2011 in Review: May

As 2011 comes to a close, Wauwatosa Patch looks back at the top stories of the year, month by month. Here’s a recap of the news that made headlines in May.

Friends of Hoyt Pool make a splash

Just five years after a group of citizens proposed raising private community funds to and restore its Depression-era bath house, May 29.

Business districts look to the future

Two Tosa business communities introduced district improvement plans and asked that they both be adopted into the city's comprehensive plan.

A new long-range plan for between North 76th and North 60th streets was unveiled with a promise to first do away with the widely despised "chicane" lanes that wind side-to-side through the East Tosa District.

The Wauwatosa Village Business Improvement District also forwarded for future enhancements.

School District rapidly closes budget gap

Superintendent Phil Ertl gave the School Board details on of the Wauwatosa Education Association for a pay freeze and higher benefits payouts that cut $4 million out of a $6 million deficit and promised to avert nearly all likelihood of layoffs.

Before the month was out, the district also, who accepted a two-year pay freeze.

The best and brightest

More good news for the schools and the community at large: For the first time, the combined graduation rate for Tosa's high schools .

A whimper instead of a bang

The final chapter in the uproar over city union contracts closed quietly as the Common Council decided to of the contracts by Mayor Jill Didier.

Also of note...

• In the midst of a budget crisis of unprecedented scope, the Wauwatosa School Board , nine-term stalwart Lois Weber, to steer through troubled waters.
• In a parting gift to the city, Derse Associates in its former holdings that include a portion of the historic Schoonmaker Reef.
• The Tosa Farmers Market opened just already expanded from its successful first year and with all vendor spaces booked.
• The community was shocked when a couple walking on quiet Jackson Park Boulevard was by three men.
• A Wauwatosa teenager was arrested for attempted murder when he in an argument over renting a prom tuxedo. The young man's arrest also led police to .