MILWAUKEE- The Republican National Committee will have to wait and see if their interest in Milwaukee being the host city for their 2024 convention in reciprocated.
The Council’s Steering and Rules Committee today voted to postpone accepting the framework of a contract that would allow the city to host the political party.
At issue during the three-plus-hour session today was the amount of money the city would, or wouldn’t receive as a benefit of hosting.
“We can barely afford the level of public service we provide now,” Alderman Bob Baumann said, citing the fact that much of the estimated $200 million in economic benefit would go towards private businesses and the state of Wisconsin.
“We need cash, and not one dime of this two-hundred million comes into the pocket of the city that w can spend on all these services we’re obligated to perform,” Baumann added. “We have no problems morally with the RNC, it’s a business problem, we need cash that goes directly to the city to cover our obligations and expenses.”
Following more than an hour of testimony in which City Development Commissioner Lafayette Crump, VISIT Milwaukee CEO Peggy Williams-Smith & Republican party liaison Gerard Randall, the commission went into closed session.
After they came out of closed session, Alderwoman JoCasta Zamarripa requested an amendment be made to the contract that would require the RNC provide $6 million to the city as part of the community benefits agreement. The amendment was unanimously approved her amendment and voted 7-1 to postpone a vote on the deal until a later date.
The full Common Council is set to meet again on June 1st. The RNC said they would, ideally, make their convention location decision by the end of June.
