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Backers of Milwaukee's paid sick leave ordinance plan to show up at the Milwaukee County Courthouse en masse Friday at the first hearing the ordinance will have in front of a judge.
In November, city voters overwhelmingly passed the ordinance, which mandates that businesses permit up to nine paid sick days a year for full-time employees. The Milwaukee Metropolitan Association of Commerce promptly sued the city to stop the ordinance, which is scheduled to take effect Tuesday.
So far, there doesn't seem to be much activity in terms of getting businesses to comply. MMAC will certainly ask for an injunction on the ordinance while it winds its way through the courts.
Since Milwaukee voters approved the measure, nearly half the county's suburbs -- including Greenfield, Brown Deer, Oak Creek, and Racine -- are taking steps to institute anti-sick leave measures.
Milwaukee 9to5 has sent out an e-mail asking supporters to show up at the courthouse to Room 413 by 10 a.m. Friday. There also will be a debate between 9to5 representatives and MMAC folks on Tuesday, starting at 12:15 p.m. at Marquette Law School Room 325.
Building Brouhaha: Milwaukee aldermen voted to pony up another $350,000 to renovate a flood-ravaged building on the corner of 27th and Wells Streets after already putting $1 million towards the condo and retail venture.
The building has stood largely vacant for seven years and a leaky roof has caused extensive water damage on one end. The building also bankrupted West End Development, a community organization that attempted to put the project together. City officials worked with Wisconsin Redevelopment, LLC., to put together a deal that gets the project back on track. The Community Development Committee recommended putting more money into the building.
Ald. Bob Bauman called it "a responsible plan" and said "everyone has given away a little bit" to get the building going. Agency representatives from the city and the non-profits at the table acknowledged that they should have applied the brakes some time ago.
"Sometimes you have to hit the no button," admitted Bauman.
Currently, only the first floor of the former station at 4715 W. Vliet St. can be legally occupied, according to a memo from Chief Ed Flynn. The chief wants to use the second floor as well, but says that's going to cost some $977,000.
The department only has $550,000 in its budget for remodeling and the chief is asking that the rest come from the Asset Forfeiture Fund, which is aid from the feds that comes from seized property and money used in crimes.
Beer Ban: It's an appropriate topic for Bar Month at OnMilwaukee.com. Madison wants to create an "alcohol ban list" which would ban liquor stores from selling booze to citizens that the city labels "chronic drunks."
A city Alcohol License Review Committee says a person must be found a "habitual drunkard" to get on the list. Some committee members would categorize habitual drunkards as people with six or more alcohol-related citations or referrals to detox centers -- about 35 to 40 people. Downtown businesses are tiring of homeless drunks wandering around their premises. Habitual drunkards, under the regulation, could still walk into a tavern and have a drink, but would be prohibited from leaving with carry-outs. The city already has banned Downtown liquor stores from selling 40-oz. bottles, four-packs of beer and 200-milliliter liquor bottles.
Green Bay has banned various habitual drunks from buying alcohol for the past 10 years. There are 68 people on that list.
The Hidden Costs of Lawsuit: Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen won't come clean on what his lawsuit in fall cost taxpayers. That's the argument made by Rep. Mark Pocan, co-chair of the Legislature's Joint Finance Committee.
Van Hollen sued the Government Accountability Board just before November's election to try and force local clerks to recount voter lists in search of fraud. Van Hollen received many accolades from conservative talk radio hosts who supported the suit. Pocan says Van Hollen is ignoring repeated requests for documentation as to how much the suit cost taxpayers.
A Dane County judge dismissed the suit in November, but Van Hollen appealed. He dropped the appeal last month.
"It is becoming increasingly clear that the lawsuit was a political one, pursued in concert with the Republican Party," Pocan said. "The total cost to state taxpayers for this folly is likely in excess of $100,000, but due to the stonewalling of the attorney general, we may never know the real cost.
"He insists that his staff did not keep track of hours for the lawsuit. I find it hard to believe that his fiscal record keeping is as incompetent as he claims. Large law firms and even small, one-attorney offices keep track of time spent on cases. ... We may have to explore putting tighter fiscal controls on how the Attorney General spends his resources, especially in regards to lawsuits of a political nature."
More Parking Fees: The City of Milwaukee allows people with parking tickets to enter into a payment plan and keep themselves out of court. If ticketed persons keep to the payment plan, their vehicle registration won't be cancelled, their car won't be towed and their income tax return won't be seized. It's a convenient offering that avoids all sorts of trouble. That convenience will cost an extra $10 after the Council passes the extra fee. A Department of Public Works official says it's to cover additional administrative costs passed on by the city's vendor, Duncan Solutions.
An avid outdoors person he regularly takes extended paddling trips in the wilderness, preferring the hinterlands of northern Canada and Alaska. After a bet with a bunch of sailors, he paddled across Lake Michigan in a canoe.
He lives in Bay View.
