Analysis: Does Mayor Dickert have a union problem?

Interesting issues came up over lunch today. A handful of local tradesmen started riffing on Mayor John Dickert. Surprisingly, the traditional Democratic voters, didn't like what they saw in City Hall.

All, who asked not to reveal their names, had a gripe over the city's Neighborhood Stabilization Program. That's the one designed to use stimulus money to buy up foreclosed homes, refurbish them, sell them back to the public, and then use the sale to fix up another home. The program was a good idea led by a mayor with a real estate background and positioned to address one of the city's big problems: a lack of quality affordable housing.

But the program has led to problems, and, if you listen to the contractors, possibly lawsuits. People are upset that the mayor brought in a bunch of union contractors for a press conference in front of Milwaukee TV cameras, but never followed through on jobs for the unions. Other contractors feel excluded by unnecessary rules, unclear guidelines, changing requirements and bickering between among city employees.

The NSP also came under fire for contractors failing to follow lead guidelines (a story we broke last fall), and it indirectly led to the dismissal of housing technician Bill Bielefeldt, who may be planning a lawsuit of his own.

Lastly, the program essentially is placing the city in competition against its own residents in the real estate market. While hundreds of local residents are trying, unsuccessfully, to sell their homes, the city is selling remodeled houses at affordable prices. That'll make it that much harder for people who need or want to move to sell their homes.

Then there's the ill-fated West Racine project. Builder Tom Tousis intended to open a gas station, grocery store and restaurant on the site, but was denied by city officials who want a larger project at the corner to pay off debt taken out to demolish buildings on the site. The problem for Dickert, who didn't fight for the project, is Tousis had promised to use union labor on the job. The city's refusal to approve the project angered unions and made Dickert, fair or not, their main target this spring.

It's easy to respond that unions don't mean much anymore in Racine, that their power is reduced and local politicians can win without their support. That may be true, but unions bring two critical elements to any campaign. 1.) Money. 2.) Volunteers.

No doubt Dickert will be the best financed of the three candidates running for mayor - Alderman Eric Marcus and Alfonso Locke are the other two - but he may be looking at an enthusiasm gap. Unions backing Marcus -  and most are - could bring energy to Marcus' outsider bid to win City Hall. Dickert has the advantages of the incumbency - namely, everyone now calls him mayor - but his record isn't strong enough to bury opponents the way Gary Becker did when he was re-elected.

A few things to watch for in the coming weeks:

1. Money. How big is Dickert's advantage over his opponents? If it's major, he'll be in good shape. If opponents can bridge the gap, he'll be in trouble.

2. Endorsements. If the unions back Marcus as strongly as some think they will, it could be a real race.

3. Campaign confidence. Dickert breezed through his first mayoral election without specifics or details. After two years on the job, he'll be able to point to specific examples of what he's accomplished and how he'll expand on them over the next four years. How will Marcus, a relative newcomer to local politics, respond? Conversely, Dickert's opponents are going to hit him on his record. How does he take the heat?

4. The primary. General thought is Dickert and Marcus move through the Feb. 15 primary, but sometimes the insiders have it wrong. We're in a time of political change, and Locke may be the true outsider voters want. More importantly, it will be a public referendum on the incumbent. We'll know Feb. 15 if Dickert cruises to another term or is up for a fight.

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Racine police seek suspect in attempted child abduction

From the Racine PD:

On January 31st, 2011 at about 8:25 A.M. an attempted child abduction occurred near 8th St. and Villa St. A 6 year old girl was waiting for the bus with other children when a suspect led the girl away from the bus stop. A witness intervened and the suspect fled the area.

The 6 year old victim was waiting for the bus near 8th St. and Villa St. with a number of other children. A witness was dropping her child off at the bus stop and noticed the suspect talking to the 6 year old girl. The witness then saw the suspect walking from the bus stop with the 6 year old girl’s backpack in his hand. The 6 year old girl began to walk away from the bus stop with the suspect. The witness confronted the suspect and had the girl return to the bus stop. The suspect then fled the area.

The suspect is described as a white male, 45-50 years old, 5’09”-5’11”, medium build with short blond hair. The suspect had a light (2 day) beard and mustache. He was wearing a green military style jacket, black pants and black shoes. He was also carrying a boys black and white backpack on his back.

Parents are reminded to speak to their children about talking to strangers and never go with anyone they do not know. Parents should report any suspicious persons or activity to the Racine Police Department

Racine Police investigators are interested in any additional information that you may have about this crime. 

You are urged to call the Racine Police Department at 262-635-7700 and ask for the Investigations Unit, or Crimestoppers at 262-636-9330, or by texting to CRIMES (274637) and referring to Tipsoft I.D. #TIP417 with your text message.

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Introducing ... the Packer Dance

A group of local Packer fans got into the Super Bowl spirit and created a "Packer Dance" for Sunday's big game. Here's Mila telling the story behind the dance and the video it created ...

I created the dance for the Packer fans. Since the Green Bay Packers made it to the Super Bowl, it is a huge ordeal. To commemorate it, I came up with the Packer Dance. It is called " Do the Packer Dance". So everyone who is cheering on the Packers can feel like a cheer leader by doing the Packer dance. It would be awesome to see Packer fans do this mass dance. Let it be while watching the game in their living rooms, at a sports bar, at a friend's place or at the Super Bowl itself.Get ready Packer fans because this is huge! Let the Green Bay packers know that the fans can groove and cheer on.

It is an easy dance routine. The music for the piece was composed by Rob D., a local musician from Racine.

The dancer beside me is Sandy who is a huge Packer fan.

Here's the dance written out ...

First beat of the music - You get ready.

Move to the right - One, two, three - step

Move to the left - One, two, three - step

Move to the right -One, two, three - step

Shoulder shake - 8 counts bend down and get up.

Move to the right - One, two, three - step

Move to the left - One, two, three - step

Move to the right -One, two, three - step

Shoulder shake - 8 counts bend down and get up.

Move to the right - One, two, three - step

Move to the left - One, two, three - step

Move to the right -One, two, three - step

Shoulder shake - 8 counts bend down and get up.

Hop and shake your hip to the right,

Hop and shake your hip to the left,

Hop and shake your hip to the right,

Hop and shake your hip to the left,

Hop and shake your hip to the right,

Hop and shake your hip to the left,

Slide to the front shaking your shoulders with a hop ( 2 times) (As shown in the video)

Hop and shake your hip to the right,

Hop and shake your hip to the left,

Hop and shake your hip to the right,

Hop and shake your hip to the left,

Hop and shake your hip to the right,

Hop and shake your hip to the left,

Slide to the front shaking your shoulders with a hop ( 2 times) (As shown in the video)

Hop and shake your hip to the right,

Hop and shake your hip to the left,

Hop and shake your hip to the right,

Hop and shake your hip to the left,

Hop and shake your hip to the right,

Hop and shake your hip to the left,

Slide to the front shaking your shoulders with a hop ( 2 times) (As shown in the video)

Move to the right - One, two, three - step

Move to the left - One, two, three - step

Move to the right -One, two, three - step

Shoulder shake - 8 counts bend down and get up.

Move to the right - One, two, three - step

Move to the left - One, two, three - step

Move to the right -One, two, three - step

Shoulder shake - 8 counts bend down and get up.

Move to the right - One, two, three - step

Move to the left - One, two, three - step

Move to the right -One, two, three - step

Shoulder shake - 8 counts bend down and get up.

Hop and shake your hip to the right,

Hop and shake your hip to the left,

Hop and shake your hip to the right,

Hop and shake your hip to the left,

Hop and shake your hip to the right,

Hop and shake your hip to the left,

Slide to the front shaking your shoulders with a hop ( 2 times) (As shown in the video)

Hop and shake your hip to the right,

Hop and shake your hip to the left,

Hop and shake your hip to the right,

Hop and shake your hip to the left,

Hop and shake your hip to the right,

Hop and shake your hip to the left,

Slide to the front shaking your shoulders with a hop ( 2 times) (As shown in the video)

POSE!! OR YELL PACKER!

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Marcus unveils bilingual campaign website

Mayoral candidate Eric Marcus unveiled a bilingual Spanish-English campaign website this week. Here's his  press release announcing the site: 

RACINE - Alderman Eric Marcus, candidate for Mayor of the City of Racine, added a Spanish language translation to his website for voters to read about his experience, vision and specific action plan for Racine.   This will make Marcus’ plans for Racine more easily available to residents who would prefer to read them in Spanish.

Marcus said, “It is very important that all of the voices of our community are heard and and that everyone is given an opportunity to participate in the discussion of Racine's future.”

“Being forthright about my specific plan for Racine and engaging the community in a discussion are the first steps to rebuilding our City, creating a sense of community and restoring faith in city government,” said Marcus.

The Marcus campaign pledge is simple, with your help we will “Turn on the Lights” in Racine, Wisconsin on April 19, 2011.

Please visit our website at: www.marcusformayor.org

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Groundhog's Day Blizzard slams Racine

So, anyone thinking spring is coming early this year?

Heavy snow and strong winds pulled the Belle City last night and into the early morning as the much-anticipated blizzard hit home with reckless abandon. Just about everyone is home today, and those who ventured out are wishing they were home. Local police departments are reporting dozens of stranded motorists this morning. Some of those stranded are rescue workers themselves.

Reports suggest Racine took the brunt of the storm, pinned between the advancing cold front and 60 mph gusts off of Lake Michigan. We're hearing people report drifts 5-feet high outside of the garages and front doors. Waves on the lake reportedly hit 10+ feet.

Snow emergencies are declared everywhere, and if you're expecting anything to be open this morning, don't. The good news is the storm is expected to clear up by noon. We may even have some sun, but the winds are expected to continue with gusto and temperatures are forecast to drop to single digits tonight. No snow is forecast for the next few days.

Just to be cruel: it's 77 degrees in Miami today.

Slideshow from the western edge of the county.

Drifts buried cars throughout the city.

People opened their front doors to piles of snow this morning.

Plows hit the streets, but entrances like this one are still buried.

24 inches by 11 p.m. last night!

Plows were out Wednesday morning. A third plow followed these two.

Snow banks reached five feet along Racine streets.

The snow was quite beautiful.

Pretty much the view of the day.

The plowing begins ...

And the shoveling.

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Students Earn Awards at UW-Parkside King Celebration

From Racine Unified:

Several students from Racine received awards during the 12th annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside. Working with the theme "The Significance of His Actions," students were honored for their art and essays during a ceremony held in the university's Communication Arts Theatre on Jan. 21.

In the middle-school essay contest, Zachary Atkins of the REAL School was the first place winner and A'Jehanna Gaston of Starbuck Middle School was runner-up. At the high-school level, Park High School's Sedaria Wallace won the ninth and 10th-grade essay competition. Park studentsMiranda Langdon (first place) and Jazlyn Collins (runner-up) completed a school sweep of the 11th and 12th grade contest. In the college essay contest, UW-Parkside student Luis Tesillos of Racine received first-place honors. Each award recipient was honored with a commemorative medallion during the ceremony.

Students from Case High School earned the Community Outreach Project Award for the Minority Visionary Program, a group whose intent is to get new high school students thinking about their educational options beyond high school.

The university's 2011 Dr. King Community Service Awards were presented to Racine residents Latasha Collins and Tuanquilla (Tessa) McKinney.

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Final day to nominate members for Racine County Sports Hall of Fame class of 2011

Today is the final day to nominate local athletes for the Racine County Sports Hall of Fame's 2011 inaugural class. The induction ceremony is in October.

Any one put in Wilbert Kennedy's name yet?

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City Council to declare May 14 'Migratory Bird Day' in Racine

The City Council will declare May 14 "Migratory Bird Day" at its meeting on Tuesday.

Here's the ordinance:


Whereas, migratory birds are some of the most beautiful and easily  observed wildlife that share our communities; and

Whereas, many citizens recognize and welcome migratory songbirds as  symbolic harbingers of spring; and

Whereas, these migrant species also play an important economic role in  our community, controlling insect pests and generating millions in  recreational dollars statewide; and

Whereas, migratory birds and their habitats are declining throughout the  Americas, facing a growing number of threats on their migration routes and  in both their summer and winter homes; and

Whereas, public awareness and concern are crucial components of  migratory bird conservation; and

Whereas, citizens enthusiastic about birds, informed about the threats they  face, and empowered to help address those threats can directly contribute  to maintaining health bird populations; and

Whereas, since 1993 International Migratory Bird Day (IMBD) has become a primary vehicle for focusing public attention on the nearly 350 species  that travel between nesting habitats in our communities and throughout  North America and their wintering grounds in South and Central America,


Mexico, the Caribbean, and the southern U.S.; and

Whereas, hundreds of thousands of people will observe IMBD, gathering in  town squares, community centers, schools, parks, nature centers, and  wildlife refuges to learn about birds, take action to conserve them, and  simply to have fun; and

Whereas, while IMBD officially is held each year on the second Saturday in  May, its observance is not limited to a single day, and planners are  encouraged to schedule activities on the dates best suited to the presence  of both migrants and celebrants; and

Whereas, IMBD is not only a day to foster application for wild birds and to  celebrate and support migratory bird conservation, but also a call to action.

Now, therefore, be it resolved, that the City of Racine proclaim May 14,  2011, as International Migratory Bird Day in the City of Racine, and all  citizens are urged to celebrate this observance and to support efforts to  protect and conserve migratory birds and their habitats in our community and the world at large.

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City Council to consider banning smoking in parks

The City Council, meeting as a committee Tuesday night, will consider banning smoking in city parks.

The Parks and Rec Board approved an ordinance on Jan. 12 to ban smoking in city parks and beaches. The ordinance now goes to the council's Committee of the Whole for consideration.

The committee meets at 6 p.m. on Tuesday night. Here's the agenda.

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So, where were we?

Hi all,

We're back ... sort of. RacinePost will return in a limited form with an updated front page at www.racinepost.com and sporadic posting on this blog, Racine Kiosk, and our Obits page.

It won't be anything like what we were doing before, but we'll be dipping into local news and promoting community events. If you have some news you'd like to get out, send it to us at: racinepost@gmail.com

Cheers,

Dustin & Pete

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