Kevin Fischer is an award-winning veteran broadcaster who has been seen and heard on Milwaukee TV and radio stations for nearly three decades.
Kevin, who is a legislative aide to state Sen. Mary Lazich (R-New Berlin), can be seen offering his views on the news on the public affairs program, “INTERchange,” on Milwaukee Public Television Channel 10. He lives with his wife, Jennifer, in Franklin.
DISCLAIMER FOR EVERY SINGLE BLOG KEVIN FISCHER WRITES ABOUT BOOMGAARD FROM 5/4/08 UNTIL HIS LOVELY AND MUCH YOUNGER WIFE, JENNIFER FINALLY DOES HIM IN: KEVIN FISCHER ENTHUSIASTICALLY SUPPORTS THE VISIONARY BIG PICTURE CONCEPT OF THE S. 27TH STREET CORRIDOR, BUT HAS PROBLEMS WITH THE NAME, “BOOMGAARD DISTRICT” AND HOW IT CAME TO BE (i.e. zero input from public).
Let’s suppose for a moment that Franklin had a magic wand that could instantly erase everything that’s transpired thus far about naming the 27th Street Corridor the “Boomgaard District.”
No six months of extensive research.
No suggestion of the name, “Boomgaard.”
No Franklin Common Council vote.
No Oak Creek Common Council vote.
No ridicule on the blogs.
Poof! Back to square one.
That would, no doubt, please a lot of people.
However, it might be too late for that.
Please allow me to present another perspective.
Wisconsin has a great deal of difficulty attracting new business. We have one of the worst business climates in the country, according to the nonpartisan Tax Foundation in Washington D.C. that puts out an annual ranking of such measures:
“Wisconsin ranks 39th in the Tax Foundation's State Business Tax Climate Index. The Index compares the states in five areas of taxation that impact business: corporate taxes; individual income taxes; sales taxes; unemployment insurance taxes; and taxes on property, including residential and commercial property.”
Franklin and Oak Creek are now attempting to attract new business to the 27th Street Corridor. That wouldn’t be an easy task under normal circumstances. The mission has just become more difficult given the torrent of negative publicity we’ve been receiving.
We’ve heard the reasons the name Boomgaard was chosen. I’m on record opposed to the name. My opposition is in the form of a loud, “You’ve got to be kidding” chuckle, not a scream for “60 Minutes” to fly here.
Boomgaard was chosen instead of orchard, in part, because planners wanted to convey an international feel. The visionary goal of this project that seems to have been lost by many people is to attract international businesses and investors. Credit must be given to those involved for lofty, high expectations of billions of dollars in economic impact.
Imagine one of those potential international investors picking up the Journal/Sentinel, or reading one of the blogs, or Googling “Boomgaard.” Think about what that investor sees.
The Milwaukee Journal/Sentinel reports today, “At last week's Franklin Common Council meeting, one woman chastised aldermen for spending her tax dollars on a name derived from ‘a homosexual red-light district in Holland,’ repeating an unsubstantiated claim that's circulated online.”
The unsubstantiated claim was made by an anonymous individual who’s darkened the Franklin blogs in the past with slanderous comments made about me and blogger Fred Keller whom I have a lot of respect for. In this day and age where you can say anything about anybody or anything on a blog, this anonymous unfettered individual did just that.
Here’s what’s so surprising. The person’s reputation for irresponsible comments should have sent a signal to check out his claim thoroughly. The remarks could have even been temporarily deleted from blogs until verified. Instead, they were left up to stir up even more controversy, controversy that has turned the discussion about this project into tabloid talk at the supermarket checkout line.
Potential tenants pay attention to this stuff, folks. They don’t wander into an environment where they perceive they might be treated with hostility.
I also want to mention Ted Grintjes, the suddenly maligned chair of the 27th Street Steering Committee.
I don’t know him that well, but I know of him. Franklin owes a lot of gratitude to him for his work in getting Northwestern Mutual Life and Wheaton Franciscan here. I would remind everyone that this man is a volunteer, giving countless hours of his time and expertise. I do hope he doesn’t get frustrated and continues on because if he should step away, and I’m not suggesting that’s a possibility in any way, shape, or form, Franklin would be hard-pressed to find a replacement with his institutional knowledge, or volunteer time for that matter.
I imagine we could reconsider this whole mess, toss Boomgaard out, and try to come up with something else. While that might lead some to pop open the champagne, it would also send a message to the business community and others that we really don’t have a clue as to what we’re doing.
We’ve all poked fun at the Boomgaard name, including yours truly, more than once. How long are we going to stare at the spilled milk and talk about it before we move on?
My guess is my thoughts will fall into two categories:
1) They will be mischaracterized.
2) They will be in the minority.
My point is this.
While we have crusaded against Boomgaard in the name of fiscally sound and open government, the damage might have already been done.
The Internet is now plastered with stories, quite frankly, that make us look foolish, led by the entire red-light, homosexual nonsense perpetrated by an anonymous individual who should never have been taken seriously.
People want to “send it back” when it comes to this project? Guess what? This entire project may have been sent back because we used too much tunnel vision instead of thinking about the big picture.
Yeh, we sure showed them, didn’t we.
