Paul Soglin: Waxing America

Madison Then and Now: 1960's and the Walker Protests

No, I never saw in the 1960's what is occuring today in this effort to stop Governor Walker's union busting.

From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:   

Soglin: "I've never seen anything like this"

Soglin said he has participated in the protests against Walker’s budget repair bill for a week, starting with a march Saturday from Memorial Union on the UW-Madison campus. The crowds have built every day, and on Thursday and Friday exceeded 20,000, he estimated.

He compared the mood of the crowds to those he saw during the civil rights movement in the 1960s. There’s anger, he said, but there was also “elements of joy and enthusiasm, and that’s what’s going on here as well.”

The anti-war movement, he said, was “all energized and angry - because it was focused on stopping a war. It could not have the almost spiritual nature of what’s going on in Madison today.”

Spiritual? Joy? Soglin said the teachers and other public employees from across the state are finding a bond with each other.

“There are a lot of people who are scared about the economic consequences of what’s going to happen” with Walker’s bill, he said. “But they’re also getting strength from all of the people they are meeting.”

Governor Walker: There Are Better Options for Wisconsin

It is the ultimate false choice: Governor Walker is suggesting that we must choose between unionized workers and streamlined government.

The fact is we can, and must, have both. One critical responsibility of elected leaders is to provide the highest quality public services as efficiently as possible. This requires skilled employees, a reliable structure, and a workplace culture designed to encourage trust and productivity.

The rights of Wisconsin workers to organize and bargain collectively has been around for 50 years. Public employees are your neighbors; they are librarians, bus drivers, nurses, teachers. Their unions came to the bargaining table in recent years, willing to help share the burden and spread the pain to help make city, state and county budgets work in tough economic times.

The way to improve public services and reduce costs is to trust public employees and give them the opportunity to do quality work.

There are a couple of things we need to do to stop Governor Walker’s proposal. First, we must get out the facts about wages and benefits for Wisconsin public employees.  For example, over the years, Wisconsin public employees  chose to take the funds available for increased compensation as retirement benefits and payment for health care.  That is one reason the pay scale for most Wisconsin public employees is far below the national average.

Second, we need to examine Walker’s proposal where it may run afoul of federal law. Madison bus drivers are covered by a federal 13(C) Agreement. This is a requirement that applies to transit systems that receive federal aid.  13(C) “requires the continuation of collective bargaining rights, and protection of transit employees' wages, working conditions, pension benefits, seniority, vacation, sick and personal leave, travel passes, and other conditions of employment.” In other words it is likely that no matter what the legislature does in adopting Walker’s proposals, it will not apply to the Madison bus drivers or the drivers of any union-organized transit system in Wisconsin that receives federal funds.

We should be looking closely at all of the federal funding and regulatory requirements that may apply to the union employees in our cities, counties, and school districts.

Finally, total quality improvement must be adopted. In the city of Madison and in state government, this systems-approach to managing that focuses on the employees, not top down managers, has saved millions of dollars by creating more effective means of delivering public services. As I said in my public statement when Governor Walker’s proposal first came out, we will not, cannot and ought not fix our economic problems by demonizing working people or destroying their rights. Rather, we must continue to find ways to work together because that is the only way to meet the challenges we face.

 

Illinois Tax Hike: Will Walker's Wisconsin Plan Work or Will the Simpsons Win?

The ink is barely dry on the Illinois tax hikes and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker is ready to raid the Prairie State:

Governor plans business border war with Illinois

Gov. Scott Walker is planning an all-out border war with Illinois, hoping his promise of a better economic climate will lure businesses away from a state considering a historic tax hike. 

The Illinois House early Wednesday approved a 67 percent increase in that state's personal income tax rate, and a 46 percent increase in its corporate tax rate.

Obviously Walker's strategy is not limited to America's Dairyland. From Associated Press:

Neighboring states gleeful over Illinois tax increase

Neighboring states gleefully plotted Wednesday to take advantage of what they consider a major economic blunder and lure businesses away from Illinois.

"It's like living next door to the 'Simpsons' -- you know, he dysfunctional family down the block,Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels said in an interview...

Everything I learned about building a strong economy is that taxes are just one of many facets that enter into the decision by corporate executives to locate or relocate a company. As I noted in a post three years ago,

The Role of Taxes:

Then, there is the more subtle point that study after study demonstrates that lower taxes are not a critical element in determining business development decisions. There are so many sources that prove that point:

• So, are taxes the most important site selection factor for companies when choosing a future facility location? Of course not. In fact, in the overall scheme of things, taxes probably rank somewhere between No. 3 and 10, depending upon whom you ask.

• Critics of the tax incentives, however, say that local governments are competing in an unnecessary race to the bottom by offering increasingly deep local tax cuts. They contend that tax breaks are far from the most important factor when companies choose where to locate their facilities.

This point was not lost in the AP article:

But economic experts scoffed at images of highways packed with moving vans as businesses leave Illinois. Income taxes are just one piece of the puzzle when businesses decide where to locate or expand, they said, and states should be cooperating instead trying to poach jobs from one another.

"The idea of competing on state tax rates is . . . hopelessly out of date," said Ed Morrison, economic policy advisor at the Purdue Center for Regional Development. "It demonstrates that political leadership is really out of step with what the global competitive realities are."

By going where no other state dares to tread, Illinois could prove itself to be a policy pacesetter or the opposite — a place so dysfunctional that officials created a jaw-dropping budget crisis and then tried to fix it by knee-capping the economy.

Like the Simpsons, Illinois may have the last laugh.

All of this is not to say that taxes, particulalry the more regressive taxes cannot be burdensome to middle and low income families and the elderly. 

Madison's Arteries Need An Asprin, Not Surgery

There is clutter and trash masquerading as signage in Madison. You see it on Odana Road and East Washington, Park Street and Sherman Avenue.

The Wisconsin State Journal to informs us that City's arteries need surgery, leaders say.

The thrust of the story is that we must spend millions of public dollars to improve the main entrance ways to Madison:

Public expenditures and plans for new development are in the works to put the areas in a good position to prosper when the current recession lifts, said Mayor Dave Cieslewicz.

For now though, despite some improvements, hundreds of thousands of motorists coming into Madison each day see patchworks of shabby older buildings and typical highway fare — fast-food stores, billboards and auto service stations.

The article focuses on the need for millions of dollars of public investment in the main corridor entrances to Madison, South Park Street, University Avenue, and East Washington.

Lauded as the finest entrance way to Madison is John Nolen Drive.  The John Nolen Drive entranceway was mostly the work of one city employee, planner John Urich. Urich worked tirelessly on the design and the ordinances to protect this spectacular approach to our city.

John's legacy is broad and deep.

Another significant contribution of Mr. Urich was the Madison sign ordinance. John is rolling over in his grave.

This city is a disgrace. The violations are overwhelming in volume and substance. It is debatable as to which venue, starting with State Street is the most offensive. The callous signage is on both public and private property. The situation, of course, was made worse, when the city allowed these portable advertisements on the sidewalks and terraces in an effort to offend pedestrians, those confined to wheel chairs, and anyone who would not like the community to look like a honkytonk.

Ironically, the strongest statement in the Wisconsin State Journal article on the issue is the caption below this photograph that reads, in part, "Billboards, fast food, gas stations and car part stores all part of the visual clutter of South Park Street."

Sorry, State Journal, and city officials.  Billboards, fast food, gas stations, and car part stores are all a very small part of the visual clutter. As I said, just go see the segments of Odana Road where there are offices and retailers who are not fast food or car parts stores, and you will see the real visual clutter.

The problem with visual clutter is that it also has economic consequences. Occupants of offices and retailers who do not want to be part of the clownish atmosphere, abandon such areas.Then rents and property values decline, and they are subsequently replaces with more garish uses.

Funny thing is there is a solution to this which does not cost millions of dollars. In fact it would cost less than one half of a full time salary.

Enforce the sign ordinance.

I am not saying that capital improvements are not needed in some areas. But I would not spend a penny on any capital improvements or even conduct a study of "recommended new features" until I knew what these areas looked like with enforcement of the sign ordinance.

Put it another way: How could you justify spending millions of public money or expect the private sector to spend tens of millions of their dollars if the street or avenue was to be plastered with illegal signs?

For those who want to know, we already have the well documented answer as to the reason the sign ordinance is not enforced:  "There is not enough money."

Highland Park High School - Not Quite as Rich, White, and now Fighting for Justice.

I was raised in Hyde Park and the summer of my fifteenth year we moved to Highland Park, Illinois. How we ended up there was most curious.

I loved Hyde Park. We moved to the Woodlawn-Hyde Park neighborhoods when I was four in 1949. We had everything a kid could want. Parks to play baseball and tennis. The Museum of Science of Industry and the awesome University of Chicago (UC). The hotels that housed the White Sox and the visiting American League teams. My friends and I went to the beaches in the summer, hung out at The Point, and peered into the coffee houses on 57th Street looking at real beatniks.

At Hyde Park High School about 85% of my classmates were black.

In 1960 my mother was pregnant and it was time to buy a house. My parents decided on Evanston. It was on Lake Michigan, and while Northwestern University was not the UC, it did provide an intellectual atmosphere and it was the most integrated of the suburbs.  

In June an offer was accepted on a small house three or four blocks from Lake Michigan. Two weeks later the sellers found a reason not to sell to us, though the realtor explained that it was because we were Jewish.

My parents were desperate. Debbie and I had to be in a school, the baby (Ari) was due in less than three months.

On the Fourth of July Dad opened up the paper and found a listing in Highland Park two blocks from the beach and three blocks from the downtown. That was important since my mother did not drive.

He and I hopped into the car, made the 25 mile trip, inspected the house, returned to Hyde Park to pick up my mother and Debbie, toured the house again and had an accepted offer in a matter of days.

I knew a little about Highland Park and what differentiated it from the other North Shore suburbs. In terms of religion, it was more diverse than the others. (In celebration of the 1960 Olympics we had our own Jewish-Italian Olympics - golf, swimming, poker, and bowling,) It was more liberal, though you could not tell from the faces of my high school classmates - there was one black student in Highland Park High School (HPHS).

Our companion suburb, Deerfield was somewhat notorious for halting a subdivision where the developer intended to sell to both blacks and whites. But Not Next Door

In 1965 the North Shore changed forever. From Rich Samuels, who produced  Civil Rights on the Northshore: Bringing the Movement Home:

Along the way, North Shore residents answered Dr. King's call, demonstrating and volunteering in the South and then bringing the struggle to their own neighborhoods where they sought open housing in previously all-white communities.

What motivated residents of one of the nation's most affluent communities to reach out to the disadvantaged? Why, after roughly four decades, has their drive for racial diversity on the North Shore achieved such limited results?

Those are the questions I raise in the documentary. But I don't answer them -- because I want to renew the debate sparked years ago by the North Shore activists.

A lot has changed over the years. While still not reflective of the demographics of this nation, these suburbs are more  economically, racially and culturally integrated.

Now Highland Park High School decided that its outstanding girls basketball team should not travel to Arizona. The point being, that it would not be responsible to take these teenagers to a state where some could be detained and unable to return home.

Go Giants.

 

Bud Jordahl, Wisconsin Conservation Pioneer

Another blow for the Wisconsin environment: Harold "Bud" Jordahl, a longtime UW-Madison colleague in the Dept. of Urban and Regional Planning, and a pioneer of the use of planning for environmental preservation, passed away yesterday. Bud was a giant in terms of his impact on the conservation of our natural resources. Here is a short tribute written by his longtime colleague, fishing and poker buddy Steve Born.

May his memory be a blessing for his family and his many friends.

- Barry Orton

DOT Verona Road Meeting Fish Fried at Allied Drive

I was curious about the Wisconsin Department of Transportation plans for a free fish fry in the Allied drive neighborhood where they planned to roll out some plans about the Verona/Beltline interchange. DOT: Free Meal At Public Meeting A Mistake

In an effort to boost participation, the DOT offered a free fish fry and child care to residents using taxpayer money that comes from the gas tax.

The DOT said Thursday that partly because of a WISC-TV report on the free meal and negative feedback, taxpayers will not foot the bill for the free food. The DOT said an anonymous donor will pay for it instead.

All of this brought to mind comments I heard at a neighborhood meeting I attended at Allied  Drive around 2004. I was surprised when some neighborhood residents expressed support for the massive rebuild of the interchange which would significantly impact their area, and not all positively.

When I asked why they expressed support for the project, the responses was unanimous. "The DOT is the only government agency that came in here and asked us what we wanted before they began making plans for our neighborhood."

A lot has happened in Allied Drive since 2004. That statement may be dated. After all,  other government agencies and non-profits were part of some significant changes in the area and did some listening themselves.

Without passing judgment on the changes at Allied drive or the propriety of the DOT paying for a fish fry and babysitting, which is a critical need to get parental participation in an area with lots of small kids, there is a lesson here.

It is good to listen.

Madison High Speed Rail Station - Airport, East Wash or downtown-UW campus?

With all of the discussion about high speed rail between Madison and Milwaukee, I missed the report which identified the best place to locate the local station.

I know there is lot of discussion about the Dane County Regional Airport. I also caught the suggestion that there be an alternative or additional stop at the tracks across East Washington and First Street.

I assume that airport station has three advantages:

1. It facilitates the train moving on to the Twin Cities by not diverting it downtown.
2. It gets the rail passengers to their connecting flights out of Madison.
3. The high speed rail passengers can then shift to a local rail system which is already moving passengers from downtown Madison/UW campus to the airport.

That is good if that is the best scenario given the needs of the high speed rail passengers.

I curious as to what the passengers want. Can someone direct me the study which shows the destination for the majority of passengers and surveys of the needs of potential passengers?

How realistic is it that the train will proceed to the Twin Cities in the decade after the Madison-Milwaukee route is completed?

Are the high speed rail passengers going to use the airport?

How realistic is the local rail system to downtown Madison for the airport?

MIlwaukee - Madison Rail: An Ecumenical View

On Friday last, Rail as Religion, Rick Esenberg took issue with the statements of Rick Harnish, executive director of the Midwest High Speed Rail Association who said, "Currently, people are forced to drive, and that's the most expensive and least productive way to travel..."

Esenberg's point being that interurban travel between downtown Milwaukee and the Dane County Regional Airport made no sense since most passengers are interested in downtown Madison and the University of Wisconsin campus as a point of arrival and departure.

Esenberg, famously known for purchasing the Wisconsin Supreme Court, has a valid point.

The efficiency of the system is compromised when passengers need to inefficiently transfer to a taxi or city bus to reach their final destination.

That is why there is an effort to locate a second Madison station closer to downtown and the isthmus, a detail overlooked by Esenberg.

When we look at successful interurban rail systems throughout the world, they have two things in common. First, they move people quickly, efficiently, and reliably between two distant points. Secondly, since most passengers do not have an arrival or departure point within a short distance of the terminal, the rail systems are complemented with an efficient local transit system, intra urban, designed to disperse passengers throughout the urban area.

Since Rick is such a fan of rail, "I have to confess that I kind of like trains..." I welcome him to the constructive dialog as to how we can make this system work in Milwaukee and Madison.

The State of the State of Wisconsin and the United States

The right-wing chatter boxes continue to provide flawed analysis about the national and Wisconsin economy.

They ignore the fact that the U.S. economy was permanently and critically altered by NAFTA and other trade agreements that allowed $2.00 a day workers to replace American workers. They miss the point that a nation cannot engage in two wars at a cost of billions of dollars a week which do little to contribute to the productivity of the country.

When we look at the depth and breath of this depression, the worst economic crisis facing the nation since the 1930's, it is beyond fascination to see these extremists demanding the economy they destroyed be repaired in a year.

It took five years to come out of the Great Depression. That depression saw an expansion of jobs as the advent of World War II and American industrial might combined to right the greatest economy in the world.

The Republican banking crisis, the trade agreements pushed by the right and accepted by some Democrats, will take more than 12 or 18 months to fix.

It is time we come to recognize that 20% unemployment was avoided, that the majority of troubled financial institutions are now above water, and that depression did not cut deeper.