Author: Correspondent

Governor Tony Evers, together with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR), announced a new $10 million grant program on August 17 to support the replacement, reconstruction, treatment, or abandonment of contaminated private wells. The program, based on the state’s Well Compensation Grant Program, will expand eligibility beyond the current Well Compensation Program to support more private well owners and increase access to clean drinking water. With this $10 million investment and expanded eligibility criteria, it is estimated the program could help well owners address contamination in approximately 1,036 additional wells. “Whether it’s our kids in our schools, families...

Governor Tony Evers announced a new plan on August 23 to provide support to working families and address rising costs due to national inflation. The governor’s announcement comes in anticipation of new revenue projections, set to be released by the Wisconsin Department of Revenue (DOR), which are expected to far exceed estimates from the beginning of the year. Wisconsin will end the fiscal year with more than $5 billion in state coffers, including having the highest-ever positive GAAP balance in state history of $1.2 billion for the 2021 fiscal year, and the state’s “rainy day” fund at the highest...

Viewers of broadcast televised programming on the Milwaukee City Channel are now able to access bilingual closed captioning, according to City Clerk Jim Owczarski. As the City Channel is broadcast in English on CC1 (standard) and in Spanish on CC3 (secondary), viewers at home can switch to CC3 on their remote control to have Spanish captions, Owczarski said. The City Channel recently activated automated closed-captioning for the deaf and hard of hearing. The system also performs translation into Spanish at no additional cost. Owczarski noted, however, that automated translation was still in its infancy. “Our staff was able to...

The Milwaukee County Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and Behavioral Health Services (BHS) announced on August 15 that the Milwaukee County Mental Health Complex and Psychiatric Crisis Services (PCS), located for more than 40 years at 9455 W. Watertown Plank Road in Wauwatosa, would permanently close its doors September 9. Services would be transitioned to the new Mental Health Emergency Center, Granite Hills Hospital, and other community-based services. The highly anticipated transition to the state-of-the-art Mental Health Emergency Center marks the next phase in the redesign of Milwaukee County’s behavioral health system, which began more than a...

Milwaukee County Transit System (MCTS) announces the arrival of 73 new clean diesel buses resulting from federal and local funding sources. The investment in more fuel-efficient and cleaner air buses enables MCTS to continue transforming its fleet in alignment with Milwaukee County’s health and environmental sustainability initiatives. MCTS will retire 73 buses federally recognized as past their useful life, replacing each with an advanced clean diesel bus by fall. “Clean air is a key component to giving residents’ every opportunity to enjoy good health. If simply walking outside your front door puts you at risk of breathing harmful toxins,...