Aerotropolis Milwaukee
Thoughts on Denver’s Airport City
Dec 15, 2014

Last week, we went on the road to participate in the Aerotropolis Americas Conference which was held in Denver, CO.  The Denver region has played host to this event in the past, in part because it is viewed as having one of the country’s most fully realized Aerotropolis efforts.    Situated on 54 square miles 23 miles northeast of the city center, Denver’s International Airport is in the rare position to be able to build an airport city from scratch.  Vast tracts of farmland, access to rail and highway, a major air transportation hub, and a booming regional economy have… Continue reading ›


Aerotropolis Milwaukee Reaches Milestone With New Development Plan
May 11, 2017

Earlier this year, the Aerotropolis Milwaukee and its partners reached an important milestone with the completion of the Aerotropolis Development Plan report – a large scale planning effort outlining opportunities related to industry, transportation, and connectivity to the economic driver that is MItchell International Airport. The group partnered with the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission (SEWRPC) to lead the year long planning effort in the creation of the report. Formed in 2010, the Aerotropolis Milwaukee is public-private nonprofit corporation, focused on comprehensive economic development, centered around the General Mitchell International Airport.  Through its multijurisdictional approach, public and private representatives from… Continue reading ›


A Business District with an Airport in the Center
Sep 10, 2014

General Mitchell International Airport is unique among American airports in that it forms the border of 5 separate municipalities.  For the communities of Oak Creek, South Milwaukee, Cudahy, St. Francis, and Milwaukee, WI, the airport is on the periphery of their City borders – literally the edge of town.  Because of this, the edge around the airport has never received much attention nor has there ever been an effort to coordinate development across municipal borders.  Aerotropolis Milwaukee has taken on this task and is now working with these 5 communities and other key stakeholders to build a shared vision for development…. Continue reading ›


Milwaukee Lifts Cap on Taxicabs
Aug 04, 2014

Ground transportation is a key component of any regional transportation system, and for years Milwaukee has lagged behind peer cities in providing this service.   Since the early 1990s, the City of Milwaukee has held a cap on the number of taxicab licenses that it issues, which has limited the number of cabs in Milwaukee to 1 for every 1,850 residents.  This cap resulted in drastically high prices for purchasing a license as a cab driver, which in turn hurt the quality and responsiveness of taxicab service.  In a region that relies on personal automobile use and the bus system to… Continue reading ›


Airport Directors Elsewhere
Apr 29, 2014

With the recent retirement of Barry Bateman as the director of GMIA, its owner Milwaukee County will embark on a search process to find a replacement.  It will be interesting to see the eventual result, some of which will be governed by how the opportunity at GMIA is presented to the marketplace. Attached is a recent interview of the director of the airport in Dublin, Ireland. The population of greater Dublin is just slightly larger than the population of greater Milwaukee and it, too, is bound on the east side by water.  Seeing examples of how other airports are managed… Continue reading ›


Aerotropolis Milwaukee Board Meeting Is Next Week
Apr 25, 2014

Below are a draft of the minutes from the last board of directors meeting along with the agenda for the meeting at 11 a.m. on Thursday, May 1st. These meetings are open to the public and next Thursday’s will be held at Superior Equipment & Suppy, 4550 S. Brust AV in St. Francis. Minutes:   MGAC Meeting Minutes February 6 2014 Agenda:   MGAC Board of Directors Agenda for 5-1-14