On April 5, Milwaukeeans will head to the polls to vote on who will become the city’s next mayor. After nearly two decades in office, former Mayor Tom Barrett stepped down late last year. Now two candidates are vying for the position — former Ald. Bob Donovan and acting Mayor Cavalier Johnson. Lake Effect’s Joy Powers chats with the candidates about what they see as the biggest challenges facing Milwaukee and how they plan to solve them.
In this interview, we hear from former Ald. Bob Donovan:
WUWM: Tell voters a bit about yourself.
Donovan: Well, born and raised in Milwaukee, I spent most of my early adult life working in the private sector, married — five children, was elected alderman in April of 2000 and served for 20 years on the common council representing the Eighth District, retired in April of 2020 and sort of twiddled my thumbs for about a year and then, Mayor Barrett announced that he was leaving to take a position as ambassador to Luxembourg, and threw my hat in the ring.
So, I'm excited about this opportunity. I did run against Mayor Barrett in 2016. I strongly feel Milwaukee needs to do better. And the status quo is not getting that done, and so I'm hopeful that people recognize that and, and that they choose me as the next mayor, and I'm asking for their vote.
WUWM: What do you think are the top three, most pressing issues facing Milwaukee today?
Donovan: Well, I certainly would say, number one is the public safety crisis that we're dealing with — it's just from reckless driving to record breaking homicides, to leading the nation in stolen vehicles, I think it's just outrageous. Quite frankly, I can't believe how much Milwaukee has deteriorated in just the last two years and I know that people are extremely concerned about that.
Second, I would argue our fiscal challenges. We, most people aren't aware that the city is literally teetering on the verge of insolvency. So we desperately need to get our fiscal house in order, and that's going to require a partnership with the state of Wisconsin. I believe I can pull off that partnership. Having said that, I also feel strongly, and as mayor, I would conduct audits of all of our city departments to ensure that every penny is being spent wisely, and that every position is needed and productive. And I would also look at this fiscal crisis as an opportunity to perhaps reimagine how we provide services to our constituents, and how we pay for them sort of reimagining local government.
I do believe that there are opportunities to perhaps consolidate or merge some of our city departments. In addition, also perhaps to consolidate or merge with some of our suburban counterparts. So, I think all those things need to be on the table to ensure that we're providing the best possible services for the reasonable tax dollars.
WUWM: There is rising violence here in Milwaukee — we’re already outpacing last year, which set a record high for homicides. How do you plan to curb this growing problem?
Donovan: Well, I think over the last many years now we have seen deterioration in police manpower. Certainly, I believe we cannot expect to restore order and stability and safety to our streets and neighborhoods without providing the Milwaukee Police Department with the appropriate level of manpower. So that needs to occur.
In addition, I firmly believe that, you know, one of the components of public safety that sort of at times rides underneath the radar, oftentimes when we talk public safety, the entire focus is on police. And yet at the same time, there's a partner in that process of district attorneys or judges, the criminal justice system, I think we need to take a closer look at that, most especially our juvenile justice system.
I believe that we have, sadly, and atmosphere of lawlessness that has permeated many parts of Milwaukee. And, we have a criminal element that feels emboldened and that they will not be held accountable for their crimes, and that needs to be addressed as well. So, you know, the whoever the next mayor is, is going to have to effectively deal with that situation, first and foremost.
WUWM: Milwaukee continues to face budget shortfalls and our portion of the state’s shared revenue hasn’t risen with inflation over the past two decades. We’re facing a major crisis that could mean huge reductions to services like parks, transportation, police — the many things that make Milwaukee the city it is. What is your plan to get more funding for the city?
Donovan: Well, as I said, I think most definitely a partnership with the state of Wisconsin is required. I do have good working relationships with a number of the legislators. I'm confident we can come up with proposals that make sense, and that they recognize to in conversations with me that shared revenue does need to increase.
But in addition to that, I would also want to look at the budget surplus that the state of Wisconsin is sitting on — $4+ billion that I believe strongly that Milwaukee needs to tap into some of that. It is absolutely in the best interest of the state of Wisconsin that Milwaukee pull itself out of this crisis situation and become more stable, more productive, more prosperous, that benefits the entire region, the entire state. So, I believe that there are resources available, if we put together the right plan, and gather the right support at the legislative level and certainly I'm certain the governor will be willing to support efforts like that.
WUWM: Finally, as mayor of Milwaukee, you will be in many ways our city’s representative to the world, the nation. What would you say is the most important thing people should know about this city?
Donovan: Well, I think it's America's best kept secret or could be. I believe that Milwaukee has not even begun to reach its full potential. We have so many great amenities. We sit on the shores of one of the world's greatest natural resources. We have great cultural amenities. We have great professional sports and amateur sports. We have Summerfest and our ethnic festivals. So we need a mayor who's going to accentuate our positives, but also work tirelessly to address our negatives and eliminate those negatives. So, that's what I believe is the position I would take and want to advance Milwaukee towards.
