As recently as the fall of 2022, an in-depth assessment by the Wisconsin Policy Forum found that the city of Milwaukee was beset by a series of fiscal issues that seemed almost insoluble. The lifeline of federal pandemic aid from the American Rescue Plan Act was scheduled to run out in 2024 just as the city would face a massive jump in its contribution for its underfunded pension system. As in many American cities, crime rates in Milwaukee had shot upward and staff vacancies had also risen am...
