County Executive Walker released his proposed budget for Milwaukee County in 2010, and while there’s a lot to digest, I was able to look through the Parks, Recreation and Culture portion of the budget and have noted some highlights below. The proposed budget for the parks in 2010 is $13,869,004, which means a $5,900,000 cut from last years budget. 133 positions will be cut in the Parks Department alone.
Here are some of the key changes the County Executive is proposing:
- Fire 34 of 48 parks maintenance workers.
- Close the Martin Luther King, Jr. and Kosciusko Community Centers.
- Close the Noyes and Pulaski Indoor Pools.
- Close the pools at Holler, Jackson, Washington Parks and Pelican Cove.
- $1.5 million for a new aquatic center at Hoyt Park (About $5-6 million in private funds have already been raised for this)
- Add parking meters to Lincoln Memorial Drive.
- $200,000 to be used for compliance with Department of Natural Resources requirement to fix the Estabrook Dam.
- Sell off the public land at Crystal Ridge and along the Menomonee River at 68th & State.
- Approx. $600,000 for the golf courses at Oakwood and Brown Deer park.
I’m continuing to look through the budget proposal and will have more detailed commentary soon.
I live in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Milwaukee, WI with my wife Jen, our daughter Emerson, and son Carter.
Thanks for the synopsis and breaking it down Dan. What will the Park People be saying about the budget?
We’re still going over the budget and will have a statement on it soon. Obviously, we’re concerned about the massive cuts in funding for parks.
Sounds like Milwaukee County needs to tighten its belt strap.
“Needs to”? I think a 30% reduction in budget a lot more than “tightening its belt strap”.
What do you expect when you have a shortfall of $90 million? We aren’t living in the best financial times, Dan.
What’s wrong with this picture? A guy makes his living for multiple years sucking off the public teat but wants to eliminate anyone else who does.
Well, Blurondo, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that picture. What we have is a public official that is willing to put the community of taxpayers first. County jobs don’t exist because people ought to be paid, but they exist so the community is properly served.
The question is whether a couple of fancy water parks in the suburbs, at the cost of the pools, indoor pools, the community centers, and more neglect of the parks really serving the community. The answer is obviously a big, fat “NO.”
I’m glad a government agency is actually selling land. That part is a good idea.
I think the more interesting fact in the parks budget is the continual attack against the Martin Luther King Jr. & Kosciuszko Community Centers. Every budget year, Walker attempts to get rid of these centers while never touching the Wilson or Kelly Community Centers. The real question is why does Scott Walker hate black, hispanic and poor people so much? I guess if you are white and live in the suburbs and you get a fancy new pool in your district it’s easy to overlook the continual trampling of poor citizens and ammenities that exist to offer them some hope and promise. The real irony here is I wonder what Martin Luther King Jr. would have done in a situation like this. Central city residents need to come together to end this racial injustice and demand that Milwaukee County has leadership that doesn’t leave them out in the cold.