Volume 2 - Issue 10 - Circulation 3,500 Week of 3.5.09 to 3.12.09

MADISON - 3/12/2009 - Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz and city officials on Tuesday launched a new development services center Web site. The mayor said it's a virtual one stop shop for building a project of any size from start to finish, from permit information to fees. The city said the goal in the long run is to spur economic development...

Ken Notes: Web site is HERE. They also track current projects HERE.

3/07/2009 - Baby boomer's are now in their 60's. They were ready to retire and return to their hippie, free spirit lives of the past creating 10's of millions of jobs for the generations replacing them, and millions more jobs for those who cater to their dreams of beaches, travel and multiple homes. They woke up this year to IRAs, pensions, and investments reduced by as much as half. They now have no faith in a social security system that now must be on the very bottom of the legislative to do list. Finally there last remaining perk, subsidized health care, will soon be shared by everyone. Where are the tax incentives for those who want to retire but lost huge sums in the markets? Their solution I'll work a few more years. No new jobs, no spending, no investment and we can't really blame em...

Ken Notes: Retirement Funds, Mortgages, Employment & Consumer Debt. in case you are in a hurry, Let me know what you think.

MADISON - March 11, 2009 - The AARP said the recession is having an impact on those who are 45 and older. The AARP said 25 percent of those recently surveyed are having trouble paying their mortgage or rent, one-third have stopped adding to retirement accounts or pension plans or raided them for money and 27 percent have postponed retirement plans...

Verona - March 6, 2009 - After securing more money and revising plans, Dane County is reopening the bidding process to build a new, $22 million Badger Prairie Health Care Center in Verona, county Executive Kathleen Falk said Thursday. The project, which will include green technologies to heat and cool the 120-bed facility and heat water there, is expected to bring at least 200 construction jobs, Falk said. "This new Badger Prairie is not only the economically and environmentally smart thing to do...

Sun Prairie - 3/11/2009 - WPPI Energy is reducing its 2009 budget by 8.5 percent, but the cost-cutting measure will not result in staff layoffs. The Sun Prairie-based WPPI, which used to be known as Wisconsin Public Power Inc., is also reducing revenue requirements from member municipal power utilities by $25 million, a reflection of the economic downturn. "We recognize people are facing difficult challenges because of the current recession, and we all must do what we can to mitigate the effects of the economic downturn," said Roy Thilly...

Ken Notes: If you know Mr. Thilly, give him a call and say thank you. It is this type of tough decision making that will move us out of the recession. Massive layoffs not so much.

Madison - March 9, 2009 - Robert Artis, an activist in his low-income Allied Drive-Dunn's Marsh neighborhood, said that if he wants to smoke in his apartment, he ought to be able to light up... The CDA is considering whether to ban smoking in the $9.2 million housing development for low-income tenants...

Ken Notes: I'm guessing enforcement may be the ultimate issue here, has anyone asked the chief about this? Why not charge a small premium for "smoking units" to cover cleaning and paint at transfer.

Madison - 3/12/2009 - Spectrum Brands' stock is selling on the over-the-counter market for less than 10 cents a share and could be worthless before long. Yet, on 15 of the past 26 business days -- since the company filed for bankruptcy reorganization on Feb. 3 -- trading volume has been heavy, with more than 1 million shares changing hands. In fact, on four days, stock trades for Spectrum Brands, whose Rayovac and Remington brands are based in Madison, have topped 4 million...

Ken Notes: Lets hope they discover the next generation of battery tech and leap frog the other players. Are we not all a little tired of the bunny anyway?

Madison Region - March 6, 2009 - The bad economy is being reflected in both the number and size of new homes under construction or planned for construction in Dane County. The February report from MTD Marketing shows only 59 building permits were issued for single family homes and duplexes so far in 2009, compared to 115 permits issued the first two months in 2008. The sum dollar value of the permits so far this year, $15.38 million, is less than half the value of permits issued in January and February in 2008 ($32.3 million)....

Madison Region - March 8, 2009 - Despite a national economy that is terrible by just about every measure, the phones are still ringing at the desks of many economic development officials in southern Wisconsin. Lafayette County's cheesemaking industry, for example, is expanding, according to JoAnne Ehasz, executive director of the Lafayette Development Corp., a group that promotes and attracts economic development in the southwestern Wisconsin county. In Middleton, there's a recently opened Sonic drive-in restaurant and a new nightclub...

- 3/12/2009 - Michael Heisman's idea may fit right into its surroundings. After all, his plan to bring scheduled air service to the Baraboo-Dells Airport is targeted to an area where indoor roller coasters, man-made waves and $150-a-day private, pool-side gazebos are the norm. Heisman, 32, envisions three flights a day from places such as St. Louis; Lansing and Traverse City, Mich.; Des Moines, Iowa; and the Chicago area....

Ken Notes: Several ski resorts use comprehensive transportation networks to get guests from the airport to the hill. The Dells has a lot of capacity, could Dane County Airport tap a need here as well?

Madison area - 3/11/2009 - A new employment outlook survey says the majority of U.S. employers expect no change in staffing levels in the second quarter. Sixty-seven percent of nearly 32,000 employers surveyed by Manpower of Milwaukee expect to maintain their work force in the upcoming quarter, 15 percent expect to increase staff and 14 percent expect to cut employees....

WISCONSIN - This is a comprehensive data base of all business professionals in development, planning, government, commercial real estate, architecture, construction, and service providers to business. Any professional may enter his or her own business card for free. FutureWisconsin is Wisconsin's own social networking data base to promote new business in the state...

Ken Notes: Network with professionals doing business in the state...

Madison Area - 3/11/2009 - With all the stimulus money getting tossed around these days, you'd figure biotechnology would be near the top of the wish list. Instead, specific funding for early stage science companies was practically written out of the $780 billion package, claims the president of Madison-based Centrose LLC....

Ken Notes: My understanding is that these companies are still not creating a lot of jobs yet.

Madison Area - March 8, 2009 - Even though the new model of economic development leans more toward cooperation and retention than competition, there is increasing pressure among economic development professionals to attract jobs and investments at a time when both are in short supply. "There is greater interest from more communities," said Karna Hanna, executive director of the Sauk County Development Corp. "Everyone is hungry. Everyone has more available workers."...

Recent commercial property listings from PropertyDrive.

Thursday, March 5, 2009 - Churchill Homes, $155,000, Bachmann Construction, $967,000 Veridian Homes, $150,000...

Wisconsin - Future Wisconsin is pleased to announce a major new statewide project to spur economic development. A new 'user driven' website will allow anyone to enter links, business cards, or available commercial properties into county based websites now available (In BETA release) statewide.

Ken Notes: This is an early look at a new website for the state. Please let us know what you think.

Wisconsin - More than $336 million in federal stimulus money has been allocated to counties, cities, towns and villages in Wisconsin. Of that total, about $124 million has been allocated through the state Department of Transportation for road, bridge and transit projects. And more than $48 million in Housing and Urban Development funds has been allocated...

Ken Notes: Great Resource

National - 3/11/2009 - You're likely feeling stressed these days, and so is your bank. The nation's 19 largest banks have been ordered by regulators to undergo "stress tests" to gauge how they'd hold up if the economy deteriorates further. No Wisconsin-based financial institutions made the list, which only includes banks with more than $100 billion in assets. The largest state bank is Marshall & Ilsley of Milwaukee, with $56 billion in asset...

Dane County - Mar. 10, 2009 - Gov. Jim Doyle Tuesday proposed spending $6.6 million in the state capital budget to support development of two anaerobic digesters in Dane County. Digesters are waste-to-energy systems that use cow manure as a fuel. Wisconsin is a national leader in manure-to-energy systems. Doyle announced support for the projects...

Middleton - 3/11/2009 - Capitol Insurance Cos. of Middleton had net income of $15.2 million in 2008 on gross premium revenue of $184 million, for its fourth-highest profit in the past 50 years, the company reported Tuesday. In addition, Capitol's combined ratio -- which measures the amount per premium dollar that an insurance company must pay to cover claims and expenses -- improved to 91.8 percent...

MADISON - March 5, 2009 - There's good news for anyone who wishes they could have made it to New Orleans for Mardi Gras. Beginning Monday, March 16, The Bayou, a remarkably faithful New Orleans-themed restaurant and bar located just a couple of blocks east of the Capitol Square, will open its doors and welcome revelers to a Fat Tuesday environment where the party never ends. Owner Dale Beck has worked with a large cast of craftsmen - including architects, artists, bricklayers and ironworkers - for several years to re-create the look and feel of a New Orleans French Quarter courtyard at 117 S. Butler St...

Ken Notes: Not that I have anything against chili's or Applebee's but we can be very proud of any number of homegrown establishments in the area.

Madison - Mar. 9, 2009 - A Madison firm would take over as Milwaukee County's sole designated agency to develop and manage housing for local low-income residents with disabilities, under a recommendation Monday by a County Board committee. Movin' Out Inc., was tentatively picked for the job after no Milwaukee agencies wanted it, said county Housing Administrator Jim Hill. Twenty city agencies were solicited, but many said they worked exclusively in certain Milwaukee neighborhoods....

The seller of real estate is required to file a Real Estate Transfer Return (RETR) with the County Register of Deeds when recording deeds of property conveyances. State statutes require those returns to be filed electronically beginning July 1, 2009. Below is a link to the electronically filed Real Estate Transfer data as of July 1st 2009 and forward. The data will be updated on a weekly basis...

Ken Notes: This link is a regular feature of WDN...

Sun Prairie - 3/10/2009 - QBE's Americas division, the U.S. parent company of General Casualty in Sun Prairie, reported net income of $236 million in 2008 on gross premium revenue of $3.7 billion, which is up 22 percent from 2007. QBE spokeswoman Anne M. Smith on Monday credited the company's "very good year" primarily to growth by acquisitions and disciplined premium pricing to ensure adequate amounts were collected...

Ken Notes: We may want to look at bringing more insurance companies to the area. We can pitch Midwest values and better investment strategies.

Treasury Department Debt to the Penny Link
CNN Money Scorecard
Government Recovery Website
Wisconsin State Budget Google News

Create a vibrant, innovative and prosperous entrepreneurial business climate, nurturing, connecting and celebrating entrepreneurs and their companies...

Ken Notes: A valuable resource worth visiting for all businesses in the state. A special thanks for BizStarts for compiling and sharing the resource!...

Verona - 3/12/2009 - The city will be on its own preserving Stewart's Woods. City administrator Shawn Murphy reported Monday that the Verona Area School District has decided not to invest money into the land next to the woods on the southwest edge of the city in order to gain access to what would be a city/school forest. But that doesn't preclude the 33-acre forest from being preserved, Murphy said, indicating that the city will stay involved in talks with the state...

Verona - 3/8/2009 - While local and state officials hammer out a deal to make Stewart's Woods open to the public and keep it forested, the big question continues to be the price. The City of Verona has considered buying the 54-acre parcel from the state for two years, but only since the Verona Area School District joined the discussion a few months ago has it been realistic. The state originally had the land appraised at more than $2 million, but the latest word is that the city and district could get control of the 33-acre woods for free and buy the remaining land for a half-million dollars...

Wisconsin - 3/10/2009 - Delta Air Lines Inc. is expanding a marketing alliance with Midwest Airlines, once an acquisition target of Delta rival AirTran Airways. Atlanta-based Delta and Milwaukee-based Midwest said Monday they have agreed to a multifaceted alliance that will include reciprocity between the two airlines' frequent flyer programs, new joint marketing efforts and expanded access to airport lounges throughout North America. The agreement extends Midwest's long-standing marketing agreement with Northwest Airlines to Delta...

Ken Notes: This will help Midwest and may be an "in" for Dane County becoming a more regional hub...

Madison (Greater Madison) - March 7, 2009 - The U.S. Small Business Administration Friday announced Wisconsin regional winners of 2009 Small Business Champion awards, including four in the Madison area. Among the winners: * Michael Klein, founder and president of WTN Media (Wisconsin Technology Network) in Verona, regional winner for Small Business Journalist of the Year. * Laurie Benson, chief executive officer of Inacom Information Systems in Madison, Woman in Business Champion....

Wisconsin - This section allows you to access any of our current space needs and acquire some brief detail regarding each. You'll notice that in addition to posting our current RFPs and RFIS, we are listing other significant needs for which we are seeking space....

Ken Notes: Brokers should check this often...

Mount Horeb - MAR 11, 2009 - Jerry Schubert has been in the restaurant business for nearly 30 years, and still he believes in happy endings. He believes the venerable Schubert's restaurant in Mount Horeb, which Jerry closed in January, will have a new owner inside of six months, and reopen in the grand tradition of the building that has housed some kind of restaurant or bakery since 1911...

Ken Notes: I sort of miss the Blue Sky which moved to Dodgeville - a bit to far to drive for a great breakfast. Maybe Koffee Kup in Stoughton needs a second home.

CAMBRIDGE - MAR 11, 2009 - It takes imagination and dedication to transform a 1978 Toyota Chinook mini-motor home into a pirate-themed coffee house on wheels. But Sydney "Java Queen" Krieger, of Cambridge, has done it and has been navigating her business the Coffee Pirate through Dane County communities for about two weeks selling her brews to caffeine-deprived commuters...

Ken Notes: This could be bad - the new real estate is a 1978 camper.

Wisconsin - March 8, 2009 - The Lower Wisconsin State Riverway during these winter months is mostly abandoned to snow, soaring eagles and deep silences, but the idea of protecting this peaceful and remote place was born 20 years ago in a noisy storm of controversy. Early this year, Gov. Jim Doyle declared 2009 "The Year of the Riverway." Plans are in place to observe the anniversary throughout the year, celebrating the Riverway, which forever preserves the 92.3 miles of undammed and shining river that flows in braided channels and beneath wooded bluffs from Prairie du Sac to the Mississippi...

Ken Notes: We need to promote this gem a an ecotouist destination. Leave only footprints..

Wisconsin - Mar. 11, 2009 - You know that proposed ordinance, pending before the Common Council, that would require most development projects tjhat get at least $1 million of city financing assistance to pay "prevailing wage" to construction workers? Yeah, this one. Anyway, there's a similar provision that would apply to all commercial projects receiving public financing assistance from local governments throughout Wisconsin...

Milwaukee - Mar. 7, 2009 - Milwaukee, circa 2014: An executive from a water-purification company in Shanghai steps off a plane at Mitchell International Airport and is greeted by a sign that reads, "Welcome to the Freshwater Hub of the World." He boards a light rail train that whisks him to the downtown lakefront, where he takes in the sight of the gleaming white Milwaukee Art Museum and Discovery World buildings, both flanking the newest gem on the Lake Michigan shore: the multimillion-dollar headquarters of the Milwaukee Water Council and portions of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee School of Freshwater Sciences...

Ken Notes: I like it!

Washington - 3/12/2009 - Despite halts on new foreclosures by several major lenders, the number of households threatened with losing their homes rose 30 percent in February from last year's levels, RealtyTrac reported Thursday. Nationwide, nearly 291,000 homes received at least one foreclosure-related notice last month, up 6 percent from January, according to the Irvine, Calif-based company. While foreclosures are highly concentrated in the Western states and Florida...

MADISON - REMINDER THIS WEEKEND. Canoecopia is hosted by Rutabaga, a paddler-owned business in Madison, Wisconsin. Because we're paddler-owned, we're passionate about what we do. There are four main reasons we put on Canoecopia.

Ken Notes: I'll be there all three days running the speaker events. Stop by and say hi.

MILWAUKEE - 3/11/2009 - Clybourn Commons LLC plans to build a four-story, 39,680-square-foot building at 501 N. 20th St. along the north side of I-94 and near the Marquette University campus. Clybourn Commons plans to demolish four duplexes at 505 N. 20th St., 509 N. 20th St., 2016 W. Clybourn Ave. and 2020 W. Clybourn Ave. to make way for the new building...

Niagara - Mar. 10, 2009 - A study has been launched to look into the possibility of producing next-generation biofuels at the former NewPage paper mill in Niagara. The feasibility study is being funded by New North Inc., an economic development organization for an 18-county region of northeastern Wisconsin....

MILWAUKEE - Mar. 9, 2009 - A proposed sale of land by Milwaukee County to University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee for UWM's planned new engineering campus ran into a delay Monday before the County Board's Committee on Economic and Community Development. Committee members voted unanimously to hold the item until some changes--including a proposed increase in the sale price--can be made to the proposal. The proposal could return later this month to the committee...

Milwaukee - Mar. 10, 2009 - An investors group organized by Lighthouse Development Co. will get a $2.25 million bridge loan from Milwaukee Economic Development Corp., a city-affiliated business lending agency, under a recommendation made Tuesday. Lighthouse will use the two-year loan to help finance its conversion of an industrial building at 201 E. Pittsburgh Ave., in the Walker's Point area, into offices, apartments and retail space...

Janesville - 3/12/2009 - In the latest of a growing list of economic blows to Janesville, automotive supplier Bourns on Wednesday announced the closing of its Janesville plant in 12 to 18 months, a consolidation move that will put 148 employees out of work. The development comes after the December stoppage of most production at the General Motors plant...

Greenfield - Mar. 11, 2009 - The developer of the Falcon Glen condominium development told the Greenfield Plan Commission last night the project will not be able to go on as planned. Because of poor sales, the developer, Mark Wimmer of Falcon Glen LLC, is proposing luxury leased apartments rather than condominiums in the project, which encompasses parts of Greenfield and Hales Corners on Edgerton Avenue. Falcon Glen LLC had planned 166 condominiums but, in the midst of the housing crisis and economic recession, has sold only two....

Wisconsin - Mar. 12, 2009 - The state will receive $141,502,133 for the Weatherization Assistance Program and another $55,488,000 for the State Energy Program. Doyle said the money will create jobs and renewable energy manufacturing opportunities for state companies....

MILWAUKEE - Mar. 12, 2009 - Around 7,400 square feet of retail space at 201 W. Wisconsin Ave. would be used by Kaplan University, under a proposal filed with the city Board of Zoning Appeals. New York-based Kaplan wants to use the space, in the street level of an office buildilng that houses the Internal Revenue Service, mainly for night-time classes, the proposal said. Kaplan, a for-profit college, would mainly target older students who work in the downtown area...

MILWAUKEE - Mar. 11, 2009 - The gaping hole in the ground near N. 39th St. and W. Lisbon Ave. seems the very definition of what is being called a "shovel-ready project" these days by people in Washington. Coincidentally, this is the construction site of the future Washington Park Apartments, a low-income housing project being built in cooperation with the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority and the United Methodist Children's Services in a neighborhood that has one of the city's highest unemployment rates...

Franklin - Mar. 11, 2009 - Franklin's first chain hotel, a 118-room Staybridge Suites, has opened at 9575 S. 27th St., just south of W. Ryan Road. The Staybridge is owned by Franklin Hotel Company LLC and managed by The Bricton Group Inc., of Park Ridge, Ill. It is seven miles from Mitchell International Airport, and is among several new hotels that have either opened...

Milwaukee - Mar. 9, 2009 - Chicago-based development firm RSC & Associates will apparently be getting more time from Milwaukee County officials to begin work on the hotels it plans to build in downtown's Park East corridor. RSC in December 2007 bought from the county 2 acres bordered by N. Milwaukee, N. Jefferson and E. Lyon streets and E. Ogden Ave. RSC paid $2,725,000 for the lot, the only Park East parcel so far sold by the county....

La Crosse - Wednesday, March 11, 2009 - Two La Crosse-based businesses are poised to obtain a combined $4.95 million in tax increment financing after the city council's Committee of the Whole vote in their favor late Tuesday. The larger of the contributions up to $4.75 million, plus interest will help fund an $18 million building at developer Don Weber's downtown Riverside campus housing Logistics Health Inc., Kaplan Inc. and Business Objects. ...

Milwaukee - Mar. 7, 2009 - Calling all entrepreneurs or entrepreneurs-in-the-making! If you have a dream of starting a business someday, especially if it is a potentially high-growth business, new resources are coming on stream that will help you realize your goal...

A single source for all economic development news for Greater Madison and beyond. Wisconsin Development News, (WDN) is published weekly by Ken Harwood.

Available to commercial brokers, developers, financial professionals, community planners, public officials, the press and others who have expressed an interest in Wisconsin development. All stories should link to their original source in the original context. These pages may contain advertising, and I encourage patronage of both our sponsors and the related advertisers and publications I link too.

We link to Editorial and Opinion articles each week, this does not suggest we agree with the stance of the author. The "Ken Notes" items are the opinion of our editor. We will include any comments or feedback sent to WDN. Ken also writes a monthly column for Capitol Region Business Journal and other state publications.

The focus for WDN is to create a positive view of economic development for the Greater Madison Region. The publication will also feature news from around the state, nation, and world that offers insight to policy, trends, and projects that may be of interest to the reader.

Please forward any information you would like included for consideration. We do our best to include any non advertising stories, press releases, or articles from other sources that you feel would be of interest to the reader. WDN can also host your news stories and press releases online. Please feel free to forward WDN.

We continue to develop this newsletter because of the positive feedback we have received in the past and strong encouragement to continue. As always let us know what you think.

Ken

Kenneth Harwood
WisconsinDevelopment.com LLC
P.O. Box 930234
Verona, WI 53593-0234
608.334.2174
ken@wisconsindevelopment.com