The County Board unanimously passed a resolution calling on the State Department of Transportation (DOT) to get real numbers for the repair and re-decking of the Hoan Bridge and to discontinue planning for alternatives.
I am pleased that all 19 Supervisors joined together from every corner of Milwaukee County to support the Hoan Bridge.
Having attended all town hall meetings to date, heard hundreds of speakers on the issue, and received well over 5,000 signatures, it is an understatement to say that there is overwhelming support for this bridge.
As the elected official most identified with this issue, I have received hundreds of calls in support of the Hoan. These contacts stretch from as far away as Madison and Chicago, but no one calls to rally for removal of this bridge. The calls for retention of the bridge seem universal.
Elected officials continue to join the Coalition to Save the Hoan. Even Mayor Tom Barrett’s official website touts the Port: "By offering pipelines, barges, lake ships, ocean ships, two main railroads and immediate freeway access, the commercial port of Milwaukee contains more forms of transportation than any other port in the Midwest."
Given all of this support, it is fair to ask where the call for alternatives to the Hoan originated. The logical answer is the DOT (Wisconsin Department of Transportation). But even DOT Secretary Frank Busalacchi, in a recent meeting with MMAC (Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce), stated that he has not taken any position for removal of the Hoan and even promised to begin engineering work to re-deck the bridge. This leaves Alderman Robert Bauman and a few development proponents in the Historic Third Ward.
Now the new question becomes, who gave these developers carte blanche to dictate such a major policy decision?"
Milwaukee County Supervisor Patricia Jursik represents the county’s Eighth District.
