Yard waste collection was one of two lingering issues that dominated the council's debate before it voted, 12-3, to approve the 2026 budget. The other primary debate was over an ongoing city subsidy for Bublr Bikes.
It was perhaps no surprise that there was no love lost between Dennis McBride and Andrew Meindl, who have sparred since facing each other in the last mayoral election in April 2024.
A new council structure and district boundaries, endorsed in concept by voters in a 2022 referendum, will take effect with the next term, and it already suggests some interesting council races in the spring.
City officials and the developers say the conversion project will not be feasible without financial support from the City of Wauwatosa, which is considering creating a new tax incremental financing district to include the project.
City officials said the developer had been passed over for a $2 million affordable housing grant, leaving "no financial path forward for that project."
The council is set to shrink from 16 members to 12 after local elections in April 2026. If the budget for council's pay stays the same, that money will be divided among fewer members, effectively meaning a pay raise.
Highlights included a reduction of yard waste pickup to monthly instead of biweekly, a reduction of one firefighter position, cost-of-living increases for other staff salaries and savings through increased energy efficiency.
The 13-1 vote authorizes city staff to begin negotiating the terms of a possible agreement while seeking answers to some of the remaining questions about how such a merger would work and how a joint department would be managed and governed.
About a hundred people attended the March 7 forum to see how Dennis McBride and Andrew Meindl would respond to questions posed by a moderator from the Wauwatosa West Allis Chamber of Commerce.
The final scope and details of such a project remain uncertain, particularly given the potential cost. Several council members acknowledged that the project might be a tough sell for some taxpayers.
