Photo via votebielinski.com
Justin Bielinski wants to replace Bob Donovan as the Eighth District’s representative on the Common Council. Yes, Donovan is running for both mayor and alderman, although he can only serve in one position, not both, if he’s successful on Tuesday, April 5.
Unlike Donovan, Bielinski isn’t hedging his bets. He left his position as an assistant special education teacher at the Milwaukee Public Schools to devote himself to his campaign full time. Bielinski, who earned a master’s degree in political science from UW-Milwaukee, said he was motivated to run to serve the community in a broader way. Donovan’s attention-seeking antics also turned him off, such as getting into a fist fight with an allegedly drunk man who was urinating on the side of a grocery store and criticizing a temporary mural created by the at-risk youth-mentoring nonprofit TRUE Skool as “garbage.”
Bielinski said Donovan’s solution to every problem seems to be adding more police to the streets. But that narrow-minded approach isn’t working, he said.
“I’m running because I see the potential in the district and I want it to be a great place to raise a family,” Bielinski said. “There are a lot of good old houses, old bungalows, we’ve got a great location and some great parks. But the focus of the past 16 years seems to have been, ‘Let’s hire more cops,’ not economic development. Anything that’s good that has happened in the district has largely been the result of Layton Boulevard West Neighbors, the Menomonee Valley Association and leadership from other sources. Not from the alderman’s office.”
Bielinski said he’d like to support small businesses, reactivate neighborhood watch groups, make the neighborhood more walkable and invest in infrastructure upgrades, all of which would not only boost the district’s economy but make it safer without relying on a heavy police presence. He’d like to see more of a connection between the neighborhoods and the Menomonee Valley and to capitalize on the district’s proximity to Miller Park the way that Bluemound Road businesses have.
Bielinski is also interested in developing a new library in the district and working with Alderman José Pérez to add an indoor soccer field. Both would be attractive gathering places for the local kids.
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“A third of the residents are kids and they have no place to play soccer, especially in the winter,” Bielinski said.
Bielinski said that the Milwaukee Streetcar and Bucks arena deal are finalized and that his job as alderman would be to help them succeed for the city’s sake.
“I can’t sit there and try to muck up the works and make it fail because there’s too much at risk for the city,” Bielinski said.
Bielinski said that in contrast to Donovan, he’d be receptive to concerns from the district’s ethnically diverse residents.
“In Madison, I marched with the immigration rights people and I have taught families of migrant children who were worried about their dad getting deported as they’re in class,” Bielinski said. “I think I am a strong ally for the Latino community. But I think when you look at black, white, Latino and Asian residents their concerns are very similar. We all want good jobs and safe neighborhoods and support to preserve our homes and good infrastructure.”
Bielinski acknowledged that Donovan’s office is responsive to residents’ concerns about crime and safety, but that the long-time alderman has failed in other areas and hasn’t earned another term.
“Responding to constituents’ complaints is half of the job, and it’s something that I’d continue and would do even better,” Bielinski said. “But there’s the other half, which is getting things passed in the council and economic development and leading on the big issues in our city, and I just don’t think he’s done that. And I don’t need to be on TV and be like Trump to get my point across.”
To learn more about Justin Bielinski, go to votebielinski.com.
