Silverado Memory Care Proposal is Too Large at Wrong Site

Dear Brookfield Residents:

The proposed 45,000-square-foot Silverado building that was approved last night by the Brookfield Planning Commission, is just another example of how our city leaders are using the "Conditional Use" zoning laws to push their personal agenda.

If Dan Ertl thinks having more health facilities in Brookfield is a good idea, then they can drop one in any location that is currently zoned "Conditional Use." That means any church, school property, along with many other properties that have "conditional use" zoning. If a company or organization is looking to expand/build in Brookfield, all they need to find is a property that has conditional use and if they meet the building standards, they WILL be approved, regardless if it is a Mosque or a memory care center placed in the middle of a residential subdivision.

In a year when politics is so top of mind, like the recent recall effort of Scott Walker and the National debate on Obamacare, it is important that whatever your position is on business expansion in Brookfield, make your voice be heard. In an era of social media and electronic communication, you as citizens of Brookfield have more power to access your right to express your opinions and thoughts to your elected officials. This will make our politicians more accountable for their actions vs. in years past, when deals were done in backrooms among a few people.

The Patch and other news outlets like this is making it possible for people to be heard and unite towards a common good. Politicians never had it so difficult. However, if people sit on their hands and expect somebody else will protect their rights, they will be disappointed with the results.

The decision to disrupt a residential subdivision by Brookfield officials can be averted if the people in Brookfield exercise their right of expression to their elected officials.

I am not against a memory care facility in Brookfield. I am against a 100-bed memory care facility, which would be one of the largest in WI, being built in a residential neighborhood that does not even accept Medicaid to make it affordable for the people of Brookfield to pay the $7,000 a month fee for a bed. If you were a patient who could afford the initial payments and ran out of funds, you would be transferred to a facility that accepts Medicaid. If you are a homeowner in Brookfield and are concerned about your property value and your quiet residential setting, beware, because the elected officials are waiting to exercise their "Conditional Use" powers to change your current vision at a moments notice.