Meet Nancy Welch, Candidate For Wauwatosa Mayor

WAUWATOSA, WI — Wisconsin's spring 2020 primary will be held Tuesday, Feb. 18, and Nancy Welch, a 63-year-old Wauwatosa resident, alderperson and retired city planner, will be on your ballot as one of three candidates for Wauwatosa mayor.

In talking with Wauwatosa Patch, Welch said her extensive experience in Wauwatosa government makes her the ideal candidate to oversee the city.

Welch said her top issue is to promote greater fiscal responsibility in Wauwatosa.

"Over the past eight years, the City’s debt has risen 500 percent due to a number of factors including TIF abuse, mismanaged projects, and misplaced priorities. Each year over 10 percent of the City’s annual budget is spent on debt service, not services to residents," she told Patch.

Welch said chasing development projects is not the way to improve Wauwatosa's financial picture. "Allowing new development to adversely impact property values is not a smart way to build tax base. If we are going to preserve our tax base, we need to protect the things that make this a desirable community."

Welch touts her experience in developing Wauwatosa's Comprehensive Plan as a grounding for making smart decisions in the future.

Name: Nancy Welch
Age: 63
Hometown: Rhinelander, WI
Occupation: Current Alderperson, Retired City Planner

Political Experience:

I have served on the Wauwatosa Common Council for 4 years as the Alderperson representing District 3. I also serve on the Financial Affairs Committee, the Transportation Affairs Committee, the Budget Committee, the Community Development Block Grant
Committee (CDBG), and for two years on the Sustainability Committee. Previously, I worked as the Community Development Director for Wauwatosa, WI and Auburn, WA, and as a senior planner for several other communities giving me over 30 years of experience with planning and community development.

In Wauwatosa, I staffed the Plan Commission, Historic Preservation Commission, CDBG
Committee, and created both the Economic Development Advisory Committee and the Community Development Authority.

Top issues, and how I would address them if elected:

My top issue is promoting greater fiscal responsibility for the City of Wauwatosa. Over the past eight years, the City’s debt has risen 500 percent due to a number of factors including TIF abuse, mismanaged projects, and misplaced priorities. Each year over 10 percent of the City’s annual budget is spent on debt service, not services to residents. The excuse has been that we need to chase new development in order to increase our tax base, but the reality is that we are a land-locked community that cannot continue to rely on new development. Most of the new development has occurred either in TID’s (Tax Increment Districts) or is tax exempt, so city residents have seen little actual tax relief. Many commercial properties continue to challenge their assessments, which also reduces their contribution to the tax base.

My second issue is preserving and protecting our neighborhoods and open spaces. I am very proud to be part of the County Grounds Coalition and the newly formed Friends of County Grounds Park. For over twenty years, I have worked to protect the County Grounds and promote responsible development that minimizes impacts on either environmental areas or neighborhoods. This includes finding ways to support our neighborhood schools. While supervising the creation of the City’s Comprehensive Plan, I worked with consultants and residents to ensure that the Plan promotes a balance of development and neighborhoods. Residential property has provided approximately 70 percent of our tax base for over 125 years.

Allowing new development to adversely impact property values is not a smart way to build tax base. If we are going to preserve our tax base, we need to protect the things that make this a desirable community.

An interesting fact about myself:

It can be difficult for me to take a vacation that includes visiting another city because I spend my time checking out examples of urban planning. As a result, I have gone dog sledding north of the Arctic Circle, canoed for two weeks in the Boundary Waters, sailed on a 35-foot sailboat in the Stockholm Archipelago, and hiked a glacier in Norway.