BP owner: 'No way' I'm leaving Milwaukee
Jacob Carpenter
For 37 years, Pakhar Singh has lived, worked and worshiped in Milwaukee.
That bond, Singh said, is why he has no plans to leave Milwaukee, even after vandals looted and burned down his Sherman Park BP gas station last week.
"No way," Singh said Friday, when asked if he's inclined to move. "We love Milwaukee. There's nice people here. We never had problems."
In his first extended interview since his station became an epicenter of unrest, Singh relayed his gratitude to many in the community who have embraced him, while emphasizing it's too early to say whether he will rebuild at the corner of W. Burleigh St. and N. Sherman Blvd. He said he has insurance on the building.
Singh's station became a target hours after a Milwaukee police officer fatally shot 23-year-old Sylville Smith during a pursuit Saturday afternoon. The shooting occurred a couple of blocks from Singh's station.
COMPLETE COVERAGE: Milwaukee Sherman Park turmoil
"So many people came from the community," said Singh, who has owned the station for 10 years. "We love each other. I've known people for a long time there."
The station likely became a target for two reasons — its proximity to the shooting scene and an incident about a month earlier in which Singh's son fired two gunshots during a confrontation with disruptive customers. Singh fired his son, who worked at the station, and prosecutors charged the 34-year-old with disorderly conduct. Protesters also urged a boycott of the station.
This week, videos posted on social media show dozens of people breaking into the store and carrying out large items. The fire burned for a couple hours before firefighters could approach the scene, because department policy prevents them from heading in if gunfire threatens their safety. Five other buildings ultimately were set on fire during the unrest.
Singh said Friday that he believed he had a strong relationship with the Sherman Park community.
"We never had any problems before. Never," Singh said. "They just started this summer."
Vincent Bobot, Singh's lawyer, said he advised his client not to discuss details of the arson.
Singh also was reluctant to discuss whether he owns other gas stations in the Milwaukee area.
"He's not going to comment on his other businesses, for obvious reasons," Bobot said. "We figured it's still a pretty hot situation."
Mayor Tom Barrett and Department of City Development officials have been talking to the affected business operators and building owners about the future of those properties, said department spokesman Jeff Fleming. Singh confirmed he's spoken with Barrett, but he's not asking for financial assistance.
Fleming declined to provide details about those conversations. He said Barrett was optimistic about the likelihood that at least two of the businesses would rebuild.
However, some of the buildings that were burned were already delinquent on paying their property taxes, Fleming said.
"That's not a good sign," he said.
Tom Daykin and Jesse Garza of the Journal Sentinel staff contributed to this report.