When the MMAC and the GMC, seven counties and the city of Milwaukee came together as a region 12 years ago to market our assets and build our capacity, the result was M7. We had great expectations of economic growth, but never could have predicted that M7, MMAC and WEDC would land the biggest economic development opportunity in US history. This project will dramatically change the economic future here for generations to come. Wisconsin landing the Foxconn development shows the impact of regional economic development alignment through M7, the MMAC and the impact of WEDC as a core investor and partner. It takes an amazing amount of dedication, agility, negotiation and coordination to respond a
Over the last year, MKE United has engaged in wide-ranging civic engagement efforts designed to create a shared and inclusive vision for Downtown Milwaukee and its adjacent neighborhoods. That process identified the City’s revenue framework as one of the key challenges limiting the City’s progress. As a result, the Greater Milwaukee Committee commissioned the Public Policy Forum to develop a report assessing the funding structures of peer cities around the country to inform a community discussion around various approaches. The resulting report –“On the Money? The City of Milwaukee’s Uncommon Revenue Structure and How it Compares to Peer Cities” – demonstrates the need to consider a revised r
The Public Policy Forum just released a comprehensive report on how Milwaukee is supported with public money, compared to other peer cities around the country. The report found that compared to similar cities, Milwaukee is decidedly more reliant on state funds as a result of the city's inability to impose most forms of local taxation. Wisconsin is very restrictive in the types of taxes local governments are able to levy on their residents, which has left much of Milwaukee's revenue stream reliant on the state government's shared revenue payments. This predicament is very unusual for large cities, which generally have more flexibility in the kinds of taxes they're allowed to employ. "The City
Following Google’s pledge to support crime reduction efforts in Milwaukee, the Greater Milwaukee Foundation has created a new fund to augment that initiative. The GMF has committed $25,000 toward matching funds that Milwaukee is receiving from Google as part of the company’s effort to funnel $2 million in support of lowering gun violence in 10 cities nationwide. The Greater Milwaukee Foundation offices, located in the Schlitz Park office complex. “How safe people feel in their neighborhood and in their broader community has a tremendous impact on their quality of life,” said Ellen Gilligan, president of the Greater Milwaukee Foundation. “It’s a value shared by us all. As a community foundati
Following Google’s pledge to support crime reduction efforts in Milwaukee, the Greater Milwaukee Foundation has created a new fund to augment that initiative. The GMF has committed $25,000 toward matching funds that Milwaukee is receiving from Google as part of the company’s effort to funnel $2 million in support of lowering gun violence in 10 cities nationwide. “How safe people feel in their neighborhood and in their broader community has a tremendous impact on their quality of life,” said Ellen Gilligan, president of the Greater Milwaukee Foundation. “It’s a value shared by us all. As a community foundation, we stand committed to investing in strategies that we believe will have a measurab
