Ross Milton, an assistant professor of public affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, noted that the state has something that the city or county of Milwaukee currently lacks: a budget surplus. Original funding plans called for local governments to contribute over $300 million to the project, leading to fears that the county and city governments would need to cut services to make the needed payments.
“I think the opportunity cost is different for local governments than it is for the state,” Milton said. “And that does mean that who’s paying for it does somewhat affect how we should think about it.”