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Residents of the West Mifflin neighborhood met Wednesday with Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, to address concerns for the proposed renovation plans of the Mifflin Street area.
According to Verveer, there are currently two competing proposals for renovating Mifflin Street. The first plan requires buildings being torn down because of aesthetic or structural problems to be replaced with buildings of a similar look and character.
The second plan would entail the older houses on Mifflin to be replaced with larger “high-rise” developments that would utilize the full size of the lots. The developments would be around six stories high and greatly increase population density.
Attendees at the meeting were all highly in favor of keeping the character of Mifflin Street as it is.
“We don’t want [Madison] to look like New York City,” Mifflin Street resident Diane Broughman said.
Verveer said he is also strongly against building high rises on Mifflin Street.
“I really cherish the scale of houses … on Mifflin Street,” Verveer said.
If plans to allow high-rise developments were approved, Verveer said he believes developers would try to build to the maximum height and width possible.
Non-student residents of the neighborhood appeared very excited to work with student groups to keep the character of the neighborhood.
“If we can build a coalition with [the Associated Students of Madison], that would be a great start,” Mifflin Street resident Larry Warman said after hearing of the amount of student interest.
Attendee Rick Broughman was against the group forming any official position until they had talked to everyone who cares about the neighborhood, especially interested students.
Verveer said he believes the goal of the developers is to make the neighborhood not as accessible to students.
“I don’t want the neighborhood gentrified to the point that students are kicked out,” Verveer said. “I think if there’s any part of the campus that has a sense of community … it’s Mifflin.”
Verveer also spoke about potential ways the annual Mifflin Street Block Party could be affected by the new plans. He believes the block party tradition would not be the same among high-rise buildings.
“I, for one, actually think that the tradition of the 40 years of celebration of the end of the school year — the beginning of spring — is a cool one,” Verveer said.
The plans are currently in the staff recommendation phase. The city planning division is meeting three times per week to draft a plan, which they will introduce in early December at a meeting at the Overture Center.
Verveer stressed the importance of getting involved now before the plans are presented, adding there is much opportunity for students to get involved in the planning.
“I’m really excited about ASM’s involvement in this,” Verveer said. “I’m thrilled with the level of student interest.”
A meeting is scheduled for Oct. 20 from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. TITU for any students interested in voicing their opinion about the Mifflin Street plans.
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�We don�t want [Madison] to look like New York City,� Mifflin Street resident Diane Broughman said.
-Really? The Mifflin St area is the LEAST densely developed group of blocks in the area. ALL surrounding areas (to the north, east, south, and west) are currently more densely developed. Most all of the houses in the neighborhood are either single family or 2 units. The lots are 1/10 an acre or more. Most lots have a house near the front of the lot, and a gravel parking lot behind. This is terrible land use. I thought that this City (including Alder Verveer) were proponents of DENSITY. Now that there is discussion of 4 to 6 stories in this neighborhood (which I don’t see as going over the top, as most of the old houses in the neighborhood are already 3 stories high), everybody seems to want to “preserve” the low density. I also find it ironic that Alder Verveer lives on the other side of W Washington in a newer condo building (his area has already torn down many houses to put up 3-6 story condo buildings where old homes once stood - and he’s worried about gentrification???).
�I really cherish the scale of houses � on Mifflin Street,� Verveer said.
-Apparently, he didn’t cherish the scale of the original houses in his area of the Bassett neighborhood.
Verveer said he believes the goal of the developers is to make the neighborhood not as accessible to students.
-No, Alder Verveer, the “goal” of developers is to maximize the return on their investment. Students are the target market for that neighborhood, and the students occupying the area is the “highest and best use.” On average, students pay more rent per bedroom (especially since they are sometimes doubling up in rooms) than does any other class of tenant in the City. And that is what developers want…more rent for the same space. Developers WANT student tenants, because again, on average, they pay more rent and therefore more income. And I don’t want to hear about young professionals and families moving into the neighborhood. The young professionals and families that chose to live downtown aren’t going to pick the Mifflin St neighborhood…too much noise, immaturity, and too many headaches to deal with.
I don�t want the neighborhood gentrified to the point that students are kicked out,� Verveer said
-Than why are you trying to block increased density? Over the long term, increasing density will result in lower rents, not higher rents. If there are more units of supply, the demand (and rents) will decrease. If you don’t belive me…let’s look at reality. Over the past several years, private developers have put up highrises containing hundreds (or thousands) of beds - Grand Central, Equinox, Palisades, Park Terrace West, 420 W Gorham, 210 N Charter, The Embassy, The Aberdeen, etc. - all of these buildings that have been built are full of STUDENTS. Apparently, they were not “gentrified” out of the area. Also, I can tell you that the rents for houses in surrounding neighborhoods (like Mifflin St, towards Tenney Park, south of Regent St towards the Zoo) have stabilized or even decreased because of all of these additional high rise units - again, more units equals lower rents. Anybody take Econ 101???
�I, for one, actually think that the tradition of the 40 years of celebration of the end of the school year � the beginning of spring � is a cool one,� Verveer said.
-That’s because you aren’t a property owner that has to pick-up/repair all of the trash and damage left in the wake of the “cool one.”
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Are you sure that’s a picture of Mifflin residents? They look pretty old…