Property values in Walworth County are up, over last year; taxes are up even more. Meaningful gain, but a tax burden growing even faster. The story’s in the Walworth County Gazette. The story includes a link to a Public Policy Forum study. For Whitewater, both our property values and tax levy increased less than the…

This is the second of two posts on the Whitewater Tree Commission. The first appears immediately below. Terms of Law.  One finds a quick willingness for some speakers and bureaucrats to rail about harassment, or maligning city workers, by some on — or off — the TC.  Whether all of the circumstances involved justify those…

There’s a Japanese expression that says, “The nail that sticks up gets pounded down.”  Some in Whitewater don’t like dissent, and conflate the political and the personal, in ways detrimental to both.  You may have heard, if you’ve bothered to look at a local headline (and who could blame you if you’ve not?), that Whitewater’s…

Hey, Whitewater, how about a task force? These flesh-eating aquatic mammals are probably making their way from Drummond to Whitewater even now. In about 20 or 25 years, they’ll have reached our city limits. Coincidentally, that’s about the same amount of time that it would take one of our task forces to propose an effective…

A reader has kindly sent along a link to a story about former Whitewater, Wisconsin City Manager Gary Boden, entitled “Councilmen: Gary Boden was forced out. The story in the newspaper published in the Clinton Herald of Clinton, Iowa, until recently Boden’s place of employment as city manager, describes conflicts between Boden and Clinton’s mayor,…

Here’s a latest review of City of Whitewater invoices, in honor of the Tom Waits song entitled, “What’s He Building in There?” (The song’s an ode of — but not to — paranoia, and every time that I hear it, I think of all the small-town busybodies who are sure that your business should, truly…

I wrote last week that I would post a link to the 2010 Census, a constitutional requirement. I now have that link on the main page of FREE WHITEWATER, on the left sidebar. It’s a prominent link, easy to find and use. Many civil libertarians find some census questions uncomfortable, but an accurate census will…

There’s a Tom Waits song entitled, “What’s He Building in There?” It’s an ode of (but not to) paranoia, and every time that I hear it, I think of all the small-town busybodies who are sure that your business should, truly should, be their business.  Private citizens preying on private citizens, enforcing conformity.     Here’s the…

I received an email from the City of Whitewater with a link to the federal government’s 2010 census, required constitutionally every ten years. A full and complete count will be difficult, but both practically and culturally critical, that we might see ourselves as we truly are. I’ll create a permanent spot for the link, too,…

 It was a relatively brief Common Council meeting on Tuesday, July 7th.  About a half-hour into the meeting, as at last session, the Common Council considered changes to Whitewater’s regulations affecting sidewalk cafés for some establishments near the Cravath lakefront.  I wrote about that meeting in a post entitled, Whitewater, Wisconsin’s Café Scene”.    Removal of these…