Rebuttal to MRWG’s support for more high-density development on the river by Sura, October 1

This is a response to both Ann Brummitt’s email (you can follow the thread below) and the letter that she sent out on behalf of the Milwaukee River Work Group (MRWG). I apologize for the length and I’ve tried to bulletpoint and highlight the basics, so you can do a quick skim if you don’t have time to read the whole thing.If you are opposed to unsustainable, high-density development along the Milwaukee River, please call (286.3447) or email Alder Nik Kovac (nkovac@milwaukee.gov) a.s.a.p. If you’ve already made your call, thank you.

Starting out with the tiresome disclaimers that anyone who is vocally opposed to this development has to parade out:

A. I am not anti-student. All the students who worked on my campaign, the students who ask me to speak on their panels, the students who ask for my endorsement for their projects or most importantly, the students who are also opposed to developing more dorms on the river will attest to this fact.
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1 Oct 2008 | 9:09 am | Development, Environmental Sustainability, UWM, Water | No comments yet - Add your comments

The Controversial Letter from the Milwaukee River Work Group by Sura, September 30

From: Ann Brummitt
Date: Thu, Sep 25, 2008 at 2:04 PM
Subject: Hometown Dorm proposal

September 25, 2008

Alderman Nic Kovac:

The Milwaukee River Work Group (MRWG) would like to express its appreciation to you for hosting the public hearing on September 3, 2008 regarding the proposal for a UWM dormitory at the intersection of the Milwaukee River and North Avenue.
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30 Sep 2008 | 8:48 am | Development, Environmental Sustainability, Green Spaces, UWM, Water | Read 1 comment - Add your comments

The Milwaukee River Work Group Does Not Speak for Me by Sura, September 24

On Sept 5th, after an anesthetizing presentation by Mandel (the first question didn’t come until 1 hour and 40 minutes into the presentation) on a proposal to build a 700-bed dorm on the Milwaukee River, the Milwaukee River Work Group’s PR person, Jeff Fleming, helped draft a letter to Alder Nik Kovac praising the development.

Despite the fact that there are 3 proposed locations under consideration for dorms, the letter is in glowing praise of this high-density development on the river. This draft was sent out by Ann Brummitt, the coordinator of the group to her email list which includes Mandel and other developers, DCD and UWM reps.

In that letter, the Milwaukee River Work Group (MRWG) claims that Mandel “embraces both the public interest and the goals of our organization.” What?! It dismisses the concerns of many neighbors and environmentalists as “separate concerns” including those about “the density of the development, traffic on neighboring streets, safety, plans for the property beyond the useful life of the dormitory, and the impact additional students might have on the surrounding residential neighborhoods.”

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24 Sep 2008 | 8:35 pm | Development, Environmental Sustainability, UWM, Water | No comments yet - Add your comments