Welcome to my blog! This is a space for exploring local topics, trends, and even a bit of community gossip. Please note that the views expressed here are my own and do not necessarily represent the official position of the City of Middleton.
Most importantly, I want to hear from you. You might be surprised by how little input we receive from constituents regarding major projects. In fact, I can count on one hand the number of residents who consistently reach out to me about city business at the council level or raise concerns about our district.
Your voice matters, and I’m here to listen. Let’s start a conversation.
The Community Campus Project
The Community Campus is a major undertaking for the city, representing the largest city-owned potential development since the construction of the Police and EMS facilities. My view is simple: the city needs to act. Our current buildings are aging and can no longer keep up with our growing community. The question is when do we act, sooner or later and a what cost.
Regarding how we pay for this project, I have shared some thoughts during Finance & Personnel meetings (also recently published in the Middleton Review). One viable option is utilizing our current debt capacity. As we finish paying off the debt for the Police and EMS facilities, rather than just letting taxes fluctuate, we could use that same capacity to fund a portion of the future Community Campus and continue to investigate additional options. This allows us to invest in our infrastructure while being mindful of the long-term impact on our taxpayers. Your input is vital to the future of a community campus.
Affordable Housing
Middleton is an expensive place to live. Because of this, our city and elected representatives are working hard to find ways to build and maintain affordable housing.
Since building affordable housing is typically less profitable for developers than market-rate projects, we create financial incentives to bridge the gap. One such incentive could stem from our Housing Action Plan, which could utilize approximately $10 million from the closure of Tax Increment District (TID) #3.
While $10 million sounds like a windfall, it isn’t a simple fix. Developers must be willing to build non-market-rate units in a town where people are eager to pay top dollar. For example, why would a developer build a unit for a $1,500 subsidized rent—complete with "strings attached" and reporting requirements—when they could easily get $2,500 on the open market?
As you can see, we have our work cut out for us. However, I believe people who work in our community should be able to afford to live here. Currently, we are leveraging taxpayer funds in several ways:
Rental Assistance: Channeling funds through Wayforward to keep families in their homes.
Sustainability: Funding programs to rehabilitate older homes for better energy efficiency.
Development Incentives: Using TIF to encourage developers to set aside a percentage of units as affordable.
Ultimately, there is more we can do, and we will continue to push for creative solutions.