Newsletter

Better Streets MKE, Vol. 8

🌞

Mitchell Henke

— 5 min read
Better Streets MKE, Vol. 8
One of the options presented by GRAEF and TKWA to radically change Brady Street into a more vibrant, walkable place.

The MCTS bus system is facing a potential fiscal disaster due to the state legislature’s continuing refusal to sufficiently fund the Milwaukee area. It’s time to #SaveTheBus.

What can you do? The number one thing (in addition to the steps outlined in the link above) you can do is get on the bus, and get others to try it, too. Just try it. It doesn’t have to be your ride to work, or every ride, but the next time to you go to a friend’s house, the bar, church, or a hike, open Google Maps and see the bus route. If you are used to driving most places, becoming a transit user is a new skillset that can be intimidating or seem inconvenient. Yet every bus ride is an opportunity to talk with your kids, read a book, see a part of the city you haven’t seen before, not have to deal with the hassle of parking, not have to clear snow off your car.

The bus is the backbone of the working class in this city. It is the reason we have brunches and late night drinks, concerts and manufacturing, chances to get out of poverty and the ability for teens and seniors to have independence. We know what happens when the bus is cut: an increase in poverty and unemployment. Ride the bus, and #SaveTheBus.

Upcoming Events

Brady Street Community Meeting

Alderman Brostoff is holding a community meeting that will include discussion of the developments planned for the Brady Street Corridor. Attendees will have the chance to discuss how Brady Street can be reimagined as a more pedestrian friendly space. Potential designs were released and range from relatively minor improvements to the road to a pedestrianization that would allow for buses, bikes, emergency vehicles, and deliveries, similar to Madison’s State Street.

Tuesday, June 27th, 2023
5:30 - 7 p.m.
St. Hedwig
1702 N. Humboldt Ave.
Transit: GREEN, 14, 15
Bublr Station at Brady and Humboldt

Critical Mass

A (fun!) monthly no-drop bike ride, with a fabulous website. Rolling out 6:00 pm sharp.

Friday, June 30th, 2023
Rolling out 6:00 p.m. sharp
Red Arrow Park
920 N Water St
Transit: GREEN, 15, Hop, 57, 18, 33, 19, 30, CN1, 14

Pedestrian and Bicycle Advisory Committee

Meetings are open to the public and held on the third Friday of the month. You can sign up for updates on meetings and agendas via e-Notify.

Friday, July 21st, 2023
8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m.
Hybrid
Zeidler Municipal Building, 5th floor
Virtual Meeting link
Transit: 15, 18, 57, GRE
3 blocks or less from the 14, 19, 30, 33, and CN1.
Bublr station on Van Buren St. near Water St.

Eyes on Projects

Cass Street Right of Way Vacation

Northwestern Mutual has officially requested that the city vacate the right of way on Cass Street between Mason Street and Wells Street. In short, Northwestern Mutual would have complete ownership and control of the street. They have plans to build a lobby where the street is now and have stated they will allow the public between 6AM and 6PM on weekdays, and bikes would have to dismount while going through. During other times, the public would be blocked from going down Cass Street on this block. However, the nature of the agreement means that even this limited access could be removed at NM’s sole discretion.

The City’s Pedestrian and Bicycle Advisory Committee has officially opposed this aspect of the project, and has requested that the public be able to access Cass Street all hours of the week as it is an important segment of the Downtown street grid that connects to the Oak Leaf Trail via Mason Street. Their letter is available here. The request passed the City Plan Commission on June 26th with no accommodations or recommendations made for 24/7 public access. It will now go to the Public Works Committee on June 28th at 9AM, where the public can provide testimony.

Alderman Bauman is the chair of the Public Works Committee and it is in his district. To share your perspective, you should email Alderman Bauman at rjbauma@milwaukee.gov.

National Avenue

The National Avenue designs were presented earlier this month and they look really good. The design includes raised bike lanes the entire length, some raised crosswalks, traffic diverters at intersections with bike boulevards and an FHWA-approved pilot of a raised intersection at 4th Street. It would be great to see some transit improvements to allow for in-lane boarding, but overall it’s incredible to see it change this much. Lots of credit to DPW and WisDOT for bringing it this far, and we hope to see this kind of treatment for state highways in the city going forward. You can review the documents and leave a comment here.

Growing MKE

Mayor Johnson has set the tall goal of reaching one million residents in the City of Milwaukee, and the Growing MKE initiative is one part of that. The initiative aims to improve housing options in the city by gathering feedback from the public and updating the Citywide Policy Plan and zoning code. For more information and to sign up for opportunities to provide input, check out the city’s website.

Villard Avenue

The City was awarded a $14.3 million federal grant to redesign Villard Avenue to make substantial bicycle, pedestrian and transit improvements. The project extends from 22nd to Sherman Boulevard. This is a project long advocated for, and in an area of the city that could benefit immensely from investment in its Main Street.

I-794

A lot of hubbub around 794 last week has resulted in WisDOT publishing draft concepts including replacement as-is, six Freeway Improvement options and two Freeway Removal options. Removal Option 2 seems to be the preferred removal option currently, but the primary sticking points will likely be around Port of Milwaukee truck traffic and managing traffic at bridge crossings. Amongst the Improvement Options, 5 and 6 reduce the footprint the most.

[From MM] As a person who lives downtown and has no access to use the multi-billion dollar infrastructure of the highway (due to not using a car for transportation), one of the frustrating misunderstandings about this project is the difference between access and speed. Access means just that: that a person has the ability to get to points of interest. Access can have qualitative properties like speed, comfort, and convenience. Right now, as a person without a car, I have zero ability to use the Hoan or 794 to access destinations. 794 impacts access due to a one-way Clybourn (I have sidewalk’ed my way to the Hank Aaron Trail and found myself navigating confusing one-ways more than I can count), in addition to hindering access to the Third Ward due to the uncomfortable design of highway ramps that impact the safety and comfort of walking.

The misunderstanding of many of those against 794 removal is that this proposal removes access for car drivers. It would certainly impact their speed, or it would mean that car drivers might choose alternative routes such as using other highways. But none of that really changes access. A car driver’s trip taking, say, an extra 60-90 seconds doesn’t change their ability to use publicly-funded investments to get to where they need to go. What it does do is provide more access for everyone else, including by opening land to development for places to access.

Curious about a project? Check out Engage MKE

There are many road projects happening in Milwaukee. To learn more about them, check out Engage MKE. This resource is a good place to start for understanding the major projects occurring in Milwaukee. Projects include:

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