County And Village Officials Talk Racial Equity: Shorewood CDA

SHOREWOOD, WI — Officials from the county met with Shorewood's Community Development Authority to share more details about ongoing county-wide efforts to address racial inequalities.

No firm decisions were planned for the meeting, but what ensued was a lengthy discussion on the many parts of Shorewood's plan to confront racial inequity and how it fits into the county efforts.

The meeting was one of many educational presentations that have been planned for the CDA as it attempts to educate the community on regional affordable housing, according to a newsletter from Village Manager Rebecca Ewald.

Milwaukee County's Director of Strategic Planning Issac Rowlett and Director of the Office of African American Affairs Jeff Roman presented to the board various ongoing efforts to address racial inequalities. Part of addressing these issues is engaging with the local communities across the county, Milwaukee County officials said.

Racial inequality was declared a public health emergency by Milwaukee County in 2019. It was the first municipality to do such in the whole country. The issues that led officials to making that decision were glaring, Rowlett said, offering examples:

The infant mortality rate for black families in Milwaukee County is more than double the rate for white families, white people have a life expectancy that is 14 years higher than black people in the county and overall Milwaukee is in the bottom 25 percent of "healthy counties" in Wisconsin, according to Rowlett.

Confronting health inequalities must be a proactive measure, Rowlett said. As an example, Rowlett said that instead of confronting health issues such as asthma by prescribing more inhalers, officials must take a look at the upstream decisions that create these health inequalities.

Who is deciding what factories and industrial buildings go where, and how is that affecting people, Rowlett said.

Confronting those upstream decisions is a "racial equity tool," Rowlett said. By looking closely at who benefits from and who is burdened by even the most innocuous decisions, unintended impacts can be avoided.

Shorewood has been ahead of the curve when it comes to confronting these issues, according to Jeff Roman. The village has already sought to address concerns with housing by approving the extension of Tax Incremental District 1 in order to create more affordable housing.

The village worked with Milwaukee County's Office on African American Affairs and the Metropolitan Milwaukee Fair Housing Council to create the district, according to a newsletter from Village Manager Rebecca Ewald.

The TID has provided an estimated $2 million for the village to use toward that goal. Exactly how that funding will be used, however, is not set in stone yet.

Reaching the point where decisions can be made is a process in itself — learning about the issues, unlearning racism and engaging with the community is essential, according to Roman.

Finding what assets and policies can be leveraged at the local level to aid in the countywide effort of making Milwaukee more healthy is essential, Roman said.

Peter Hammond, chair for the Community Development Authority, said that Shorewood is working together to take steps in the right direction, and that the whole county must be part of the solution.

Others wondered how exactly the new TID money can actually be used on the ground.

"Should we attempt to create the greatest good for a few people, or should we try to make good for as many people as possible?" Jessica Carpenter, member of the CDA asked county officials in the meeting.

Aaron Hertzberg, Director of Administrative Services in Milwaukee County, responded with a few ideas. Incentivizing landlords toward affordable housing, providing new tax credits and adding value to existing units are all possibilities.

Although there were no firm answers to the question of how to use the TID money, it launched a brainstorming session amongst the CDA members and village trustees that were in attendance.

One of the greatest issues that Shorewood faces in confronting equality is the fact that there is very little usable land for new developments, members of the CDA said. The village has affordable units, but the demand for rentals is so high that "it's not getting us where we want to go," Hammond said.

An apartment building proposal that could create new affordable housing units was met with resistance from community members that fear the development would bring down property values, clog up street parking and cause dangerous traffic.

Although the community members that were against the development made it clear they had no issues with affordable housing, their concerns highlighted the lack of undeveloped land in the village.

CDA Chair Peter Hammond said that Shorewood is on the proper side of the racial inequity issue, but challenges remain in getting everyone on the same page and finding what the solutions will actually materialize to be in Shorewood.

Roman added to the sentiment that "we need to embed and socialize these conversations."

Village President Ann McCullough McKaig said that the village must consider the many stakeholders in its decisions, and that efforts are only a part of a vision that the village is working toward.

As the county works toward realizing its goal of a healthier Milwaukee, it will seek to work with the many cities, villages and towns that exist within its boundaries to develop new custom ideas and engage the community, according to Roman.

One goal of the project is to formulate a series of recommendations that will be handed off to County Executive David Crowley, Roman said.

In forming those recommendations, Roman said that the county will work with Shorewood and members of the CDA.

"We want to achieve racial equity and make Milwaukee the healthiest county in Wisconsin," Rowlett said.