The Milwaukee Post

By DAVE FIDLIN Special to the Post MILWAUKEE — A resolution asking state officials to change a 132-year-old poli- cy of who can hire and fire public safety chiefs in the City of Milwaukee is moving forward. The Common Council last month adopt- ed the resolution, and Mayor Tom Barrett subsequently vetoed it. When aldermen met again Tuesday, the elected body, on a 10-5 vote, overrode Barrett's veto. At its core, the resolution asks the state Department of Administration's Intergovernmental Relations Division to give aldermen more oversight in who sits in the top-level public safety positions. If the state DOA approves the resolution as drafted, a police or fire chief could be removed from his or her position if a two- thirds vote in support of the measure is tal- lied among the council. In a letter to the council, written Oct. 18 — the day after the initial vote was taken — Barrett laid out the reasons he was vetoing the proposal. The changes, he said, would unwind the duties of the city's citizen-led Fire and Police Commission. "The membership of the (FPC) is com- prised of City of Milwaukee residents from different parts of the city and from diverse backgrounds," Barrett wrote in the letter. "It is a system that has worked, has trans- parency and accountability." A majority of the council, however, maintained a different perspective. Supporters of the resolution within the council have stated frustration over not having more say in operations within the departments. Barrett in his letter further stated he was vetoing the resolution because he said he believed supporters of it were politiciz- ing the issue. "The fire and police chiefs are independ- ent and nonpartisan appointees," Barrett wrote in his letter. "We must continue to allow the citizen-member Fire and Police Commission to make non-political deci- sions — decisions that impact our current and future fire and police chiefs and the operations of their respective depart- ments." Alderman Bob Donovan, who was not at the council's Oct. 17 meeting to vote on the initial resolution, had pointed comments Tuesday on Barrett's letter. "The real question ... is whether the state Legislature will even take this up," Donovan said. "I don't have an answer to that. What I do know is this: We've got sig- nificant problems in the City of Milwaukee. This status quo is tainting this community." Donovan, who ran unsuccessfully against Barrett for the mayoral post a year- and a half ago, also took aim at Barrett's assertion council oversight on hiring and firing public safety chiefs would politicize the positions. "This is the same guy who has been play- ing politics with the Police Department since the day he took office," Donovan said. Although he did not speak to this issue at Tuesday's meeting, Alderman Tony Zielinski last week issued a statement, crit- icizing Barrett's veto. "The mayor had (Police) Chief (Ed) Flynn deliver a speech on 'Reducing Crime, Reducing Poverty' for his political fundrais- er, charging hundreds of dollars a head," Zielinski said in the statement. "Yet, he tells the council it is politicizing the position. Time to look in the mirror, mayor." The city's ordinances required a super- majority 10 votes to override Barrett's veto. The minimum 10 votes Tuesday gave the resolution the heft it needed to go to Madison for consideration. The five alderman voting against over- riding Barrett's veto on Tuesday were Jim Bohl, Milele Coggs, Cavalier Johnson, Michael Murphy and Terry Witkowski. Witkowski in October said he was against the resolution in its current form. "It's pretty tough to have 15 bosses," Witkowski said at the Oct. 17 meeting. "It's easy to complain that there's a problem. But it's another thing to do something about it. I have never felt, that as an alderman, I should have control over any one particular department." In other business Tuesday, the council: ■ Approved an intergovernmental agree- ment between the city and Milwaukee Public Schools. The agreement, reflecting the city's 2018 operating budget, calls for the continuation of officers patrolling schools across the district the next calendar year. As part of the agreement, MPS will reim- burse the city for any overtime officers accrue by providing patrolling services to the district. The reimbursement amount is capped at $60,000. ■ Approved an amended agreement between the city's Redevelopment Authority and Bon-Ton, the retailer operat- ing department store chains under a num- ber of nameplates, including Boston Store. The amendment is in relation to an agreement, inked early this year, which included a $1.9 million forgivable loan with the caveat Bon-Ton maintain its corporate offices downtown and operate Boston Store at the Shops of Grand Avenue mall for the next decade. Bon-Ton will continue to operate both entities, as part of the amendment, though the company is shrinking the footprint of its downtown Boston Store location in half. Barrett vetoed resolution last month; council barely overrode it this week November 10, 2017 • Milwaukee County Post • 5 Milwaukee aldermen asking state officials for ability to hire, fire public safety chiefs Barrett Donovan Holiday Shopping and Events Guide 258047023

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