, June 8, after a push by local group Common Ground.

Milwaukee Common Council Steering and Rules Committee

It was already working on crunching the numbers when federal prosecutors charged one of the largest landlords on the city’s south side, and others, with allegedly running a drug trafficking enterprise through rental properties.

Ultimately, Common Ground says thousands of properties across the city should have been declared a nuisance, but weren’t.

A nuisance premises can be cited if it reaches certain thresholds of calls for service within a period of time and the calls are substantiated.

Milwaukee Common Council Steering and Rules Committee

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And if the problem isn’t addressed, it could result in fines.

On Monday, Milwaukee police said it’s a process that takes time, but says it’s changing its procedures and reviewing calls for service each month.

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What they’re saying:

“We’re also doing a deeper dive into that data analysis, requiring all of our district captains to address any, to review those properties and if they choose not to ‘nuisance’ the property that is eligible to be ‘nuisanced,’ why not,” said Milwaukee Police Department Chief of Staff Heather Hough.

It’s important to note that Milwaukee alders urged the importance of residents calling police about nuisance properties, so there is a record to look back on for if or when a property falls under that nuisance ordinance.

MILWAUKEE – The Milwaukee Common Council Steering & Rules Committee will hold a public hearing on Monday afternoon, June 8, to discuss ongoing crime and safety concerns. 

This comes on the heels of an apparent street takeover on Milwaukee’s south side on Sunday night, June 7.

South Side safety

What we know:

Back in April, community leaders and residents on Milwaukee’s south side said crime concerns have left many feeling unsafe, prompting a new effort to address the issue.

Common Ground, a coalition of community members and leaders, launched a South Side Safety Plan after six months of research into crime in the area.

The plan outlines five focus areas: accountability, proactive neighborhoods, police relationships, policy reform and prevention. An action team on the south side is expected to help implement those strategies.

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Common Council President Jose Perez was among the leaders participating in that discussion. He told FOX6 News a public hearing would be held on June 8 to address public safety and what still needs improvement. 

On the agenda for Monday’s meeting, Perez sponsored a communication file from Milwaukee police about part two crime data. We are expecting to hear about how the Milwaukee Police Department goes about collecting, assessing and reporting crime data. 

“Something is going on that people aren’t reporting crime – and many times we can’t address things if we don’t know about them,” said Common Council President Jose Perez. 

The meeting is set for 1:30 p.m. at City Hall. 

Apparent street takeover

Dig deeper:

Monday’s meeting comes on the heels of an apparent street takeover on Milwaukee’s south side on Sunday night, June 7.

FOX6 News went to the scene near 13th and Mitchell, where a large crowd gathered – blocking the intersection and stopping traffic in all directions. There were cars speeding and doing donuts and motorcycles swerving. Some cars had people on top of or hanging out of them while in motion.

Several Milwaukee police squads blocked off the area with lights activated as crime scene tape went up across different streets. The scene was active for hours, clearing just before 10 p.m.