City Plan to be presented to public

The Southeast Side Area Plan, a component of the city’s comprehensive plan that visualizes optimal land uses for Bay View and other south side neighborhoods, will be presented to the public for review and comment at an open house Thursday, Sept. 18 at the Loft at the Hide House, 2625 S. Greeley St., from 4 to 7pm.

A draft of the plan was presented to a plan advisory group Aug. 7. »Read more

What do you think is the reason Brett Favre is no longer with the Pack?

Interviews & Photos by Jason Haas

“I think some mistakes were made on both parts, but I’m glad with the final result. I think the quarterback controversy would have been not good for the team, it would have been a distraction. I would have liked to see him come back even as a backup, give him a chance to win.”

—Dale Nook, Oklahoma Avenue

 

“I guess, not being a prime sports follower, that he had a really good run in there, and boy, I think he just was ready for a break, and once he took that break he realized that he wanted more of a good thing, and that he still had something left in him. So that’s what I can say without getting too much into the particulars of it.”

—Dan Chojnacki, Williams Street

 

“I believe that there was a disagreement in the direction between where Brett Favre wanted to go and the general manager. I believe there was a rift that could never be patched… and I think this was an ‘in your face Green Bay’ to the back staff. Not necessarily the coach, McCarthy, but the general management. I don’t think Brett really expected to be traded. I think he was willing to go toe to toe with the head office, and eventually watch the head office buckle because of his fan support. But it didn’t work out that way. Where will Brett be in six weeks? All it takes is one hit. But he could be wearing a ring at the end of the year.

—Joseph Moriarty, W. Wisconsin Avenue

“[Laughs] Ted Thompson’s fault. Ted Thompson hasn’t wanted Favre in town since he came in in 2005. It’s all about Ted Thompson’s ego and wanting to prove that he’s the guy who’s in charge of the Packers for better or worse, which in my opinion is going to be worse, because he seems to care more about his ego than winning football games. So, I think he forced Brett out, and unfortunately I think both the Packers and the Jets are going to be worse this year.”

—Chris Krolick, Bennett Avenue

“I love the guy. I don’t know what happened, but I’ll continue to watch and support him, and I’ll do the same for the Packers. But I wish he was still in green and gold.”

—Andrew Swofford, Lincoln & Lenox

Meet the principals

Humboldt Park K-8 Charter School

Principal Eugene Vlies

1. Who are you? Tell us about yourself and your educational philosophy.

Eugene Vlies-principal of Humboldt Park K-8 Charter School.

As principal, I set a clear vision of school-wide learning, teaching, and personal responsibility for staff and students. Our school philosophy and mission is the achievement of academic and social excellence for all students. Student achievement is driven by a school-wide belief-based culture built on high expectations and genuine concern for each student’s wellbeing. »Read more

Alternative energy fuel station

An alternative energy fuel station should open this September east of Pennsylvania Avenue and south of Layton Avenue at a former Shell gas station in Cudahy, if all goes according to the owners’ plans.

The first-of-its-kind site in the Milwaukee area will incorporate a 2-kilowatt solar array that will provide electricity back to the grid through We Energies’ buyback program, said Peter Grimes, the managing member of AUR Energy Partners, the four-member LLC which purchased the 1.4-acre parcel at 5080 S. Pennsylvania Ave. last year. At press time, Grimes was waiting on We Energies approval. »Read more

Full-time fathers

If these men had business cards, they would include titles like chief comforter or nap administrator. They are part of a tiny but increasing group of fathers who stay home with their children.

The U.S. Census Bureau estimates that 159,000 married dads with children under age 15 stayed home in 2006, the most recent year for which numbers are available. (Though the Census defines stay-at-home parents so strictly that most experts consider the resulting counts misleadingly low.) »Read more

Thirty years of giving back at Bay View Community Center

Linda Nieft’s father was an orphan dependent on other people’s goodwill. When he returned to the United States from World War II grateful to be alive, he started a family and instilled in his children what Nieft recalls as a “real strong moral code.”

“He was so grateful that he was able to support his family that he felt his family should give back,” said Nieft, who grew up in Chicago wanting to be a social worker. »Read more

Walking houses

Streets are constantly being blocked by houses ‘walking down the street,’” reported the Bay View Advance

newspaper Sept. 23, 1921. These “walking” houses, according to the news article, were being moved from property purchased by the Milwaukee Park Commission for the expansion of South Shore Park.

The park was originally founded in 1909 when the park commission purchased 15.32 acres of lakeshore property between East Nock and East Meredith streets. The park’s sole purpose was to provide a place for city residents to swim and enjoy the lakeshore. Additional land was purchased for the park over the next decade, and by the end of the 1920s, the land acquisition process was complete. There were, however, houses situated on the park property that had to be moved or razed. »Read more

Back to school at the conservatory of music

September is here. Football season, exciting baseball pennant races, back-to-school time…and the renewing of one of Milwaukee’s great musical treasures, the Faculty Artist Series at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music. This wide-ranging series of performances presents the ideal opportunity to enjoy some of the area’s best musical talents, who just happen to be faculty members at WCM. The concerts are presented in the Bader Recital Hall, an exquisite and intimate venue that provides the perfect backdrop for these performances. »Read more

New leaders have difficult, uncertain futures

I have occasionally been asked whether I want to be a school principal, and the answer is always an emphatic no: I don’t have the temperament to deal with the challenges and struggles that I see principals dealing with every day.

Four Bay View schools have new principals this month: Robin Kitzrow at Bay View High School, Karen Nastulski at Fritsche Middle School, John Sanchez at Fernwood Montessori, and Manuela (Mimi) Soto at Tippecanoe K-8. Though each seems capable of meeting those challenges, I don’t envy what some of them face. »Read more

The pulse of a river

One evening several years ago, UW-Milwaukee scientist and river monitoring expert Tim Ehlinger was looking out his laboratory window when the weather flame atop the downtown Wisconsin Gas Company building caught his eye. The flame, which flickers and changes color to reflect the local forecast, »Read more

Doing Business in Bay View (Part 3)

Rising commercial property values

If Kinnickinnic Avenue were a Monopoly board, the Avalon Theatre would probably be Boardwalk. But though the prime space has an owner with a vision, red hotels won’t be rising anytime soon.

“Right now we’ve run into a snag with financing. The banks I’ve spoken to have not shown interest in the project,” said developer/investor Lee Barczak, who purchased the Avalon Theatre in 2005 for over $1 million. »Read more

Eco-trimaran in Port

The Earth Voyager visited Milwaukee Aug. 14 as part of its 13-city Great Lakes tour to raise environmental awareness to protect Lake Michigan from sewage contamination, invasive species, and other threats.

The three-hulled sailboat, or trimaran, docked at the South Shore Yacht Club in Bay View, setting the stage for speakers to present a petition urging both presidential candidates to fund Great Lakes restoration. »Read more

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