Maple & Main

A lot has been said over the past few days about the July 21st bike race.

For the most part, it has all been very positive.

Waukesha played gracious host to the Carl Zach International bike race for the 14th time last Saturday. Our downtown and its surrounding neighborhoods were converted into a race course that challenged even the best of the bikers.

Alderman Randy Raddish and the team from Couri Insurance did a banner job putting the event together. What most people don’t appreciate is the amount of time these folks dedicate to make the race a smooth experience for all involved.

And in the end, the last race of the day proved to be one of the most exciting in recent memory.


A Different Opinion.

With all that aside, I have my own opinion of the race to offer.

I was up early that day, just as the set-up began. I was able to tour the course and get a very good feel for the pulse of the event.

Police were setting up barricades. Shop owners were sweeping out their doorways. Coffee houses were preparing early morning red-eyes. The smell of sweet rolls filled the air down Main Street.

People were milling about. Bikers were making practice runs on the course. The street sweeper was humming about, sweeping extra diligently along the racer’s course to ensure a safe and clean route.

The Saturday morning Farmers Market was being set up near the river front. A Harry Potter festival was underway on the East end of West Main, and the downtown bustled with an energy unlike any I had seen before.

This wasn’t an Art Crawl by West End Artists. This wasn’t a Friday Night Live by Martha Merrell and the Freeman.

This was the entire City of Waukesha working together- police, city workers, volunteers, store owners, the general public, and city officials- to accommodate an international event.

And all of this positive enthusiasm leads me to this conclusion…

I think Waukesha is ready.

I think we are ready to host the Olympics.

Too much of a jump?

O.K., maybe it is.

Let’s wait until The Clarke Hotel is done so international travelers will have a place to stay.

And Dave’s Restaurant gets its facelift.

And the buildings at 292 and 301 W. Main St. (on the Five Points intersection) get their facelift as well.

And let’s wait until 331 Riverfront Plaza gets it facade updated too. Rumor has it that perhaps a restaurant will grace the first floor along the river and loft apartments or condos may fill the upper portion of the property.

Good stuff, eh?

Then we can invite the Olympic Committee down to see why Waukesha would be such a great place to host the Games.


What the Heck is He Talking About?

If you didn’t have any clue that all this was going on down here, don’t worry. Not a lot of people did.

Until now.

A new face is coming to the old downtown landscape. New improvements to old facades and strong new businesses taking hold are moving this city forward.

Meshed in with the old standby businesses that have made Waukesha what it is today, this downtown is on it’s way to becoming something extraordinary.

It’s becoming a destination for those who are tired of malls and mega shopping centers, and those who are not fooled by the “movie set” downtowns, modeled after real, historic city streets.

It’s for those people who like to spend time walking by an authentic river with a real dam, teaming with real fish.

It’s for families, it’s for first dates, it’s for celebrating a marriage or an anniversary, and it’s for quite moments to your self. It’s for early risers, and it’s for night owls (just be quiet when you stroll by Otto’s Art Academy at 2AM).

It’s for shoppers, it’s for diners, and it’s for those in search of learning something new.

It’s for everyone.

So is the idea of hosting an Olympic event too far out?

I don’t know, but it sounds good, doesn’t it?

Or shall we stick to bike races for now?

Whatever the reason people come here, all that matters is that they do and that they enjoy themselves.

And while Waukesha still has room for improvement downtown, it is definitely headed in a positive direction.

Now, about those bars…

As we all wait anxiously for Money Magazine’s Top 100 Best Cities List to emerge with this year’s winners, Waukesha comfortably enjoys its ranking as number 36 for the year 2006.

However, while we continue to bask in the glory that #36 has brought us, how sure are we that we will maintain?

I mean, what exactly makes a city one of the best places to live in the United States?

Friendly people? Good schools? Clean streets?

Will we maintain our status? Or will we slip in our standing and end up at 50… or 75…

…or worse yet, will we fail to make the list all together!

Is Waukesha going to become just “another city” this year? Or will we move up the ladder to a better standing?

I was browsing the list of categories that make a city “a great place to live” and it includes some pretty standard items, such as housing, education (Waukesha kids need to work on their math scores), and quality of life.

As I continued to peruse the categories, one in particular caught my attention- the “Leisure and Culture” category.

What caught my eye was the comparison of the number of bars in Waukesha to the average number of bars in the typical “best city”.

The “best city” average was 127.

Waukesha has 335.

Wow!

And you guys thought we had too many apartments.

So, in light of this, I have taken it upon myself to redesign the “Welcome to Waukesha” sign again. I think a little corporate sponsorship may help fill some financial holes here in “The Sha”.



But do not fret folks- Waukesha spanked the competition last year on the number of golf courses and ski resorts we had over the national average- two things I have never been good at.

A recent poll by Money magazine just listed the best “towns” in which to reside in the United States. Middleton Wisconsin sits at number one.

Nice job Middleton.

Is Waukesha going to live up to its #36 ranking on the best “city” list this year?

In my opinion, Waukesha is still a great place to live. And this comes from a guy who once lived in the number 1 city in America a few years back- Rancho Santa Margarita, CA. (with a name like that, how can it not be number one).

Does Money Magazine take notice of all of the really great things Waukesha has to offer?

This city hosts an international bike race each year. It has some of the finest parks and bike trails in America. We have live music events every Thursday and Friday in our downtown, an occasional art crawl, and one of the best libraries in the country.

Waukesha has a diverse population and a mix of cultural attractions. We rank high in our number of colleges, universities, and professional schools.

This city also has a low crime rate and top-notch police and fire departments.

And one real fancy fire station! We also have a nice airport.

Soon we can add a new five-star hotel to the list, a brand new Gander Mountain sports store, and hopefully a well developed shopping center on Sunset Drive.

But is Waukesha headed in the right direction? Is this city making good decisions that will continue to keep it on the right track?

Or are we going to kick back in 2007 and then surprise everyone in 2008 by coming out as the number one, best place to live ever in the entire world?

Or do we need more bars?

I guess that will depend on us, the people of Waukesha, and what we want to see happen in this city in the future.

Either way, we had better get on it. Money Magazine is watching.