Strauss Brands announced plans in September to relocate a meat processing facility from Franklin to the Century City Business Park near North 30th Street and West Capitol Drive. (Photo by Adam Carr) Strauss Brands announced plans in September to relocate a meat processing facility from its Franklin location to the Century City Business Park. Located in the 30 Street Industrial Corridor, the facility near North 30th Street and West Capitol Drive, would have brought hundreds of jobs to a once-thriving business corridor. The proposal, however, was met with pushback from animal rights protesters and ultimately from Common Council members. Last week, Strauss Brands announced it would no longer be moving the slaughterhouse to Century City. We asked community leaders and residents to weigh in on the controversy. Do you have feedback on Milwaukee NNS's reporting? Take our survey to let us know how we're doing! Amani United President Brother RiceBey lives in Amani, a neighborhood that borders the Century City location. He said he and his neighbors did not hear about the development plan until Strauss Brands dropped the deal. How do you feel about Strauss Brands ultimately not bringing a slaughterhouse to the 30th Street Corridor? “Amani was the last to hear about the deal,” he said. “We were kind of left in the dark.” “I feel two ways: It’s prime real estate and opportunity for some, but I also don’t think this is the appropriate area,” RiceBey said. “It’s an inhumane development for an environment that is already inhumane.” What response have you seen from the community? RiceBey said many residents are frustrated by the lack of information from the company, the city and the district’s alderman. “To be honest, I think they knew they would have seen this type of opposition from the community,” he said. What do you think could have been done differently through the process? RiceBey said the company itself should have done more homework and reached out to the residents before talking to officials. “When you bring this type of development to a neighborhood, talk to who the decision is going to impact first,” he said. “Let the people know, or it looks like a shady deal.” Moving forward, residents and leaders should continue to be more civically engaged, RiceBey said. “I’m not even gonna get mad at the city,” he said. “Everyone just needs to be more of a concerned citizen.” He said attending neighborhood meetings and engaging in the organization’s revitalization plan “for the residents, by the residents” is one way to become more informed. “The only thing we have to gain is a better neighborhood.” Cheryl Blue is the executive director of the 30th Street Industrial Corridor, which manages Business Improvement District No. 37, where the slaughterhouse would have relocated. She said the space has been vacant for a couple of decades, and many businesses in the area ultimately supported bringing in the meat processing facility. “We were encouraged by the fact that the company wanted to come into the area,” she said. How do you feel about Strauss Brads ultimately not bringing a slaughterhouse to the 30th Street Corridor? “My concern was that everything happened so fast and people didn’t get the facts,” she said. Blue said the quickest-spreading information in opposition to the Strauss Brands plan— that the slaughterhouse would bring an increase in stench, rodents, crime and drugs in the surrounding neighborhoods— is inaccurate. She said much of the misinformation sparked from a protester-led Facebook group, and that Strauss Brands had plans to address those issues. What do you think could have been done differently through the process? “I’m not here to blame, but I think it is a teachable moment,” Blue said. She said for future business endeavors in area, community engagement and presentation of facts should be the priority. The 30 Street Industrial Corridor’s work puts community engagement in Century City at its forefront. “We’ve been working in the area for years now and we are committed to the success of the area, which includes the people and the residents,” Blue said. “It is in everyone’s best interest for this area of the city to be prosperous in Milwaukee and in the world,” she said. Common Council President Ashanti Hamilton said Strauss Brands was counting on the Department of City Development to handle the community engagement process for them. How do you feel about Strauss Brads ultimately not bringing a slaughterhouse to the 30th Street Corridor? “I think there should have been more outreach by Department of City Development to allow for the company to communicate to the broader community what their proposal was,” Hamilton said.