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Initial damage assessment reports indicate that this month’s flood damage is smaller in scale to last year’s storms and will not meet the requirements to request federal assistance, according to county and city officials. 

Milwaukee County is coordinating with municipal emergency managers to evaluate damage using resident reports to 2-1-1 and communication with local and regional partners, according to Emily Tau, public affairs director with the Milwaukee County Office of the County Executive. 

“While the impacts to affected households are significant and taken seriously, at this time, the impacts from this flooding in Milwaukee County do not meet the thresholds required to initiate a FEMA Preliminary Damage Assessment and potential Presidential Disaster Declaration,” Tau said.

Ryan Zollicoffer, director of the City of Milwaukee Office of Emergency Management, said joint teams from the Department of Neighborhood Services and the Milwaukee Fire Department are continuing on-site evaluations of the most impacted residential areas.

Based on preliminary reports, both Zollicoffer and Tau said the magnitude of damage to date appears substantially lower than after August’s flooding, when historic rainfall exceeded 10 inches in parts of Milwaukee. Rainfall totals from April 13 to April 15 topped 5 inches in the city. 

Zollicoffer said some residents may be eligible for assistance through the U.S. Small Business Administration disaster loan programs, depending on final damage determinations.

The city and county will then work with the state to determine whether any additional recovery resources or support mechanisms are warranted, he said. 

Some elected leaders have expressed interest in exploring options to request aid.

Governor’s effort

On Wednesday, Gov. Tony Evers announced that he directed Wisconsin Emergency Management to submit a request for FEMA to assist the state in conducting a formal federal preliminary damage assessment from recent extreme storms and flooding throughout the state.

Wisconsin Emergency Management is the division of the state’s Department of Military Affairs that coordinates disaster and emergency responses.

Evers signed an executive order declaring a state of emergency on April 15 and authorized the Wisconsin National Guard to assist in relief and recovery efforts from flooding, hail, strong winds and tornadoes that hit communities across Wisconsin in April.

In an April 17 letter, Evers requested Wisconsin’s two U.S. senators and eight U.S. representatives help urge the Trump administration to reconsider the denials of the state’s requests for assistance from August’s storms and approve outstanding requests.

President Donald Trump approved individual assistance to Wisconsin homeowners and residents after the August flooding. However, the administration denied requests for assistance to repair public infrastructure and for the hazard mitigation grant program. 

Wisconsin appealed both decisions to FEMA but was once again denied public assistance and is still waiting on a response for the hazard mitigation grant. 

“These denials and delays have left Wisconsin more vulnerable to this next wave of storms and flooding,” Evers wrote. 

Wisconsin does not have its own standing assistance program to help property owners make repairs from flooding or storms, according to Wisconsin Emergency Management, the division of the state’s Department of Military Affairs that coordinates disaster and emergency responses. 

Next steps

Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Marcelia Nicholson-Bovell authored a resolution to be introduced at the outset of the new board term in May that requests the county Office of Emergency Management conduct a comprehensive assessment of the damage from April’s storms, according to Erin Caffrey, communications specialist with the Milwaukee County Clerk’s Office. 

The countywide review of damage would be used to inform recovery efforts and strengthen future applications for state and federal aid, she said. It would also support the development of a coordinated flood preparedness, response and communications plan that would create a flooding information alert system and help supervisors effectively engage with residents, Caffrey said. 

“This resolution is about bringing our partners together, assessing the damage, improving communication with residents and making sure we are better prepared before the next storm hits,” Nicholson-Bovell said in a statement. “Our communities deserve a coordinated response and the long-term investments needed to protect homes, neighborhoods and businesses.” 

Ald. Andrea Pratt introduced a communication file to the Milwaukee Common Council to discuss city intersections and areas that are hot spots for flooding, which was on the agenda for a Public Works Committee meeting on Wednesday morning at City Hall.

Mayor Cavalier Johnson, County Executive David Crowley and Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District Executive Director Kevin Shafer formed a Flood Mitigation Task Force to evaluate mitigation efforts to reduce impacts from future storms and solicit feedback. It is expected to meet soon.

Other resources

Anyone can report storm damage or request to be connected to volunteer cleanup resources by calling 2-1-1 or submitting a report online through the 211 Wisconsin website. 

The Wisconsin Conference of the United Methodist Church, in partnership with UMCOR and Team Rubicon USA, is organizing 100 volunteers to assist families with cleanup in Milwaukee County in the coming weeks and months, Tau said. The American Red Cross and the Salvation Army are also active in support efforts. 

Organizations interested in coordinating with partners through the Southeast Wisconsin Community Organizations Active in Disasters can visit sewicoad.org or contact coadsewi@gmail.com.

Residents who lost food purchased with FoodShare can apply for replacement benefits through the Wisconsin Department of Health Services until the extended deadline of May 4.^.

Call or text the Disaster Distress Helpline at 1-800-985-5990 for free, 24/7, confidential, multilingual emotional support.

The Department of Neighborhood Services’ Compliance Loan Program helps owner-occupied properties address building code violations with a no-interest, deferred payment loan. Residents can apply if flood damage is under the purview of the program and they meet the requirements.  

Jeremy McGovern, marketing and communications officer for the Milwaukee Department of Neighborhood Services, said the department would not be opposed to waiving permit fees related to flood damage repairs like it did for the August floods, but doing so would require Common Council authorization. 

He also said the city’s Neighborhood Improvement Project inspectors and plan examiners can be resources in helping navigate timelines and repairs.

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Find more resources in NNS’s previous reporting. 

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Meredith Melland is the neighborhoods reporter for Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service and a corps member of Report for America, a national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on under-covered issues and communities. Report for America plays no role in editorial decisions in the NNS newsroom.

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Jonathan Aguilar is a visual journalist at Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service who is supported through a partnership between CatchLight Local and Report for America.

Federal flood assistance unlikely in Milwaukee: Officials discuss next steps is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.

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The nonprofit Center for Self-Sufficiency closed in September as federal investigators audited its use of $750,000 in government funding. 

The organization focused on supporting residents reentering society from the criminal justice system and strengthening families. Services included financial and employment coaching, parenting support and restorative justice. 

The center was based for years out of the Community Advocates headquarters at 728 N. James Lovell St. before moving to the YWCA building on King Drive in May. 

The government audit found that the use of $749,000 of the federal funds was unsupported by documentation.

“It’s kind of shocking because it’s portrayed as if there was no information that backed up spending, and that definitely wasn’t the case,” said Maudwella Kirkendoll, chief operating officer of Community Advocates and former vice president of the Center for Self-Sufficiency’s board of directors. 

Despite the audit, two former employees who were working at the center when it closed said the main reason the organization dissolved was a gradual dwindling of funding opportunities. 

Kirkendoll agreed. 

“The funding,” Kirkendoll said, “was just drying up.”

The employees asked to remain anonymous to avoid any negative impacts to future work opportunities.

The federal audit

The U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs oversees Second Chance Act grants, which are generally meant to support people as they reintegrate after incarceration and help reduce recidivism. 

The Center for Self-Sufficiency was awarded nearly $750,000 to provide case management and employment services to men returning to Milwaukee after incarceration from 2021 to 2024, its third time receiving the grant. 

The office approved an extension to continue the grant with no additional funding until September. 

The Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General launched an audit in May into the center’s program. The office conducted a site visit, interviewed staff, reviewed policy and procedures and requested accounting and financial records.

The audit, which was released in September, indicated the Center for Self-Sufficiency could not demonstrate compliance with certain grant requirements because it did not provide the accounting documentation needed to show how funds were spent to support its program performance. 

“While we determined that a majority of (Center for Self-Sufficiency’s) policies aligned with important conditions of the laws, regulations, guidelines, and terms and conditions applicable to the award, we found critical issues with (Center for Self-Sufficiency’s) grant financial management,” the report reads. 

The audit also found the grant’s financial activity was mixed together with activity from other sources in the organization’s accounting records for most of the time frame that was examined. 

The report recommended that the Office of Justice Programs review and “remedy” the spending, find a better use for the remaining $1,000 that was not used and make sure the Center for Self-Sufficiency has proper systems in place to track how it spends grant money before receiving any future funding. 

According to the report, the center notified the office that it was considering dissolving in July and that its board ultimately voted to close the organization by Sept. 30, 2025.

What former staff and board member are saying

Kirkendoll and the two former employees said the Center for Self-Sufficiency did not misallocate any funds.

It could verify grant program expenses with receipts and paper and computer records, but it had a past accounting system that was not clear, they said. 

When Dafi Dyer became president and CEO of the Center for Self-Sufficiency in late 2022, she and the board implemented a review of the center’s outside accounting firm after noticing some problems and switched to a new accounting firm and system in mid-2023, according to Kirkendoll.

During the audit, the center provided the records from its updated system, as well as the records from the previous accountant, according to Kirkendoll and the former employees. 

“So all that stuff is substantiated, it was there, it just wasn’t in the format that they would have expected from the accounting firm,” Kirkendoll said. 

The audit also reported that the center did not complete single audits for 2021, 2022 and 2023.

The Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs did not respond to questions about the services and documentation provided by the Center for Self-Sufficiency. 

The Office of the Inspector General did not attempt to collect the spent money, according to the former employees and Kirkendoll.

Shutting down

Kirkendoll said the board was having conversations with the center’s leadership about potentially dissolving the organization in the first quarter of 2025. 

As limited-term grants ended, according to Kirkendoll and former employees, leadership and the board were not sure if the organization would be able to receive enough funding from other grants to support its operations. 

“When we dug deeper, it just got to a point where, as a board, we decided having even one or two grants remaining just didn’t make sense,” he said. 

The center moved out of the Lovell Street building into the YWCA Southeast Wisconsin building at 1915 N. Martin Luther King Drive in May.

The Center for Self-Sufficiency made efforts to downsize by reducing employee hours and salaries, according to a former employee. It cut its staff of 10 in half in June.

The organization’s total public support dropped from $3.46 million in 2015 to $2.2 million in 2019 to $1.3 million in 2023, according to the center’s tax filings.

It also did not have much private funding – in 2023, it reported $55,054 in other gifts or contributions. 

Kirkendoll said concerns about grant funding are not specific to the Center for Self-Sufficiency. 

“Over the course of the last five-plus years, I think this funding overall for organizations that are doing the work has decreased substantially,” he said.

Impact

Both former employees said the center had a great working environment and a staff dedicated to the people they served. 

One former employee said success stories from past clients, such as staying at a job for two years or having relationships with their children or families that they couldn’t maintain before, might not be reflected in data reports but can make a big difference in a person’s life. 

Another former employee said they gave their contact information to the final participants in the reentry program and still tries to connect them with other resources. 

“They did great work, and this is the nature of nonprofits,” Kirkendoll said. “It’s, of course, always my hope that the work continues, whether it be with another organization, because there’s definitely a need in the community.” 

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Meredith Melland is the neighborhoods reporter for the Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service and a corps member of Report for America, a national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on under-covered issues and communities. Report for America plays no role in editorial decisions in the NNS newsroom.

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Jonathan Aguilar is a visual journalist at Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service who is supported through a partnership between CatchLight Local and Report for America.

Milwaukee’s Center for Self-Sufficiency closes after federal audit finds unsupported grant documentation is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.

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When the Social Development Commission stopped running its anti-poverty programs and services in 2024, it left many employees and contractors unpaid for completed work. 

Nearly two years later, some have received a partial payment, while others are still waiting.   

Deja Allen, a former housing intake specialist for SDC, is owed $2,518.09 in gross wages, according to her wage claim. 

She said she was out of work for eight months and the unpaid wages affected her tremendously as she figured out how to pay her rent and bills. 

“I am thankful for my family being able to assist me while I looked for other employment,” Allen said. 

SDC stopped running its anti-poverty programs and laid off staff in April 2024. Since then, the agency has dealt with board turnover, lawsuits and the loss of access to community action funding.

What’s happening with the wage claims lawsuit?

The Wisconsin Department of Justice filed a lawsuit on behalf of the state’s Department of Workforce Development that claims SDC owed nearly $360,000 in back wages and benefits to former employees.

Sarah Woods, former youth and family services staff, was laid off when the agency paused services in April 2024. She filed a wage claim with the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development, which informed her that she is owed $4,756. 

Woods said she last received an update from the state in May 2025, when a representative said SDC would not have more information until the legal process is completed. 

Department of Justice attorney Michael D. Morris said at a status conference last month that William Sulton, SDC’s former legal counsel, is still working behind the scenes with him on reaching a resolution and requested additional time. The next status conference is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. on March 26. 

A spokesperson for the Department of Workforce Development said the department isn’t able to provide additional details on the lawsuit’s status or outcomes while litigation continues. 

Jorge Franco, interim CEO of SDC and chair of the SDC board, said that paying employees and contractors what they’re owed remains a major priority for SDC. He advised former employees to follow the legal process closely. 

“It’ll be upon the attorneys for the claimant to determine what and how they proceed through next steps,” he said.

Contractors still owed

In his more than 40 years providing weatherization services in the Milwaukee area, Jaime Hurtado said SDC had one of the best and most robust weatherization divisions. 

Hurtado is the owner and president of Insulation Technologies Inc., or Intec, and worked with SDC for more than 20 years.

SDC received funding for the work through Wisconsin’s Weatherization Assistance Program. The Wisconsin Department of Administration suspended SDC’s participation in the program in March 2024 and began a forensic accounting after it reported a misallocation of funds. 

“They had built a professional, top-tier delivery service, a program to deliver these services in weatherization for people who need it the most,” Hurtado said. “It’s a heartbreak to see that go out of existence.”

Franco has said the department refused to reimburse SDC for nearly $490,000 in weatherization work and let it continue accumulating expenses before shutting down the program.

Intec and two other contractors, Affordable Heating and Air Conditioning Inc. and DMJ Services LLC, otherwise known as Action Heating & Cooling, sued SDC on claims that it failed to pay for weatherization work completed under contract in 2023 and 2024.

A judge granted the contractors a money judgment of $186,517.03 plus statutory costs and interest in October. About $112,500 of that would go to Intec, but it hasn’t been collected yet.

Jon Yakish, owner of Micro Analytical Inc., said his asbestos-testing laboratory has not been paid for 90% of the contracts it had with SDC before it closed. 

“It wasn’t that big of a deal,” he said, estimating the remaining unpaid work cost around $2,300. “And I know there’s other people out there where it was a much bigger deal, so it’s hard for me to complain.”

Loss of work

More than the missing payments, Yakish and Hurtado’s businesses have felt the sustained impact of losing a loyal customer. 

Intec continues to perform work in the state’s weatherization program, Hurtado said, but at a reduced level. He said other providers have brought in a smaller volume of business than SDC. 

“We just move our attention to other parts of the market,” Hurtado said. 

Yakish said Micro Analytical also hasn’t received the same amount of business it had from SDC from the other organizations that have taken over the weatherization program services in Milwaukee.

“We don’t want to rely on the government, but it is a baseline of work that’s always going on, that kind of, in a way, helps us be recession-proof,” Yakish said. 

Moving on

Hurtado said the lawsuit was the only way to secure Intec’s rights to collect the money that it’s owed, though he acknowledged that SDC owes other lenders and suppliers.

“Who knows if they’ll have enough money to pay our balance, but at least we’ll be in the list,” he said. 

The $112,500 amount is about 25% of the total amount Intec was owed from SDC, Hurtado said. He said the state worked with other weatherization service agencies to pay Intec the other 75%, which helped the company. 

“Thank God we’re diversified enough, and we’re a strong company,” he said. 

Yakish said he submitted invoices and data on work performed at the state’s request in order to get paid, and a few contracts were paid. He became frustrated after the companies that had taken over SDC’s weatherization contracts kept asking for the same information.

“I kind of told them, ‘Look, I’m throwing my hands up.
This is the last time I’m doing this,’” he said. “So I don’t know if they took that as I was unwilling to work with them or whatever, but it just seemed really clear that nothing was actually going to happen.”

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Meredith Melland is the neighborhoods reporter for the Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service and a corps member of Report for America, a national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on under-covered issues and communities. Report for America plays no role in editorial decisions in the NNS newsroom.

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Jonathan Aguilar is a visual journalist at Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service who is supported through a partnership between CatchLight Local and Report for America.

Nearly two years after SDC shutdown, former workers and contractors still seek payment  is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.

Reading Time: 4 minutes

The Social Development Commission spent 2025 trying to restore services and funding in the face of legal challenges, board friction and government audits and reviews.

Commonly known as the SDC, the organization has a long history of providing services for low-income residents in Milwaukee County, including tax help, job training and rental assistance.   

Since it stopped running its programs in April 2024, SDC has been trying to create a path to resume its anti-poverty work. 

Here are some of this year’s major stories on the SDC. 

March/April

State holds public hearing   

In March, the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families scheduled a public hearing on SDC’s status as a community action agency. 

The community action agency designation allows SDC to receive a federal block grant to support its anti-poverty work. 

Jorge Franco, interim CEO and chair of the SDC board, said at the board’s next meeting he felt the department had not been transparent with SDC about its concerns on SDC’s ability to restart services and meet other requirements while they had been meeting and providing documents over past months. 

In early April, the Department of Children and Families held a hearing in Milwaukee on SDC’s community action status to get public comments from members of the community, who spoke in favor of SDC. 

May/June

State files wage claims lawsuit 

The Wisconsin Department of Justice, on behalf of the Department of Workforce Development, filed a lawsuit in May that alleges the SDC failed to pay $360,000 in wages and benefits owed to former employees, according to court records. 

William Sulton, SDC’s attorney at the time, acknowledged SDC owes workers wages, but said the lawsuit would not be the most effective way to get them paid. 

Franco has said SDC is committed to repaying employees for wages and benefits. 

State’s community action decision held for review

After reviewing materials from the public hearing, Secretary Jeff Pertl of the Department of Children and Families decided in May that it would remove SDC’s community action status in July.

However, SDC leaders said they had concerns that the state did not follow the proper decision process, so they requested a review from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in June. 

The department agreed to take up the review, which suspended the state’s decision. 

September 

Weatherization vendors win lawsuit 

Three vendors filed a money judgment lawsuit against SDC in an effort to collect reimbursements for weatherization work completed for the agency. In September, a judge granted a total judgment of $186,500 plus statutory costs and accrued interest. 

October 

Credit facility proposed

The SDC board received a letter of intent from Wings Credit Union indicating it is interested in providing the SDC with a credit facility, or a type of loan, of up to $15 million. In SDC’s case, the credit facility would be used to cover upfront expenses for government-funded programs that are paid through reimbursements. 

Foreclosure decision 

In March, Forward Community Investments Inc. filed a foreclosure lawsuit against SD Properties Inc., which owns SDC’s buildings, alleging it defaulted on mortgage payments for the main office and warehouse buildings on North Avenue. 

At an October hearing, a judge ordered a judgment of foreclosure against the North Avenue buildings and ruled that Forward Community Investments was entitled to a money judgment of approximately $3.1 million. 

SDC moved out of the buildings and started a three-month redemption period.

Sulton resigns

Sulton, SDC’s attorney and legal counsel since late 2022, resigned from his volunteer position in mid-October. 

Sulton represented SDC in lawsuits, served as a spokesperson and advised the board.

November 

Board members make failed attempt to remove Franco  

Some members of the board attempted to call an emergency meeting to vote on removing Franco as the board chair and interim CEO, but they ultimately did not vote on anything because of a disagreement on meeting procedure. Franco opposed the meeting and called it “out of order.” 

State releases community action decision

The Department of Children and Families notified SDC on Nov. 21 that it believes the federal review period ended as of Nov. 18 and would be moving forward with removing SDC’s community action status. It selected UMOS to be an interim provider of block grant-funded services. 

SDC commissioners raised questions about the timeline of the federal review at a board planning session in November. 

December 

Federal office releases letter

The director of a division in the federal Office of Community Services found that the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families’ process of removing SDC’s community action status was compliant with federal law, according to a letter it sent to the department on Dec. 5. 

SDC is seeking further clarity from senior leadership at the Department of Health and Human Services, Franco said in a statement.  

What happens next  

Building sale or foreclosure auction  

The three-month redemption period for the North Avenue buildings expires on Jan. 6, according to SDC, although they technically can be redeemed up until there is a hearing to confirm the sale of the properties at auction. 

Ongoing legal cases

Lawsuits filed against SDC from TriShulla, an information technology company, and the Department of Workforce Development are still ongoing. 

Meredith Melland is the neighborhoods reporter for the Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service and a corps member of Report for America, a national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on under-covered issues and communities. Report for America plays no role in editorial decisions in the NNS newsroom.

Jonathan Aguilar is a visual journalist at Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service who is supported through a partnership between CatchLight Local and Report for America.

A year of challenges for Milwaukee’s Social Development Commission is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.