Bella’s cited for operating without food license, continued to operate

Bella’s Fat Cat, 2737 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., lost its food license June 30 and was cited for operating without a license on July 14.

Many have noticed this summer that Bella’s has either been closed during their normal hours of operation with a sign posted on its door indicating a temporary closure or been open and operating at curtailed and uncertain hours. Residents have contacted the Compass asking about the restaurant’s irregular hours. On September 1, the Compass received a tip that a Bay View business owner had been informed by a reliable source that Bella’s food license had not been renewed.

Eileen Force, spokesperson for the Milwaukee Health Department, confirmed that Bella’s license was not renewed when it expired June 30, 2010 because of outstanding taxes owed to the Wisconsin Department of Revenue. She also confirmed that an order to suspend for operating without a license was issued on July 14, 2010.

The restaurant was observed with customers inside on Sept. 1 at 6:30pm.

When contacted for comment, 14th District Alderman Tony Zielinski, whose district includes Bella’s KK location, expressed surprise that the restaurant did not have a license.

“I was in there two weeks ago for a hamburger, but I didn’t know at the time that they were operating without a license!” Zielinski said.

Zielinski explained that the Department of Revenue contacts the city of Milwaukee’s Health Department to “request or demand that a restaurant’s food license not be renewed” when a restaurant’s owner’s taxes are in arrears.

Zielinski confirmed that a one-time citation in the amount of $676 is issued if the owner is found operating the restaurant without the required food license.

Following the Compass inquiry, Zielinski contacted the Health Department to discover if they were aware that Bella’s was operating after the July 14 citation. Zielinski told the Compass a Health Department official said they were not. “He said he can’t remember an incident, ever, where a restaurant owner continued to operate after losing its food license,” Zielinski said.

Linda Barth, executive assistant at the Wisconsin Department of Revenue, said the department issues seller permits that allow food businesses to operate in Wisconsin.

“If someone would get behind in paying taxes or is not working with, or entering into a payment plan, the department would not renew the seller permit,” Barth said. “Then we make municipalities aware that the business owner doesn’t a hold valid seller’s permit.”

Barth said municipalities cannot issue a food or liquor permit to an business that doesn’t hold a valid seller permit.

According to Wisconsin Circuit Court records, the Brookfield-based Park Bank filed to foreclose Bella’s mortgage on Feb. 17, 2010. Michael and Kim Schmidt, Bella’s Fat Cat Ltd, and Bella’s Fat Cat Holdings LLC are named as debtors to Park Bank in the amount of $71,685.53.

Michael and Kim Schmidt also owe $4,767.88 in unpaid taxes, interest, and fees, according to a separate delinquent tax suit filed by the Wisconsin Department of Revenue on April 12, 2010.

Michael Schmidt, Bella’s owner, confirmed that he’s struggling with taxes and his mortgage and said he’s appealing the suit brought against him by the Department of Revenue. “We were just basically trying to survive, by appealing the decision by the state, for our employees’ and our family’s sake,” Schmidt said.

Security cameras for Kinnickinnic Avenue

Smile. You might soon be on camera.

The Kinnickinnic Avenue Business Improvement District (BID #44) has authorized its board member Bill Doyle to secure a contract of up to $40,000 for cameras and related equipment along Kinnickinnic Avenue.

The goal of the cameras is to deter crime and help police identify criminal suspects, BID board members said, ultimately improving the public perception of Bay View as a safe and desirable place to do business.

At a meeting of the BID board Aug. 23, Doyle did not specify planned camera locations and said those details were yet to be worked out. He said cameras could be moved, depending on activity at different sites, but suggested the intersection of Howell, Kinnickinnic, and Lincoln avenues was a logical place of focus, especially given the vacant Maritime Savings Bank.

Doyle is seeking competitive bids from at least five contractors, but no timeline was set for camera installation.

Of the $40,000 the BID has budgeted to address security, Doyle tentatively plans about $30,000 for cameras, installation, and associated costs, with $10,000 for equipment replacement, insurance, and other contingencies.

Doyle said he’s seeking the most competitive camera packages, and the final costs will in part determine the number of systems ultimately installed, though he tossed out a preliminary estimate of $3,000 to $3,500 per package. He said a package consists of four cameras, DVR, monitor, and installation. He hopes to get a Bay View-based electrician to handle installation.

Rachel Marek, of Excel Printing, told the board she was familiar with a $600 system including six cameras, software, and DVR.

The BID, established earlier this year, spans KK from Morgan to Becher. It derives funding from a special assessment on property owners—essentially an additional tax whose proceeds come back to benefit the specific BID district, via the BID board’s projects, rather than go more widely to the city. (BID #44 assessments.)

This summer the BID board surveyed its member property owners to get a sense of business priorities along the KK corridor. Only 51 surveys were returned as of Aug. 23, but the top three concerns cited were marketing and promotion, cleanliness and attractiveness, and then security, said BID president Jason Wedesky.

The BID board expressed hope that more people would respond to their survey, and the extended deadline for responses is Sept. 5. The complete survey results will be announced after that, according to BID secretary Joyce Parker.

On Aug. 23,  Kinnickinnic Avenue resident Michael Perveiler asked the board if adding cameras would actually deter crime and also if the cameras would drive crime from KK into the residential neighborhood.

BID board members expressed the sentiment that there was no perfect solution to deterring crime, but that cameras could only help. “We need to show Bay View residents we’re serious about deterring crime,” said Mike Marx, BID board member.

David Brazeau, of Salon Thor, said that he already operates three cameras and that police have reviewed his footage, resulting in multiple arrests. Greg Mertens, of Wild Flour Bakery, added his positive experience with Operation Impact security cameras near his W. Lincoln Avenue Wild Flour location.

For 2010, the KK BID has over $45,000, with $5,000 dedicated to graffiti removal and $40,000 to security. Wedesky said the BID must submit its 2011 budget to the city by Sept. 9. Marketing and promotion is likely to be a focus.

“Obviously, if you’re going to market the street, you’re going to need a website,” said 14th District Alderman Tony Zielinski, who, while not on the BID board, played a significant role in forming the BID and recruiting the board. He added his hope that Bay View web designers will express interest in that project.

The board consists of Bill Doyle, Michael Krolick, Debbie Leszczynski (pending final approval by the mayor’s office), Michael Marx, Greg Mertens, Joyce Parker, Ron Romero, Steve Ste. Marie, and Jason Wedesky.

The BID board’s next meeting is 6pm Monday, Oct. 11 at Joyce Parker Productions, 2685 S. Kinnickinnic Ave. The public is welcome.

Kaszube Picnic 2010

Lorraine Konkel (nee Prahl), 96, attended the 2010 Kaszube picnic. Originally from Milwaukee, she attended Hanover Street School, which once stood on S. Third (then named Hanover) and Mitchell streets, and then Bay View High School, until 1931, the same year she married John Konkel.

Lorraine said her late husband, born in July 1908, was the last child born on Jones Island. Lorraine and John Konkel purchased a farm near Lena, Wis. and set up their household in 1931.

They had 16 children. Lorraine  has 44  grandchildren. “I have so many ‘greats’ that I’ve lost track,” she said. John Konkel was the son of Anna (nee Konke) and John Konkel, who settled on Jones Island after immigrating from the Hel Pennisula. Lorraine and her daughter traveled from Lena to attend the reunion picnic Aug. 7.

The annual Kaszube picnic was held Aug. 7 at the miniscule Kaszube’s Park, on the north end of Jones Island. About 230 descendants of the Jones Island villagers attended the picnic. Jones Island was a fishing village populated largely by Kaszube immigrants from the Hel Peninsula and the Gdynia and Gdansk area of northern Poland, on the Baltic Sea. The island village was extant from about 1870 to the mid-1940s.The first informal Kaszube picnic gatherings originated about 1977, a few years after the park was established in 1974. The gatherings ceased in 1984 but in 2000, brothers Kenny and Jim Kupferschmidt, descendants of Jones Island residents, revived the picnic. Fifteen people gathered for that event. The record was 290 attendees in 2001.

Jim Kupferschmidt, of Milwaukee, said this year they roasted 48 chickens (24 per spit), and grilled 50 pounds of hot dogs and brats. They washed it all down with soda and two half-barrels of beer.

The picnic is held the first Saturday of August.

See a photograph of Kaszube’s Park here.

Port of Milwaukee Redevelopment Plan

By Michael Timm

The Milwaukee Department of City Development uploaded its Aug. 16 draft Port of Milwaukee Redevelopment Plan on Aug. 19. The 50-page report can be accessed at mkedcd.org/planning/Port/index.html.

Fourteenth District Alderman Tony Zielinski will hold a neighborhood meeting to present the plan and take public comment at the Port of Milwaukee, 2323 S. Lincoln Memorial Dr., Wednesday, Sept. 1 at 6pm.

After that, the plan will go before the Redevelopment Authority Sept. 16, the Plan Commission Sept. 20, the Zoning, Neighborhoods & Development Committee Oct. 5, and the Common Council Oct. 12.

The plan boundaries are Water Street and National Avenue to the north, First Street to the west, and Bay Street to the south. Almost the entire area is currently zoned for heavy industrial uses, with some mixed industrial uses.

The draft plan divides the area into three zones. Most land remains recommended for port uses, while land west of the Kinnickinnic River turning basin is recommended for water development and recreation, with the far reaches of the area recommended for mixed business uses. Two pockets identified for water business/recreation uses in Bay View include land near Wrought Washer north of Bay Street and also the sites of the Confined Disposal Facility, Lake Express ferry terminal, Coast Guard, and Naval Reserve bases.

The draft plan recommends no property acquisitions, though the city’s Redevelopment Authority is understood to have eminent domain powers with respect to plan implementation.

Driving the plan is the city’s interest in developing water-oriented businesses in concert with the UWM Great Lakes WATER Institute, 600 E. Greenfield Ave., and UWM’s new School of Freshwater Sciences program.The city plans improvements for Greenfield Avenue.

“This plan recognizes the incredible economic opportunity of water-related commercial/industrial development and will help reserve land for the growth of existing water businesses, as well as for attracting new water-related companies,” the draft plan states.

The plan also takes environmental concerns into account.

“For example, the privately-owned Solvay Coke site and city-owned Grand Trunk site are large brownfield sites that present significant economic development opportunities with the potential to increase access to the Kinnickinnic River. This plan appreciates the importance of protecting our natural resources to the region’s quality of life and economic viability and will help direct the environmentally sustainable redevelopment of those properties, as well as improve stormwater management along the Kinnickinnic River and Lake Michigan,” the plan states.

The plan encourages porous pavement, tree cover, and public access to the river with a minimum 25-foot setback for development. It also includes various building guidelines and aesthetic prohibitions—for example, new barbed wire or vinyl-coated chain link fences would not be permitted.

Dick Knepper—from four wheels to two

Dick Knepper pedals through Bay View, noticing the make, model, and condition of cars whizzing past his bicycle. Once Buicks, Oldsmobiles, and Fords were popular, but times have changed. These days he notices the influx of Volvos, BMWs, and Subarus. His observations aren’t surprising, given Knepper’s background as a gas station and car repair shop owner. Over the almost six decades he’s been working with and watching Bay View’s cars, Knepper has seen them and the neighborhood get more prestigious.

“Big time, what I’ve noticed is the clientele in the Bay View area. When I went into business, it was a working man’s, working class area. Since Bay View was ‘found out’ since they built the bridge, it was a big turning point in Bay View,” he said, referring to the Hoan Bridge, which opened for traffic in 1977.

Knepper sports a long gray ponytail which defies his age, 81, as does a substantial tan from his “snowbird” months in Florida and frequent bicycling. He launched the Bay View Bicycle Club in 1989 and is proud that “I used to bike when it wasn’t popular.”

Early Years

Knepper was born at 39th Street and Fond du Lac Avenue, ninth of 11 children. Through the years, he’s lived in several homes in or near Bay View, including one he and two brothers built for their parents. Knepper lived there with his parents until his marriage in 1957, when the young couple moved to Third and Oklahoma.

As a teenager, Knepper attended South Division High School for three years, then joined the U.S. Army and served three years as a mechanic, attaining the rank of sergeant. He used GI Bill money to attend night school, studying to become a mechanical engineer at what was then a UW extension, now UWM. But in 1952, he and his brother Herb started renting a Shell gas station at 2892 S. Kinnickinnic Ave. In 1959, they bought it.

The new business owners had lots of competition. The Kneppers’ Shell filling station occupied the northeast corner of Estes Street and Kinnickinnic Avenue (the present-day site of the car repair business that bears the brothers’ names), but there was a Mobil kitty-corner from them on the southwest corner (the present-day location of the Milwaukee Community Acupuncture). A few blocks to the south, gas stations occupied three of the four corners at the intersection of Kinnickinnic and Oklahoma. And up the block, there was a station on KK at Fulton and also at Russell.

“There was so much competition, I really don’t know how we did it,” Knepper said.

The brothers started selling gas at 21 cents per gallon, almost always paid in cash. High-school-aged boys filled the tank, checked the oil, and washed the windows for each customer.

Knepper and his wife Nancy had three girls and four boys, who sometimes helped out with window washing, checking fluids, and even tire rotation. Knepper enjoyed taking them bicycling on his Raleigh, an English bike he selected for its light weight. He remembers getting his bike serviced at the now-defunct Bayview Schwinn Cyclery (then actually in St. Francis across from the former Majdecki’s Inn on St. Francis Avenue before the shop moved to 43rd and Loomis Road).

Over the years, Dick and Herb had to borrow money to stay afloat and suffered through the 1970s energy crisis—plus conflict with Kneisler’s White House owners when they challenged his acquisition of a triangular city property between his business and the White House. Knepper and his wife divorced in 1975.

Knepper Brothers prevailed as other stations faded away. “We outlasted everybody in the whole area,” Knepper said. He attributes some of his success to honesty, and said his secret to being a good business owner is to “admit when you’re wrong.”

The brothers eliminated their closest competitor by purchasing the location in the late 1990s. But Knepper Brothers was itself to change its identity as a filling station. Federal Superfund money helped remove leaky tanks, and in 1998 Knepper Brothers became solely devoted to car repair. That same year, Knepper’s sons Andy and Rick took over the business. A few years later, Rick moved up north and Andy became sole proprietor.

Dick Knepper remains a regular at his son’s shop for a morning coffee klatch in the small lobby, which features historic photos of the old station. Relatives and friends, some from the South Shore Yacht Club, stop by to chat.

Passion for Cycling

In 1989 Knepper realized he wanted to meet some of the bike riders passing him on roads and paths. He concocted the idea of a bicycle club and hung flyers to announce a meeting.

Twenty-five people turned up at the first meeting. They formed the nonprofit Bay View Bicycle Club, which today is going strong with about 100 members and organizes rides each weekend of the season.

Knepper has left a legacy in the club.

“He is definitely leaving his mark on the bicycling community,” said current president Michael Dix. “I think the club still reflects his personality. It’s very down to earth. As a club we’re really just interested at getting out and riding.”

Knepper still rides, mostly solo, and chooses a route based on whim and wind. Dix points out that “Dick provides an example to others that helps them to continue to ride as they get older.”

In 1999 Knepper made local news when he rode his bicycle 1,600 miles to Florida with his then-18-year-old granddaughter, Liz Wyma, to celebrate his 70th birthday. Knepper said the ride challenged her stamina more than his.

Shortly thereafter, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer. The search for information led his romantic partner Donna Pogliano to coauthor the 2002 book A Primer on Prostate Cancer: The Empowered Patient’s Guide. Today, Knepper is fully recovered from cancer and in good health, always ready for another ride.

Bay View Bicycle Club
The Bay View Bicycle Club is a group of about 100 riders who organize rides around southeastern Wisconsin each weekend from April through October. The rides are focused on enjoyment rather than racing and might involve a stop for ice cream. Wheel & Sprocket provides support. Members serve as marshals during UPAF’s Ride for the Arts and donate to worthy causes. The club’s fundraiser, the Lake Country Classic, is held in July. Annual dues are $25 for an individual and $40 for a household. More info: bayviewbikeclub.org.

Green Nite at Chill on the Hill

The Bay View Neighborhood Association’s Environment & Transportation Committee debuted its Green Star checklist at the Aug. 24 Chill on the Hill, dubbed “The Green Nite.”

BVNA’s Green Star program is designed to educate and empower residents and businesses about concrete actions that people in Bay View are already taking to lead sustainable, healthy, and energy-efficient lifestyles as well as to suggest additional such choices and provide resources about how to live even “greener” lives.

A number of organizations and businesses were on hand in Humboldt Park on Aug. 24 to offer educational outreach: Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin, Future Green, Great Lakes Renewable Energy Advisors, Groundwork Milwaukee, Holistic Moms Network, Master Gardeners, Midwest Photovoltaic, Midwest Renewable Energy Association, Milwaukee County Transit System, Milwaukee County Parks Natural Areas, Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District, Milwaukee Public Theater Recycled Art Workshop, Milwaukee Recycles, Park People, Remy Battery, Sweet Water Organics, Urban Aquaculture Center, Urban Ecology Center, Victory Garden Initiative, and We Energies.

For more information about being a Green Star, contact Christa Marlowe at cmarlowe@tds.net or check out the BVNA booth at Bay View Bash, Sept. 18.

Disclosure: Editor Michael Timm is a member of BVNA’s Environment & Transportation Committee and worked on the Green Star checklist and helped with the Green Nite.

Interactive history display on historical society lawn

Discovery World teamed up with Bay View High School and the Bay View Historical Society to produce the Bay View Observatory, an interactive public art display showcasing the neighborhood’s history on the front lawn of the Beulah Brinton house, 2590 S. Superior St. It’s the culmination of 10 weeks in the collaborative Art and Archaeology of Me program for 25 Bay View High School students. Working with Discovery World archaeologist Kevin Cullen and digital media producer Heidi Heistad, students learned archaeological methods, researched the history of Bay View, and designed displays about local history as well as large-format banners of their “personal archaeology.”

~photo John Ebersol

Kennan forum to explore freshwater access

What steps now can turn our limited freshwater supply into a more sustainable resource? How can the global community improve access to clean water for poor and arid nations? What roles should the public and private sectors play?

These are some of the questions a panel of experts will explore at the George F. Kennan Forum on International Issues Wednesday, Sept. 29. “Water in a Changing World: Who Has It? Who Needs It?” is 6-8pm at the Pabst Theater, 144 E. Wells St.

The panel includes Laurent Auguste, executive president and CEO of Veolia Water Americas; Sandra Postel, director of the Global Water Policy Project and National Geographic Society freshwater fellow; and Aaron Salzberg, special coordinator for water resources, U.S. Department of State.

The event is hosted by the Institute of World Affairs and the Center for International Education at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Cosponsors include the Brady Corporation, Milwaukee Water Council, Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce, Milwaukee Public Television, Milwaukee World Trade Association, Wisconsin Public Radio, and WUWM.

Tickets are $5 and available at iwa.uwm.edu, (414) 229-3032, or at the event. Admission is free for UWM faculty and staff; area students; and members of WPR, MPTV, and the Institute of World Affairs.

The 2010 program marks the 20th anniversary of the George F. Kennan Forum. Born in Milwaukee in 1904, diplomat and Pulitzer Prize-winning historian George F. Kennan played a significant role in the formulation of U.S. foreign policy throughout much of the 20th century.

New online public records resource and info about Wisconsin Public Records Law

Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen announced development of a new online resource for government officials and employees, media representatives, and members of the public seeking information about the Wisconsin Public Records Law.  A dedicated area of the Wisconsin Department of Justice website now offers easy access to Attorney General Van Hollen’s formal and informal opinions about various aspects of the Public Record Law; sample documents such as required pre-release notices and letters seeking clarification of public records requests; and other resources including Attorney General Van Hollen’s recent memo about the Schill decision, a PowerPoint presentation, and a video recording of the Department’s 2009 public records seminar.  Additional and updated  resource materials will be posted as they become available.

All of these online resource materials may be accessed, downloaded, and printed free of charge.  The online resource materials may be accessed through the Open Meetings & Public Records link on the Wisconsin Department of Justice home page, or directly here.

Source: Office of  Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen

Extended hours for county pools during heat wave tonight and tomorrow evening

County Executive Scott Walker announced extended hours for Milwaukee County pools and Family Aquatic Centers to provide relief from the high temperatures and humidity. Night swim sessions have been added to the deep well pools from 5:30 – 7:30 pm tonight, and also tomorrow, Friday, August 13. Family Aquatic Centers are open until 8:00 pm both nights.

Stay cool and enjoy the summer heat at outdoor deep well pools (note exceptions) and Family

Aquatic Centers listed below:

Jackson Pool 3500 W. Forest Home Ave.

Holler Pool 5151 S. 6th St.

*McCarty Pool 2567 S. 79th St. (No extended hours on Friday)

Grobschmidt Pool 2500 S. 15th Ave.

Sheridan Pool 4800 S. Lake Dr.

Washington Pool 1859 N. 40th St.

*Wilson Pool 4001 S. 20th St. (No extended hours on Thursday)

Pelican Cove 2201 S. 7th St.

The Family Aquatic Centers include the following:

Cool Waters in Greenfield Park 2028 S. 124th St.

Schulz Aquatic Center at Lincoln Park 1301 W. Hampton Ave.

For more information about the County Pools call the Aquatics Office at (414) 257-8098.

Humboldt Park playground equipment installation in progress

Construction workers have begun erecting the new playground equipment in Humboldt Park on Pine Street, just south of the pavilion. The project is funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

The old playground equipment was removed last winter in response to new safety standards issued by Congress, according to 14th District Milwaukee County Supervisor Chris Larson. Hollow metal tubes that provided structural support were used in the design of that equipment. Some accidents were reported due to structural failures of equipment with the same metal tubing, Larson said, because water caused the tubing to rust.

See drawing of the complete equipment configuration here.

Smoking ban in bus shelters

The smoking ban affects not just bars and restaurants and all indoor public spaces but also bus shelters.

Violators of the law risk being ticketed by local law enforcement for a fine of up to $250.

Stickers will be placed in all Milwaukee County Transit System-owned shelters throughout the summer reminding bus users of this new law.

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