The petition drive to stop the proposed downtown Milwaukee streetcar might not be able to stop the controversial $124 million project, according to an opinion issued this week by City Attorney Grant Langley.
The petition drive, organized by CRG Network for a group of streetcar opponents led by Ald. Robert Donovan and Ald. Joe Davis Sr., seeks to pass direct legislation that would require voter approval of any rail project in Milwaukee that costs $20 million or more in city funds. The opponents of the project need to gather 31,000 signatures to force the Common Council to either pass the direct legislation or ask voters to consider it in a referendum.
However, direct legislation cannot overturn an existing ordinance or resolution. The Common Council originally approved the streetcar project in 2011. The proposal that is currently being reviewed by the council could be considered an amendment to the 2011 streetcar approval, Langley’s opinion states.
“There is a valid legal argument that the proposed ordinance constitutes a substantial amendment of Common Council resolutions…previously adopted by the Common Council in 2011, and therefore may not be proper subject of direct legislation,” Langley’s opinion states.
City Clerk James Owczarski sought a legal opinion asking Langley if the Common Council could approve the streetcar plan if petitions opposing it had been submitted and certified.
In that case, Langley’s opinion says the council could still approve the streetcar plans, but they could be overturned later if the direct legislation was approved by voters.
However, time is running out for streetcar opponents to submit petitions and have them be certified before the Common Council takes final action on the streetcar plans. The council is scheduled to vote on the streetcar proposal at its Feb. 10 meeting. Streetcar opponents hoped to submit the petitions before that meeting. But the city clerk and the city’s election commission need time to review and certify the signatures on the petitions. By law the city clerk is given 15 days to complete that process. By the time that process is completed the Common Council could have adopted the streetcar plans.
Langley was not asked if the council could approve the streetcar plans if the petitions are submitted but not certified.
He was also not asked about the 2011 Common Council vote on the streetcar, but voluntarily stated that it might make the petition drive moot.
It is possible the direct legislation could be approved after the council approves the streetcar project and that voter approval would be required for future expansions of the streetcar system, as long as they cost $20 million or more in city funds.
