Policy Performance and Brownfield Redevelopment in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

The redevelopment of brownfield sites has become a central focus of government efforts aimed at developing and revitalizing urban areas in the U.S. This article examines brownfield redevelopment efforts in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, which gained momentum in the mid-1990s, in order to determine how Milwaukee is performing in terms of redevelopment activities, what the effects of government support of such activities have been, and how performance outcomes are currently being measured. Through an examination of government data and interviews with key stakeholders, the Milwaukee case reveals that redevelopment is indeed progressing well as government becomes more effective at tackling the barriers to private-sector redevelopment. However, progress in redeveloping brownfields is still being measured primarily in terms of economic development outcomes rather than in terms of the broader social, economic, and environmental objectives that both policy makers and private-sector stakeholders associate with such redevelopment.