Racine council awards community violence-prevention grants, rejects mayoral appointment change and spares a cul-de-sac from repaving

The City of Racine Common Council on May 20 approved a slate of community violence-prevention grants, rejected a charter change that would have removed the mayoral appointment requirement for the city’s purchasing agent, and agreed to remove Jonathan Drive from a planned street assessment after last-minute resident petitioning.

The council awarded grants from the city’s community violence prevention funding process to local nonprofits and providers. Safe Haven of Racine and Focus on Community were among the organizations approved; amounts listed in the council record include $43,269 for Safe Haven and $50,000 for Focus on Community. The council also approved funding for Fight to End Exploitation ($45,200), Racine Vocational Ministries ($44,605), the Women’s Resource Center ($41,403.50), 1000 Generations/ Safe Families for Children–Wisconsin ($30,000) and Awesome Young Authors ($30,000). For a small number of awards the meeting record did not list an amount and those are reported as not specified in the minutes.

The funding decisions followed public comment from agency leaders and community partners who urged the council to approve the recommended slate. Jason Meekman, executive director of Focus on Community, described the program his organization proposed as “a strategic evidence based intervention” linked to Racine Unified School District needs, and said the timing aligned with the intent of the Wisconsin Community Safety Fund to intervene during summer months when risk is highest.

Why it matters: the grants fund summer and early-intervention programming that city and nonprofit leaders told the council is designed to reach youth at high risk of violence and to provide alternatives to exclusion from school.

How the votes fell and what the council decided

- Violence-prevention awards: The council approved the finance committee’s recommendation to award RFP 62025 to multiple providers. The record shows separate votes for some awards to allow aldermen to abstain when they had potential conflicts. Safe Haven of Racine was approved 13–0 with 1 abstention on that item; Awesome Young Authors was approved 10–4 on its separate vote; a block vote on the other listed providers was recorded 13–1 in favor. (Individual roll-call lines appear in the official council minutes.)

- Purchasing function charter change: The council considered item 0343, a package that would (1) remove the purchasing agent as a mayoral appointment in the city charter and (2) consolidate or update related city code sections to reflect current practice of housing purchasing functions in the finance department. The first part required a two-thirds vote and failed, 6–8, so the charter appointment language remained unchanged. The council then voted on the remaining code changes (non‑charter ordinance sections) that update how purchasing duties are described; that portion passed 10–4.

During debate Ald. Alida Weidner argued the purchasing-agent appointment should remain autonomous from political influence, saying in committee remarks that “they cannot be influenced as I have seen happened.” The City Attorney summarized the proposal’s background, saying the purchasing office “appears to be a vestige of a time gone by” and that changes would largely reflect how purchasing has functioned for the past two decades. Finance Director Fisher and other members noted the consolidation had been implemented previously for budgetary reasons and warned that re‑establishing a standalone department likely would carry staffing and budget costs.

- Jonathan Drive assessment: The council amended a Public Works recommendation to remove Jonathan Drive (from the cul‑de‑sac to North Main Street) from a proposed paving and assessment list after a petition from residents. Deputy Commissioner of Public Works Ron explained the street’s pavement-condition index is low (“Jonathan Drive … is a PCI rating of 16”), meaning a full reconstruction will be required within a few years and delaying work will likely increase future costs. Ald. Aldo Perez, who presented the petition, and other aldermen debated the timing and fairness to the six affected households before the council approved the amendment; the final roll call on the list as amended was recorded 14–0 in favor to adopt the committee recommendation with Jonathan Drive removed.

Context and next steps

Grantees will receive funding per the amounts approved by the council; several aldermen asked that votes be taken separately on items where they anticipated abstentions or potential conflicts of interest so the record would be clear. The purchasing-agent charter question will return to the code as it stands; the failed two-thirds vote kept the mayoral appointment in the charter. Public Works staff will continue the assessment and public-notification process for the remaining streets on the paving list.

The council’s official minutes and departmental files contain full roll-call votes and the finance committee’s recommendation documents for RFP 62025. The city clerk’s office will publish final appointment and award paperwork following administrative processing.