Milwaukee's $1.2 million subsidy to failing store draws critics

The Milwaukee Common Council's decision to approve $1.2 million in subsidies for a failing department store is raising skepticism, even among those who voted in favor of the package in the first place.

The city's aldermen voted 11-3 in favor of granting up to $300,000 annually to cover the property taxes of Bon-Ton Stores Inc. – which owns the Boston Store in downtown Milwaukee – until 2018. Though the measure was approved, several council members have questioned the offer to a company operating at a loss. 

According to city officials, helping the store continue to operate would help revitalize Milwaukee's downtown area while keeping jobs in the city. Bon-Ton also houses a corporate office in Milwaukee. 

In addition to the 100 jobs from the Boston Store alone, the city hopes to hold on to around 650 jobs in the corporate office. 

Milwaukee's unemployment rate hovered at around 9.5% in February 2014.

With downtown department stores also on the decline nationally, the Boston Store, founded nearly 120 years ago, is also a piece of Milwaukee history.