Patty Burbach of Mount Pleasant is speaking out after a Facebook post by the group Forward Kenosha used a photo of her late husband Peter and the family's story without her permission. Burbach said the portrayal was inaccurate, calling it totally negative and totally wrong, and she recorded a video at her home to set out what happened.
Burbach said she and her husband sold their land on Braun Road years earlier in a voluntary transaction as they prepared to downsize for retirement. She said they were not forced to sell, that realtors helped them look for a smaller home, and that the sale was documented with paperwork and receipts.
Her husband had grown tired of the upkeep on the property, including mowing and other maintenance that became harder as he got older, according to Burbach. Peter Burbach died of cancer in March 2024. The couple had been married for more than 33 years, and Burbach said she learned of the post from her son.
The post portrayed the sale as an eminent domain acquisition tied to the Foxconn project and was made in support of governor candidate David Crowley, while also accusing Tom Tiffany of voting in favor of the Foxconn deal. Burbach said she does not want her decision to sell farmland used as a political pawn and that she was not a victim of eminent domain.
The Foxconn project in southeast Wisconsin involved large public subsidies and infrastructure spending and, in some other cases, eminent domain, for a project that was never fully developed as promised. Burbach said other Mount Pleasant residents were affected by aggressive land acquisitions, and that she wants future business deals in the region handled with fairness and integrity, including accountability as Microsoft develops the former Foxconn site.
