In Milwaukee, Donald Trump and RNC Leave Small Businesses Empty

MADISON, Wis. — In case you missed it, Milwaukee business owners are feeling misled about the promised economic benefits of the RNC. After officials promised $200 million in economic benefits for the city, some businesses in and around downtown Milwaukee are experiencing some of the lowest activity they have had “since COVID.”

President Biden meanwhile has spurred a small business boom across the country and in Wisconsin in particular, with over 222,000 new business applications filed in Wisconsin since the start of the administration.

See the coverage below: 

FOX6 (FOX – Milwaukee, WI): “Many Milwaukee restaurants and shops said they were promised a busy week with the Republican National Convention happening, but some say it has been anything but. The increase in visitors for the RNC hasn’t translated to an increase in business.”

WTMJ (Milwaukee, WI): “The streets just blocks from the Republican National Convention security zones are empty. Not only was there no business bump early in the RNC, but some restaurants downtown weren’t able to depend on their lunchtime regulars.”

TMJ4 (NBC – Milwaukee, WI): “Ahead of the convention, many businesses downtown were preparing for a flood of visitors and their money, and while some… are seeing a boom, others… are seeing less traffic.” 

Wisconsin Public Radio: RNC boosters promised an economic boon for Milwaukee. Not everyone believes the hype.
[Evan Casey, 7/9/24]

In recent weeks, some business owners have publicly questioned whether the RNC will actually be that good for Milwaukee businesses. They include Gary Witt, the president and CEO of the Pabst Theater Group. 

[…]

“As the days and weeks and the months passed and we continuously had conversations and we awaited these multiple visits by people, they just really never happened… We had very few visits to the venues – nothing, really, of any consequence at all.”

[…]

New York Times: The GOP Convention Is No Landslide Win for Milwaukee Businesses
[Dan Simmons, Robert Chiarito, and Mitch Smith, 7/19/24]

When Milwaukee was chosen to host the Republican National Convention, city leaders sold the event to local businesses as a singular economic boost. 

[…]

But in interviews at bars, restaurants and stores around town, that experience seemed more the exception than the norm. Benihana, a steakhouse and sushi restaurant that announced extended hours for the convention, had few lunch customers on Monday.

[…]

Nearby, employees at retail stores in the Historic Third Ward, typically a busy area for tourists and locals, said business had been slower than usual since the convention began.

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: From Van Orden’s bad week and Trump’s endless speech, the winners and losers from the RNC
[Daniel Bice, 7/19/24]

Loser: Downtown bars and restaurants — If you were looking to eat at one of the city’s hot spots, it looks like you missed a good chance. Many of them had plenty of space throughout the past week because convention-goers apparently preferred the security zone. And when they ventured out, they didn’t tip well.

Wisconsin Public Radio: ‘Ghost town’: Some Milwaukee businesses say week of RNC has been a bust
[Evan Casey and Margaret Faust, 7/18/24]

Organizers for the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee said the four-day event would bring an estimated $200 million in economic impact to the city.

But Emilie Krueger, an employee at Discourse Coffee in Milwaukee’s Walker’s Point neighborhood, said it seems like the convention has been a drain on the shop’s business.

“I think we’ve had the slowest couple of days that we’ve had since we opened,” Krueger said Thursday. “It just feels like a ghost town.”

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: In Bronzeville, there’s frustration, disappointment about lack of RNC business
[La Risa R. Lynch, 7/18/24]

On Wednesday, businesses said their coffers aren’t overflowing with revenue. Some pointed to poor outreach among city officials and RNC planners about catering opportunities for private events from the convention or being included in visitor brochures.

[…]

Barry Green, owner of Bronzeville Kitchen and Lounge, was also hoping his establishment could have been rented for private events. Green did a total gut rehab on the building at 2053 N. King Dr., to make it more modern and classic. Opened in January, the 4,000-square-foot restaurant can accommodate nearly 200 guests. 

“Nobody even reached out at all,” Green said.

That included the state GOP, which has a field office a block away.