The state Department of Natural Resources neglected Milwaukee this week when it solicited public comments from southeastern Wisconsin residents on Waukesha's request to buy Lake Michigan water, Milwaukee Ald. Michael Murphy said Friday.
In a news release, Murphy scolded DNR officials for not coming to Milwaukee to hear citizens' concerns about Waukesha's proposal to discharge its treated wastewater to Underwood Creek if it gains approval to buy lake water.
The creek empties into the Menomonee River which flows through Milwaukee's Valley Park neighborhood, Menomonee Valley and harbor, Murphy said.
Public hearings on Waukesha's request for lake water were held this week in Pewaukee, Wauwatosa and Sturtevant.
"Where's the public hearing for Milwaukee," Murphy asked in the news release. "Milwaukee residents also deserve a public hearing because they have a right to know" how the city's proposal will impact them in terms of water quality and possible flooding, Murphy said.
"If the DNR is truly listening, and if the DNR truly believes in a transparent and complete public comment process, then they should immediately schedule an open public hearing in the City of Milwaukee," Ald. Robert Bauman said in the news release.
Lisa Emmons, president of the Valley Park Civic Association, said: "I just think it is very disrespectful to the residents based on the vast history of flooding and our long relationship with the river in the Valley Park neighborhood to not have some sort of public meeting where we can ask questions and receive information."
The hearing in neighboring Wauwatosa was held at Hart Park, a few miles upstream on the Menomonee River.