Straight Poop on Barrett’s Poop in the Lake

Barrett Takes Credit for Norquist Deep Tunnel Expansion

Now that Mayor Tom Barrett’s MMSD is Wisconsin’s biggest polluter, having dumped over 2 billion in untreated sewage into Lake Michigan last month, his campaign spokesman may be drinking the water.

As the controversy swirls like a toilet bowl, of course Mayor Tom is unavailable for comment. Choosing to exercise the Barrett leadership style of disappearing in crisis.

So enter Phil Walzak, flak for Barrett’s campaign for governor, with the unenviable job of defending a politician who said six years ago he would clean up the sewage mess, and who had attacked his opponent in 2004 for dumping a measly 90,000 gallons of poop and more into the lake.

Walzak today told The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that Barrett had added capacity to the deep tunnel to avoid sewage dumping in the lake.

POOP SPINNING IN THE MEDIA BOWL: “Since Barrett became mayor, 116 million gallons of storage capacity has been added to MMSD's deep tunnel system, a 28% increase, Walzak said. City funding for sewers has also gone up, he said,” The Journal Sentinel reported today.

Poor Phil may be drinking the Mayor Barrett’s Lake Michigan water straight from the lake.

Let’s take a look at the record:

STRAIGHT POOP: The 116 million expansion was planned in 2002, according to the Wisconsin Legislative Audit Bureau.

STRAIGHT POOP: The construction began in January of 2004, before Mayor Tom was elected. In fact, the record shows MMSD was $29.4 million into this construction before Barrett was elected.

STRAIGHT POOP: He is taking credit for Norquist’s plan because the Milwaukee Mayor has control over MMSD (appointing 7 of 11 members). In six years, he as not used that power to keep his promises.

So when Mayor Tom runs into the bathroom stall to hide from the press, you should know that’s his management style.

That’s the straight poop. And there’s no denying it.

Here’s what the Daily Reporter Reported in 2002:

“McCabe, legal services director for the district, said three projects are planned that will increase capacity of the Deep Tunnel by more than 25 percent.  "The Northwest Side Relief Sewer will add 89 million gallons of capacity," McCabe said. "Bids were let on that several months ago, and construction has begun."

Two other projects planned for the future, he said, include a $25 million Wisconsin Avenue sewer, adding capacity of nearly 25 million gallons, and an $18 million Port Washington Road sewer, with another 2 million-gallon capacity.

Completion of the $117 million relief sewer, a 7.4-mile, 20-foot diameter tunnel, is expected in December 2006, while the other two projects are slated for completion in December 2009.  The Deep Tunnel capacity is 404 million gallons, McCabe said, and the three projects will add a total of 116 million gallons."