(This is a new feature on Milwaukeeworld.com that will run frequently to provide the latest information on breaking news in Milwaukee. If you have story ideas or tips, please email them to mark@milwaukeeworld.com.) Franklyn Gimbel, a prominent Milwaukee attorney, who has spearheaded the expansion of the Midwest Airlines Center over the past few years, is not expected to be reappointed to the convention center’s board of directors.

Gimbel, whose term expired in May 2003, has not heard yet whether Gov. Jim Doyle would reappoint him to the prominent position as the head of the 16-person board that oversees the convention center, the former Milwaukee Auditorium, now called the Milwaukee Theater, and the Wisconsin Cellular Arena.

Gimbel is one of four members of the board appointed by the governor. Marc Marotta, Doyle’s secretary of the State Department of Administration, is also a member of the board.

However, several sources close to the Doyle administration said Doyle wanted to put his own person in charge of the board and would likely appoint a new member in the next several months. A political source said Doyle would probably wait to replace Gimbel until construction of the renovated Milwaukee Theatre is completed in October just in case any new problems surface during the $42 million project.

Construction problems and an increasing construction budget have plagued the high-profile project, which Gimbel pushed to get ahead of a similar theater plan from the Bradley Center.

The Wisconsin Center Board has also been under fire recently for its handling of a $7 million catering contract. Levy Restaurants, Chicago, recently secured the contract, beating out three other national firms, including a Boston firm that several Wisconsin Center Board members alleged the convention center’s staff was trying to steer the contract to.

“They (Doyle administration) would rather see any problems fall at Frank’s feet rather than a new person,” the source said. “But, like the other state boards, you can bet that Doyle wants to put his own person there.”

For his part, Gimbel said he has asked the Doyle administration to reappoint him.

“I very much want to continue on this board as I believe we have done a lot of good work, but there is more work to do,” he said. Dr. Christine Anderson, a Milwaukee Public Schools’ teacher and spouse of one of the executives of the Milwaukee teacher’s union, has been recommended to head the Milwaukee Partnership Academy, a partnership aimed at trying to get additional resources for MPS.

Anderson is the spouse of Bob Anderson, an executive with the Milwaukee Teachers Education Association (MTEA), one of the partners in the academy. The other partners are MPS, Milwaukee Area Technical College, Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce and the Private Industry Council. The group was created to develop a comprehensive teacher education prototype to prepare K-12 teachers to teach in an urban school setting. According to MPS documents, its current mission to enhance the quality of teaching and learning at MPS.

Anderson, who would take a paid lead from her $63,418 teaching position, would receive an additional $33,581 in salary from MPS and UWM. In addition, she would continue to receive MPS’ lucrative fringe benefit package, which MPS administrators valued at $44,250 annually. The other academy partners would fund a portion of the benefits.

Anderson, who was president of MTEA from 1979 to 1982, would also receive a MPS secretary, with a total cost of $81,290, of which MPS would fund $16,258, or 25 percent.

The recommendation will be considered June 10 by MPS’ Finance & Personnel Committee. Jeff Spence, MPS Board President, predicted the committee and full board would approve it.

“It is a challenging job because you have to get a number of different cultures on board for the program,” he said. “You are also going to have to work on getting public participation in trying to improve the quality of education in Milwaukee.” Milwaukee Public Schools, already facing severe budget problems, is expected to be forced to return more than $1million in grants it received from a federal program aimed at providing funding to public schools and libraries to implement Internet connections.

The District’s Finance & Personnel Committee will consider a request June 10 to return more than $600,000 as part of the E-Rate program, which is administered by the Federal Communications Commission. Since its inception in 1998, MPS has received about $49 million from the program for classroom wiring, telecommunications services and Internet connectivity.

According to MPS documents, $638,455 in payments was received by MPS for classroom wiring that apparently occurred earlier than the year in which the funds were sought for. The documents stated MPS had been notified that the FCC is going to request an additional $456,572 be returned for similar reasons.

MPS did appeal the decision, but it was denied by the FCC.

If MPS does not return the funds, the documents stated it would risk losing the opportunity to obtain about $10 million annually to wire a remaining 384 classrooms for Internet service. A proposal to expand Wisconsin’s ozone nonattainment zone to 11 counties, including Fond du Lac, Walworth, Dodge and Winnebago counties, has been killed by Gov. Jim Doyle, in what one state regulatory official called “a political decision.”

The proposal, which was discussed at the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources’ Clean Air Task Force meeting May 20, outraged community and business leaders from many of the counties. The groups were planning a special meeting June 13 in Appleton to discuss how to oppose the measure. The proposal would have expanded the non-attainment zone to Brown, Columbia, Outagamie, Dane, Calumet, Jefferson, Winnebago, Walworth, Fond du Lack, Rock and Dodge counties

In an e-mail to businesses and political leaders, Jeff Schoepke, director of environmental policy for the Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce, a state business group, said a nonattainment designation brings with it “significant new regulations with serious implications for economic development and the daily lives of individual citizens.” For example, he said businesses expanding in non-attainment counties would have to meet the most stringent controls and obtain emission offsets. Other requirements include rate-of-progress, other stationary and mobile source controls, and transportation conformity.

“Fond du Lac County is facing a severe threat,” John Ramer, president of the Fond du Lac County Economic Development Corp., said in a recent e-mail to Fond du Lac business owners and political leaders. “I believe that this designation will have (a) severe, negative impact on many businesses in the county, and will in fact, significantly hurt the future economic status of each of our communities.

“The designation is also unnecessary, arbitrary and imprudent. It would be the capricious act of bureaucrats at the DNR. In other words, the damage that could be done is not required by any regulation or standard.”

But in early June, Doyle stepped in and killed the proposal. Larry Bruss, regional pollutant and mobile source section chief for the DNR, who works with the task force, said the proposal would not be part of the task force’s final recommendation to the federal environmental protection agency on air quality standards for Wisconsin.

“It is not going ahead,” Bruss said tersely. “It was a political decision made by the governor. And the governor is the boss.”

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