SEWRPC (Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission) receives funding from several counties in southeastern Wisconsin but the county with the largest financial contribution is Milwaukee County.  Unfortunately SEWRPC comes up with some very anti-Milwaukee ideas from time to time and they have a distinct suburban bias.

This doesn't bode well for our region.  When SEWRPC is wed to the idea that urban planning means a nearly exclusive reliance on car and SUV transportation, it means our air quality will go down and rates of childhood asthma will rise.  Since our winds go from west to east, this means that as Waukesha County continues to grow without respect for the fact that their vehicular exhaust pollutes the sensitive and growing lungs of Milwaukee children, perhaps one of SEWRPC's missions should change to reflect how their poor planning has adversely impacted public health.

Today, a Milwaukee County Board committee will analyze the countys relationship with SEWRPC and decide whether they should discontinue funding them. The answer to that question should be YES.

Milwaukee County taxpayers should not be funding an anti-Milwaukee group, whether they call themselves a planning commission or something else.  Funding a group who turns around and slaps Milwaukee County residents is not only counter productive, it is a horrible use of tax dollars. 

Hat tip to former Watchdog Milwaukee columnist Gretchen Schultz whose runs the webpage for the Storyhill neighborhood association.  Gretchen's story sheds some needed insight.