Here's what to know about the two candidates running for Wauwatosa District 8 alderperson

Incumbent Jason Wilke will face Erik Fanning in the April 2 election for District 8 alderperson, one of two contested races in Wauwatosa's eight districts.

The alderperson seats in this election are for two-year terms, rather than four. That's because in 2026, Wauwatosa will be represented by one alderperson in twelve districts after voters decided in a referendum to make the Common Council smaller and the council discussed and adopted the changes.

Here's what to know about the candidates.

Erik Fanning

Background: Fanning has lived in Wauwatosa the past 10 years and works as a property manager. He was born in Detroit but raised in Wisconsin. After he served in the U.S. Navy after high school, he spent much of his working life in various serving and management roles in the hospitality and service industries. Customer service has prepared him for public service, he told the Journal Sentinel. Fanning and his wife are the parents of a Wauwatosa West High School student.

Website: erik4alder.org, Erik Fanning for Alderperson - District 8 Facebook page

Supporters: Fanning has accepted small donations from his family and supporters he has met at meet and greets.

Endorsements: Fanning doesn't have any major endorsements.

Erik Fanning wants to get residents more engaged in the political process

Fanning’s desire to get more residents engaged in local government and decision making led him to run for District 8 alderperson.

While canvassing in his area, Fanning said he was surprised at how many people in his district didn’t know the names of their two alderpersons. From his experience attending meetings in person and online, he senses residents are apathetic to getting engaged in the political process and thinks it’s the city and Common Council’s responsibility to help change that.

“I’m someone who welcomes engagement,” he said.

Fanning said if elected, he’d want to keep residents informed weekly by sending out an email each Friday to constituents.

“I would like an active constituency, people who come to me and talk to me and want me to propose things and ideas.”

Fanning wants to improve Wauwatosa’s walkability, starting with West Burleigh Street and North Mayfair Road

Fanning said he would work to create a pedestrian walkway connecting Mayfair Mall to the Menomonee Parkway, an area just outside of his district. The lack of sidewalks on West Burleigh Street alongside Bluemound Golf & Country Club is an issue he’s raised to the city for many years, he said.

“I’ll watch people walk down Burleigh Street alongside cars going 30, 40 miles an hour,” he said. “It just seems ludicrous that there isn’t a sidewalk there.”

Fanning is looking out for 2026, when the north part of district 8 becomes its own district

Fanning said he plans to help set up for 2026, when the size of the Common Council will shrink from 16 to 12 alders and new boundaries will introduce a new district north of Capitol Drive. Those changes were decided by voters in a 2022 referendum.

He said of the current Common Council and himself, there is not a candidate at this point who lives in that area to represent the new district.

“My plan is to recruit, educate, train and prepare two or three candidates who know and care about the area,” Fanning said. That way, the new district “can have a healthy race,” he said.

Fanning wants to help address Wauwatosa's affordable housing needs, inclusive initiatives

Fanning said on the Common Council he’d want to help address the shortage of affordable housing, especially for families with kids in Wauwatosa schools and seniors.

He was critical of the affordable housing aspect of the height ordinance the Common Council adopted in January, saying that it "won’t be very effective" in incentivizing developers to make truly affordable places for people who make less than 80% the average median income, or around $60,000.

Fanning also wants to prioritize inclusivity to keep Wauwatosa a safe and welcoming place for all. He said as the city grows increasingly diverse, he would serve as an alder who works with and advocates for people from all walks of life.

Fanning has advocated for racial justice in Wauwatosa through protests and a public listening session over racism and policing in 2020 sparked by police killings, including former Wauwatosa Police Officer Joseph Mensah's shooting of 17-year-old Alvin Cole. He was one of more than 50 plaintiffs who sued the City of Wauwatosa, former city police chief Barry Weber and Mayor Dennis McBride after claiming their rights were violated by enforcement and city response to the 2020 protests. A federal judge initially dismissed some claims including those against the City and mayor, and a jury ruled last May that the Wauwatosa police's "target list" did not violate protester rights.

Fanning brought a claim from the original lawsuit to state court in October in a suit that alleges the city and mayor violated state statute in enacting an emergency curfew, he said. The case is scheduled for a final pre-trial hearing Aug. 1, according to online court documents.

Jason Wilke (incumbent)

Background: Jason Wilke was appointed as alderperson of District 8 in 2009 before being elected to the role the following year and has served District 8 since. He chairs the Community Affairs Committee and is a member of the Government Affairs Committee and the aldermanic liaison on the Board of Parks and Forestry.

Wilke moved to Wauwatosa more than 25 years ago as a renter on the east side of Tosa before buying a house in the 8th District and starting a family. When their new neighborhood had no neighborhood association, he and his wife Lynn helped found the Park Ridge Neighborhood Association.

Website: jasonwilke.com

Supporters: Wilke is accepting donations for his campaign on his website.

Endorsements: Wilke has not solicited endorsements.

Wilke said his years on the Common Council have taught him how to get things done and collaborate

Wilke said his more than a decade of experience as an alder has taught him how to get things done and collaborate with the rest of the council and city staff.

"The voters need someone they know, and they can trust who can make common sense decisions on issues that matter to Wauwatosa," he said.

He said he's led in improving Hartung Park and the Menomonee Parkway during his tenure as an alder.

Wilke wants to find new funding sources for housing, services in Wauwatosa

When asked about affordable housing needs in Wauwatosa, Wilke said many developers are only getting money or loans for apartments that oftentimes cater to young professionals. He said he'd want to work with the council and developers to find new funding sources for housing.

"Are there creative ways we can help developers change some of their projects to be more suitable" for people looking to downsize affordably without leaving Wauwatosa or moving into a senior living facility, Wilke said.

Wilke also said new funding sources could be found to maintain a high quality of services for Wauwatosa residents.

In his own district, he wants to ensure residents continue to receive proportionate service from EMS and the police department. He said residents in the northwest area of the city once had slower response times to emergency calls due to staffing and resources, but that's gotten better over the years, and he wants to maintain that improvement.

Wilke said he'd continue on the Active Tosa plan

Wilke said he'd work on bringing a regional rec plex to Wauwatosa as identified in the Active Tosa Plan, a master plan for parks, open trails, recreational facilities and trails developed by the Wauwatosa School District and city officials. He said the facility "would ideally be located in the Burleigh redevelopment area adjacent to Whitman Middle School and West High School, and the Mayfair Collection for retail and hotel access."

Wilke put ARPA funding towards two park projects.

Wilke said he's excited to see through to completion projects that he's worked on in the last few years. Renovations to the Muellner Building at Hart Park, home to the curling club and senior center, and the new west side city park on 116th Street are funded through the American Rescue Plan Act funding.

"I proposed (4) million (dollars) of the city's allocation to go to these two park projects so generations to come could enjoy," Wilke said. "The Common Council concurred that this portion of the historic funding should be dedicated to legacy park projects, echoing the spirit of the New Deal funding in the 1930s that led to the creation of the parks and parkways that define Wauwatosa's unique character."

Contact the reporter at bfogarty@gannett.com

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Meet both candidates running for District 8 alderperson in Wauwatosa