Milwaukee Has a Lot Going for It, But Something's Missing

Having passed the halfway point in our transcontinental journey, the Millennial Trains Project participants arrived Tuesday in Milwaukee (whose metro area is home to Trains Magazine's offices). After departing St. Paul Union Depot three hours late, due to waiting over an hour for our cars to be commected to the eastbound Empire Builder and a brake test to be performed, we enjoyed the ride down the Mississippi River and across western Wisconsin farmland on a crystal clear, cool summer day. As we traveled, Dr. Michelle Diggles of the Washington, DC-based, "radical centrist" think tank Third Way, an expert on Millennials' political habits and attitudes who also teaches at American University, led a 3-hour-long workshop on the ways Millennials might reshape American politics and break through partisan gridlock in legislatures as we become the next generation of leaders. Most of the ideas centered on using technology to involve citizens throughout the legislative and rule-making processes, as well as on curbing the influence of money in elections and sustaining and strengthening journalism.

When we arrived at the Milwaukee Intermodal Center just after 5:00 PM, we had to leave our private cars as there was no space to park them in Milwaukee. They went on to Chicago, where we will rejoin them this evening behind the eastbound Lake Shore Limited -- minus the Silver Splendor dome car, which will be replaced by the Overland Trail lounge car (also part of LA Rail's fleet) as the dome cannot fit through the tunnels into New York Penn Station. After swiftly checking in at the Hilton Milwaukee City Center, we made our way to the campus of Marquette University, where three people involved in attracting Millennials and entrepreneurs to Milwaukee and cultivating its educational resources addressed the group. They spoke of the city's high quality of life, that it has the highest density of corporate headquarters per capita in the country, and that it houses the Water Council, a research and technology incubator for businesses involved in the management and conservation of water. They also acknowledged the city's challenges, including finding jobs for local high school graduates and closing the employment gap between white and black residents.

One thing Milwaukee conspicuously lacks, compared to all the other major cities our journey is visiting, is rail transit. Several proposals to bring streetcars or light rail to the city, and to connect it by modern intercity passenger trains to cities other than Chicago, have been stymied by lack of state or federal-level commitment. One of Tuesday's panelists touted that everywhere in the city is within 20 minutes of everywhere else at all times of day -- if you choose to drive, that is. There is a fairly robust bus system with frequent service on some routes, but there is not a widespread transit-riding culture.

After Tuesday evening's talk, which did not mention transportation, I asked the panelists what they saw as the role of transportation in attracting people and businesses to Milwaukee. Innovation in Milwaukee Executive Director Michael Holstad said transportation is absolutely critical as it allows people to make connections. "If people can't get to each other easily, that's a challenge." He said he would like to see the various educational institutions in southeast Wisconsin brought together by transit. A train system would be good, he said, but would be a heavy lift financially. Chris Layden, Managing Director of the Experis Manpower Group and former Vice Chair of the now-defunct Southeast (Wisconsin) Regional Transit Authority Board, lamented that the state has a $1 billion transportation budget dedicated entirely to roads and bridges, but state leaders can't seem to wrap their heads around investing in other modes. He voiced his support for a Midwestern high-performace rail network and the proposed Kenosha-Racine-Milwaukee commuter rail extension. Layden thinks rail projects need to be better marketed, as being about access to opportunities, and to talent for employers. "Cars aren't the only solution," he said. 

Another city promoter I spoke to called Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker's early 2012 decision to cancel the Milwaukee-Madison passenger rail corridor development project and return federal grant money intended for it to the Federal Railroad Administration "a generational mistake." Opportunities to build something like that only come once in a generation, he said, and Wisconsin squandered its opportunity. He said he personally likes the governor, but doesn't think he realizes what he did. "Milwaukee had a chance to be the centerpiece of four major metro areas, with all that development and tax revenue." He lamented the divergence in priorities between the city and the state.

NEWaukee, an organization founded in 2007 dedicated to giving residents, mostly young people and new arrivals, opportunities to socialize and explore what the city has to offer, hosted MTP on a tour of various sites around town on Wednesday. These included the Memomonee Valley headquarters of the Urban Ecology Center (an organization dedicated to bringing the city's children and family closer to nature and building and sustaining great parks), the aforementioned Water Council's building, the Milwaukee Art Museum and the Discovery Center (science museum), both of the latter being iconic buildings located on the city's lakefront. The day concluded with a NEWaukee-sponsored Night Market, featuring all-local food, beer, art and craft vendors, a DJ and a drumming corps. The MTP group came away impressed with Milwaukee's cultural offerings and upbeat attitude. Nevertheless, there seemed to be something missing -- perhaps the kind of mobility and investment that only rail transit can bring; the kind that Portland, Seattle and the Twin Cities have experienced.