Volume 2 - Issue 17 - Circulation 3,500 Week of 4.23.09 to 4.30.09

Madison Area - May 2009 - In a basketball game, if the ball goes flat, while many solutions are obvious, in the case of the economy we have chosen to solve the problem by sending money to Wilson, the ball manufacturer. We then sit in the stadium waiting for the game to continue while Wilson pays bonuses to their executives and buys a soccer ball manufacturer in Brazil. In the long term, they do need to fix the ball, but in the short term, we need to restart the game. Thus,...

Ken Notes: From the Capital Region Business Journal. Let me know what yo think...

Madison - APR 29, 2009 - Even amidst gloomy budget forecasts and likely cuts, UW-Madison officials had reason to celebrate last week. The bids to build an addition to the Chazen Museum of Art came in around $9 million under budget, eliminating worries that some elements of the project would be shortchanged...

Ken Notes: The UW not only helps sustain the industry through troubled times, in addition many of the projects will in the long term create new jobs and even new companies. Someone tell the chancellor THANK YOU for me.

Madison - April 25, 2009 - Construction is proceeding on a 48-suite, urban-style hotel at 1501 Monroe St., across from Camp Randall Stadium. The $6.5 million project on the former site of the Copper Grid tavern was delayed nearly a year as neighbors and developer Bob Sieger worked out concerns. A professional hotel operator will run the hotel, but Sieger said he and his wife will maintain ownership at least until the economy improves. Currently known as Hotel 1501, he said the permanent name will be announced later...

Ken Notes: It is nice to see this type of project "in the dirt".

MADISON - April 28, 2009 - 5 Downtown Hoteliers Oppose New Hotel Plans. Some city aldermen said last week it was critical to make sure a proposed downtown hotel is built large enough. On Monday, however, a group of downtown hoteliers said that another hotel isn't needed...

Ken Notes: We need to add a shuttle transportation system to the discussion. We need to link 1000+ rooms to downtown and the convention center not to mention the UW.

Madison - April 23, 2009 - Madison's Central Library was the talk of the town Wednesday, garnering a prominent mention in Mayor Dave Cieslewicz's "State of the City" speech and drawing about 100 people from all over Madison for a public hearing on rebuilding it. The public forum, hosted by Capitol Neighborhoods Inc., was the first public meeting after the city's Central Library committee heard about the potential for renovating rather than rebuilding the library. Currently, the committee is grappling with two plans to rebuild the library at a cost of $38 million or $43 million, as well as several remodeling schemes that cost between $15 million and $20 million...

Wisconsin - April 26, 2009 - The unemployment rate in Wisconsin reached 9.4 percent in March, according to the state Department of Workforce Development. In the last year, Wisconsin lost 115,700 jobs, but the health-care industry added 8,000 jobs....

Ken Notes: Madison's health care options and expertise could attract both new businesses and boomers to the area.

WASHINGTON - 4/29/2009 - The U.S. economy shrank at a worse-than-expected 6.1 percent pace at the start of this year as sharp cutbacks by businesses and the biggest drop in U.S. exports in 40 years overwhelmed a rebound in consumer spending. The Commerce Department's report, released Wednesday, dashed hopes that the recession's grip on the country loosened in the first quarter. Economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected a 5 percent annualized decline...

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...

National - 4/29/2009 - General Motors Corp. told its dealers Tuesday that it will force 1,000 to 1,200 underperforming locations to close their doors as the automaker tries to thin dealer ranks to make the remaining outlets more profitable. GM told the dealers about the plan in a video conference, according to a dealer who spoke on condition of anonymity...

Madison Region - April 23, 2009 - The possible expansion of U.S. 51 to a four-lane highway is one of several highway expansions being considered by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation to address safety and traffic concerns in the McFarland-Stoughton area. The DOT will roll out potential highway improvement projects at two public meetings -- May 19 at Sandhill Middle School in Stoughton and May 20 at McFarland High School in McFarland...

Ken Notes: While a ways off, this project will create another development corridor in the region.

Sun Prairie And Fall River - April 25, 2009 - At least 20 properties here will be sold to the highest bidder next month - an event promoters are billing as one of the largest real estate auctions in state history. Condominiums, duplexes, single-family houses and empty lots will make up the 40 residential properties that are up for auction, something experts say is a growing trend in the real estate market. Twenty other condominiums in Fall River also owned by Kraus Real Estate and Builders will be auctioned the same day...

Ken Notes: Let's hope for great prices and lots of bidders.

Madison area - APR 29, 2009 - Madison Gas & Electric Co. wants to raise natural-gas and electric rates in 2010 but plans to offer a credit that would reduce electric rates this year. The company filed an application with the state Public Service Commission to raise electric rates next year by 4.5 percent and gas rates by 2.2 percent. The average residential electric bill would go up by $3.87 a month while the typical gas bill would rise by $1.50 a month, the company said.MGE also plans to file a fuel-cost credit with the PSC that would reduce electric bills by $4.6...

Ken Notes: MGE continues to be a great provider in the area. It shows that smaller regional providers tend to have their fingers on the pulse of the community as apposed to their hands around the throat...

Recent commercial property listings from PropertyDrive.

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

NEW YORK - 4/28/2009 - Hopeful signs that the worst may be over for the economy boosted Americans' moods in April, sending a closely watched barometer of sentiment to the highest level since November. The New York-based Conference Board said Tuesday that its Consumer Confidence Index rose more than 12 points to 39.2...

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...

WASHINGTON - 4/27/2009 - The global financial crisis could become "a human and development calamity" for many poor countries, the World Bank said, urging donor nations to speed delivery of money they have pledged and consider giving more. Developing countries, its main constituency, face "especially serious consequences with the crisis driving more than 50 million people into extreme poverty, particularly women and children...

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!...

WASHINGTON - 4/29/2009 - With just two days left before a government-imposed restructuring deadline, Chrysler LLC took a step away from the brink of bankruptcy Tuesday when its biggest lenders reached a deal with the Treasury Department to slash the teetering automaker's debt. Yet Chrysler's fate remains far from assured...

Madison area - April 24, 2009 - Some bank you never heard of sends you a letter with "Economic Stimulus Act 2009" on the masthead and suggests you will be eligible for a lower fixed rate on your mortgage. Aha, this is your chance to lessen your financial burden by simply taking a chip out of the $787 billion pot, right? Not so fast....

Ken Notes: Arghhhhhhhh!

Middleton - 4/23/2009 - Local government bodies are hoping a massive federal economic stimulus plan will end up sending a substantial amount of money Middleton's way. Officials from the City of Middleton, the Town of Middleton and the Middleton-Cross Plains Area School District are all hoping to draw some of the $787...

Stoughton - 4/29/2009 - As has been the case for scores of school districts throughout Wisconsin, the Stoughton Area School District has had it's share of financial challenges in recent years - mostly stemming from declining student enrollment, the state funding formula and revenue caps. So far, the administration has handled the shortfalls with a lot of proactive planning, closing Yahara Elementary School after the conlsusion of the current school year) and re-evaluating some budgeting priorities...

Oregon - 4/24/2009 - Commercial developer Paul Lynch took another step forward Monday in his plan to build a Holiday Inn Express hotel on Oregon's south side. The Oregon Village Board approved a rezoning request for the 1056 Park St. property, along with Lynch's general development and specific implementation plans...

Wisconsin - April 26, 2009 - The casualties of the nation's economic recession are so widespread, the figures are mind numbing. Across the U.S., 5.1 million jobs have evaporated since the recession began in December 2007, 3.3 million of them just in the last five months, according to the Department of Labor. In Wisconsin, the unemployment rate in March was 9.4 percent, the highest it's been in nearly 26 years...

Ken Notes: Unfortunately many companies are taking advantage of the down economy to restructure. What we fail to recognize is that this has a snowball effect. As we create more jobless we have less consumers to buy the goods that will restart the economy.

Wisconsin - April 24, 2009 - The Milwaukee company has had losses in three of the last quarters. Marshall & Ilsley Corp. of Milwaukee, parent company of M&I Marshall & Ilsley Bank, Thursday reported a net loss of $116.9 million, or 44 cents per share, for the first quarter of 2009, down from net income of $146.2 million, or 56 cents per share, a year ago...

Ken Notes: The Arizona, Florida, and Nevada holdings have to hurt, lets hope the double digit drop in values stays south.

Madison area - April 30, 2009 - A new state report shows that a proposal to fund a regional transit authority could have families paying more...

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...

Madison - April 26, 2009 - When Stratford native Becky Splitt graduated from UW-Madison with a communications degree in 1985, she wanted to parlay her experience as a house fellow in the Lakeshore dorms into a career in academia. Instead, after adding a master's degree in business from Wichita State University, Splitt stumbled into the heady, early days of the Internet boom. She signed on with Brite Voice Systems, a young Wichita company that became a pioneer in computer voice technology...

Ken Notes: UW has many grads out there that should be lured home. Glad to see at least one made it back.

Madison - APR 29, 2009 - Madison has been ranked second behind Wichita, Kan., in a list of the "Most Uniquely American Cities & Towns" by Newsmax magazine. The magazine commissioned Peter Greenberg, travel editor for NBC's "Today Show" and a travel book author, to compile the list. He evaluated 25 cities using nine criteria: hospitality, wholesomeness, family friendliness, business friendliness, devotion to religion, culture, community activities, scenic beauty and education. The only other Wisconsin city on the list was Milwaukee...

Verona - 4/28/2009 - The Parks Commission couldn't get a variance last week to sell an ad on the back of the Stampfl Field scoreboard, but it's not done trying. The request to put up a scoreboard sign - which would be highly visible along East Verona Avenue and essentially considered a billboard by city ordinances - was referred to the Zoning Board of Appeals, a quasi-judicial four-member body that has met three times in four years...

MADISON - April 29, 2009 - Madison start-up Stemina Biomarker Discovery Inc. has launched its first product, which uses human embryonic stem cells to screen drugs for their likelihood to cause birth defects...

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee - Apr. 25, 2009 - There's no arguing one important constant in business today: We are driven by a need for constant innovation through strategic partnerships. The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, as one of just two public doctoral research universities in Wisconsin, is playing a central role in connecting its discoveries with the organizations that are creating products and services that benefit the people of Wisconsin...

Community - Apr. 29, 2009 - Cardinal Stritch University is dropping its plan to build a $150 million campus in St. Francis - one of the largest development projects pending in the Milwaukee area - because of the university's concerns about the economy. The decision means the university must go "back to the drawing board" to accommodate its growing enrollment, said Joanne Williams, Cardinal Stritch vice president of public relations and marketing...

Marquette University - Apr. 28, 2009 - Seven Marquette University students recently earned top honors at the sixth annual NAIOP University Challenge, a commercial real estate case competition hosted by that organization's Minnesota chapter. The competition included teams from University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of St. Thomas, St. Cloud (Minn.) State University, University of Northern Iowa, and the University of Minnesota....

Ken Notes: Bright futures here...

Wisconsin - APR 29, 2009 - The Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA) recently announced the recipients of this year's first round of low income housing tax credit allocations. Thirty-seven affordable housing developments in Wisconsin will move forward looking for investors for those tax credits. This first round of allocations, worth $300 million over 10 years, will generate 2,486 units of affordable housing, creating more than 3,000 construction-related jobs...

Racine - Apr. 29, 2009 - Broad coalitions have formed both statewide and in the Racine area to push for the Legislature to authorize regional transit authorities funded by half-cent sales taxes. On the eve of a crucial vote in the Joint Finance Committee, much of the lobbying action is focused on trying to win over state Sen. John Lehman (D-Racine), who wants a permanent Southeastern Wisconsin RTA but not a sales tax. Lehman is on the budget-writing panel that will decide Thursday whether to approve the RTA provisions in Gov. Jim Doyle's 2009-'11 state budget....

Oconomowoc - Apr. 29, 2009 - City officials have agreed to take over construction of a new fire station serving the Pabst Farms development and surrounding area. City Administrator Diane Gard said the city also has solicited proposals from construction management firms, in the hope of completing the project by year's end. Pabst Farms developers had agreed to build the fire station as part of the settlement of a lawsuit...

IOWA - Apr. 29, 2009 - Tom Bentley, CEO at Milwaukee-based Bentley World Packaging, announced Tuesday plans for a major development adjacent to a state park in south central Iowa. Bentley plans to build vacation cabins, a hotel, condos, and retail developments on over 160 acres next to Honey Creek State Resort Park, on Rathbun Lake. Bentley said the cabins are under construction, but the hotel and other development will have to wait until 2010, when sewer lines are expected to be completed....

Ken Notes: IOWA arghhhhh... Call me let me show you Madison. I'll buy lunch.

Milwaukee area - Apr. 29, 2009 - The vacancy rate for industrial real estate in the Milwaukee area was 8.2% during the first quarter, up from 7.4% from the year-earlier period, according to a new survey from Colliers International. The national vacancy rate was 9.57%, up from 8.15%, according to Boston-based Colliers, a network of commercial real state brokerages, including Milwaukee-based Colliers Barry...

Wisconsin - Apr. 28, 2009 - And then there was the good news: We Energies electricity customers could see their bills dropping a bit in the next month or so. Given all the bad news of late, that's a welcome development. If only it could stay that way. The Milwaukee utility said Monday that it is collecting too much money from customers to cover fuel burned in its power plants, at a time when the price of natural gas has plummeted to its lowest level in more than six years....

Ken Notes: Another local company works with PSC to lower rates.

Milwaukee - Apr. 28, 2009 - The investors group that bought the former Northridge Mall last year owes around $80,000 in overdue maintenance fees to an adjacent property owner, according to a lawsuit. U.S. Toward Enterprise Group Inc., of Germantown, Md., allegedly owes the money as its share of maintenance fees for the road that circles the former mall, and other fees...

Belgium - Apr. 27, 2009 - Even in a bad economy, people still eat vegetables, which is leading officials with Manitowoc-based Lakeside Foods to seek expansion of housing for migrant workers at their canning facility in Belgium. Plans for a new one-story dormitory, which will go before the village Plan Commission on Tuesday, call for a one-story building capable of housing 48 workers and families in 12 private rooms with communal kitchen, bath and laundry facilities....

Milwaukee - Apr. 27, 2009 - Enterprise Art Glass Works Inc. wants to buy a former Milwaukee fire station, at 407 N. Hawley Road, and move its business there from 5402 W. State St., according to documents filed with the Common Council...

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.

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Ken

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