Last week, Milwaukee Ald. Robert Bauman introduced a Common Council resolution supporting a reassessment of the state's transportation goals. Although Bauman said he supports work to fix Interstate 94, he doesn't support expanding the highway.
"Yes, I-94 needs to be rebuilt," he said in a statement, "but it does not need to be expanded given there are clear and ready proposals for commuter and high speed rail to serve the same corridor."
What do you think? Bauman's resolution will be taken up by the Public Works Committee of the Common Council at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 28 at City Hall. Here's your chance to voice your opinion.
Bauman says that the reason the KRM project that would connect Milwaukee, Racine and Kenosha with Chicagoland's Metra lines has not moved forward is due to a lack of local funding. At the same time, the state, he noted, plans to spend nearly $2 billion to fix and expand I-94 between Milwaukee and the Illinois border.
"KRM rail service is stalled (because) local communities must find a local funding source for the project though there's no such requirement for the I-94 road project."
The solution, according to Bauman, is collaboration and synergy among the projects, instead of the competition between the supporters of those differing plans.
"We must stop and consider the overlap they provide and distribute dollars and costs effectively among them."
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
