Public Policy Forum, a nonpartisan government watchdog group, recently researched the ability of 50 cities to obtain federal economic development funding. Milwaukee jumped from the 41st spot in 1998 to the 29th in 2003, the most current year for which data is available, according to the study.

Contributing greatly to this increase is the Marquette Interchange Project.

"The project costs $810 million total, $430 million was paid for with federal funding," said Brian Manthey, communications officer for the project. In order to get the funding, local representatives worked with the local highway administration to see where the funds were needed.

"This is the largest project in downtown Milwaukee's history," said Paul Vornholt, spokesman for Mayor Tom Barrett. "It's a boost to our economy."

With the project come many new jobs.

"Over the course of the four and a half years, there will be thousands of people working," Manthey said. "The project created 700 new jobs — that's pretty significant for one project."

The creation of new jobs will help the local economy.

"These funds are going into construction projects and in order to get them done, it needs workers, they get paid, and they spend the money," said David Clark, associate professor of economics. "It will create a multiplier effect. When money gets injected into the local economy, it gets re-spent over and over."

Although this project is helping the local economy, the U.S. Census Bureau recently reported that Wisconsin had the nation's fastest poverty rate increase in 2003 and 2004.

Wisconsin's poverty rate is 11 percent, according to the study. Two years ago it was 9.2 percent.

If the Marquette Interchange project is not replaced with other projects at its end, the poverty rate could get worse, Vornholt said.

"Availability of jobs is one part of the equation; the other is getting people the skills required for those jobs that are available. Federal funding helps the economy, but it is not a cure for the problem," Vornholt said.

Clark suggests curing the problem by improving the business climate in Milwaukee. However, making this happen is not easy. "They want local workers to get jobs but they want those jobs to provide a living wage. Sometimes those goals are in conflict because the workers are more expensive than in other communities," Clark said.

The project is adding jobs to the Milwaukee area, but it is also helping the local economy in other ways. Once the project is completed, the flow of traffic through the city will increase.

"Commuters, tourists, and businesses will come into the downtown area. It will help downtown Milwaukee," Manthey said. "It will really be worth all the time that was put into it."

In addition to the Marquette Interchange Project, Milwaukee is revamping condos and buildings in the Historic Third Ward, a neighborhood south of downtown.

"They are trying to enhance the quality of life and make it a more desirable place to locate a firm," Clark said.

However, Clark believes the economy will not change much.

"I don't think you'll see massive changes to the local economy," Clark said. "It's certainly not going to dramatically change the flow of traffic. The changes will be relatively minor."

This article was published in The Marquette Tribune on September 15, 2005.