This week the full Common Council voted 14-0-1 to approve the recommendation of the Licenses Committee to deny a food seller’s license for the Dollar Tree at 2303 N. Dr. Martin Luther King Drive.
Milele Coggs
Alderwoman Milele Coggs released the following statement regarding the vote: “To be consistent with my vote at committee (I serve as vice chair of the Licenses Committee), I abstained from today’s vote at Council.
This Council action is a victory for neighbors, who have been opposed to the Dollar Tree from the beginning at that location because of the detrimental impact on the neighborhood (litter, traffic, noise, etc.) and the inconsistencies with Bronzeville (Milwaukee’s African-American Arts Cultural & Entertainment District). They were hoping that the property owner’s promise of a grocery store would come to fruition, and obviously that promise has not been kept.
I have supported the neighbors’ position on this location from the start, and during a public meeting I hosted last month it was abundantly evident that the Dollar Tree was not supported (and that clear message was also conveyed to the owner of the property).
For residents, I believe they can look to the example set by the Bronzeville area neighbors as an excellent approach to civic engagement. The neighbors attended public meetings (including the Licenses Committee meeting at City Hall) and presented their arguments against the food license, the committee and the Council agreed with them, and in the end they achieved the results they were looking for.
I will continue working with the neighbors to pursue the proper and best use of the property.”