MILWAUKEE — The re-elected Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley already has big plans for Milwaukee as he enters his second term in office.
Crowley is the youngest and first Black county executive in Milwaukee’s history. He won by a landslide in April — nearly 85% of the vote.
Speaking at his swearing-in ceremony Thursday, Crowley highlighted his administration’s successes over the past four years, like Wisconsin passing Act 12 and Milwaukee’s progress towards racial equity. But he quickly shifted his speech to what constituents can expect from his second term.
“May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and Milwaukee County is on the forefront of forging new public-private partnerships to enhance mental health services for all of our residents,” he said. “We will keep advancing the re-design of behavioral health systems.”
Crowley’s initiatives for public health also include housing. He announced plans to revive the county’s housing trust fund to allocate funding for affordable housing developments.
Just hours before Crowley’s inauguration, a stolen car crashed into a Milwaukee County Transit System bus, adding to the already millions of dollars in damages that other MCTS buses have endured in recent crashes. Crowley spoke of reckless driving as a “deadly plague” in Milwaukee and said public safety solutions were underway in addition to community outreach.
“This includes installing more traffic calming assets along our roadways; pursuing the development of the future public safety building in downtown Milwaukee.”
Crowley said the new public safety building would enhance security in the courtroom, reduce jail overcrowding and case back logs, and support trauma-informed care.
On the public transit side of roadways, Crowley announced his office is pursuing federal funding such as the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity grant to bolster local transit projects.
Crowley’s speech ended with an emphasis on dialogue with other communities: “My message to leaders all across the state is that we cannot let our work stop here.”
After traveling with other local officials in the lead-up to the passage of Act 12, Crowley said he witnessed communities everywhere facing the same issues as Milwaukee — an opioid crisis, lack of affordable housing and public transit, and clean drinking water.
“What’s good for Milwaukee County is good for all of Wisconsin.”