Mr. President, Council members, my fellow citywide elected officials, and city department representatives, thank you for welcoming me today.

I present Milwaukee’s 2025 proposed budget to you this morning, a document that lays out the path forward for our city. The budget prioritizes public safety; it provides for the municipal services our residents expect; and, it navigates through complexities and constraints we must manage.

While some here are new to the city budget process, most Council members are familiar with the work ahead. There are never sufficient resources to accomplish all we want for Milwaukee. Difficult decisions are consistently part of the process.

Yes, we must be frugal. At the same time, innovation and evaluation of ongoing efforts are essential. My proposed budget embraces those obligations.

Perhaps most importantly, the budget I deliver today looks beyond just the numbers – beyond the dollar signs. This budget is focused on our residents by addressing priorities and the expectations they share.  It is not enough to simply balance our 2025 budget.  We must craft next year’s fiscal plan so that it serves all Milwaukeeans.

Our Budget and Management Division and all the city departments have invested a great deal of time and energy to assemble the 2025 budget.  I appreciate the efforts they have made.

During this process, I have insisted departments present options – examining a range of possibilities to reach their fiscal goals.  That approach allowed us to develop a fiscal plan that keeps appropriate service levels and maintains the focus on performance goals.

Importantly, we have avoided clever, one-time maneuvers that would create problems in future budgets. We have focused on essential public services and making sure we always consider equity in our budgetary decisions. I have asked departments to take the long view, making certain the plans today are sustainable next year and for years to come.

When compared to last year’s fiscal situation, 2025 is significantly different.  Provisions of Act 12 are in force, leaving non-public safety departments to absorb, disproportionally, needed belt-tightening. The funds we deployed from the federal American Rescue Plan Act to sustain city services – especially last year – are not part of this budget. Necessary changes to compensation for general city employees have increased city personnel costs. This budget makes responsible withdrawals from our reserves. And, we will see an increase in capital borrowing to address important projects and opportunities.

What has not changed is my commitment, and this city’s commitment, to provide solid city services in an equitable manner.

And a big part of that is the commitment to quality-of-life investments.  We will continue the Raze and Revive efforts unveiled last year, using both city workers and contractors to demolish those buildings that must come down. That’s now happening faster, to the relief of neighbors impacted by this blight. We are making progress and we are working with partners to add housing for Milwaukee families.

My budget invests more in commercial corridors, directing resources to locally-led projects that improve these business areas all around the city.

We are investing in roadway improvements with tens-of-millions of dollars in major streets programs and millions more in paving through the popular High Impact Paving program.

Our pilot program called Adopt-a-Neighborhood has demonstrated the strength of collective, coordinated city resources directed intensively to particular neighborhoods. I want the kind of work we did in the Silver City neighborhood with Via CDC to continue in other parts of Milwaukee.

We will advance our street lighting improvement effort I’ve called Bright Line, replacing antiquated equipment and increasing neighborhood illumination.  You cannot miss the change Bright Line has brought to areas all across Milwaukee, Bay View and Brewers Hill; Muskego Way and Morgandale; and some of the most impressive progress is in Alderwoman Larresa Taylor’s district where 97% of the streetlights have been upgraded. More of this work will continue into 2025.

Bright Line is also a public safety effort, a prevention strategy that discourages illicit activity through environmental changes.

Prevention and accountability are the two pillars of my approach to building safety in Milwaukee. This budget recognizes we must address crime and safety with multiple approaches that both hold individuals accountable and, at the same time, provide direction and alternatives to keep people from going down the wrong path.

That’s why I strongly support programs such as Earn and Learn which provides positive direction by introducing teenagers to the world of work.  Similarly, for pre-teens, I am a huge backer of Camp Rise. In leading the creation of Camp Rise, I worked with Employ Milwaukee and thoughtful individuals. It’s the type of program Alderwoman Sharlen Moore has been so supportive of. What we built is a national model for outreach to impressionable children.

I want young people to see hope and opportunity in their futures. That’s why you will see me promoting real career opportunities for high schoolers and young adults in the trades.  That effort is amplified by Milwaukee Public Schools and unions in our community.

Our Office of Community Wellness and Safety advances partnerships that prevent violence using strategic approaches and conflict mediation. Partners like the Medical College of Wisconsin and United Neighborhood Centers of Milwaukee are building on public safety efforts.

We are addressing reckless driving with preventative physical changes in our roadways. I know Alderman Jonathan Brostoff is celebrating new bike lanes on North Avenue that protect bicyclists and scooter riders while calming automobile traffic. We have put tens-of-millions-of-dollars from a variety of sources into street safety, advancing the Complete Streets approach. Whether it’s Villard Avenue in Alderwoman Andrea Pratt’s district, Center Street in Alderman Russell Stamper’s district, or Sherman Boulevard in Alderman DiAndre Jackson’s district, more changes to improve safety are on the way.

We are working with partners, especially Governor Tony Evers and his department of Transportation, to increase driver education.  That’s another prevention step to increase community safety.

We are not backing off on accountability for reckless drivers.  It remains an enforcement priority for the Milwaukee Police Department. The budget includes money for portable cameras that will be used along roads with a high frequency of speeding and irresponsible driving, a new effort to rein in the problem. To quote Alderman Lamont Westmoreland’s comments about reckless drivers, yes, we’re “sick and tired” of your behavior.

And for people who flout the rules of the road, including failing to license and register vehicles, our Department of Public Works tows thousands of cars every year.  That effort will not subside.

Accountability for anyone harming our safety is a big part of our police department’s efforts.  This budget funds the maximum complement of new officers, three classes of sixty-five recruits each. Residents across Milwaukee – including leaders like south side Alderman Peter Burgelis and north side Alderman Mark Chambers – are pushing for greater police visibility and prompt police response times.  This budget takes a step forward in that direction

I will also continue to voice my expectation that our prosecutors and courts hold those responsible fully accountable for their crimes.

We are investing in new personnel for the Milwaukee Fire Department with the possibility of another reopened fire station. As Alderman Scott Spiker and Alderwoman JoCasta Zamarripa know in their districts, a reopened firehouse is good news for neighbors – and, frankly, good news for the entire city

Public safety is too important an issue to ease up on any of our prevention and accountability approaches.

A particularly bright spot of Milwaukee’s economy is tourism.  This year brought visitors from around the world for festivals, homecomings, sports, arts, our food scene, and a presidential nominating convention. I want to build on that because visitors support local businesses, their spending means more jobs for Milwaukee workers, and visitors spend money, adding to our sales tax revenue.

The positive impact of tourism is boosted by attention from Top Chef, the return of Indy Car racing, baseball and basketball playoffs, and new conventions booked into the expanded Baird Center are all good news for our city. And, the opportunities are expanding with the Bronzeville Center for the Arts growing, and the new Milwaukee Public Museum rising, both in Alderwoman Milele Coggs’ district. Tourists are frequenting the Third Ward in Alderman Bob Bauman’s district and Walker’s Point in Council President José Pérez’s district. We are a top destination for tourism in Wisconsin with a quarter of all state visitors spending time here.

My budget supports tourism.  We are dedicating $5-million in capital expenditures to Port Milwaukee’s south shore cruise dock. That investment in Alderwoman Marina Dimitrijevic’s district is the final financial piece needed to welcome the big vessels filled with cruise ship passengers.  Milwaukee is already an established cruising destination, so adding a notable new welcoming terminal has the potential to add to the thousands of cruise ship visitors who have already discovered us.

Most fees will increase by 2%, with sewer and stormwater fees up by 5% or 6% reflecting greater costs associated with that work.

Let’s close with this. There is no question this budget is tight.  Assembling this plan required thoughtfulness, thoroughness, and care.  While there are notable pressures on our finances for 2025, we are in a much better position to address those pressures because of the work we all did last fall on the 2024 budget.  We have resisted expenditures that are not sustainable. We are cautious about new programs. And, we are focused on outcomes – the performance measures – that prioritize the expectations and needs of Milwaukee residents. Continuing this approach will keep Milwaukee on track for the future.

I appreciate the Council members’ responsible actions in past years, and I know that approach will continue as the 2025 budget is reviewed.