The South 27th Street Corridor’s Impact on The Franklin School District

The Joint Oak Creek-Franklin South 27th Street Corridor Project covers a six-mile area at the southern end of Milwaukee County, between West College Avenue and the Racine County line. This segment is between the cities of Franklin and Oak Creek, where city leaders recognized the corridor’s potential. Strong interest from developers and the business community will result in additional development opportunities and create a more economically vibrant corridor.  The development project still lacks a an official marketing name since the infamous “BOOMGAARD” name was” buzz-sawed” by residents from both cities.

Click to read a brief South 27th Street Corridor Fact Sheet.

As reported in her blog My Board's Eye View, Janet Evans was the only school board member to vote against the 2009-2010 Franklin School District Tax Levy of 3.9%.  The levy passed on a 4-1 vote with two members absent.  It has been well documented on BATTLE JOINED and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that due to the fiscal irresponsibility of the Doyle Administration and the Wisconsin Legislature, most Wisconsin school districts would likely see a 15% reduction in state aid compared to the previous year.

Within the city limits of Franklin there are three school districts; Franklin, Whitnall and the Oak Creek-Franklin Joint District.  Of the three, the district receiving the largest cut in was the Franklin School District which received $2,694,234 less than 2008/09, representing a 15.12% decrease in funding.  Solution: Reduce spending, reduce/eliminate programs or increase taxes.  As usual, Franklin Public Schools focused most of its attention on increasing taxes.  This year the state eliminated $1,261,112 in aid from the Whitnall School District, a 13.48% reduction from the previous year. And finally, the Oak Creek-Franklin Joint District will have to do without $1,386,890 in state aid compared to last year, representing a 4.96%reduction.  The solutions for these districts are the same as those available to the Franklin School District; spend less, reduce programs or increase taxes.

According to Franklin Treasurer, Cal Patterson, each taxing district submits to the City of Franklin, its approved tax levy in November of the levy year for use in the following year.  The City takes the levy information and produces tax bills for all taxable properties, collects those amounts, and remits them to the tax jurisdictions in accordance with Wisconsin State Statutes.  In other words, the City of Franklin acts as a clearing house for the three school district's tax levies collected from Franklin taxpayers residing in one of three school districts.  This process actually seems fair and logical considering it’s being administered by the government.

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In simple economic terms, taxation transfers wealth from households or businesses to the government, and any honest lawmaker will tell you that in terms of the levels of public services and programs provided by government, businesses tend to cost cities less than households.  And theoretically, more businesses translates into lower property taxes and greater employment.  But unlike many Franklin Common Council Members, especially Alderman Ken Skowronski, Chairman, Franklin Economic Development Commission (EDC) and Alderman Steve Olson, Chairman, South 27th Street Steering Committee—a temporary Committee comprised of officials from the cities of Franklin and Oak Creek—under the authority of the Franklin EDC—have trouble understanding the economics realities of this, at least when it comes to the South 27th Street Corridor Project.

On the other hand, let's look at Lowell, MA, where city council candidate, James Wojas, is all for bringing more businesses to the City of Lowell and creating jobs for residents, however, Wojas would not support any economic development proposal that would require the city to put incentives upfront—similar to creating TIF to lure business to the city at the expense of taxpayers.  As a Conservative candidate Wojas is more concerned about taxpayers' money.

In a recent article, Wojas, a political novice complained:

"I'm paying more and getting less, the city isn't plowing many sidewalks in the winter and the 7-month-old trash-collection system is forcing low-income residents to buy garbage bags for household refuse that doesn't fit in the collection bins.  I also want the Fire Department to have high-quality equipment that lasts."

How Does Candidate Wojas Propose to provide more service while spending less?

Like Wisconsin, as Massachusetts state aid and local receipts continue to dwindle, Wojas believes the answer is to lower taxes for both residents and businesses to encourage those outside the city to move to Lowell, adding that he believes an unemployment rate of 12.1 percent as of July is too high for the city, which has room to accommodate large companies, including those in the high-tech industry.

Wojas also said:

“Municipal government tends to grow larger because...initiatives often meet resistance from some long-serving incumbents who only care about their political seats and become ‘complacent and lazy...’”

Coming tomorrow: South 27th Street Corridor Project Flunks Geography