Over the past week, the blog has received a ton of search-engine hits all seeking information about the same topic: EL GUAPO'S. Everyone wants to know more about Berkeley's makeover.

El Guapo's is a significant change from Berkeley's. The interior is vastly different, more masculine .. a much better place for drinks. The price point is lower, and the food is more family friendly.

And take-out friendly .. my wife and I never did take-out from Berkeley's because some places, the food and presentation are too good to mess up with styrofoam boxes. We'll definitely hit EG's for fresh take-out Mexican, though. $25 will go pretty far, when many plates are $6-9.

I emailed some questions to the owners .. their answers are below:

Why Mexican: Originally when we decided on this location, we contemplated a Mexican concept vs. a neighborhood cafe. Turns out the former may have been the better choice. El Guapo's menu is approachable & affordable. The taco entree, for example, starts at $6.50.

Describe the changes to the interior: We made it warm & cozy. Berkeley's lacked warmth, and had terrible acoustics. We have addressed those issues by using warm colors (the green is gone!), constructing partitions between tables, and adding sound absorbing ceiling tiles and a warm wood floor.

Community reaction thus far: Community reaction has been very very favorable! For every one guest we have upset about Berkeley's closing (namely they would like the crunch salad back!), we have 9 guests excited about the change of both atmosphere and menu. Opening El Guapo's is a fresh start. We listened to the community for the past year and believe we have created an offering and an environment that will be well received.

Where did El Guapo come from? Answer: After a long search, we decided on El Guapo. It means "Handsome Man."

Hah. I think they stole it from the awesome 90's movie, The Three Amigos:

Some day the people of this Village will have to face El Guapo!

(Click link to see El Guapo reference.)

Here EG's menu:

El Guapo's Menu - Whitefish Bay

Interior:

A few bullet points from the Dec. 7th Whitefish Bay Trustee meeting:

* We recommended approval of floating $5.7m in sewerage system bonds, and $5.6m in general bonds.  From memory, the rates were around 2.9%.

* We were presented with a report on various possibilities for changes to WFB's garbage collection.   We examined some analysis on the possibility of discontinuing "walk up" collection to each home, and possibly change and require all garbage be placed on the sidewalk for curb-side pickup.

Potentially, this would save collection time and possibly create a route consolidation and a savings of $60,000/year.  That savings figure might have been high, due to the fact that somewhere between 20-50% of all residents already place their garbage on the sidewalk.

About half the folks on my block put their garbage out on the sidewalk for pickup.  Just an FYI, that's not required.   The collectors will retrieve your trash up at your house.  The same thing goes for recycling, a fact I did not know.   We've forgotten to roll our carts out before, were skipped, and mistakenly thought we'd have to suffer for a month with an overflowing cart of recycling.    If you don't pull your recycling to the sidewalk, and they miss you, call up the DPW and tell them they missed your house.

In a straw poll, most Trustees didn't think this service reduction should be pursued for a variety of reasons, from the math not working, to continuing a service that many find valuable.   As I wrote last month, Trustees dismissed my attempt to snip the budget of $77k that wouldn't have cut any service to Villagers.  Cutting an actual service would be quite odd indeed.

* Finally, a resident delivered a presentation concerning prohibiting early-morning snow-plowing on parking lots, as the plowing of the Holy Family lots disturbed his family's sleep.  While all were sympathetic to this issue, the broader impact to the many schools and businesses in WFB was a serious concern.   As a side note, the DPW currently plows regular streets in the Village at any time they deem necessary.

Think back 18 months.  Silver Spring had bottomed out.  The road and sidewalks were cracked and vacant storefronts were common.  Now the Drive looks awesome, and a flock of new merchants have moved in.  -- They need your support, especially in this economy. 

Take the Village Spillage Pledge:  I (insert your name here) promise to buy some holiday gifts from Merchants on Silver Spring.

Here are some ideas:

I'll bet 1,000 new laptops and cell phones are going to be under trees in Whitefish Bay.  Buy them from Mobility, right next to the Fox Bay.   Yes, they are a small shop, but they will order and price match just about any item you want, from Best Buy to Amazon.    You'll help out a small merchant, and in return, they'll give you some tech support. They carry Verizon phones.  You're going to get the same deal there than at any other store.  The bonus?  These guys will sit down with you and help you figure out your phone.  

Got a pet, or need a gift for someone with one?  Treat Fido to something from Hounds Around Town.

Gift for a skier, or tennis player?  Boom, Les Moise.   Naturally, they sell Gift Certificates, so you don't have to know what your snowboarder wants.

Luggage, bags, or travel stuff?  Red Cap Luggage.

Does mom knit?  Ruhama's Yarn.

How about something from the newest merchant: Oro di Olivia for your Oil and Vinegar guzzling friends.  $35 buys you a gift set.

Dad needs a family photo on his desk.  Get it framed at the Great Frame Up.

Don't know what to get your kid's teacher or the postman?  They like Mexican food.  El Guapo's has Gift Certificates.

Your kid wants something from Cavalry Games .. X-Box stuff, RC controlled cars .. rockets.  Who wouldn't like a rocket?

Here's a never-fail gift for your wife: Massage gift certificate from Elements.

Then there's Giraffe, Simon Oliver, Winkies, Schwanke-Kasten, Thiet, Fox-Bay Theater, What's Poppin, and 20 other stores.

Seriously people.   There are 14,000+ people in Whitefish Bay.   Let's guess 40,000 holiday presents.  Imagine if we bought half of them on Silver Spring instead of Best Buy (Mobility), Toys R Us (Winkies or Cavalry Games), Zales, Kay, Shaw's Jewelers (Schwanke-Kasten or Thiet.)

Shop local.  Really.  Please.

So .. you've bought a present for your kid's teacher .. and tipped the post man or newspaper guy.  Some of you have put out a present for the Whitefish Bay garbage collectors.

So how about a little gift for your Whitefish Bay Civic Foundation?  The Civic Foundation already got gifts for everyone:

• The Environmentalists got Green Day in the Bay in April.
• The Parade lovers got two: a 4th of July Parade, and a Holiday Stroll in December.
• The Ice Cream lovers got a couple of Socials, with free ice cream.
• The Music lovers got Sounds of Summer.
• The Halloween lovers got 2,000 pumpkins to carve and display. 

The Civic Foundation isn't supported by tax dollars.  It's funded by a handful of your neighbors, who love these events enjoyed by so many.  It really is your team, run by volunteers who might just live on your block.

The Civic Foundation puts on a lot of great events for our Village .. please consider a tax-deductible gift. 

The WFB CF has an online donation site, so you can save yourself a stamp and get it done in 60 seconds.

Please click here to donate to YOUR Whitefish Bay Civic Foundation.

(If you don't have a PayPal account, that's OK.  Just click on the "Don't have a PayPal Account?" link on the left side of that screen, and you can pay by credit card.)

The Whitefish Bay Trustees had their regular meeting tonight, 12/21. 

We quickly took care of some bond issue business  ..  then at the end of the meeting we voted on an item that I get the most emails on .. a topic I can rarely open my inbox without reading a question concerning the status of:  CITY MARKET. 

The Trustees voted, 7-0 to approve a TID financing agreement for City Market.   Previously, the BID and CDA had voted to approve City Market's application for a Retail Incentive Program grant.

I won't speak out of turn with other details, but suffice it to say, the tea leaves look good for City Market opening in Whitefish Bay.

--

One other quick note .. I'd also like to express my appreciation to the families who answered the appeal for the Whitefish Bay Civic Foundation.   THANK YOU!

Top Five Whitefish Bay Stories of 2009:

#5 - ICE RINKS:

After a long break with tradition, two Ice Rinks were flooded at Klode and Cahill.  The tradition will continue in 2010. 

#4 - ARMORY PARK:

With sufficient funds raised, the Armory Park memorial began construction and had its first official flag raising on Veterans' Day.  The project will be finished with landscaping in 2010.

#3 - ELECTIONS:

• In the Spring, Whitefish Bay had three Trustees elected (Foster, Miller, and myself) and three School Board members elected (Rogers, Steele, Martinelli)
• In the Fall, we had a two-question ballot, with two WFB School District capital referendums.  Both passed.

#2 - DRUGS & POLICE:

In March, Whitefish Bay lost a teenager to a drug-overdose.  This spawned multiple stories concerning police efforts to shut down a drug-house that neighbors had reported countless times .. a creation of a new group, Bay United, and later in the year, two drug-dog searches of the Middle and High Schools (that turned up no contraband.)

#1 - SILVER SPRING RENEWAL

• After 6 months of construction, Silver Spring was rejuvenated with a new street-scape in time for the 4th of July Parade.
• Whitefish Bay's new Business Improvement District (BID) began working and a new Marketing Director was hired (and later quit).
• The BID created a new website and Facebook group.
• A new Retail Recruitment Program was created.
• Fox-Bay Condos were proposed behind Starbucks .. (and are seemingly in a holding pattern.)
• After one year, Berkeley's was renamed El Guapo's, a Mexican spot.
• City Market announced plans to open in the old Mike Crivello Camera location.   Whitefish Bay kicked in TID Funds and a Recruitment Grant to help City Market open in 2010.
• Six new merchants moved in -- What's Poppin, Mobility, Nevaeh Spa, Oro di Oliva, Simon Oliver, & Aurora Health Care.
• Only one (?) store closed, Milwaukee's Finest Guitars.   Also, one of the Persian rug shops is doing a looooong going out of business sale, but that'll count in 2010 if they ever actually close the doors.   If you believe their ads, Betty Johnson's Interiors is closing and is in WFB.  They wish they were in WFB.  They are in Glendale.  False advertising!