The Milwaukee Post

September 13, 2013 • Milwaukee Post • 9 OPINION No blue ribbon for Pabst Farms plans Governor Walker's focus on casino debate should be jobs the Town of Brookfield is moving forward. The Corners is likely to happen and it is likely to be beautiful. No one has ever accused me of being a cheerleader for the Marcus family I've crit. icized them for their roles in obstructing several Milwaukee projects and for excessively throwing their weight around. But Steve Marcus and sons Greg and David deeply love their southeastern Wisconsin home. It's hard to imagine them ever trying to bully through some 10-cent development the community didn't want. The Marcus Corporation is showing patience as it puts together something that will be a jewel. Pabst Farms, on the other hand, is being run by an outsider looking to get a return for his buck any way he can. Oconomowoc is doing the right thing in trying to stop this pillaging of pristine land. It deserves better treatment. It deserves The Corners. Two high-profile developments that have the potential to permanently alter Waukesha County are moving forward. They couldn't be more different. One is being planned by a locally based developer that is working with the community to produce something beautiful. The other is being put together by an out-of-state operator who is bent on putting up anything to make a fast buck and has so little regard for the community that he is planning to sue the city that won't let him produce another BigBoxville. The Pabst Farms story is a brazen case of bait and switch. Located on pristine property in western Waukesha County the orig, inal plans were to create the most high-end retail and multi-use development in Wisconsin. Expensive homes and nice office complexes were to stand alongside upscale retail stores in a project that was to be a regional draw. This is what Oconomowoc and the nearby communities bought into. What they are being given now is the same freeway interchange that exists all over southeast Wisconsin. The original project fell apart when the credit markets melted down six years ago. Two developers have come and gone. They guy in charge now is Illinois developer Peter Bell. He's already leased space for a Walmart and Sam's Club. Now he wants to let a Kwik Trip in. Pabst Farms has gone from Rodeo Drive to Layton Avenue. It is impossible to see the difference between what Bell wants for Pabst Farms and what exists only a few miles east at Highway 83 near Delafield. Oconomowoc leaders understand the original plans aren't going to happen and were probably a pipe dream. But they rightly are trying to protect this great piece of land from being permanently reshaped into one more cookie-cutter development of big boxes, gas stations and fast-food restaurants. They're opposing the Kwik Trip. Bell is threatening to sue for $20 million. So much for working with your neighbors. If Bell lived here, he might not be so willing to rape this wonderful land. In direct contrast is a project called The Corners, planned for a Bluemound Road location between Waukesha and Brookfield. It too has been stalled but only because its developer, Milwaukee-based Marcus Corporation, refuses to compromise on its plans to build something very special. The upscale Von Maur department store is lined up and the project is slowly coming together. There are indications Marcus may be willing to sell a huge equity stake to a partner and the TIF district from Readers Forum force the other casinos to spend more to lure the public to them. Let's get some more people employed, and finally utilize that track." – Noah Borkenhagen Franklin "Yes. I always thought competition was a good thing. Besides, ultimately, it will be the people or the customers who will decide if it succeeds or not. Let them give it a try." – Ellie Guerrero Milwaukee "Yes,Walker should approve the Menominee casino. He's been talking about job increases and this is a perfect opportunity construction-wise and worker-wise, and also give Potawatomi a little competition." – Clement Koronka Milwaukee "Since casinos are run by tribal nations, it seems more appropriate to let those nations decide collectively whether the market can sustain another casino in southeastern Wisconsin.The governor could endorse their decision." – Sandy Sue Szanderek Milwaukee "Governor Walker should allow the casino to go in." – Pamela Deveau Milwaukee "Governor Walker should let the Menominee build their casino.The Potawatomi is not going broke, as they claim. Let other poorer tribes share the wealth." –Mike Walter Milwaukee Previously we asked: , Should Governor Walker approve the Menominee casino in Kenosha? You answered: "Gov.Walker should definitely approve the Kenosha casino. This has been going on for far too long. The Potawatomi tribe doesn't have the right to dictate who can and cannot open a casino. A bakery can open next to another bakery; the same goes for a flower shop. So the Potawatomi are afraid of losing business. That should give them an incentive to improve their offering. Kenosha deserves the right to have a casino." – Joan Rack Milwaukee "Yes, more jobs, more competition to the existing casinos. Increased completion may just loosen up those other machines, and "I would like to have the governor back the casino.We need that casino bad. I backed Walker before but if we don't get the casino, I'll never back him again." – Robert Rinderle Milwaukee *** A report in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel indicates the Potawatomi tribe has given a fortune to the Republican Governors Association. This is the apparent explanation for Governor Walker's doing the tribe's bidding in turning his back on the rival Menominee tribe's plans for a competing casino in Kenosha. I've argued Walker has been cozying up to the Potawatomi in an attempt to stop them from bankrolling Democrats in the 2014 "Absolutely, for these reasons: 1.The Menominee tribe is in a poverty level situation. 2.The Kenosha area definitely can benefit from gaining up to 3,000 new jobs, not STANDING UP for MILWAUKEE MARK BELLING elections. It appears he's already done that. The tribe appears to be ready to back Walker and the GOP . So, it might seem like smart politics to keep happy the rich tribe that already has a money-spewing casino. But it isn't. Walker is sailing to re-election next year with only one obstacle. He's very vulnerable on the job creation issue. Opposing the Menominee casino in Kenosha puts Walker in opposition to the creation of thousands of jobs. This is political poison. It could cause him to lose next year. Goodbye, presidential campaign. The governor isn't going to make his promise to create 250,000 jobs in his first term. The miserable Obama economy is seeing to that. But by opposing the Kenosha casino, Walker runs the risk of appearing anti-jobs. A TV campaign being run right now by the Menominee tribe is begging the governor to support the jobs. Walker needs to forsake the Potawatomi donations and do what is right. The smart governmental move here is the smart political move. Take the jobs. (Mark Belling is the host of a daily WISN radio talk show. His column appears weekly in the Milwaukee Post. to mention the construction jobs that would also be created. 3.The Potawatomi casino has a monopoly in all of southeastern Wisconsin. – Dale Wagner Greendale Question of the week Should the U.S. move forward with a diplomacy plan or military intervention in Syria? Call 744-6370, Ext. 15 and leave a brief answer to the Question of the Week along with your full name with spelling, phone number and city. No address is required. Readers may also send an email with a brief answer to: dbutler@conleynet.com.

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