owned and rented by suburban landlords, along with a significant decrease in the number of owner-occupied properties.

For 75 years, city employees had been required to live in Milwaukee as a condition of employment. But in June 2013, the Wisconsin Legislature approved an end to local residency requirements for municipalities. The new law was praised by unions representing Milwaukee police and firefighters but quickly challenged by the city in court. The city lost. In June 2016, a 5-2 majority on the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled that Milwaukee could no longer enforce its residency requirement.

A spokesman for then-Gov. Scott Walker praised the decision, calling it “a big win for individual freedom.” Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett called it a “sad day.” Barrett, citing the experiences of other cities where residency requirementsBut you can find other city employees as far away as Cedar Grove in Sheboygan County and Williams Bay in Walworth County.

Where the impact has been the greatest

Some neighborhoods in Milwaukee have been disproportionately affected by the end of residency. For years, three aldermanic districts — the 11th on the southwest side; the 13th on the far south side; and the 5th, on the far west side — have been home to large numbers of city employees, especially police and firefighters. The three districts have some of the city’s highest median residential property values and owner-occupancy rates, as well as the lowest crime rates.

Ald. Mark Borkowski represents the 11th District, which has approximately 40,000 residents. As of early 2018, the latest numbers available, city data showed 295 city