Halmstad, Reddin face off in District 2 aldermanic race

Candidates see state of city differently

By ALAN HAMARI

Posted: March 9, 2010 |(0) Comments

A Brookfield resident who challenged a sitting District 2 alderman in 2008 is squaring off against an incumbent again April 6.

Terrence Halmstad, who advanced past the primary but lost to Alderman Rick Owen in the general election two years ago, is running against incumbent Alderman Bob Reddin, who was unopposed in his first bid for office in 2006.

Terrence Halmstad

Halmstad, who is retired but working part time as a delivery driver, said he is running again because he feels District 2 is lacking proper representation in City Hall.

"I do not feel that the present alderman has really any contact with the people in the district," he said.

Halmstad said he has talked with many residents about the rehabilitation project on Capitol Drive slated to take place in 2011 or 2012, especially the sidewalks that will be built from 124th Street to Brookfield Road in conjunction with the road work. The city will pay 20 percent of the cost of building those walkways.

"I have not run into a person in favor of (the sidewalks)," he said.

The candidate said one of the big issues facing Brookfield over the next several years will be the economy and the city's approach to taxes and spending.

"I think one of the things that's going to be critical for the city over the next three or four years is this recession that we're in," Halmstad said. "What we're really going to have to watch is expenditures."

To that end, he said, it seems unwise to spend money on big projects such as an environmental impact study for another potential Interstate 94 interchange. The city plans to spend $800,000 over the next five years to prepare engineering and other studies for the possible interchange - including $100,000 this year.

Other municipalities that would benefit from an interchange, such as the city of New Berlin and Waukesha County, should help defray some of the costs so Brookfield doesn't have to foot the whole bill, Halmstad said.

Bob Reddin

Reddin said he has enjoyed his first four years on the Common Council and he wants to continue to help lead the city.

"Given where Brookfield is at, where Wisconsin is at, where the U.S. is at, now is not the time to back away from (public) service," he said.

Reddin said the city has "really done remarkably well the last couple years" compared to other communities in terms of keeping high service standards while maintaining a reasonable tax rate.

A four-year member of the Finance Committee, Reddin said he is proud the committee has made only modest increases in the city portion of the tax rate. The average tax rate increase over the last four years has been about 1.5 percent, compared to average increases of 3 to 4 percent that were common five to 10 years ago.

"We've got some folks on the council … that are really fiscally conservative," Reddin said. "And particularly right now, that's important to have."

Another success Reddin pointed to was the relocation of Fire Station No. 2 into Fairview North Park. He said the move not only reduced emergency response times for District 2 residents but also helped upgrade one of the city's most underused parks.

Reddin said he has taken an "open-door approach" to being an alderman, even setting up an additional home phone number so constituents can call him directly. He said it's important to hear from residents, and he and Owen try to schedule a couple open houses every year to meet with District 2 residents and hear their questions and concerns.

Reddin also is involved in activities at St. John Vianney Church and Burleigh Elementary School, and he has coached soccer and Little League. He uses those opportunities to talk to residents, too, he said.

Aldermen serve four-year terms and make $9,911 annually.