MILWAUKEE — Tuesday morning, Milwaukee's Mayor, Cavalier Johnson, proposed his plan for the 2024 budget. He started off by calling 2024 a 'pivot year' with the trend of service cuts and draws on the city's reserves a thing of the past.
For years, we've seen essential services across Milwaukee cut. The fire department was forced to close several stations and decommission trucks over the last few years. Now, with the possibility of more money, there's a glimpse of hope for reopening.
"I like them. They're really nice, and they work fast. If you call them, they come fast," Mildred Ortiz said.
Ortiz has lived near Milwaukee Fire Station No. 28 for decades. However, in recent years, the station's close proximity wasn't felt.
In 2017, the city closed Station No. 28 and several others as part of its budget resource allocation plan.
Now, Johnson said in 2024 he's feeling optimistic and sees the city becoming more fiscally stable. With the new sales tax coming in 2024, combined with the 10 percent increase in shared revenues, Milwaukee's comptroller is anticipating more than $205 million of new money for the city.
One of Johnson's main priorities is public safety with a focus on hiring more police and fire fighters.
"It feels very, very good on the front end of the budget process for, potentially the first time in my career, to hear about additions to the front-line staff for the Milwaukee Fire Department," Fire Chief Aaron Lipski said.
Lipski said the last decade has been extremely challenging for his department.
"It's a horrible feeling to worry that you're gonna arrive late when someone has called 911," Lipski explained.
Lipski said it's a feeling he had far too often in recent years. However now, he said the tables could be turning.
This year, Lipski was able to reopen Station No. 28. In a partnership with Wauwatosa Fire, Lipski said they've been able to run more calls out of that station and in that neighborhood. However, with hope on the horizon for 2024, Lipski said he's hoping to put his own firefighters back in that station and open up others too.
"On top of this, we're going to be able to add an engine and a paramedic unit and provide some relief," he said.
Moving forward, Lipski said he'd like to see about 100 firefighters added to his department. The goal is to meet that number within the next 10 years.
For Ortiz and other neighbors, they said they like having Station No. 28 in their neighborhood and hope it stays.
It’s about time to watch on your time. Stream local news and weather 24/7 by searching for “TMJ4” on your device.
Available for download on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and more.
