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Community and Economic Development committee confirms multiple appointments, accepts grants and hears annual reports
Summary
The Community and Economic Development Committee of the Milwaukee Common Council on April 14 confirmed a series of mayoral and council appointments, approved contract authority for Community Development Grants Administration and accepted funding and reports for several city programs.
The Community and Economic Development Committee of the Milwaukee Common Council on April 14 confirmed a series of mayoral and council appointments, approved a contract authorization for the Community Development Grants Administration and accepted funding and reports for several city programs.
The committee, chaired by Alderman Russell Stanford II, moved through multiple confirmations for advisory boards and business improvement districts and heard presentations on neighborhood marketing, a Financial Empowerment Center legacy-planning grant and the summer youth internship program before adjourning.
The confirmed appointees include reappointments and new members to the Milwaukee Arts Board, the Business Improvement Districts (BID) programs, the Veil Phillips Trailblazer Award selection committee, the Milwaukee Youth Council and the Emerging Youth Achievement Advisory Council. The committee also adopted a substitute resolution authorizing Community Development Grants Administration to execute 2025 contracts and accepted a $50,000 legacy-planning implementation grant for the Financial Empowerment Center from Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund, Inc., pending formal paperwork.
During the meeting Mario Higgins, representing the Community Development Grants Administration, told the committee that the department expects to receive federal award documents from HUD around May 15 and asked for authority to proceed with executing 2025 contracts so partner organizations can begin work. Higgins told the committee the contract authorization covers up to $15,000,000 in community development activity contracts and said the department has been working with the city attorney’s office on reviews and is confident funds will be available.
Daryl Johnson of Riverworks Development Corporation and representatives from the Financial Empowerment Center described a Legacy Planning implementation grant that would supplement prior funding the center received. Patricia Aristontuin, the program’s government manager, said the legacy planning work will include free wills, trusts and end-of-life planning services for residents who already own homes and cannot otherwise afford legal help.
Historic Milwaukee Inc. executive director Stacy Swadish presented the nonprofit’s annual report on the City of Neighborhoods poster program and previewed the organization’s Doors Open event and related merchandising. Swadish said poster sales are a small portion of revenue but help fund educational programs and outreach.
Committee members also heard from Human Resources staff about the city’s summer youth internship program; Vanessa Armstrong said the program places 16-to-19‑year‑olds in city departments for eight-week, 20‑hour workweeks paid at $15 an hour and that this year’s funding will support 50 interns from the city allocation received through Employ Milwaukee.
The meeting closed with an order to place the items on file or adopt them, with no recorded roll-call opposition during the committee session.
