In one east-side district, one of Tosa’s longest-serving council members is retiring, leaving one of the council’s newest members to run unopposed, at least for now.
Two other current council members, who once ran against each other when they lived in the same district, are now running in separate districts under the council’s new configuration. And in one west-side district, an incumbent has declared her candidacy as the sole incumbent on the ballot.
The new 12-seat configuration of the Wauwatosa Common Council, which takes effect with the April 2026 election, is forcing most incumbents interested in staying on the council to campaign for the votes of at least some new constituents in newly drawn districts. A handful of those incumbents also enter their races without having to face one of their colleagues on the current council.
Will challengers surface? If so, they will have until Jan. 6, the city’s deadline, to file nominating papers.
This is the second of three articles in which Tosa Forward News is providing an overview of the coming council election, the nominating period, the council’s structural changes and the latest status of the 16 incumbents. In this article, Districts 1, 5, 6 and 10 are examined.
The first installment, posted here on Dec. 19, focused on Districts 2, 4, 8 and 12.
The final installment will post on Dec. 23 and will look at Districts 3, 7, 9 and 11.
To preview these races as they currently stand, Tosa Forward News reached out to each of the current 16 members of the Common Council to inquire whether they planned to run for one of the new seats. Additional coverage in the spring will look at the final ballots, candidates and their positions on city issues, in advance of the election on April 7.
Essentially anyone who lives in the City of Wauwatosa can run, as long as they are legal voters. Additional information is provided in the final portion of this article, below the district snapshots, and on the city’s website here.
Preview: 4 new districts, 4 familiar names
District 1 — This district includes and is centered on City Hall. Though mostly a dense residential grid, it is surprisingly diverse and spans several neighborhoods.
Along North Avenue, from 65th Street to 83rd Street, the northert edge of the district features a mix of homes and businesses. It includes all of the Inglewood and Lowell Damon Woods neighborhoods, the northwest corner of Washington Highlands and parts of Pabst Park, Luddington Commons and Historic Heights. On the district’s south end, it takes in the larger residential properties along Milwaukee Avenue and the portion of Tosa Village north of Harmonee that features the Wauwatosa Fire Department headquarters.
Under the new Common Council configuration, James Moldenhauer and Brad Foley would have competed for a single seat, but Moldenhauer told Tosa Forward News he isn’t running, choosing instead to retire after holding his council seat since 2012.
Foley was first elected to the council unopposed in 2024 and said he intends to run again for the new District 1 seat.
“I enjoy being on the council. I enjoy the debate of trying to further assist the city in providing essential service to residents in the wake of our fiscal pressures presented by the state,” Foley told Tosa Forward News. “I have a real interest in doing better for our community.”
District 5 — The 2022 race for the District 5 council seat was one of the most memorable and closest in recent memory. Rob Gustafson, who previously had been appointed to fill the seat because of a vacancy, faced challenger Sean Lowe, and when the votes were tallied, it appeared to have ended in a tie.
That tie was broken when officials counted one additional vote that had been submitted by provisional ballot, which gave Lowe the edge and the seat on the council. Two years later, Gustafson ran again for the district’s second seat on the council and won unopposed.
Now that Lowe and Gustafson are on the council together, they both will be running for new terms but in separate districts under the council’s new configuration. Gustafson remains in the new District 5, which is entirely in the Tosa East Towne neighborhood between North Avenue and Center Street, from 73rd Street to 60th Street. It is mostly dense blocks of single-family homes and duplexes, many of them in the bungalow style. On North Avenue, the restaurants and other businesses recently created the East Tosa Business Improvement District.
“As a longtime East Tosa resident and small business owner, I’ve seen both the challenges and the opportunities that shape our city,” Gustafson said in his campaign announcement. “I remain deeply committed to listening, collaborating and pushing for thoughtful solutions that keep Wauwatosa an exceptional place to live, work and visit.”
District 6 — Lowe will be running for the new council seat in this district. It is just west of District 5 along North Avenue and includes the western blocks of Tosa East Towne neighborhood and nearly all of the Pasadena neighborhood to Swan Boulevard.
District 6 features businesses along a section of North Avenue known as Midtown, as well as several apartment buildings on the north side of the avenue. Longfellow Middle School, the historic Wauwatosa Cemetery and the Lutheran Home are in this district.
“This campaign will be about bringing veteran leadership back to the Common Council and continuing on a path of steady service,” Lowe said in his campaign announcement. He also told Tosa Forward News that his commitment to serving constituents won’t change despite changes in district boundaries. “At the end of the day, you’re still fighting for the best interests of Wauwatosa residents.”
District 10 — In contrast to the dense residential neighborhoods on the east side of Tosa, this district includes some blocks with homes more spread out on larger parcels, as well as quite a few apartment complexes.
The district is almost entirely west of Interstate 41 and follows the west end of North Avenue until 124th Street and the Waukesha County line. It also includes several non-residential features, including the Wauwatosa School District’s Breitlow baseball diamonds, the Wauwatosa Police Department, the post office, the West Suburban YMCA and the city’s newest public recreational facility, Firefly Grove Park.
Amanda Fuerst, a member of the Friends of Firefly Grove Park’s board, is the only Common Council incumbent who lives in this new district. She was first elected in 2022.
“I am excited to run again and am proud of my accomplishments this first term of completing Firefly Grove Park and saving the summer yard waste program, and in my second term I look forward to creating a safe bike/ped crossing to connect the west and east sides of our city together,” Fuerst told Tosa Forward News.
What it takes to run for Common Council
Thinking of running for council? Dec. 1 was the first day prospective candidates can begin circulating nomination papers. Candidates must obtain 20 to 40 signatures to get their names on the ballot. Those nomination papers are due at 5 p.m. Jan. 6, 2026. Full documentation is available on the city’s website here.
Here are a few other things to know.
A smaller council: The city is currently divided into eight districts, each with two council members representing the same geographic area. Under the changes endorsed by voters in 2022, the Common Council will shrink in April from 16 to 12 seats, and each of those 12 members will begin representing a unique new geographic district — so, no more council member tag teams.
The transition phase: To make this change, all of the current 16 members of the council will end their terms this spring and must decide now whether to run for one of the 12 new seats. Odd-numbered districts will elect members to shortened two-year terms, and even-numbered districts’ members will serve four-year terms, establishing staggered four-year terms going forward.
Responsibilities: Council members are expected to attend and participate in meetings of the full council, which take place about once a month on Tuesday evenings, and are assigned to committees of the council that also meet once or twice a month on Tuesday evenings. Members also receive and respond to inquiries from the public.
Salaries: With the reduction of the council from 16 to 12 members, the pay for each of the new members will increase from $5,400 to $7,200 a year, starting when the new council is seated in April.
- David Paulsen, a Tosa East Towne resident and editor of Tosa Forward News, has more than 25 years of experience as a professional journalist. He can be reached at editor@tosanews.com.
