|
|  |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
| |
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
| |
 | | |
|
|
For Rent - Apartments
1000 sq ft studio
Located above Holistic Medical Clinic; by Laundromat, Farmer's Market, Co-op, and parks; along major | | |
For Rent - Apartments
1 bedroom upper
Spacious, central a/c, carpet and hdwd flr, garage pkg, yard, bsmt storage, eat in kitchen, large closets | | |
For Rent - Apartments
Luxury 2+2 Lake View
18th Floor 2+2 available Nov but flexible. 270 degree view of Lake and city. | |
|
|
|
| |
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
Lack of Compact Stalls Water Flow to the Suburbs
New Berlin mayor "frustrated" by Lazich's tactic
|
|
| | by Dennis A. Shook |
| |
| | 
|  |
| |  | | 
| | | (click for larger version) | |
September 20, 2007
There will be no Lake Michigan water for New Berlin in the near future, and the city may have its own state senator to blame.
The
special Legislative Council Committee failed to reach a consensus on a
Great Lakes Water Compact that would set new rules for Lake Michigan
water. Eight U.S. governors and the heads of two Canadian provinces
have signed the compact, though it would still need to be ratified by
their legislative bodies and then by the U.S. Congress.
But
state Sen. Mary Lazich (R-New Berlin), a committee member, wanted to
make several changes to the compact. Those changes would then have to
be accepted by all involved parties. A number of committee members said
the changes rewrote the preliminary compact agreement, ultimately
causing its death, or at least lengthy delays.
Lazich
said she objected to the compact allowing governors from other states
to prevent water from being sold to communities, like New Berlin, that
straddle the sub-continental divide. The divide is considered the
boundary of the Great Lakes basin in Wisconsin. Michigan Gov. Jennifer
Granholm has said she will oppose and veto the diversion of water to
any community that is outside the Great Lakes basin, including New
Berlin.
"I cannot agree to a compact that gives another governor
veto-power over Wisconsin water," Lazich said. Of course, Lake Michigan
water does not belong to any one state.
Lazich also wanted to
change the language in the compact so that Mukwonago, which is in her
district and is partly located outside of Waukesha County, could also
access Lake Michigan water. Waukesha has been seeking to purchase Great
Lakes water as well.
The compact as written allows communities
that are completely located within the county, even those west of the
basin, to apply for a diversion of Lake Michigan water.
Lazich added that Milwaukee is using its water to try to force her support for the compact.
"We
shouldn't have to say 'Mother may I' to Milwaukee," Lazich said of
water access. "This is an extortion issue by Milwaukee and I don't take
kindly to that."
Officials from Milwaukee and the state of
Wisconsin have said they would treat the compact as law once it passes
the state Legislature, without waiting for the other states to act.
Leaders from both the city and state said they would support the sale
of water to New Berlin at that point.
New Berlin Mayor Jack
Chiovatero said he was "frustrated" with Lazich over the issue. He said
the senator told him that legislators in Ohio were going to scuttle the
compact anyway, and that Lazich wanted the special committee to join
with Ohio in rewriting the compact.
Looking at Alternatives
The
problem facing New Berlin is that it needs a clean water source by next
summer because radium levels in its city water exceed federal
allowances. New Berlin officials argue that the best source for clean
water is Lake Michigan, through the city of Milwaukee.
But Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said he will wait until there's a decision on the compact.
"I
will not sell water until there is a compact in place for Wisconsin,"
Barrett said. "I am hoping that Gov. (Jim) Doyle will grab the bull by
the horns and help shepherd a compact through" the state Legislature.
Chiovatero
said he has been talking to Milwaukee aldermen in the hope that they
might advocate for selling Lake Michigan water to his suburban city.
"I
told them that they have the wrong impression that this is going to
fuel development in New Berlin," the mayor said. "We're pretty much all
developed and we have plenty of our own water if we use the filters.
But it is a health and safety issue. Yet when I met with (Mayor
Barrett) on selling us water, he said, 'It's beyond you and I.'"
Doyle
was unavailable for comment. But his spokeswoman, Carla Vigue, said the
governor is already working on a compromise that could be passed by the
state Legislature. Vigue said she could offer no details, however.
Lazich
said she intends to introduce her own version of a compact to the state
Legislature this fall. But state Sen. Neal Kedzie (R-Elkhorn), who
chaired the special committee, said the state Senate, controlled by
Democrats, is unlikely to pass a Republican plan. Similarly, state Rep.
Jon Richards (D-Milwaukee) said he would also propose a compact
version. But Kedzie pointed out that Republicans control the Assembly,
making passage of a bill written by a Democrat unlikely.
However, Richards said his proposed compact bill could win bipartisan support "and will allow us to have a fresh start at this."
Kedzie
said it is possible that another special compact committee could be
formed in a year or so. He said that a nonpartisan setting is the most
likely way to work out differences.
With a stalemate likely to be in place for the near future, New Berlin Mayor Chiovatero said he is considering other options.
"Milwaukee
was my preference, because we already receive some water from
Milwaukee," Chiovatero said. He added that Oak Creek or Racine could be
alternatives if Milwaukee isn't interested.
Chiovatero said the
city could also install radium remediation filters, which would allow
the city to use its current water supply.
"But that's going to cost about $5 million" to install, not to mention operation costs, he said. "Still, we need an answer now."
Todd
Ambs, administrator for the Water Division of the state Department of
Natural Resources (DNR), confirmed that the city would likely need an
alternate source of water by next summer. Ambs, who spent five years
representing Wisconsin during the compact negotiations, said New Berlin
had been given an extension by the DNR on its radium remediation
efforts during the compact talks. And he said the state would likely
give its permission for a water sale from Milwaukee to New Berlin if
the compact passes. But now that the compact appears to have stalled,
that extension would likely end.
Forcing a Lawsuit?
Lazich
has hinted that New Berlin might bring a lawsuit to try to force
accessibility to Lake Michigan water. Ambs acknowledged that the
compact was conceived out of fear that the existing rules for Great
Lakes water regulation—known as the Water Resources Development Act
(WRDA)—could be ruled unconstitutional. That would leave the region
with no established rules to prevent states outside the region from
seeking the water and rapidly depleting the resource.
One
committee member, Jodi Habush Sinykin, said that communities like New
Berlin and Waukesha "have been less than subtle in expressing" that
they would likely sue in their quest for water.
"But the folks
in those communities have to understand that such an approach would
have the people foot this very expensive (litigation bill)," she said.
Richards said the anxiety about a lawsuit is real.
"That
has definitely been the fear," Richards said. "There are cases winding
their way through the courts now that would overturn WRDA. I know
Waukesha was considering that strategy at some point."
Many are frustrated by the failure to reach a committee agreement, but said it was not unexpected.
"I'm
not that surprised that something of this magnitude would take more
work," Ambs said of the compact. Illinois and Minnesota have already
passed the compact as offered, but Ambs noted that "the average length
of time for compacts to pass in the U.S. is eight to 12 years."
There
is no near-term deadline for passing the compact, as it must be passed
by all eight states involved and Congress to become law in the United
States.
What's your take?
Write: >editor@shepherd-express.com.
 View images.
| |
|  |
|
|
Radium Filtration
September 20, 2007 | 02:15 PM
Just install the radium filter system and call it a day.
Lawsuits and continued efforts on the debate will probably end up costing more.
Adam
|
|
Lack of Compact Stalls Water Flow to the Suburbs
September 24, 2007 | 10:28 PM
The
Polar icecaps are melting. Won't the run-off increase the volume of the
Great Lakes? I think we should make plans to give water to whomever
wants it(california, Arizona, etc.) and keep the levels down. I think
our selfishness will be our downfall.
Valerie Vernon
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|  |
|
|
| |
|
|
|
Two documentaries on deceased music icons are among the attractions tonight at the Milwaukee International Film Festival. Joe Strummer: The Future Is Unwritten,
which screens at 7:15 p.m. at the Oriental Theatre, uses the Clash
frontman’s favorite music to detail how Strummer became one of the
greatest social crusaders in the history of punk rock, while Kurt Cobain About a Son,
which screens at 10 p.m. at the Oriental Theatre, uses audio from
interviews to let the iconic Nirvana frontman tell his life story in
his own words.
For a complete listing of films, check out MIFF’s Web site.
Alt-country star Ryan Adams has recorded eight albums since his 2000 breakthrough Heartbreaker,
and while his output has been satisfyingly consistent for someone so
prolific, not all of those albums were winners. Thankfully, his latest,
this summers Easy Tiger, is one of his most charming, assured
efforts. Fittingly for a man with so much material to cover, Adams will
be playing without an opener at tonight’s 8 p.m. concert at the
Riverside Theater.
With only one more week of the regular season left, the Milwaukee Brewers
continue their three-game home series against the St. Louis Cardinals
tonight at 7:05 p.m. Our fingers are crossed so tightly they’re turning
purple.
A dynamic, large-nosed swordsman wrestles with matters of the heart as he tries to court his beloved Roxanne in Cyrano,
the classic 1897 Edmond Rostand play. For the Milwaukee Rep production,
which runs through Oct. 7, resident actor Lee Ernst assumes the
challenging title role. Tonight’s production begins at 6:30 p.m. in the
Quadracci Powerhouse Theater.
|
|
|
|
|
|
| “If the mothers ruled the world, there would be no goddamned wars in the first place.” —Sally Field at the Emmys on Sunday.
Producers of the event, broadcast by Fox TV, censored her comment in the United States, but it ran uncensored in Canada. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
Today In Milwaukee
