Tosa Common Council Candidate Wants To Build Community

“What I see the role of an alderperson, or really anybody in government, is to use the shared resources for our collective good,” Margaret Arney, who is running unopposed to represent District 2 in Wauwatosa, told Wisconsin Examiner. As the spring election nears, it’s clear that change will be coming to Wauwatosa’s Common Council. Arney would become the first woman of color to hold a common council seat. She sees the prospect for growth in the suburban community.

“I feel like there’s a lot of opportunities coming up, particularly with the city’s strategic plan, an update with our long-range plan that we file with the state,” explained Arney, who first became interested in city government 12 years ago.

Since then, she has served on various commissions which, while able to make recommendations to the council, could not directly make changes to policy. Arney served on Wauwatosa’s Seniors Commission and as the president of the Wauwatosa Neighborhood Association Council.

She is also the founder of the local group Tosa Together, which focused on issues of race and inclusion in Wauwatosa and she serves as vice chair of the Equity and Inclusion Committee, which was started to address concerns raised by Tosa Together.

She says she looks forward to being able to “be a person with a vote on the council.”
“I think it’s a good evolution,” she says. Arney underscored the importance of “embracing the demographic changes and the economic changes that are going on in our region.”

While maintaining the quality of life in Wauwatosa is important, Arney sees addressing racial disparities as critical to the area’s continued desirability. “There’s a real alignment between my passion and living here as a woman of color, and having raised my daughter here, and really wanting this community to be … perceived as and known as a welcoming community for all,” said Arney. “We have a challenge to re-envision and see ourselves as we are now and not be held back by views from the past.”

Wauwatosa’s history has been shaped by segregation. Viewed as a city of homeowners, the city employed red-lining, restrictive zoning policies and housing covenants that dictated on paper that non-white residents weren’t allowed to reside in certain homes or neighborhoods. Although recent years have seen renewed focus on the practices and history of its police department, the history isn’t exclusive to local law enforcement.

Today, about 86% of Wauwatosa’s population is white while by 5.3% are Black residents, 4.1% of residents are Asian, 2.9% are Latino or Hispanic and 3.3% identifying as two or more races.
Times are changing, and Wauwatosa has gradually evolved.

In 2020 Wauwatosa welcomed its first Black school principal, who was assigned to Wauwatosa West High School. The following year, the city named its first Black superintendent of the school district. Also in 2020, however, there was the circulation of racist letters to some Wauwatosa residents, thanking them for buying yard signs critical of city officials. The letter also proclaimed that “we must keep Wauwatosa free from Blacks and their lack of morals.”

Nevertheless, Wauwatosa is increasingly viewed as a more diverse alternative to the other suburban communities surrounding Milwaukee.

In addition to encouraging diversity in Wauwatosa, Arney says the community must address the fact that it has an aging population. “That also means that when we look at the kind of development and housing that becomes available, how do we meet the needs of older people who want to stay and be a vital part of neighborhoods?” She said. “How do we make it also possible for new families moving in who want to buy a house and send their kids here? We have opportunities, and that’s the key difference. To see the demographic changes that we’re in as opportunities rather than something to be afraid of or to shy away from.”

Arney emphasized that, “we have a lot to offer and when we make the most of that, that’s when the magic can really happen.”

Another priority, she said, is supporting Wauwatosa schools, which are important not only to students, but as community center and recreational facilities for all residents. “They serve the elderly quite a bit,” she said. “There’s older recreational programs going on, there’s things the schools do to provide recreational activities for kids of all ages.”

As an alder, Arney expects to focus on the various planning processes for the city’s future. With six common council seats up for grabs, she sees a lot of room for new ideas in the city. “I think of it as a new class coming to school,” she said. It’s the first time in recent memory that the city could see so many new elected officials taking office all at once.

“It’s an opportunity to shape our working culture,” she added. “We’re going to have to figure some things out and not just do things because that’s the way they were done in the past.”
“These last couple years have been exhausting for people in public service,” she acknowledges.

"And we are, essentially, volunteers. We don’t get paid a full time or even a part time wage to do this work, which is different from how other municipalities are.” Arney said that, “I think we need to respect and honor what it takes to be a dedicated volunteer public servant.”

This story first appeared in the Wisconsin Examiner By Isiah Holmes, Wisconsin Examiner

The Wisconsin Examiner,a nonpartisan, nonprofit news site, offers a fresh perspective on state politics and policy through investigative reporting and daily coverage dedicated to the public interest. The Examiner is part of States Newsroom, a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit supported by grants and a coalition of donors and readers.