Mayor Taylor’s $31 Million—Field of Dreams Gamble with Tax Payer Dollars

As the City of Franklin—in conclusion with an unelected  government body—MMSD adds a new $461.47 sewer tax to every Franklin  property owner’s 2012 tax bill, whether they are hooked up to the now infamous Ryan Creek Interceptor.   The Franklin common council and especially Mayor Tom Taylor believe “development would follow the pipes”—that’s a $31 million gamble I wouldn’t be willing to make with taxpayer dollars considering predictions of a 2013 recession.  Do the mayor and common council know something that the Wall Street Journal forecast panel—as well at The Wall Street Journal don’t and Forbes’ economists?

Opposition to Sewer Tax Growing

FRANKLIN MAYOR THOMAS TAYLORCity of Franklin officials are trying to sidestep a very heated issue. Franklin property owners with septic systems have recently been incorporated into the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) as a result of the Ryan Creek Interceptor Project. This means that they will now be billed for sewer services they don't have, along with the cost of maintaining their own septic system.  These Franklin residents are so upset they are forming a group to challenge the sewer tax in the court system. A letter was recently sent to all affected property owners. Years ago the same problem occurred. Franklin property owners were successful and had laws and policies put on the books. MMSD is apparently ignoring those statutes and policies. The Franklin Independent Journal is weighing in on this issue and will post additional updates. Our achieves are available for the general readership. You'll find numerous articles and links pertaining to this issue. We're in the process of also downloading open record request documents. That will take a bit longer to get posted.

Franklin Homeowners Cry Foul Over New Sewer Tax

“Vision without execution is hallucination”

—“Thomas Edison

Tmj4 is reporting some Franklin homeowners feel like their hard earn money is going down the toilet. The 2011 property tax bills are arriving by mail and some don't like what they see. For example, David Washkuhn is on a septic system. But his property tax bill this year shows a $243 sewer tax even though he doesn't have a sewer.  But a MMSD official told Washkuhn the $23 sewer tax will increase Washkuhn’s and other franklin homeowners’ property value.  Read the full story.

Thanks but no Thanks

Washkuhn and his neighbors say they are satisfied with their septic tanks, they don’t want sewers.  Sorry, Not good enough for Bureaucrats.  "This does not cumpute."

MMSD Executive Director Kevin Shafer explained the $243 sewer tax this way

"It’s just like a school district, you may not have kids going to the school but you pay for school improvements and school taxes."

TFIJ has published 15 stories on the Ryan Creek interceptor project since it was announced last year.

Last year FIJ ran 18 stories regarding Mayor Tom Taylor’s “pet-project.”(a.k.a  the Ryan Creek Iterceptor).

Be sure to call mayor Taylor and ask him why he didn’t veto the project and the tax increase, or your alderman and ask them how they voted on this matter and why they voted the way the did.

Franklin’s Public Hunting Grounds and what You Have Been Told—or Not

 

In separate stories published on November 22 and 23 we asked readers if they could identify the Wisconsin DNR Public Hunting grounds pictured in the story.  To-date we have not received the correct answer from among these choices: Tichigan, Vernon, Franklin or Oconomowoc.

Give up?  Well, the correct answer is Franklin.  We doubt that many Franklin and Milwaukee County citizens realize that there is a state-owned public hunting grounds within Franklin’s city limits on 116^th street, and wonder how many members of the Franklin Common Council are aware of this fact?  Depending upon how you feel about this we suggest calling your alderman or Mayor Tom Taylor with any questions or concerns you may have over this unique situation. 

We have a couple of concerns of our own on this subject.  First, the close proximity of Alderman Skowronski’s home to this state-owned land.  Secondly, we recalled the following statement by Mayor Tom Taylor in a September 26, 2010, JSOnline story favoring the now-controversial $41 million Ryan Creek Interceptor Project in what Taylor referred to in the article as the overdue period of growth for the city's southwest quarter, predicting with confidence that the sewer project:

“[Would open] much of the land to a building boom [and] would add more than $1.2 billion to the city's property tax base by 2025,” and that the added businesses would take some of the local tax burden off the shoulders of homeowners.”  Taylor added, “there’s little room for new businesses elsewhere: Only a few acres are left for sale in the city's business park at S. 51st St. and Ryan Road.  If a company came in and said they wanted a significant size property, we'd have to say no."

Taking the mayor at his word concerning the business (warehouse) park at S. 51st St. and Ryan Road, the mayor needs to explain to Franklin citizens how the state of Wisconsin became the owners of the 100 acres of land now designated public hunting grounds, being that, in his words ”there's little room for new businesses elsewhere.”  If the mayor is really serious about 'tak[ing] some of the local tax burden off the shoulders of homeowners.”  As Alderman Solomon likes to say, “It ain’t gonna happen.”  The state does not pay taxes to the City on the 100 or so acres it owns.

Speaking of development, we find it very “interesting” that the state-owned hunting grounds—baring its sale to a private party—prevents development of that property which just so happens to be just hundreds of yards from  Alderman Ken Skowronski’s home.  Yet, the City is preparing to take land (potentially by eminent domain) from Franklin citizens in order to build the Ryan Creek Interceptor for future sale to MMSD; which will tax property owners within its taxing boundaries, quite the oposite of Taylor's statement "...that "it will take some of the local tax burden off the shoulders of homeowners."

It must also be noted that Franklin developer Jim O’Malley, whose development company, O'malley Development, LLC owns land involved in the RCI project area.  In addition, campaign finace records filed with the Franklin City Clerk's office revealed O’Malley was a contributor to Mayor Taylor’s and Alderman Steve Taylor’s last campaigns.  In fact, O’Malley was a volunteer for the alderman’s reelection run.

RELATED MEDIA

• MMSD Public Hearing Regarding New District Boundary for the City of Franklin
• Ryan Creek Sewer Project Stinks to High Heaven

Mayor Taylor’s $1.2 billion Fairy Tale

once Upon a Time... I sent the following Email to three-term Franklin Mayor Tom Taylor:

--- On Thu, 1/6/11, Fred Keller <fvkeller1@xxxxx.com> wrote:

From: Fred Keller <fvkeller1@xxxxx.com>

Subject: Ryan Creek interceptor project

To: "tom2563@att.net" <tom2563@att.net>, "Kristin Wilhelm" <kwilhelm@franklinwi.gov>

Date: Thursday, January 6, 2011, 6:12 PM

Dear Mayor Taylor:

I read with great interest the JSOnline article entitled “Franklin: “The final frontier,” concerning the southwest side of Franklin and an agreement between the City and MMSD to extend sewer service to that corner of the City.

There were few things in the article in particular that raised questions in my mind, and I would appreciate a written answer to my following questions:

Why are Franklin taxpayers borrowing $31 million from the Wisconsin DNR for the Ryan Creek interceptor project, instead of MMSD borrowing the money on their own from the same or another source?

The article also attributed the following remarks to you:

… Opening much of the land to a building boom would add more than $1.2 billion to the city's property tax base by 2025, Taylor forecast with confidence. The added businesses would take some of the local tax burden off the shoulders of homeowners, he said.

 Would you please provide me with the written analysis the lead you to “forecast with confidence,” that a building boom would add more than $1.2 billion to the city's property tax base by 2025?

And finally, the article indicated that MMSD would begin buying the sewer from Franklin in 2015, under terms of a proposed intergovernmental cooperation agreement. The district would take ownership of the interceptor in 2031, after paying an estimated total of $41.1 million in principal and interest.

3. What can taxpayers expect the City to do with this $41 million?

Thank you in advance for kind attention to my request.  I look forward to a timely reply.

Sincerely,

Fred V. Keller

--- On Wed, 1/12/11, tom2563@att.net <tom2563@att.net> wrote:

From: tom2563@att.net tom2563@att.net

Subject: Re: Ryan Creek interceptor project

To: "Fred Keller" <fvkeller1@xxxxx.com>

Date: Wednesday, January 12, 2011, 12:38 PM

The post sewer plan that was adopted by the Common Council as part of the Comprehensive Plan for the City identifies shows where new business parks, retail and commercial centers and residential developments are projected to occur should a sewer system such as the Ryan Creek Interceptor be put in place. You may obtain a copy of such plan via the Planning Department.

My rationale for the projected development for the southwest part of the City is linked to the Post Sewer Plan for the City which is available from the Planning Department.

The 27Th Street Corridor Plan projects one billion dollars in future development and there are, and have been figures presented in public that show that this projection is obtainable.

Given the number of future sites for business parks and commercial and residential developments pursuant to the post sewer plan and based on the projections from the Southeastern Regional Planning Commission as well as the 27Th Street Corridor Plan it can be projected that a billion dollars of future development could occur in this area of the city. The City has already experienced a developer from Atlanta that was willing to develop the area around 76th and Ryan Road and another individual was proposing to build a multi-million dollar development with an airport for this areal. While these types of projects require Common Council approval, there is a track record of interest by developers for  this part of the City.

It is my recollection that the Tichnor Report recommended areas of the city for future business park and commercial development and prioritized the areas of the city that should be pursued. This report is commonly referred to as the Franklin First report. This report as well as the Comprehensive Master Plan for the City can be reviewed by setting up an appointment with the City Development Department. Both reports were the subject of public debate and much public discussion.

 You should be able to obtain copies of the audio tapes for these very public meetings and listen to the dialog that took place at these meetings. When all is said and done it is the policy makers that voted for these plans and each elected official will more than likely have a different reason for voting to support these various plans.

The issue of the borrowing versus the repayment by MMSD is contained in the agreements between the City and MMSD which may also be obtained via the City Clerk’s office. These agreements were passed by majority vote of the members of the Common Council after they were properly noticed and after debate took place.

I have a call into the Planning Manager to review the Post Sewer Plan for the City as well as other documents such as the Tichnor Report or the documents that were presented to MMSD some six years ago that argued for the construction of the Ryan Creek Interceptor.

There were many individuals from Franklin that argued for the building of such a project before the MMSD Commission and these tapes may also be obtained should you so desire from MMSD?

It has been discussed several times that the Franklin Business Park is approaching a time when we will be defeasing the bonds. If Franklin was to be approached by developers wishing to build another business park we may not be able to accomodate the construction of said park because of a lack of sewer service. Thus it has long been the desire of the policy makers of the city to get MMSD to build the Ryan Creek Interceptor project.

Please see the mission and vision statement for the city that was reaffirmed by the present Common Council.

--- On Mon, 1/17/11, Fred Keller <fvkeller1@xxxxx.com> wrote:

From: Fred Keller <fvkeller1@xxxxx.com>

Subject: Re: Ryan Creek interceptor project

To: "tom2563@att.net" tom2563@att.net

Date: Monday, January 17, 2011, 9:07 AM

Dear Mayor Taylor:

Thank you for getting back to me in such a timely manner, but with all due respect, you did not directly answer question 1 and the second part of 2, as well as question 3. So I will ask you again to answer these questions:

1. Why are Franklin taxpayers borrowing $31 million from the Wisconsin DNR for the Ryan Creek interceptor project, instead of MMSD borrowing the money on their own from the same or another source?

2. Would you please provide me with the written analysis the lead you to “forecast with confidence,” that a building boom would add more than $1.2 billion to the city's property tax base by 2025?

 (Second part of question 2)

And finally, the article indicated that MMSD would begin buying the sewer from Franklin in 2015, under terms of a proposed intergovernmental cooperation agreement. The district would take ownership of the interceptor in 2031, after paying an estimated total of $41.1 million in principal and interest.

3. What can taxpayers expect the City to do with this $41 million?

Frankly, and again with all due respect the 27th Street Corridor Project has repeatedly—in open pubic meetings [Alderman Tim Solomon]—been projected as a $2 billion [project].   Are you now saying that it’s half the original projection, and therefore a failure?  I would appreciate a direct answer to this question.

As far as the Ticknor/Franklin First report is concerned, am I to believe that you’re using this late 1990s report as the basis for applying for a $31 million loan from the DNR?  Do these reports still have relevancy in today’s economic climate and the decline in the city’s growth?

Thank you.

Sincerely,

Fred Keller

--- On Mon, 1/17/11, Fred Keller <fvkeller1@xxxxx.com>wrote:

 From: Fred Keller fvkeller1@xxxxx.com

Subject: More questions on Ryan Creek Interceptor

To: "tom2563@att.net" <tom2563@att.net>

Date: Monday, January 17, 2011, 9:28 AM

Dear Mayor Taylor:

In your original response to my questions, you wrote that:

“The City has already experienced a developer from Atlanta that was willing to develop the area around 76th and Ryan Road and another individual was proposing to build a multi-million dollar development with an airport for this areal [sic]. While these types of projects require Common Council approval, there is a track record of interest by developers for this part of the City.”

Will you please explain to me why the Atlanta developer and the other development projects you cite never completed their plans?

Thank you, again.

Sincerely,

Fred Keller

--- On Sun, 1/23/11, tom2563@att.net <tom2563@att.net> wrote:

From: tom2563@att.net tom2563@att.net

Subject: Re: Fw: Re: Ryan Creek interceptor project: Second Request

To: "Fred Keller" fvkeller1@xxxxx.com

Date: Sunday, January 23, 2011, 7:47 PM

I did respond back to you (see below).

"Thank you for getting back to me in such a timely manner, but with all due respect, you did not directly answer question 1 and the second part of 2, as well as question 3. So I will ask you again to answer these questions":

I do not know why the Atlanta Group did not move forward with their development proposal?

The issue of the Ryan Creek Interceptor has been going on for well over six years as is evidenced below.

 The following artcle from 2005 speaks to MMSD being reluctant to financially support the Ryan Creek Interceptor Sewer and Mayor Bell's statement who was the chair spells out her opinion that municipalities pay for these types of infrastructure improvements.

 The article goes on to state:

 "Franklin officials said the sewer would benefit all Milwaukee County taxpayers. They estimated that $1.2 billion in new growth would generate about $2 million annually for MMSD, $6 million for Milwaukee County and $2.5 million for Milwaukee Area Technical College."

Franklin wants major sewer expansion; $42.5 million MMSD investment [lLink to this JSOnline story provided by Mayor Taylor is no longer available online.]

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, The, Sep 20, 2005 by ANNYSA JOHNSON

Franklin The city on Monday asked the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District to consider a $42.5 million sewer expansion that would enable Franklin to develop the largely rural southwest corner of the city.

Franklin development officials made a brief presentation to MMSD's Policy, Finance and Personnel Committee, a preliminary step, they hope, toward getting the sewer placed in the district's 2010 or 2020 plan, Mayor Tom Taylor said.

"If there's going to be any development of the southern quadrant of Franklin, we need to broach MMSD with a proposal," Taylor said. "We don't see build-out until about 2009 or later, depending on whether we can slow the growth. But there's no time like now to ask."

Franklin is proposing MMSD extend the Ryan Creek interceptor sewer that runs west along W. Ryan Road past S. 60th St., where it currently ends, continuing it to the county line. That sewer would enable Franklin to develop an additional 8.6 square miles of the city, creating an estimated $1.25 billion in new growth, city officials said.

Sewerage Commission Chairman and West Allis Mayor Jeannette Bell said MMSD would evaluate the cost of studying the proposal but questioned whether member communities would want to underwrite Franklin's development efforts.

"Generally, you create a TIF district or businesses pay for that," said Bell, whose community has used tax-incremental financing districts to fund West Allis' redevelopment. "I don't know if West Allis taxpayers will want to pay for a huge sewer out in Franklin when they've had to invest in their own economic development."

Franklin officials said the sewer would benefit all Milwaukee County taxpayers. They estimated that $1.2 billion in new growth would generate about $2 million annually for MMSD, $6 million for Milwaukee County and $2.5 million for Milwaukee Area Technical College.

"Twenty-three percent of Franklin residents' tax bills go to Milwaukee County," said Common Council President Lyle Sohns, who did not attend the meeting.

Longtime MMSD Commissioner Dennis Grzezinski said the request would not be dismissed out of hand but that the more appropriate venue would be the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission.

Any formal request by Franklin to change MMSD's boundaries would have to be approved by the Planning Commission and DNR, Grzezinski said.

Franklin, whose residents pay some of the highest taxes in Milwaukee County, has been pushing economic development in recent years as a way to expand its tax base.

One area expected to benefit from the proposed sewer expansion is S. 76th St. and W. Ryan Road, identified as a prime commercial corridor in a 1999 study by the city.

Several developers have expressed interest in that intersection over the years, and Franklin has asked Milwaukee County to consider selling adjacent land at the House of Correction for development.

But nothing's likely to fly without an expanded sewer, said Sohns, the Common Council president.

"We can't do anything on that corner at the moment," he said, "because the sewer is of paramount importance."

I do not understand your third question.

I am including three attachments that speak to the Ryan Creek Interceptor and just some of the discussion and review that took place prior to the Common Council voting on this item.

• Ryan Creek pdf  1
• Ryan Creek pdf 2
• Ryan Creek pdf 3

 The one billion dollar figure for the 27th Street Corridor is in relationship to Franklin's side of 27th Street.

FAIRY TALE ENDING... Mayor Tom Taylor was defeated in his bid for a fourth term in office and Franklin tax payers in the City’s southwest quarter paid MMSD taxes without benefit ever after…

THE END?!

Also, read our April 21, 2011, EDITORAL: Is it too good to be true?

RELATED STORY

• PREVARICATED (THE FRANKLIN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL)

County Executive Chris Abele Explains Veto of Advisory Referendum

After writing EXCLUSIVE: Mayor Asks County Executive to Veto Referendum on RCI Project on Monday, October 10, 2011 we sent the following letter to County Executive Chris Abele asking him to deny Mayor Taylor’s request to veto the Milwaukee County Board’s resolution calling for a county-wide referendum vote on the RCI project.

Dear County Executive Chris Abele:

I am a twenty-year resident and home owner in the City of Franklin.  The purpose of my email is to ask you to deny the October 5, 2011 request by City of Franklin Mayor Thomas M. Taylor to veto the County Board’s September 29, 2011 action adopting a Resolution providing for an advisory referendum on the plan by MMSD to pay more than $41 million to the City of Franklin for the costs related to the construction of the Ryan Creek Interceptor project.

Mayor Taylor has claimed on several occasions and in a September 26, 2010 JSOnline story that this project will “[Open] much of the land to a building boom [and] would add more than $1.2 billion to the city's property tax base by 2025.”

I have made two open records requests to Mayor Taylor asking him for documentation proving his claims; to-date he has not been forthcoming with any such documentation.  My latest request dated October 13, 2011, to-date has gone unanswered and makes me highly suspect of the mayor’s claims, which appears to be the primary reason he and certain Franklin Alderman favor this project.

I am asking you to deny Mayor Taylor’s request for your veto and to allow the referendum go forward.

Thank you for your consideration of my request.

Sincerely,

Fred V. Keller

Here is the County Executive’s reply.

Mr. Keller:

Attached is a letter responding to the e-mail I received from you. If you have any more questions, please feel free to contact the office anytime at (414) 278-4211.

Chris Abele RCI Veto E-Mail

RELATED STORY

• Abele vetoes Ryan Creek interceptor referendum (The Business Journal)

PREVARICATED

Courtesy of Merriam Webster:

pre·var·i·cate/prɪˈverəˌkeɪt/verb

pre·var·i·cates; pre·var·i·cat·ed; pre·var·i·cat·ing

 [no obj] formal: to avoid telling the truth by not directly answering a question

▪ Government officials prevaricated about the real costs of the project.

The following email was sent by this publication to Franklin Mayor Tom Taylor on Thursday, October 13, 2011.   We also emailed a copy of this email to Franklin City Clerk, Sandi Wesolowski.

Mr. Mayor:

In light of your October 5, 2011, letter to County Executive Chris Able,  requesting he veto a Resolution providing for an advisory referendum on the plan by MMSD to pay approximately $41 million to the City of Franklin for the costs related to building the Ryan Creek Interceptor project, I want to remind you of your statements in a September 26, 2010, JSOnline story entitled "Franklin: The final frontier."

Following is an excerpt from "Franklin: The final frontier," by Don Behm:

... Development would follow the pipes, Mayor Tom Taylor said.

The city is seeking nearly $31 million in low-interest Clean Water Fund loans through the state Department of Natural Resources so that it can build a large sewer across the frontier.

Taylor wants to complete it by 2014 - several years ahead of MMSD's projected timetable of 2018-'19 - to launch what he describes as an overdue period of growth for the city's southwest quarter.

 Opening much of the land to a building boom would add more than $1.2 billion to the city's property tax base by 2025, Taylor forecast with confidence. The added businesses would take some of the local tax burden off the shoulders of homeowners, he said. ...

My question to you is; if Mr. Abele vetoes the Resolution as you've requested, how will this affect the $1.2 billion increase to the city's property tax base by 2025?

Surely the City has done its due diligence to confirm that this project will indeed truly add more than $1.2 billion to the city's property tax base by 2025.

At your earliest convenience will you please provide me with a copy of this due diligence document?

Thank you for your cooperation.

Fred V. Keller, Co-Editor & Publisher

THE FRANKLIN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL

In a follow-up phone call to the City Clerk we were told that no such due diligence document exists and therefore, by law the City cannot create such a document to fulfill our open records request; and that the mayor’s claim of a “$1.2 billion increase to the city's property tax base by 2025” was based solely on information and conclusions drawn from three documents; the Ticknor Report, the Franklin First Report and the City of Franklin’s Comprehensive Master Plan.

… Pants on fire?!

To verify the mayor's claim, we conducted a search of the City’s website for the Ticknor, and the Franklin First Reports and turned up nothing, which prompted us to send an email to Mark Luberda, City of Franklin Director of Administration on Monday, October 31, 2011, the contents of which follows:

Mark:

Are the following reports on-line on the City’s website?

1.       Ticknor Report

2.       Franklin First Report

3.       City of Franklin’s Comprehensive Master Plan

 If they are, I’m having difficulty finding them.  Will you please provide me with the links to each of these documents?

 Thank you,

 Fred Keller

Follows is Mr. Luberda’s October 31, 2011 reply:

Fred,

 I don’t believe that items #1 or #2 are on the website.  The Comprehensive Master Plan can be found by clicking on “Resources/Documents” from the main navigation bar across the top.  It then appears as an option as the fifth option down in the center column.

 Regards,

Mark Luberda

It would appear clear to any reasonable person  that Franklin tax payers have been sold a $41 million pig in a poke by the mayor and the Franklin Common Council, and by vetoing the possibility for a County referendum on this matter; Mayor Taylor and County Executive Chris Able are complicit in silencing the voice of the people on the matter.

To comment privately on this article or any other aspect of this publication CLICK HERE

SPECIAL COMMON COUNCIL MEETING TONIGHT

There will be a special meeting of the Franklin Common Council tonight at 7:00 PM in the “Inspection Conference Room" at City Hall.  Follows is the agenda.  Click the Fullscreen button below for easier reading.

SPECIAL COMMON COUNCIL MEETING 10/27/11

Abele vetoes Ryan Creek Interceptor Advisory Referendum

The Business Journal reported yesterday that Milwaukee County executive Chris Abele has vetoed a Milwaukee County Board resolution calling for an advisory referendum on a Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District plan to [re]pay the city of Franklin for costs related to building a sewer interceptor on the city’s southwest side.

The county board on Sept. 29 approved holding the referendum, which is nonbinding; Abele announced his veto on Monday. The project would extend an MMSD regional sewerage line at South 60th Street and Ryan Road to the Milwaukee County line at South 124th Street abutting Muskego in Waukesha County.

 Abele said the Ryan Creek interceptor project has the support of city officials in Franklin and Muskego as well as the MMSD, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and the Southeast Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission. He said the project will help open parts of Milwaukee County and the region to new development and expand employment and the tax base.

Earlier this month in an exclusive story, THE FRANKLIN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL questioned whether Mayor Tom Taylor was cooking a back room Deal with County Executive Chris Abele over the Franklin tax payer-funded, $41 million Ryan Creek Interceptor Project? Our story also included a six-page letter from Mayor Taylor to the county executive asking Able to veto a September 29, 2011, action by the County Board adopting a Resolution for an advisory referendum on the plan by Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) to repay approximately $41.1 million to the City of Franklin for the costs related to building the Ryan Creek Interceptor Project.

 On Monday morning, October 24, as a Franklin tax payer, I sent the following email to County Executive Abele:

Dear County Executive Chris Abel:

I am a twenty-year resident and home owner in the City of Franklin.  The purpose of my email is to ask you to deny the October 5, 2011 request by City of Franklin Mayor Thomas M. Taylor to veto the County Board’s September 29, 2011 action adopting a Resolution providing for an advisory referendum on the plan by MMSD to pay more than $41 million to the City of Franklin for the costs related to the construction of the Ryan Creek Interceptor project.

Mayor Taylor has claimed on several occasions and in a September 26, 2010, JSOnline story that this project will “[Open] much of the land to a building boom [and] would add more than $1.2 billion to the city's property tax base by 2025.”

We have made two open records requests to Mayor Taylor asking him for documentation proving his claims; to-date he has not been forthcoming with any such documentation.  My latest request dated October 13, 2011, to-date has gone unanswered and makes me highly suspect of the mayor’s claims, which appears to be the primary reason he and certain Franklin Alderman favor this project.

I am asking you to deny Mayor Taylor’s request for your veto and to allow the referendum go forward.

Thank you for your consideration of my request.

Sincerely,

Fred V. Keller

Franklin tax payers should ask themselves and the honorable Mayor Tom Taylor why he does not want the people of Franklin to vote on this $41 million sewer project, which will be funded up-front by Franklin Tax payers?

To comment privately on this article or any other aspect of this publication CLICK HERE

MMSD Public Hearing Regarding New District Boundary for the City of Franklin

The Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) has given notice that it will hold a public hearing tomorrow, Tuesday, September 27, 2001 [2011], at 10:00AM at the District’s headquarters building located at 260 W. Seebooth Street, Milwaukee.  Oddly, at this writing this notice cannot be found on The City of Franklin’s website.  We did however; find the following notices on the website’s front page (Priorities?):

• Annual Spaghetti Dinner to Benefit Charities
• Emergency Services Chili Cook-Off

While both are great events, Tuesday’s MMSD Hearing is to gather public comment on MMSD’s biennial review to consider whether and how much of the City of Franklin should be included into District’s taxing boundary on account of the Ryan Creek Interceptor. It appears that that the City of Franklin permitted MMSD to include the whole City of Franklin in its taxing boundary.  Weren’t taxpayers told repeatedly by Mayor Taylor and Alderman Taylor and other City officials that the Ryan Creek Interceptor Project wouldn’t be a tax burden on Franklin taxpayers?  This latest collusion between the City and MMSD could result in Franklin residents with their own septic systems having to pay annual taxes to MMSD for service they may not want or need.

It appears that Galileo was correct: "All truths are easy to understand once they are disdovered."

MMSD Public Hearing Notice regarding Franklin Boundaries 092711

To comment privately on this article or any other aspect of this publication CLICK HERE 

Update on Tuesday, September 27, 2011 at 10:34 AM by Basil Ryan

ERROR IN MMSD HEARING PUBLIC NOTICE DATE

THE FRANKLIN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL has contacted MMSD this morning to notify the body of an error in its posting of the aforementioned public hearing notice concerning the Ryan Creek Interceptor Project.  Here is the main text of our email:

The public hearing notice that appears on your website (Notice of Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District for public hearing regarding the district boundary for the City of Franklin) has the incorrect year listed.

It says, “... will hold a public hearing to gather public comment on the District's biennial review of its boundary on September 27, 2001.” Therefore, since THE FRANKLIN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL is bringing this error to your attention, our question is, will MMSD postpone the meeting and re-notice the meeting with the correct date?

If you are waiting for someone to file a written complaint, consider this a written complaint. THE FRANKLIN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL feels your notice is incorrect and confusing to the general public and should have the correct date. Otherwise it leads the reader to believe that you'll be discussing a topic that took place in 2001. FRANKLIN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL had numerous inquiries about the article we posted on our newspaper. We linked your public notice to our article and readers were confused about what we were trying to say and what your notice articulated. Your incorrect date has confused our readers. Please consider this objection for the reasons stated above. Please contact us if we can be of any further assistance or help.

Editors, THE FRANKLIN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL

We received the following response from MMSD this morning:

Dear Editor,

Thank you for catching that typo on our web site.

We did post a nearly full page public notice in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that correctly listed the proper hearing date and time. We do plan to hold the meeting this morning as noticed in the paper.

Bill Graffin

MMSD Public Information Manager

(414) 225-2077

City's Short-sighted thinking on Display, Again

This article is a follow-up to our August 11, 2011, editorial;  Achieving the Height of Incompetence: A not so hypothetical Case

Below are drawings of roadway cross-sections of the latest South 76^th Street reconstruction drawing (60% complete) and an older drawing (30% complete) which the latest proposed drawing replaces.

Here are some of the contentious issues related to the latest project drawing.

Below are drawings of roadway cross-sections of the latest South 76^th Street reconstruction drawing (60% complete) and an older drawing (30% complete) which the latest proposed drawing replaces.

Here are some of the contentious issues and question related to the latest project drawing.

1. How this “major roadway” in the latest drawing going to feed more than $1.2 billion in development in the southwest side of Franklin as Mayor Taylor proclaimed in JSOnline article Franklin: The final frontier created due to the controversial Ryan Creek Interceptor?
2. This roadway will be more unsafe than the previous design.  This is no longer a rural country road or subdivision street, this is going to become a major artery.
3. Next year, or soon after, the remainder if Highway 100 is going to be widened from the Root River to Hales Corners - Why doesn't this improvement extend through the intersection of 76th Street and Ryan Road?
4. For easier reading click the full screen button.

South 76th Street 30 Percent Cross-section Drawing

South 76th Street 60 Percent Cross-section Drawing

Please contact Mayor Tom Taylor or your Alderman with anyquestions you may have concerning this project.

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EDITORIAL: Achieving the Height of Incompetence: A not so hypothetical Case

Let’s say, hypothetically, you are the mayor of a city of 35,451 with pathetically little to no economic growth, a city where more businesses are leaving than setting up shop, and yet despite all of this, in the midst of a deep recession, you decide to gamble more than $31 million of taxpayer dollars for a sewer project to create a so-called “building boom” that would add an unsubstantiated $1.2 billion to the city's property tax base by 2025.  Here is how this “hypothetical case” might play-out in the newspaper.

But as mayor, you want this controversial project completed by 2014, 11-years early (coincidently, a mayoral election year).

If you were mayor of this hypothetical city wouldn’t you work closely with County and State officials to reconstruct South 76th Street to ensure a potential main artery into your “$1.2 billion” revenue project had an adequate roadway?

We will have more coverage on the hypothetical roadway issue in the days ahead.

Follows is a letter pertaining to the Ryan Creek Interceptor Project from my Alderman, Kristen Wilhelm (District 3) sent to her constituents this month, Kristen Wilhelm (District 3) sent to her constituents this month.

AUG 2011 Alderman Wilhelm Letter to constituents

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Ryan Creek Sewer Project Stinks to High Heaven

The City of Franklin: Where Honest and Transparent Government Goes to Die. What you don't know can hurt you

According to the NewBerlinNOW, it is highly likely that the New Berlin, like Muskego, is looking to take advantage of Franklin tax payers thanks in-part to Mayor Tom Taylor’s highly controversial $31 million Ryan Creek sewer(Interceptor) project. Much like Mayor Taylor’s plan, New Berlin seeks to extend a sewer so that an area with the biggest chunk of remaining farmland in eastern New Berlin could be opened up for development. The plan is expected to win Common Council (New Berlin) approval Tuesday night. The Agenda for Franklin’s Common Council Meeting, also on Tuesday, August 2, makes no mention of the actions taking place in New Berlin. Will New Berlin and Muskego reimburse Franklin for the expenses the City has incurred to-date for this project? Read more.

Some observers see New Berlin’s controversial move as “back door” preparations to buy Lake Michigan water in a few years by side-stepping the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewer District (MMSD), aided and abetted by Franklin Mayor Tom Taylor and his staunch supporters on the Franklin Common Council; Aldermen Steve Taylor, Timothy Solomon and Ken Skowronski.

Unanswered Questions

Is New Berlin, a suburb of Waukesha County planning to connect to Franklin’s Ryan Creek Interceptor with its project? Since this is technically a MMSD project, will New Berlin residents pay a portion of their property tax to MMSD, like Franklin taxpayers and other MMSD customers throughout Milwaukee County, or are taxpayers in various Milwaukee County cities footing the bill for New Berlin to receive Great Lakes water?

To voice your support or opposition to the New Berlin project or the Ryan Creek Interceptor Project, or for answers to these or any other questions related to either project, we suggest you contact Mayor Tom Taylor or your Alderman.

RELATED STORIES

• Click to read previous FRANKLIN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL stories pertaining to the Ryan Creek Sewer Project.
• Click to read previous stories pertaining to the Ryan Creek Sewer Project posted on our sister publication BATTLE JOINED.

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Milwaukee County and Franklin Lock Horns over Ryan Creek Sewer Project

In a JSOnline article published last Friday, referring to Mayor Tom Taylor’s Ryan Creek Sewer Project, Milwaukee County Board Supervisor John Weisan said “Rather than spending millions of dollars beginning in 2015 to pay for a proposed sewer serving rural southwest Franklin, the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD)  should invest the funds in flood control efforts throughout the metropolitan area...."  Coincidently flash flooding effected many parts of Milwaukee exactly one year ago to the day, last Friday (July 22).

Weishan will introduce a resolution opposing both the sewer plan and Franklin's use of eminent domain to acquire land for the sewer project from any owners unwilling to sell their property. The resolution will be discussed today at a meeting of the County Board's Intergovernmental Relations Committee.  THE FRANKLIN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL is covering today’s meeting.

Supervisor Weishan provided us with the following letter this morning.

Weishan Franklin Interceptor Letter

We also recently received the following comments from a reader.

Who should be assisting and standing up for the American taxpayers and closely analyze this project for impacts that outweigh the fictitious benefits?

Governor Walker – His promise to cut wasteful spending is missing this target. Taking people’s land by Eminent Domain for costly and un-necessary projects does not put the people and families of Wisconsin first.

Franklin Mayor Tom Taylor - This project is contrary to today’s economic situation and the spending cuts promised by our Governor (who he supported). The project works against the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s purpose and programs including The Farm Land Preservation Act, The Wisconsin Working Lands Initiative and the Food Security Act. The impact on local farmland compromises any future opportunity to support U.S. farmers by buying American, locally-grown food. By putting other lands at risk for severance and development it is also contrary to the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. As part of this project, Franklin officials have graciously agreed to include and pay for sewer lines that will extend into Muskego, serving Waukesha County.

Mayor Taylor is blatantly promoting the project as economic development. This is NOT the purpose of the Federal Clean Water Fund Loan Program, which is the source of the money requested for this project. This $40 Million of taxpayers’ money is going for unneeded infrastructure. Mayor Taylor is also working against his own community by increasing associated spending to keep the project alive for the benefit of his supporters, while spouting typical rhetoric that speculative development will ultimately lower taxes.

The Army Corp of Engineers – A project this scale ($40M) is significant and the scale too large to slide under the non-public input of the general permit process.

WI Department of Natural Resources – Same - Public Notice the permits for this project and justify its need and ranking. How does their internal documentation under NR150 support their decision on this grant?

The U.S. EPA- Federal Funds administered to the State should have an obligation to the taxpayers to cut spending by oversight of funding abuse.

Southeastern WI Regional Planning Commission – SEWRPC stands on the sidelines by virtue of ultimate population forecasts in their long-range planning document. The projected population served by this sewer is 20,000, where only 440 live today. It will take decades to reach the forecast population level.

Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District – MMSD has the responsibility to protect our drinking water by not adding additional burdens to the system, fixing current problems, and help keep sewerage tax rates under control. Promotion of speculative development is not part of the MMSD mission.

Coalition for Property Rights – The CPR monitors government abuse of Eminent Domain, working to protect the American Dream and Affordable Homeownership.

Wisconsin Historical Society – Historic properties are in the path of this 5-mile pipeline project. How will they be protected or avoided under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act- Protection of Historic Properties?

Great Lakes Protection Organizations – While water groups are being distracted on Lake Michigan water diversions and return paths through Underwood Creek, they may be missing the larger pipe being pushed right past their noses. Another aspect is the need to address water quality issues and question how increasing sewerage flows will solve these needs.

Mark

Living the economic hardship caused by unjustified government spending.

RELATED MEDIA

•  July2010 Flooding in the Milwaukee area (Multo-media photos)

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Contradictory Loan Amounts surface over Mayor's Ryan Creek Sewer Project

In a September 26, 2010, article entitled Franklin: The final frontier, Don Behm of the Journal Sentinel wrote:

…Milwaukee County's last frontier finally would be served in the next few years as part of an agreement between Franklin and the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District[MMSD]. On Monday, MMSD's commission will be asked to approve extending sewer service to the far corners of the city.

Development would follow the pipes, Mayor Tom Taylor said.

The city is seeking nearly $31 million in low-interest Clean Water Fund loans through the state Department of Natural Resources so that it can build a large sewer across the frontier...

On January 10, 2011, our sister publication, BATTLE JOINED wrote an opinion piece entitled:  Questions surround Ryan Creek Interceptor Project and in April THE FRANKLIN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL published an editorial entitled: Is it too good to be true?, which also questioned the prospect of the RCI Project.

Today we learned from City Hall sources that, yesterday, Franklin Mayor Tom Taylor received a letter of approval for not a $31 million loan for this project, but a $38 million loan from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR).

Maureen Huebeler, Financial Assistance Specialist, Environmental Loans Section confirmed the loan approval and amount to THE FRANKLIN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL in a telephone conversation this morning.

In covering the contentious skirmishes over Mayor Taylor’s blitzkrieg to ram this project through the common council and a number of government bodies including Milwaukee County—at the expense of Franklin taxpayers, we sent Mayor Taylor the following email on Friday, May 20 and to-date have received no acknowledgment of our email or answers to our questions posed in it:

Mr. Mayor:

Referring to the Ryan Creek Interceptor Project, this article on JSOnline reported in-part, the following:
 
...Franklin Mayor Tom Taylor said the sewer line would lead to property tax relief by adding homes and businesses to the tax rolls. Strict limits on property tax increases included in Gov. Scott Walker's budget proposal would allow increases based only on the value of new construction or approval by referendum. New development in Franklin would lead to more tax revenue for the county, Taylor said.
 
"You'll get 19% of every new tax dollar that's generated," he told supervisors of the county's share of the revenue that will be generated.
 
He said the sewer line would also open the county-owned property surrounding the County Correctional Facility-South to development. [County Supervisor] Weishan scoffed at that notion, because of the proximity to the lockup. But Taylor said county officials have mulled the idea of moving the correctional facility and eventually selling the land for development.
 
In fairness to you is the reporter's story of the meeting accurate and has he accurately reported your comments?
 
Thank you.

Fred V. Keller, Co-Editor & Publisher
THE FRANKLIN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL

 * * * * 

 Maureen Huebeler in the DNR Environmental Loans Section confirmed to us that the loan application she processed and approved was for $38 million and was submitted on June 1.  If truth has no agenda.  What is the mayor’s agenda when it comes to this project?

Ms. Huebeler also confirmed that the City will make a [taxpayer funded] interest only payment in March 2012 and an interest and principle payment, [also taxpayer funded], in May 2012 along with another interest only payment in May 2012.  At this time, Ms. Huebeler was unable to provide us with the amounts of these payments.

If, as reported, MMSD would begin buying the sewer from Franklin in 2015, under terms of a proposed intergovernmental cooperation agreement. The district would take ownership of the interceptor in 2031, after paying an estimated total of $41.1 million in principal and interest.  How does the new $38 million price tag affect this intergovernmental cooperation agreement?

Will $38 million in "value of new construction" allow the mayor to increase prpoerty taxes without going to a referendum?

Finally, will Franklin taxpayers ever truly know the complete, final cost of this project or its true return on investment?  I would expect our elected city officials would have all the answers to these questions.

Throughout our coverage on the mayor’s project it has become obvious to us that The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, THE FRANKLIN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL and the 35,000 residents of the City of Franklin have been mislead by from the start by Mayor Taylor and the Common Council about the cost of the Ryan creek Interceptor Project.  The mayor’s silence and refusal to respond to our questions only serves to widen the credibility gap between the mayor and the people of Franklin.

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Update on Friday, July 1, 2011 at 11:18 AM by Basil Ryan

 Today we received the following cost breakdown for the controversial $38 million Ryan Creek Sewer Project  from a City Hall source:

Loan application amount:  $38,322,000
 
Includes $250,000 for Franklin's local cost for stub sewers; $29,125,000 in
estimated construction costs, the balance is design, G&A, staff and
professionals, easements, contingency, etc.

Contact the mayor or your alderman with any questions or comments you may have on this issue.

Ryan Creek Sewer Project clogged by County Parks Commission

During a hearing this morning the Milwaukee County Parks Commission voted 4-3 to send the City of Franklin’s proposed easement request for the Ryan Creek Interceptor (RCI) Project to the Milwaukee Corporation Council to ensure that the plan submitted by Franklin officials complies with county guidelines and all applicable county legal requirements.

County Supervisor John Weishan, Jr., 16th District, spoke in strong opposition to this controversial $41 million taxpayer funded project which has met with very little support from residents and land owners in the project’s defined area and suggested that MMSD ought to revaluate its priorities in light of ongoing sewer back ups in homes  in several  suburbs throughout Milwaukee County, and flooding problems like those affecting Franklin not long ago.

A presentation by Mayor Tom Taylor and City Engineer Jack Bennett, failed to persuade a majority of commissioners to approve the City’s plan which would have put the matter before the full Milwaukee County Board for consideration.  At one point in his presentation Mayor Taylor went so far as to suggest that this project and other future office developments in this area could be enough to entice Kohl's Corp. to relocate its new headquarters in Franklin.

Former Franklin Alderman and editor and publisher of THE FRANKLIN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL, Basil Ryan, also addressed commissioners voicing his opposition to RCI and challenging the Mayor’s unsubstantiated revenue figures provided the RCI were built as proposed.  Ryan also questioned whether outdated, 12-year old reports like the Ticknor and the Franklin First had any validity in today’s decision making process especially with regard to economic development.

Supervisor Marina Dimitrijevic, 4th District made the motion to send the matter to the Corporation (Milwaukee County attourneys) Council for its legal opinion.  Supervisors Jason Haas, 14th District and  Nikiya Harris, 2nd District voted with Dimitrijevic with Chair, Gerry Broderick, 3rd District, breaking the 3-3 tie.  Supervisors Cesarz, Sanfelippo and Jursik all voted no.

RELATED STORIES

• Is it too good to be true?
• MMSD considers land purchase in Ryan Creek headwaters
• Sewer project OK'd for undeveloped area of Franklin
• Franklin: The final frontier
• Negotiations begin on sewer to city's future

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