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Development News for the week 02/29/08 – 03/07/08
TRIBECA PLAN MOVES FORWARD
The Tribeca Village development has taken the first of many big steps it will have to take before construction can begin. The Middleton Common Council voted 6-1 at its Feb. 19 meeting to approve Tribeca's General Implementation Plan, or GIP, which is the development's preliminary zoning plan, city administrator Mike Davis said.
ECONOMIC PLAN FACES TOUGH QUESTIONS
Several members of the Madison City Council on Monday questioned the basic premise of consultant Tom Ticknor's strategic economic development plan. Prepared for the city's Economic Development Commission, the draft focuses on ways the city can stimulate "quality job creation." Ticknor said he equated the phrase to mean "basic sector jobs" that serve markets beyond Madison, bringing in money from outside the region.
LOCAL COMPUTER SECURITY FIRM GETS $500,000 GRANT
Madison-based NovaShield Inc. today announced that it has received a $500,000 Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation to continue development of its computer security technology. The funding will be used to continue commercialization of NovaShield's breakthrough research targeted at detecting and preventing computer security threats such as botnets, Trojans, keyloggers and rootkits. NovaShield earlier received a $150,000 Phase I SBIR grant.
GIVE US GOALS, PLANNER TOLD ECONOMIC PANEL SPLIT ON CHANGES
After studying consultant Tom Ticknor's economic development implementation plan for five days and listening to an hour's presentation on it, three of Madison's six economic development commissioners still want him to make some big changes. Economic Development Commission members Vicky Selkowe, Ed Clarke and Ralph Kauten, who heard the presentation Wednesday, want the plan explained in concrete terms of what Madison would get if it carries out Ticknor's recommendations.
TOWNS CAN STOP DEVELOPERS
Wisconsin towns have the authority to suspend residential development while they update their land use plans, an appeals court ruled Thursday. The ruling has significance because state law requires all municipalities to develop comprehensive growth plans by 2010. In the meantime, many are considering suspensions on things such as subdivisions to avoid a rush of development before the stricter rules are in place.
SPEAK UP ON EAST SIDE PARK PLAN CITY SETS PUBLIC MEETING TONIGHT TO GET COMMENTS ON DOOR CREEK
Even though ground will be broken this summer for Door Creek Park, people who attend a public meeting tonight still can mold the far east side's first major park, according to Parks Development Manager Simon Widstrand. The Madison Parks Division has deliberately not yet given potential contractors the plans and specifications so that residents' comments from the 7 p.m. meeting at Door Creek Church, 6602 Dominion Drive, can be incorporated into the final request for bids.
PLAY BALL! ALL YEAR INDOOR BASEBALL/SOFTBALL FACILITY EYED IN MIDDLETON
With spring training under way in Florida and Arizona, the developer of the Hawks Landing Golf Club subdivision has turned his attention toward another traditional American pastime: baseball. Jeff Haen is moving forward quickly with plans for what would be the largest indoor baseball/softball facility this side of Milwaukee's Miller Park.
LOCAL STEM CELL FIRM GETS BOOST
A company formed by UW-Madison stem cell pioneer Jamie Thomson announced that it has entered into an agreement with a unit of Swiss Pharmaceutical giant Roche to test candidate drug compounds for cardiotoxicity, or damage to heart tissue, using human heart muscle cells derived from stem cells developed by Thomson. Under the agreement, Roche Palo Alto in Palo Alto, Calif., will supply Thomson's Cellular Dynamics International Inc. of Madison with two sets of 25 well-characterized drug compounds that will be used to validate CDI's toxicology products and services.
CUTTING THE KNOT CITY OFFERS THREE FIXES FOR WEST SIDE'S WORST INTERSECTION
The intersection at Mineral Point and Junction roads, near one of the busiest Target stores in the nation, is arguably the worst in Madison. The city unveiled three options of how it could redesign the intersection Thursday night in a basement meeting room at the Wisconsin Community Bank on Mineral Point Road, which sits right in the heart of the congested area.
BROWN SHOE PROFIT BEATS PREDICTIONS
Brown Shoe Co. Inc., parent of Madison-based Famous Footwear, today reported weaker-than-expected fourth-quarter results amid a decline in consumer spending, but its stock rose as it beat analysts' expectations. For its fiscal fourth quarter ended Feb. 2, the company reported net income of $14 million, or 33 cents per share, compared with $13.6 million, or 31 cents per share, in the year-ago period. Excluding special items net income totaled 39 cents per share, down from 47 cents a year earlier but ahead of analysts' expectations of 37 cents, according to Thomson Financial.
GREENWAY STATION ADDS BATH & BODY WORKS
Bath & Body Works opened Tuesday at the Greenway Station Shopping Center in Middleton, with a grand opening set for Saturday. The first 98 customers to visit the store on Saturday will receive free flowers and a special discount coupon. The 3,100 square-foot store is located on Deming Way next to Sharper Image.
CHANGING COURSE HILLDALE DEVELOPERS SCALE BACK ON OFFICE COMPLEX
If nothing else, the developers of the Hilldale Shopping Center have shown they are flexible. After backing off from plans to build an 11-story, 112-unit condominium tower because of an overbuilt housing market, Joseph Freed & Associates have now scaled down plans for an office building along University Avenue.
OK OF HILLDALE PLAN SOUGHT THE IDEA INVOLVES FEWER CONDOS, MORE COMMERCIAL SPACE
Hilldale Shopping Center redevelopers are looking for final City Council approval Tuesday of a redesign that replaces an 11-story condominium building with a three-story retail and office building. Developer Joseph Freed and Associates had announced in December that it was rescheduling plans for The Heights, an 11-story building that would have fronted University Avenue, to "a date that more appropriately and effectively meets the supply and demand of the Madison condominium market."
CENTRAL PARK PLAN PRIORITIES PANEL RECOMMENDS MADISON BUILD 'FIRST-CLASS URBAN PARK'
A skate park and "Great Lawn" for festivals should be the first pieces of Madison's $30 million Central Park, a special city subcommittee said. The city should also move right away to relocate rail lines that bisect the 17-acre park site in the East Washington rail corridor, it said. A second phase would involve acquisition of private property along Brearly Street.
2 INVESTORS CHANGING FACE OF NEIGHBORHOOD A RECENT HIGH-CRIME AREA, ALLIED DRIVE IS UNDERGOING A TRANSFORMATION WITH THE SALE OF LOW-COST CONDOMINIUMS TO 18 FAMILIES
Victor Ceron couldn't be happier with his young family's new condo - overlooking what's been Madison's worst neighborhood. Ceron, 28, is a homeowner for the first time, buying a condo for perhaps the lowest price in the city and staking a claim in Allied Drive.
LEADERS UPSET WITH PLANNING COMMISSION SOME GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS DON'T LIKE NEW POLICIES THAT AFFECT HOW DANE COUNTY MUNICIPALITIES CAN GROW.
Some Dane County city, village and town leaders are upset about the recent adoption of new countywide policies for how municipalities can grow. The Capital Area Regional Planning Commission voted 8-2 last week to adopt new guidelines for how it will approve sewer line extensions, which cities and villages rely on for expansion.
SOME GOOD NEWS DESPITE DROP IN HOUSING MARKET
Depending on your perspective, last year either was the worst for existing home and condominium sales in south-central Wisconsin over the past five years or the fifth-best year on record. Dane County's 6,693 sales in 2007 were down 6.3 percent from the 7,144 sales the year before. That decrease came after a 10.5 percent decline from 2005 to 2006.
CONSTRUCTION SPENDING PLUMMETS
Construction spending took its biggest nosedive in 14 years and manufacturing activity contracted, fresh trouble signs for a struggling economy. The Commerce Department reported today that construction spending plunged by 1.7 percent in January. Builders slashed spending on residential projects, but the weakness spread beyond that ailing sector. There were cutbacks in spending on, among other things, hotels and motels, highways and various projects by state and local governments.
MONONA PROPOSAL REFERRED TO PANEL
A proposal to ban smoking in bars, restaurants and other public places in Monona has been referred to a committee, which will consider among other things what effect such a ban might have in combination with the reconstruction of Monona Drive in the summer of 2009. There is some concern about how the reconstruction and a smoking ban - if they happen around the same time - could affect area businesses, city administrator Pat Marsh said.
Madison posts net increase in jobs
Madison posts net increase in jobs. Unemployment rate in Milwaukee area swells to 5.3%. Employment data the state released Wednesday showed a familiar tale of two cities...
Public meeting scheduled April 3 for US 14 in Dane County
Meeting to focus on preservation and access needs of US 14 - The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) Southwest Regional Office in Madison is announcing a public information meeting to discuss the study of US 14 from WIS 78 (Mazomanie) to US 12 (Middleton), Dane County.
Around The State and Points Elsewhere
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APPEALS COURT UPHOLDS LAND DIVISION BAN RULING IS WIN FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENTS
A state appeals court Thursday handed municipal governments an important victory: upholding a Columbia County township's total ban on land division for two years while it completes a state-mandated comprehensive plan. Located between Merrimac and Lodi, the town of West Point was under pressure from developers in September 2005 when it imposed a temporary ban on splitting properties into smaller parcels of the same land use. Like other municipalities, West Point faced a 2010 deadline from the state to develop a comprehensive plan for the town's future.
BIONDI BEGINS YEAR AS THRIVE CHAIRMAN
John Biondi, president of C5-6 Technologies , has begun his one-year term as chairman of Thrive. Biondi has worked in health-care information systems, medical devices, nanotechnology and lives on a farm in Iowa County, rounding out his experience in each of Thrive's target sectors: agriculture, biotechnology and health care.
MANUFACTURING, SERVICE SECTORS SEE DROPS
ECONOMY U.S. factories saw demand for their products drop sharply, while the country's service sector contracted, fresh evidence of an economy hobbled by housing and credit crises.
Manufacturer shuts doors with no notice to workers
Manufacturer shuts doors with no notice to workers. Wisconsin Die Casting, a manufacturer on Milwaukee's south side, has shut down with virtually no notice...
Developer asks for rezoning
Developer asks for rezoning. Hearing today in Lisbon on switch to general industrial for land Lied's sold. A developer is purchasing 45 acres from Lied's Nursery at Highways 74 and V and wants the land rezoned to allow an industrial park to be built there...
Only 5 downtown condos have buyers in rare auction
Only 5 downtown condos have buyers in rare auction. Developer sought to mimic response in tough market. There was action at the auction of some downtown condos Tuesday night, but only five of the 21 units being offered were sold...
City OKs Wal-Mart expansion
City OKs Wal-Mart expansion. Work could begin any time in next year. The Wal-Mart store on South 27th Street will expand by nearly 65,000 square feet after the Franklin Common Council approved project plans March 4...
City faces challenges in northwest corner
City faces challenges in northwest corner. Running sewer and water north of Capitol could cost nearly $9 million; site surrounded by other municipalities. Utility connections were the main topic of conversation March 3 during an open house on the future of Brookfield's northwest gateway, a key...
Juneau Village owners want buildings sold
Juneau Village owners want buildings sold. Ownership of Juneau Village, one of the city's largest and most recognizable apartment complexes, is about to change, but exactly how remains uncertain...
Clash over use of Tower site leads to suit
Clash over use of Tower site leads to suit. Lawyer wants city to grant occupancy permits to firms. The owner of the 84-acre portion of the former Tower Automotive site has sued the City of Milwaukee in an attempt to get occupancy permits for three businesses that want to set up shop there...
Park East hotel, condos will rise over Milwaukee River
Park East hotel, condos will rise over Milwaukee River. Construction is to begin in mid-April on a 160-room Aloft Hotel in downtown Milwaukee's Park East area, the $40 million project's developer said Thursday...
Development News for the week 02/22/08 – 02/29/08
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COUNTY M DEVELOPMENT NIXED
Kenton Peters has pushed the design envelope in the city of Madison, from the blue Federal Courthouse building downtown to the corrugated aluminum " Marina" condominiums overlooking Lake Monona. The architect's plan, however, for a unique five-building, 66-unit apartment complex along County M on the city's far west side has hit a significant roadblock.
ARBORETUM PROJECT OFF
A developer who wanted to build houses on undersized lots near the UW Arboretum has abandoned the project, ending a two-year battle with neighbors that fueled a countywide debate on shoreland zoning regulations. The closure comes as the Dane County Board gets set to amend a recent shoreland zoning policy change that currently affects more than 23,000 properties in Dane County.
GOAL: INCREASE JOBS, TAX BASE DEVELOPMENT PLAN URGES CITY TO BE AGGRESSIVE
Madison must be aggressive and invest to create good jobs and increase its tax base, the city's first new economic development plan in 25 years says. But some say the plan itself isn't bold enough.
DRAFT PLAN SET FOR CITY DEVELOPMENT
The time has come for city of Madison officials and the public to begin tweaking the economic development plan that Tom Ticknor has spent the winter putting together. Ticknor, a Chicago-based consultant who has been working for the city's Economic Development Commission since September, will walk the EDC and interested citizens through the 50-page draft plan at 5 p.m. Wednesday in the Evjue Boardroom of the United Way of Dane County, 2059 Atwood Ave.
DOYLE KEEPS PRESSING ECONOMIC PLAN
Gov. Jim Doyle remained optimistic Tuesday that an economic development proposal that was one of his top priorities this year can pass despite a $540 million budget shortfall. Doyle, speaking to about 200 executives at "Business Day in Madison," argued that in the face of a national recession, Wisconsin must move forward to strengthen its business sector.
MINERAL POINT, JUNCTION ROADS MEETING TONIGHT
How can city of Madison street experts fix one of the city's busiest intersections at Mineral Point and Junction roads? Residents on the city's far west side will gather tonight to see what engineers and planners have in mind to reduce gridlock at the intersection, which used to be a crossroads of two essentially rural roads that has morphed into a traffic nightmare because of commercial development and a boom of subdivisions to the west and south.
INTERSECTION HAS BEEN A PROBLEM FOR A LONG TIME
Mary McCarthy has been watching cars try to navigate the south end of Doty Street in Madison for a couple years now, and she still doesn't know if what they're doing is legal. That's understandable. Even the city's Engineering Department admits the area presents motorists with a confusing web of roads, a parking lot, a bike path and two sets of train tracks.
CLASSIC SEQUOYA MIDVALE CONDO PROJECT MOVES FORWARD
As early as this summer, Westmorland residents could be welcoming some new neighbors. Sequoya Commons, a mixed-use development on Midvale and Tokay boulevards at the site of the former Midvale Plaza, this week opened its model condominium. The unit offers two bedrooms, 1 1/2 baths and 987 square feet of indoor living space with a 292 square foot terrace.
ALLIANT UNIT GAINS WIND FARM CONTRACT
Alliant Energy's WindConnect unit has been awarded the balance-of-plant engineering and construction work for the first phase of the Fowler Ridge Wind Farm in Benton County, Ind. Phase one of the facility, which is about 90 miles northwest of Indianapolis, is expected to produce 400 megawatts of power and be operational by the end of 2008.
ALLIANT WPL SEEKS 9.1% ELECTRIC HIKE, 1% GAS CUT
Wisconsin Power and Light Co., Alliant Energy's state utility unit, is seeking a 9.1 percent increase in electric rates and a 1.0 percent cut in natural gas rates starting in 2009. On Friday, WPL filed a request with state Public Service Commission of Wisconsin seeking to increase retail electric rates by $93 million and decrease natural gas rates by $814,000.
ENERGY IS HOT ITEM AT GOVERNORS' MEETING DOYLE AND OTHERS WANT THE U.S. TO MOVE TO A CLEANER AND MORE INDEPENDENT ENERGY FUTURE.
Energy tops the agenda at the annual winter meeting of the National Governors Association, where Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle is among those urging the U.S. to move toward a cleaner, more independent energy future. The three-day meeting got underway Saturday.
CITY TO GET SAY ON CDA BUDGET TOUGHER MOTEL RULES ALSO OK'D
The Madison City Council seemed to surprise even itself Tuesday when it took decisive actions to exert more control over individuals and organizations that provide housing to some of the city's poorest residents. Ald. Brenda Konkel's shock was evident when she realized that the city was going to force its Community Development Authority to create a budget subject to council review and approval.
FAR EAST SIDE TO GET LARGE PARK
After years of planning, Madison's booming Far East Side is getting a park like Elver Park. The city has completed a draft master plan for long-awaited Door Creek Park, 108 acres of open space, wetlands, hills and woods between Interstate 39-90, Cottage Grove Road and the Sprecher East neighborhood.
GOVERNOR STANDS BY GOALS DOYLE TOUTS ECONOMIC PLAN TO BUSINESSPEOPLE
Gov. Jim Doyle drew a warm response from Wisconsin's business community on Tuesday as he reiterated his economic goals for the state in a speech at the annual Business Day in Madison, organized by Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce. Even with a projected state budget deficit of $652 million and growing concerns about a nationwide recession, Doyle stuck to his plan, called "Grow Wisconsin The Next Steps, "which calls for incentives for research and development, for renewable energy and for angel investors.
HOME PRODUCTS SHOW IS THIS WEEKEND
MADISON AREA BUILDERS ASSOCIATION The 28th annual Home Products Show sponsored by the Madison Area Builders Association will be Friday through Sunday in the Exhibition Hall at the Alliant Energy Center.
MADISON HOME PRICES ARE UP, REPORT SAYS
HOUSING A government report Tuesday said U.S. home prices posted their first annual decline in 16 years. The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight said nationwide prices dipped 0.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2007 from the year-ago period.
U.S. 51 REDO NEARS REALITY MEETING ON PROJECT IS TONIGHT
Bulldozers and backhoes aren't warming up just yet, but the rebuilding of U.S. 51 on the eastern edge of DeForest is closer than it's ever been, with dirt moving to start no later than 2012. Wisconsin Department of Transportation officials will meet with residents in the DeForest/town of Windsor area tonight to show the newest design ideas for the 5.5-mile corridor from Reardon Road at the south end of the project corridor north to County V/Grinde Road. The plans don't include roundabouts but do turn a stretch of the existing two-lane highway into an essential frontage road.
DESIGN OF HIGHWAY 51 TOPIC OF HEARING THE DOT IS PROPOSING TO RECONSTRUCT THE HIGHWAY AS A FOUR-LANE DIVIDED FREEWAY.
Area residents can learn more and discuss the preliminary design of the expansion of Highway 51 in Dane County from Reardon Road to Highway V/Grinde Road at a meeting tonight. The state Department of Transportation will hold a public hearing from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the DeForest Middle School cafeteria, 404 Yorktown Road in DeForest. A brief presentation will begin at 6 p.m
UW'S THOMSON NAMED SCIENTIST AT NEW INSTITUTE
UW-Madison stem cell pioneer and researcher James Thomson is the first person to be named to the multidisciplinary scientific leadership team at the Morgridge Institute for Research. The Morgridge Institute is the private, not-for-profit side of the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery.
THOMSON TO WORK AT MORGRIDGE INSTITUTE
James Thomson, the UW-Madison researcher whose stem-cell discoveries have received significant international attention, has been named director of regenerative biology of the Morgridge Institute for Research. The institute is the privately funded part of the university's Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery, to open in 2010 on University Avenue. A publicly funded institute also will be included. Construction on the institutes, to be under one roof, is to begin next month.
JUSTICES HEAR WALGREENS' TAX COMPLAINT
The tax assessments on two Walgreens drugstores on East Washington Avenue are excessive, and the city of Madison violates the state constitution in the method it uses to determine Walgreens' property value, an attorney for Walgreens told the Wisconsin Supreme Court Tuesday. Walgreens chooses prime locations for its drugstores and then negotiates a 20-year lease with a developer, which includes the cost to acquire the property and build the store to the company's specifications, said attorney Robert Hill. Walgreens ends up paying above-market rents to get what it wants because it rolls all development costs into the lease, Hill said.
Anchor Bank continues to fund First Place on the River
First Place on the River, a 151-unit condominium unit on the Milwaukee River in the Historic Third Ward, filed for receivership earlier this month, but Madison-based Anchor Bank is still funding the project's construction costs.
Around The State and Points Elsewhere
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TOUGH TIMES WATERLOO LEADERS HOPE THEY CAN OVERCOME THE LOSS OF A MJOR EMPLOYER
The foot bridge that for years connected the corporate headquarters at Perry Judd's with its manufacturing plant on the opposite side of the Maunesha River is snow covered. The only traffic appears to be from a few resident squirrels.
A VOTE OF CONFIDENCE FOR CITY
Robert Rehm knows his business is off the beaten path, but he's confident in his latest venture and in the future of Waterloo. Rehm, owner of the Jefferson Street Market, home to the Waterloo Antiques Mall, is trying to raise $100,000 from investors for a $400,000 restaurant project on the ground floor of the 99-year-old, three-story brick building he bought in 2003.
AFTER DIPS, MORTGAGE RATES GO BACK UP
Rates on 30-year mortgages rose to the highest level in seven weeks, breaking above the 6 percent level. The Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA) also boosted its mortgage rate this week for first-time home buyers.
'STAGFLATION' NOT SEEN AS PROBLEM EXPERTS SAY WISCONSIN IS IN BETTER SHAPE THAN OTHER STATES.
"Stagflation" is an overstatement of where the national economy is today and Wisconsin's economy remains stronger than other states, two local economists said Tuesday. Stagflation was a term used to describe a period in the 1970s when the economy was stagnant and inflation occurred at the same time.
IT'S OFFICIAL: DEPP 'CRIME SPREE' WILL BE HERE
It may have been the worst-kept secret in Wisconsin film-making history. But now it's official: Johnny Depp is coming to Wisconsin.
HISTORIC BUILDING IS GIVEN NEW LIFE FORMER EVANSVILLE DEPARTMENT STORE GETS MAJOR MAKEOVER.
A building that once was a community hub is getting another life after a $2.1 million renovation project. A century ago, the Eager Economy Building, built in 1904, housed Wisconsin's second largest department store outside Milwaukee. The largest non-Milwaukee department store was in the Grange Building - a block west on Main Street in Evansville.
DOT CRITICIZED ON BRIDGES OVERSIGHT AUDIT FINDS BRIGHT SPOTS BUT BLASTS MONITORING OF COUNTY MAINTENANCE.
The Wisconsin Department of Transportation continues to poorly monitor the completion and cost of bridge maintenance work performed by counties, an audit report said Wednesday. The nonpartisan Legislative Audit Bureau criticized the DOT for failing to implement policies to ensure county highway departments complete maintenance on time and on budget.
Park East hotel, condos will rise over Milwaukee River
Park East hotel, condos will rise over Milwaukee River. Construction is to begin in mid-April on a 160-room Aloft Hotel in downtown Milwaukee's Park East area, the $40 million project's developer said Thursday...
Quad/Graphics to lease new facility in Falls
Quad/Graphics to lease new facility in Falls. A huge distribution center for commercial printing firm Quad/Graphics Inc. will be built in Menomonee Falls...
State jobs show slight gain
State jobs show slight gain. Unemployment rate steady; labor official sees positive signs. Wisconsin's unemployment rate held steady last month, compared with the year before, and jobs showed a slight gain, prompting a wait-and-see stance on economic conditions by the state's chief...
First development proposed for Mequon Town Center
First development proposed for Mequon Town Center. Insight Development Group has plans to become the first to build in the new Mequon Town Center with a $16 million residential and commercial project...
Future competes with present in retail development proposal
Future competes with present in retail development proposal. Issue delays approval of OfficeMax plan. In an issue pitting future development against a current proposal, the Franklin Plan Commission has temporarily shelved a site plan to add 28,500 square feet of retail space, including an OfficeMax, to a vacant...
'Regional' mall questioned
'Regional' mall questioned. After city approval of the revised shopping center plan at Pabst Farms, some Waukesha County Board members are unsure whether the new plans fit the criteria for a "regional" center.. After city approval of the revised shopping center plan at Pabst Farms,...
Fewer banks turn profit
Fewer banks turn profit. 2007 losses posted by Guaranty, 20 others. Twenty-one Wisconsin banks didn't turn a profit last year, as the housing s slump lingered and a slowdown in the economy deepened, a new report by regulators shows...
Residents oppose parking lot proposal
Residents oppose parking lot proposal. Hospital requests rezoning of land near Valley View. From parklike to parking lot is the transition that a parcel on Town Hall Road could make if the Village Board approves a rezoning request for Community Memorial Hospital...
Sussex looks over Main St. project; Retail stores, restaurant, condos proposed
Sussex looks over Main St. project; Retail stores, restaurant, condos proposed. A Germantown developer wants to build a 2½-story commercial and residential structure on the old Sussex Steakhouse/Pink Palace property.. A Germantown developer wants to build a 2½-story commercial and residential structure on the old Sussex Steakhouse/Pink...
Senior housing OK'd for Summit
Senior housing OK'd for Summit. Nursing home, assisted living planned for property near new Aurora hospital. Waukesha - Aurora Health Care's hospital under construction near Oconomowoc could soon get a new neighbor: a residential complex designed for senior citizens...
County Board questions 'regional mall' for funding; Money not released unless all points met
County Board questions 'regional mall' for funding; Money not released unless all points met. After city approval of the revised shopping center plan at Pabst Farms, some Waukesha County Board members are unsure whether the new plans fit the criteria for a "regional" center.. After city approval of the revised shopping center plan at Pabst Farms,...
Famous Dave's founder takes on Dells with water park of his own
Famous Dave's founder takes on Dells with water park of his own. "Famous Dave" Anderson never thought much about water parks while running his chain of barbecue restaurants. So he was amazed several years ago when he stepped into the lobby of Great Wolf Lodge, near Wisconsin Dells...
Wisconsin Technology Network.
Patent office upholds key WARF stem cell patent; appeal is likely.
Travelers Companies needs more space in Brookfield
St. Paul, Minn.-based The Travelers Companies Inc., one of the largest property and casualty insurance companies in the nation, is looking for 90,000 square feet of office space in the Brookfield area, according to a Milwaukee area commercial real estate source.
Workshops to focus on development of Milwaukee's near south side
Near south side Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett and the Department of City Development announced two additional workshops for the public to brainstorm and plan for future development in the city's near south side neighborhoods.
Development News for the week 02/15/08 – 02/22/08
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PREPARED TO GUIDE THE REGION AS CHAIRMAN OF THRIVE, JOHN BIONDI HOPES TO HELP THE AREA GROW.
John Biondi, president of C5-6 Technologies in Middleton, recently was named board chairman of Thrive, the Madison Region Economic Development Enterprise. With the freshly minted organization's focus on nurturing local agriculture, health-care and biotechnology sectors, Biondi is considered well-suited for the task.
LOCAL BIOTECH NERITES RAISES $5M IN FUNDING
Madison-based Nerites Corp., which is developing tissue repair products and coatings for medical devices, today announced it has another $5.7 million in venture capital. Nerites previously has raised $3 million in funding from private investors. The firm recently received a $100,000 federal grant for a study to determine whether its coatings can prevent biofilm growth, the source of most infections on urinary stents and catheters. It also is working on biodegradable, water-resistant tissue adhesives with applications that include closing surgical wounds.
NEW FUNDING WILL LET NERITES ADD EMPLOYEES
Nerites Corp., a Madison company developing products based on the way pesky mussels stick to the bottom of a boat, plans to double its staff and move forward with its first product, thanks to a new infusion of cash. Nerites, 525 Science Drive, is getting $5.7 million in the second-round funding, led by Venture Investors of Madison. Black Mountain Ventures of Foster City, Calif., also participated in the round.
ADS TAKE FLIGHT MADISON AIRPORT SEEKS TO STEM PASSENGER DROPOFF BY PROMOTING ITS CHANGES
It's all about the journey. That's the theme of the Dane County Regional Airport's first general advertising campaign designed to increase awareness of nonstop destinations, ease of use and enhanced terminal facilities.
State Senate debates water compact
State Senate debates water compact. Some in Assembly want to change Great Lakes deal. The state Senate opened debate Thursday on legislation to ratify and implement a compact to stop large-scale water diversions and promote water conservation, but some Assembly leaders want to change certain...
Governor Doyle Announces Wisconsin Waterfront Initiative Website
Governor Jim Doyle today launched the Wisconsin Waterfront Initiative Website, providing comprehensive information and assistance for communities ...
Around The State and Points Elsewhere
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Johnson Controls gets milestone deal
Johnson Controls gets milestone deal. Energy-saving project is a 1st for climate plan. A contract to slash energy use and global-warming emissions from a shopping mall on the other side of the world might not seem like much, but it's a big deal for Wisconsin's largest company...
There's plenty of capital, investor says
There's plenty of capital, investor says. UW, entrepreneurs challenged to get it. Rich in intellectual capital but saddled with attitudes that get in the way of leveraging it, Wisconsin needs to change its culture...
CDA moves Wal-Mart proposal on to planners
CDA moves Wal-Mart proposal on to planners. The proposal from Continental Properties to build a Wal-Mart and a soccer training facility on East Layton Avenue was approved by the Community Development Authority on Feb. 12...
Future of proposed Wal-Mart uncertain
Future of proposed Wal-Mart uncertain. Mayor says Waukesha project 'may still go forward'. The fate of the Wal-Mart Supercenter on West Ave. and Highway 59 should be known within two weeks, Mayor Larry Nelson said Thursday...
County gives cool reception to Pabst Farms' latest plans
County gives cool reception to Pabst Farms' latest plans. New plans for a shopping center at Pabst Farms are getting a cool reception from Waukesha County officials who must decide whether to help build a freeway interchange at the development site...
Revised plan OK'd for Pabst; Developers work to lock up tenants
Revised plan OK'd for Pabst; Developers work to lock up tenants. The Pabst Farms shopping center is one step closer to reality after City Council members voted 6-2 in favor of the project's general development plan Tuesday night..
Pabst Farms gets Oconomowoc's OK, but questions remain
Pabst Farms gets Oconomowoc's OK, but questions remain. Who will mall tenants be? Will it be a regional draw? Aldermen approved a new Pabst Farms outdoor shopping mall and retail development project Tuesday, although two raised concerns that the revised plans would not create a regional draw...
Pabst Farms inches closer toward approval; Public says center should go green
Pabst Farms inches closer toward approval; Public says center should go green. Residents once again gathered at City Hall last Thursday for the second of two public hearings on the proposed Pabst Farms shopping center.. Residents once again gathered at City Hall last Thursday for the second of two public hearings on the proposed...
Plan panel suggests approval for Pabst Farms mall
Plan panel suggests approval for Pabst Farms mall. After hearing 2 1/2 hours of testimony from area residents and business owners, the city's Plan Commission voted late Thursday to recommend approval of a new proposal for a large outdoor shopping mall at Pabst Farms...
Council approves city's tallest building project
Council approves city's tallest building project. Traffic, density still a concern for some at busy intersection. Brookfield's Common Council on Feb. 19 approved the general plan and rezoning for a two-acre site at Moorland Road and Greenfield Avenue that would house a 127,000-square-foot office and...
Senior living center gets go-ahead from council; Plan could see as many as 75 units constructed
Senior living center gets go-ahead from council; Plan could see as many as 75 units constructed. A new option for senior living and activity in Oconomowoc will soon be available after receiving initial approval from the city council Tuesday night.. A new option for senior living and activity in Oconomowoc will soon be available after receiving initial...
No fizzle in this area housing boom
No fizzle in this area housing boom. Milwaukee north side neighborhoods buck national trend. As the national housing market provides a seemingly endless flow of bad news, some local home builders are focusing on an unlikely hot spot: a central city neighborhood on Milwaukee's north side...
Lenders to give customers a breather
Lenders to give customers a breather. Effort aimed at those with payments 90 days or more late. In the latest move aimed at halting a swelling and steady flow of mortgage foreclosures, six of the nation's largest mortgage lenders bowed to government pressure and joined forces last week to...
Ruvin and Gatehouse launch web site for Park East project
Dallas-based Gatehouse Capital Corp. and Milwaukee-based Ruvin Development Inc. recently launched a web site for their proposed mixed-use development that would be built northwest of Old World Third Street and Juneau Avenue in the Park East corridor in downtown Milwaukee.
Federal grant will help redevelop Green Bay's riverfront
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has been awarded a federal grant of $764,790 for the Fox Riverfront development in downtown Green Bay.
Development News for the week 02/08/08 to 02/15/08
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CAPITOL GATEWAY: HOPING FOR TAKERS TALL BUILDINGS, MIXED USE IN EAST WASH PLAN
Before the housing market hit the skids, Tom Marling was thinking hard about selling the family lumber yard on East Washington Avenue to a real estate developer. Set along the Yahara River, within walking distance to Williamson Street and just a mile from the Capitol Square, the 3.8-acre site seemed ideal for some sort of mid-rise condominium project.
NOVATION CAMPUS SHIFTS FOCUS
Seeking to take advantage of its proximity to the downtown, the Alexander Company is refocusing its Novation Campus on commercial space. The firm on Tuesday released updated designs for a 70-acre business park at the intersection of the Beltline Highway and Rimrock Road. It ditches earlier plans for residential condominiums and puts more emphasis on office and retail development.
DEVELOPING A LEGACY THE MIDDLETON HILLS NEIGHBORHOOD, MARSHALL ERDMAN'S VISION, HAS BECOME A SHINING EXAMPLE OF NEW URBANISM.
When development of Middleton Hills began a dozen years ago, it brought the concept of new urbanism to Dane County. The traditional neighborhood with narrow streets, alleys and spacious front porches was a vision of Madison architect and builder Marshall Erdman, who called it his "swan song."
NEW RAZING RULES CLEAR PANEL
It will soon become more difficult to tear down an old building in the city of Madison without jumping through a few additional hoops. After two years of discussion, the city is poised to approve a new demolition ordinance that sets some specific guidelines on razing existing structures and gives a nod to neighborhood preservationists.
FEDS AIM TO ASSIST FORECLOSED
The Bush administration, trying to deal with a worsening housing slump, announced a new initiative today aimed at helping homeowners about to lose their homes. For qualified homeowners, it will put the foreclosure process on hold for 30 days. Dubbed "Project Lifeline," the new program will be available to people who have taken out all types of mortgages, not just the high-cost subprime loans that have been the focus on previous relief efforts.
MERITER HOSPITAL TO EXPAND, RENOVATE
Meriter Hospital is the latest local hospital to plan to expand and renovate, on the heels of massive changes at St. Mary's Hospital and construction of the American Family Children's Hospital. Meriter is completing a 10-year plan that includes a new medical office building and a new updated physical plant building for utilities, as well as several projects within the hospital campus.
ALEXANDER SHOWS PLAN FOR $120 MILLION DEVELOPMENT THE DEVELOPMENT IS SOUTH OF THE BELTLINE ALONG RIMROCK ROAD, IN AN AREA ONCE USED FOR LANDFILLS.
A South Side area that once was the site of two landfills is on its way to becoming a business park. The Alexander Co. has unveiled a $120 million master plan for its 70-acre Novation Campus along Badger Road south of the Beltline and east of Rimrock Road.
NEW HOTEL PROPOSED OFF STOUGHTON ROAD
A local development group is proposing a three-story "Sleep Inn & Suites" hotel at 4802 Tradewinds Parkway, east of the intersection of Stoughton Road and the Beltline. The building would contain 92 individual guest rooms, associated common spaces and an attached one-story swimming pool building to the rear, along with 100 parking spaces.
ALLIANT EYES OFFSET FOR EMISSIONS IN IOWA
Alliant Energy's Iowa utility unit has announced a plan it says would help offset the carbon emissions from a proposed new coal plant in Iowa. Interstate Power and Light said it would cut greenhouse gas emissions by 800,000 tons a year by retiring two coal burning electricity generating units in Lansing and switching a Dubuque power plant from coal to natural gas when it opens the proposed $1.5 billion coal plant in Marshalltown.
DEVELOPERS LOOK TO VERONA BUT SOME WORRY ABOUT RETAIL OVERLOAD
David Reinke's unconventional moves over the last few months may show the attractiveness of this city's southeast side. When the Verona Plan Commission in January rejected a proposal from a Chicago developer who wanted to put a Menards home-improvement center and a Kohl's department store on Reinke's 100 acres at highways M and 18-151, Reinke wrote a scathing letter to the Verona Press, criticizing the denial.
MARLING LUMBER NOT GOING TO NEW SITE
One of Madison's oldest businesses is staying put after all. Marling Lumber Co. announced plans last spring to move from its location in the 1800 block of East Washington Avenue to a nine-acre site at T. Wall Properties' The Center for Industry & Commerce along Highway 51 at Hoepker Road, northeast of the Dane County Regional Airport.
BIG, NEW HOTEL IS DISCUSSED IT'S SAID TO BE NEEDED TO LURE CONVENTIONS
Madison and Marcus Corp. are discussing a much-desired Downtown hotel - perhaps the largest in the city - to serve Monona Terrace and other needs. Marcus, which opened the 14-story, 236-room Hilton Madison at 9 E. Wilson St. adjacent to Monona Terrace in early 2001, has first option to build across the street on a parking lot behind the landmark Madison Municipal Building or the adjacent Government East parking ramp site.
AUSTRIAN FIRM PLANS HQ HERE
With the help of $250,000 in state Technology Zone tax credits, an Austrian company plans to build a plant here that will be its U.S. headquarters. AlliedPanels LLC will invest more than $2.2 million in the project, which will result in 56 new jobs over the next five years, state officials said in a press release.
FACTORY PLANNED IN MADISON AN AUSTRIAN PARTS MAKER IS BUILDING A PLANT THAT WILL EMPLOY AT LEAST 200 PEOPLE.
An Austrian company, AlliedPanels, plans to build a factory in Madison that could employ more than 200 people in a few years, its owner says. AlliedPanels contracts with major electronics manufacturers to produce parts for its equipment. Founded in 2000, the company is based in Hopfgarten and has three locations in Austria, a tiny operation in Minsk, Belarus, and a small plant that opened in Madison late last year and shipped its first products in November.
PLANT TO CLOSE IN BOSCOBEL PHILIPS LIGHTING WILL ELIMIINATE 200 JOBS
There was a time in the mid-1990s when Advance Transformer employed more than 1,500 people in southern and southwestern Wisconsin. By the end of this year, the Rosemont, Ill., company will no longer have a presence in the state.
BUDGET HOLE WIDENS TO $650 MILLION (FIRST EDITION) BUDGET HOLE WIDENS TO $652 MILLION (SECOND EDITION) BORROWING CUTBACKS EYED AS SHORTFALL IN TAX REVENUE GROWS
The turmoil in the economy is splashing red ink across the state's books, doubling an earlier projection of the two-year budget shortfall to $652.3 million, the Legislature's budget office reported Wednesday. Gov. Jim Doyle responded by calling for more cuts to the state bureaucracy, more use of the state credit card and, possibly, dipping more into pots of one-time money. But most of the shortfall remained uncovered, and one independent budget expert said plans already announced rely on some of the same tactics that left the state's finances vulnerable to deficits in the first place.
RETAIL REPORT SHOWS JANUARY REBOUND
ECONOMY Shoppers put aside worries about the slumping economy to go to the malls and auto dealerships in January. That propelled retail sales to a rebound following a dismal December.
POWER PLANT MEETING DELAYED
Bad winter weather forecast for tonight has prompted the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin to postpone tonight's public meeting about the possible construction of an Alliant Energy power plant in Portage. Alliant Energy filed an application with the PSC for permission to build a new 300-megawatt coal-fired power plant at two existing Alliant Energy power plant locations, either the Nelson Dewey Generating Station in Cassville or the Columbia Energy Center in Portage.
LOCAL HOME BUILDING REMAINS IN DOLDRUMS
Home building in Dane County in January fell to a low for the month going back to 1999, when MTD Marketing started compiling building permit records. There were 66 permits issued for new homes and duplexes in Dane County in January, down from 75 last January, and well below the range for January of 83 to 200 going back to 1999.
OFFICIALS SEEKING INPUT ON LAKES
State and local officials are seeking input on a plan to improve the quality of Madison's lakes. State Department of Natural Resources Secretary Matt Frank and Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk have agreed on a need to evaluate sediment and nutrient runoff into the Yahara chain of lakes.
ANOTHER CAMBRIA OFFICIAL RESIGNS
Another Cambria official resigned Wednesday, continuing the exits of those in the village frustrated with battles over Didion Milling. Dallas Buchholz, the chairman of the village's Community Development Authority, wrote a resignation letter Wednesday in which he relinquished his position "due to the obvious fact that our board has demonstrated that Cambria is not important to them."
Around the State and Points Elsewhere
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City rejects settlement in condo tussle
City rejects settlement in condo tussle. Panel rejects compromise on payment for land. When Milwaukee officials granted zoning approval for the University Club Tower condominium high-rise, the owners of the neighboring Kilbourn Tower complained that the rival project would be built too close...
Future of proposed Wal-Mart uncertain
Future of proposed Wal-Mart uncertain. Mayor says Waukesha project 'may still go forward'. The fate of the Wal-Mart Supercenter on West Ave. and Highway 59 should be known within two weeks, Mayor Larry Nelson said Thursday...
Plan panel suggests approval for Pabst Farms mall
Plan panel suggests approval for Pabst Farms mall. After hearing 2 1/2 hours of testimony from area residents and business owners, the city's Plan Commission voted late Thursday to recommend approval of a new proposal for a large outdoor shopping mall at Pabst Farms...
City may use eminent-domain option to close taverns
City may use eminent-domain option to close taverns. City officials are examining the possibility of using eminent domain at Dusty's and Wayne's World taverns in the 4800 block of South Packard avenues...
Apartments project needs final OK
Apartments project needs final OK. The Glendale Common Council on Feb. 11 approved a zoning change that will allow the construction of Canterbury Court, a 60-unit apartment building, at 2233 W. Mill Road...
Commission rejects condo proposal a fourth time
Commission rejects condo proposal a fourth time. Members favor single-family homes with road extension. The Brown Deer Plan Commission on Feb. 11 turned down for the fourth time a condominium development proposed for 7.5 acres at 49th Street and Donges Lane, south of Stange's Greenhouse...
Job report for city sobering
Job report for city sobering. Milwaukee rises in ranking but still seen as vulnerable. Milwaukee's employment growth rate showed a "modestly encouraging" trend in December, improving its ranking among other major cities, according to a new report from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee...
Six Points realizes hoped-for success
Six Points realizes hoped-for success. Plan falls into place as retail, apartment buildings quickly fill. Kevin Kaiser is no stranger to the bakery business, having made it his stock and trade for the past 30 years. But dishing up doughy treats from behind his own counter is a new experience...
Chicago chasing MillerCoors
Chicago chasing MillerCoors. If losing twice to the Chicago Bears this past football season wasn't bad enough, now the Windy City is stalking a much bigger trophy: the executive offices for the combined operations of Miller Brewing Co. and Coors Brewing Co...
Brookfield land plan includes hotel, no stand-alone eateries
Brookfield land plan includes hotel, no stand-alone eateries. Swanson school site would be left alone, except to build road. An assisted living center, an extended stay hotel, a health club, condominiums, retail and office space, and a possible corporate headquarters are proposed for development on prime vacant...
Firm to unveil plan for Brookfield development
Firm to unveil plan for Brookfield development. Calhoun Road widening paves way for 60-acre project. The Ruby farmhouse and possibly the yellow horse barn visible from I-94 will be preserved as part of a major commercial and residential development along Blue Mound Road on one of the city's last remaining...
Former mayor proposes new city water; Behrend says TIF district should remain open
Former mayor proposes new city water; Behrend says TIF district should remain open. Former Mayor Jim Behrend said the Common Council should not close Tax Increment Financing (TIF) District 3 because the city might need the tax revenue it generates for public works improvements, including a limited municipal water system, for a new public...
Pabst Farms moves one step closer; Public comments favorably on project
Pabst Farms moves one step closer; Public comments favorably on project. More than 90 residents gathered to listen and talk about the revised Pabst Farms shopping center plans at a public hearing before the Plan Commission.. More than 90 residents gathered to listen and talk about the revised Pabst Farms shopping center plans...
Good to Know
Good to Know. Useful real estate news. Another indication that slump will continueThe number of Americans signing contracts to buy previously owned homes fell in December for a second straight month, signaling that the worst housing slump in 25 years will persist...
Ghazi Co.'s Charlotte project progresses
Ghazi Co., which is planning a major mixed-use development in downtown Milwaukee, is making progress on building a similar, but larger, development in Charlotte…
Waukesha County: Momentum builds in Moorland Road corridor
The Moorland Road corridor, south of Interstate 43, is attracting more interest from developers, especially those trying to find suitable sites in southeastern Wisconsin for new industrial development.
Washington County: Jackson Northwest Industrial Park continues expansion
Jackson ’s Northwest Industrial Park has evolved significantly since it was created about 12 years ago. The park, located northeast of the intersection of Highways 60 and P, started with 46 acres. Additions over the years have increased it to 159 acres now, and the park expects to add another 42 acres this spring, said Jim Blise, one of the owners of the park.
Kenosha County: Pleasant Prairie freeway interchange ready to bloom
The Interstate 94 and Highway 165/Q interchange in Pleasant Prairie, already the home of the 400,000-square-foot Prime Outlets shopping center and the 120-room Radisson Hotel & Conference Center, is poised to boom with even more development in upcoming years.
Ozaukee County: Mequon’s Town Center is finally coming together
Mequon ’s Town Center project, which the city and town of Thiensville have discussed since 2002, may finally take its first steps forward soon.
Zilber tweaks plans for Pabst parking garage
An historic building that was going to be mostly demolished will now be preserved entirely and redeveloped.
State headlines: Progress made on Sheboygan projects
Construction of two downtown Sheboygan projects, the Landmark Square senior living center and the GrandStay Residential Suites hotel, are progressing nicely.
Sheboygan County: Developers plot 2 more hotels
St. Augusta, Minn.-based ETC Enterprises is building a 71-room GrandStay Residential Suites hotel in downtown Sheboygan at 708 Niagra Ave. It will be the first location in southeastern Wisconsin for the extended stay hotel chain.
US 51 expansion project to be discussed at February 27 information meeting
Preliminary design of the US 51 freeway project in Dane County from Reardon Road to County V/Grinde Road will be discussed at a public information meeting on February 27, 2008, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) announced today.
Development News for the week 02/01/08 – 02/08/08
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VERONA SIZES UP BIG BOXES
More big box development is coming to Verona. That much seems certain. But which retail stores at which location and by what developer remains up in the air.
MIDDLETON PONDERS TRIBECA
Middleton residents will get more another chance Tuesday to weigh in on a project that could contain the city's second big box retailer. A public hearing regarding zoning approval for T. Wall Properties' massive Tribeca Village neighborhood development will be held at 7:45 p.m. at City Hall. In addition to the big box shop, Tribeca includes six office buildings, 326,000 square feet of large and small retail shops, as well as space for restaurants and entertainment, a hotel, apartments and other residential units, according to developer Terrence Wall.
BIG BOX LIMITS FOR MIDDLETON?
Middleton could be the next Dane County community to consider putting limits on big box development. Following a packed public hearing Tuesday on T. Wall Properties' Tribeca Village mixed-use development - much of it opposed to the large-scale portion of the 24-acre project - Middleton Mayor Kurt Sonnentag said he believes the City Council will consider some type of big box ordinance.
MONONA DRIVE EVOLVING, TOO
Broadway is not the only stretch in Monona seeing change. Along Monona Drive, new projects continue to appear. MSP Real Estate, a Minnesota firm that wants to replace the former Garden Circle apartments off Owen Road with senior housing, is eying final city approval this month.
SLOW DOWN, FITCHBURG, PROF URGES
Does the city of Fitchburg really need this? That's the question Fitchburg residents should be asking themselves regarding the proposed 868-acre Northeast Neighborhood in the city's far northeast corner. Or so says Cal DeWitt, UW-Madison's highly respected environmental sciences professor.
ON BROADWAY MONONA STREET CONTINUES TO DEVELOP
Twenty years after being made a city street, Broadway continues to evolve. A sweeping plan adopted in 1989, one year after a nearby stretch of the Beltline was completed, is slowly being realized. The former gas station-lined landscape is now a dim memory.
DEVELOPER NIXES DMV ON SOUTHWEST SIDE
Due to overwhelming public opposition, the Department of Motor Vehicles won't be moving its service center from the Hill Farms State Office Building to McKee Road and Maple Grove Drive on Madison's southwest side, the developer said today. John K. Livesey of the Livesey Co. said he withdrew the lease offer last week after hearing from neighbors that they didn't want the office moved to their already-congested streets.
CONDO PROJECT ON BRINK METROPOLITAN PLACE PHASE II FACES FORECLOSURE
One of the highest-profile condominium projects in downtown Madison is facing a mortgage foreclosure, sending shock waves through the local real estate community and jeopardizing plans for a grocery cooperative to open there. Metropolitan Place Phase II and developer Cliff Fisher owe some $26 million, according to a foreclosure filing in Dane County Circuit Court. Documents show that Buckingham LLC and Fisher have defaulted on loans from both LaSalle Bank of Milwaukee and Associated Bank of Madison.
DEFAULT CLAIMS FILED ON CONDOS TWO BANKS ARE SEEKING FORECLOSURE ON METROPOLITAN PLACE II.
The second phase of Downtown Madison's largest private housing project is in default to the tune of more than $26 million, its lenders said in court documents that seek foreclosure of its three mortgages. The fate of the newly completed Metropolitan Place II, a 164-unit condominium tower facing West Mifflin Street, could indicate that national housing trends are reaching Madison, thought by some to be more immune than most places to twists and turns in U.S. economy.
THRIVE NAMES BIOTECH DIRECTOR
Thrive, the economic development group serving the eight-county Madison region, has hired Cheryl Gain as director of biotechnology initiatives. Gain spent the last eight years as technology development consultant and director of the Office of Science and Technology at the state Department of Commerce.
CITY OKS BUTLER ST. PROJECT
Madison developer Cliff Fisher won one on the same day that news broke that Phase II of his multimillion dollar downtown Metropolitan Place was facing foreclosure. Tuesday, over the objections of some neighborhood residents and the alder representing the area, the City Council approved rezoning five lots so that Fisher's proposed four-story, 38-unit apartment building can be built in the 100 block of North Butler Street. The project would extend all the way to the 100 block of North Hamilton Street, with underground parking topped by a greenspace between the above-ground elements facing the two streets.
UW MEDICAL FOUNDATION 7974 UW HEALTH COURT, MIDDLETON
Construction in Middleton is under way on a new 200,000-square-foot facility for the UW Medical Foundation. The building, located just north of University Avenue and west of the Beltline on the new UW Health Court, is the largest single tenant office lease ever signed on Madison's West side, developers say.
TDS OFFERS NEW, FASTER WIRELESS INTERNET SERVICE
TDS introduced its own version of wireless, high-speed Internet service in late January, said Dave Wittwer, president and chief executive of TDS Telecom and subsidiary TDS Metrocom , both based in Madison. It features an advantage that's not currently available in the Madison area: upload speeds as fast as those for downloading data. "I think it will clearly trump any speed in the marketplace today," Wittwer said.
SIEGER REVISES HOTEL PROPOSAL\ MADISON ARCHITECT ALSO HIRES TWO EXPERTS TO HELP WIN SUPPORT FOR PLAN AT REGENT AND MONROE STREETS.
After 2 1/2 years and four stalled attempts, veteran Madison architect Bob Sieger has brought on new team members to try to win neighborhood and city approval for his proposed hotel at the corner of Regent and Monroe streets. Project coordinator Jason Swart said Sieger has hired Madison urban planner John Stockham to coordinate neighborhood interest groups and professional traffic engineer John Lichtenheld to help with "traffic design and exterior space environment."
THREE 'WOWS' FOR THE NEW VERONA PUBLIC LIBRARY
The 31,000-square-foot, $6.4 million Verona Public Library opened in 2006, funded mainly by municipal bonds. The site is 4.3 acres and allows for 20 years of growth. Today's libraries differ greatly from those of the last generation. Beside computer labs, electronic media, fax and copy services, new program spaces allow for tutoring, teen study and group projects.
MIDDLETON MARKETING FIRM SWAY SOLD
Cornerworld, a Dallas-based Internet company will buy Middleton-based Sway for $30 million, the two firms announced yesterday. Sway, a marketing company launched in 2005, employs 13 and will remain in Middleton, said Jason Weaver, CEO and majority owner of the privately held company.
COUNCIL OKS REZONING FOR TWO DEVELOPMENTS
Madison 's Isthmus neighborhood near James Madison Park will see big changes after the City Council approved the rezoning of several properties as part of two proposed developments Tuesday night. Also Tuesday, the council decided five more Metro Transit buses will soon be wrapped with advertisements.
NEW CHILDREN'S MUSEUM BENEFITS FAMILIES, SQUARE ECONOMIC AND CULTURAL REWARDS FOR DOWNTOWN
The Madison Children's Museum 's relocation and expansion is progressing. The new facility at 100 N. Hamilton St. will increase existing space from 8,000 to 41,570 square feet and open to the public in 2010. But this major renovation means much more to Downtown than extra space for exhibits. The nonprofit early childhood education center aims to anchor Capitol Square with a major public attraction that will draw families to the heart of the city.
UW MEDICAL FOUNDATION 7974 UW HEALTH COURT, MIDDLETON
Construction in Middleton is under way on a new 200,000-square-foot facility for the UW Medical Foundation. The building, located just north of University Avenue and west of the Beltline on the new UW Health Court, is the largest single tenant office lease ever signed on Madison's West side, developers say.
UW EYES BIG NEW SITE FOR RESEARCH RODENTS
A large underground facility for thousands of rats and mice used for research is planned as part of the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery in the heart of the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus. A $20 million plan that includes a receiving dock and an 8,500-square-foot "vivarium" - a holding facility for live animals for observation and research - was proposed to the UW System Board of Regents for action Thursday, but the vote is now set for March to allow more discussion.
UNIVERSITY PLANNING MICE, RAT BUILDING THE UNDERGROUND VIVARIUM COULD HOLD 33,000 ANIMALS FOR LABORATORY RESEARCH.
Researchers at the future Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery would have easy access to thousands of lab rats and mice under a proposal to build a 10,000-square-foot vivarium at the Institutes' West Side site, UW Madison officials said Tuesday. The one-level, underground facility on Orchard Street would be accessible by tunnel from the main research building and, based on preliminary plans, could hold more than 33,000 mice and rats.
WIPFLI CPAS TO LOCATE AT NEW ARBOR GATE
Wipfli CPAs and Consultants , 2901 W. Beltline, will be a major tenant at Arbor Gate when the $55 million office and retail project is completed this year. The accounting firm will occupy 40,000 square feet in the office complex being developed by Mortenson Investment Group and Westwind Associates south of the Beltline and east of Todd Drive.
NEW NAME, OLD GAME EX-KENNEDY HAHN STAFFERS OPEN APPLIANCE STORE
A new appliance store has entered the Madison market but Grand Appliance & TV's new store at 6220 Nesbitt Road contains some familiar faces. Grand Appliance, headquartered in Zion, Ill., decided to enter the Madison market after hearing from several longtime Kennedy Hahn Appliance employees.
APPLIANCE CHAIN SETS UP IN FITCHBURG WAUKEGAN, ILL.-BASED GRAND APPLIANCE & TV OPENS STORE NEAR ORCHARD POINTE.
A growing appliance and electronics chain has opened in an expanding retail area of Fitchburg. Grand Appliance & TV has opened a 5,000-square-foot store at 6220 Nesbitt Road near the Orchard Pointe retail development, home to the SuperTarget.
WOODMAN'S GETS SUN PRAIRIE'S OK
Sun Prairie residents will have another option of where to buy their groceries after the City Council approved a Woodman's Food Market for the city's west side. The council on Tuesday approved a grocery store as well as an oil-and-lube center and gas station with 10 pumps and a car wash covering about 225,000 square feet at the intersection of Highway 151 and Highway C.
VA HOSPITAL PLANS STAND-ALONE CLINIC OFFICIALS PLAN TO SHIFT 5,000 PATIENTS AND INCREASE EFFORTS TO DEAL WITH A RISE IN MENTAL HEALTH CASES.
Madison 's Veterans Hospital will open a stand-alone clinic in the city this year to meet a growing demand for care, including mental-health services stemming from the war in Iraq. The hospital plans to lease and remodel an existing building within five miles of its Near West Side headquarters by September, said John Rohrer, managed care director.
Great Wolf wrangle
Great Wolf wrangle. Major stockholder plans to nominate himself, two others to board of directors. A major shareholder of Great Wolf Resorts Inc. is unhappy with the Madison company's lagging performance and plans to nominate an alternate slate of directors to the board...
HOVDE: PUT ME ON BOARD LARGE GREAT WOLF RESORTS SHAREHOLDER NOMINATES HIMSELF AND TWO OTHERS.
A large stockholder of Great Wolf Resorts has nominated himself and two others to the Madison company's board of directors. Eric Hovde, co-founder and chief executive officer of Hovde Capital Advisors in Washington, D.C., said Monday he is making the recommendations because he is concerned about the performance of the waterpark resort company and its leadership on the board, according to Monday's filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
US 51 expansion project to be discussed at February 6 information meeting
Preliminary design of the US 51 freeway project in Dane County from Reardon Road to County V/Grinde Road will be discussed at a public information meeting on Wednesday, February 6, 2008, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) announced today.
Around The State and Points Elsewhere
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'GREEN TIER' CARROT BEATS REGULATORY STICK
When it comes to meeting environmental requirements, "business as usual" unfortunately still relies on the complex, compliance-driven, costly litigation and minimum standards of "command and control." Wisconsin's innovative "Green Tier" law provides a better way for businesses to make positive environmental improvements while reducing costs and achieving real success. Green Tier participants assess their performance, implement greener strategies and, in turn, receive flexibility, recognition and other incentives.
MILWAUKEE CONDO BUST HITS HOMETOWN BANK
The financial meltdown of a high profile downtown Milwaukee condominium project has left Madison-based Anchor Bank on the hook for some $48 million, putting a local face on the nation's unfolding real estate crisis. Anchor Bank (ABCW) so far has managed to steer clear of the major damage that has hammered many financial institutions. Its stock has limped along and is down about 15 percent over the past 52 weeks, trading in the $24 range.
WEATHER BOOSTS WINTER GAMES ANNUAL COMPETITION AND STATE TOURISM IN GENERAL BENEFIT FROM SNOWY WINTER.
Snow and just the right amount of cold boosted participation in the Badger Winter Games and has helped winter tourism statewide. Organizers of the 20th annual Badger Winter Games, which ended Sunday, said they had the best participation in years.
45 TO LOSE JOBS IN PLANT CLOSING
COLUMBIA COUNTY Wausau Paper Corp. will close its paper converting facility in Columbus, about 28 miles northeast of Madison.
JOBS DECLINE FIRST SINCE '03
Nervous employers cut 17,000 jobs in January - the first such reduction in more than four years and a fresh sign that the economy is in danger of stalling. The Labor Department's report, released today, also showed that the unemployment rate dipped slightly to 4.9 percent, from 5 percent, as the civilian labor force shrank slightly.
HOUSING SQUEEZE MARKET IS CHALLENGING HOME BUYERS AND SELLERS
Knowing they'd be moving into a new house in the fall, Al and Aly Wendorf put their home up for sale last February. "We were thinking that would give us more than enough time to get it sold," said Al Wendorf, who works in the construction industry and had been through the process five times before.
GENERAL MOTORS TO CUT PRODUCTION IN JANESVILLE
General Motors will cut production by 15 percent at its Janesville assembly plant in March. GM-Janesville makes 52 full-sized sport utility vehicles an hour; that rate will drop to 44 an hour.
Business in Brief
Business in Brief. LOCALMGIC tightens mortgage insurance coverageMGIC Insurance Corp. is tightening guidelines for issuing mortgage insurance as well as restricting coverage in a number of markets across the country in an effort to deal with losses. The Milwaukee-based...
Medical plans need a checkup
Medical plans need a checkup. Proposal doesn't meet zoning requirement. Plans for a $70 million Franklin Medical Center campus near South 27th Street do not meet the city's zoning code...
Downtown plan for city enters action phase
Downtown plan for city enters action phase. Residents sought to serve on boards and share input. With the Muskego downtown project identified, the Mayor's Task Force on Economic Development is moving into its next phase - the action plan...
Ninth TIF district eyed as means to better downtown
Ninth TIF district eyed as means to better downtown. The village might create its ninth tax-incremental financing district in an effort to spur redevelopment in the downtown Village Centre area...
Aurora eyes business district for health clinic
Aurora eyes business district for health clinic. Aurora Advanced Healthcare has applied for a conditional-use permit allowing it to establish a health clinic in the building that formerly housed Talbots and Famous Footwear at 325 E. Silver Spring Drive...
Council delays vote on closing downtown TIF
Council delays vote on closing downtown TIF. Although it appeared Monday night that the Common Council had left the door slightly ajar, Council President Erv Sadowski said Tuesday morning he was confident tax increment financing district #3 (TIF) would be slammed shut, and soon.. Although it appeared...
Did officials plot to defeat referendum? They wanted city land available to developers
Did officials plot to defeat referendum? They wanted city land available to developers. Police Chief Scott Taubel and former City Administrator Matt Carlson are part of an effort to defeat the Feb. 19 Plan B referendum in order to make sure that City Hall is demolished and its land is sold to downtown developers, according to Alderman Gerald...
Through him, a bank reaches out to city
Through him, a bank reaches out to city. Vincent Lyles is a quiet force in the revitalization of some of the poorest neighborhoods in Milwaukee and across the nation. Lyles, 46, is president of M&I Community Development Corp., the for-profit subsidiary of M&I Bank that invests in projects...
Value Place hotels planned
Value Place hotels planned. Critics fear low rates may attract undesirables. A company that bills itself as the nation's fastest-growing extended-stay hotel chain is expanding into the Milwaukee area...
Aul might sue city over water; Might seek to block closing downtown TIF
Aul might sue city over water; Might seek to block closing downtown TIF. Threatened legal action by a prominent downtown lawyer and landowner might set the stage for a bitter political and legal battle over past and ?future? development of the downtown business district.. Threatened legal action by a prominent downtown lawyer...
Sports complex proposed in Grafton
Sports complex proposed in Grafton. Town panel to review plan for facility. Initial plans for an indoor sports complex, which would be used for baseball, soccer, miniature golf and laser tag, are to be reviewed by the town Plan Commission Wednesday night...
Competing visions vie for vacant land
Competing visions vie for vacant land. Housing project for mentally ill proposed for site of bike path. Land at S. 6th St. and W. Rosedale Ave. on the banks of the Kinnickinnic River stands vacant today, with some trees, brush and vegetation. But what will it look like in the future?...
Fox River development passes preliminary hurdle with DNR
Fox River development passes preliminary hurdle with DNR. The city's largest recent development - the Shoppes at Fox River - is within the federal c clean-air standard for vehicular air pollution and likely will receive an air-quality permit from the state...
Condo developer files for court receiver
Condo developer files for court receiver. First Place project beset with debt, lawsuits. The owner of a large Milwaukee condominium project, facing major construction cost overruns and mounting debts, has filed for receivership - effectively ending its control of the development...
Businesses see proposal as road to ruin
Businesses see proposal as road to ruin. I-94 plan limits access to 27th St. from south. Like motorists stuck in traffic, retailers and residents fighting to maintain full access to the S. 27th St. business district have been honking loudly and making little progress...
Waukesha County: Momentum builds in Moorland Road corridor
The Moorland Road corridor, south of Interstate 43, is attracting more interest from developers, especially those trying to find suitable sites in southeastern Wisconsin for new industrial development.
Washington County: Jackson Northwest Industrial Park continues expansion
Jackson ’s Northwest Industrial Park has evolved significantly since it was created about 12 years ago. The park, located northeast of the intersection of Highways 60 and P, started with 46 acres. Additions over the years have increased it to 159 acres now, and the park expects to add another 42 acres this spring, said Jim Blise, one of the owners of the park.
Kenosha County: Pleasant Prairie freeway interchange ready to bloom
The Interstate 94 and Highway 165/Q interchange in Pleasant Prairie, already the home of the 400,000-square-foot Prime Outlets shopping center and the 120-room Radisson Hotel & Conference Center, is poised to boom with even more development in upcoming years.
Walworth County: Referendum may determine fate of Lake Geneva project
Developers plan to build a new resort, a winery and 882 residences on a 710-acre site on the southeast side of the City of Lake Geneva.
Ozaukee County: Mequon’s Town Center is finally coming together
Mequon ’s Town Center project, which the city and town of Thiensville have discussed since 2002, may finally take its first steps forward soon.
State headlines: Racine ponders options for failed Pointe Blue site
Despite the recent collapse of the Pointe Blue development, which was proposed by Milwaukee-based KeyBridge Development, Racine officials say they are in no rush to stir up another proposal for the site.
State headlines: Banks seek foreclosure on large Madison condo project
Another large Wisconsin condominium development is having major financial problems. The second phase of downtown Madison's largest private housing project is in default by more than $26 million, its lenders said in court documents that seek foreclosure.
Milwaukee County to issue RFP for another Park East property
Milwaukee County plans to issue a request for proposals (RFP) this spring for a three-acre, triangle-shaped property at the west end of the Park East corridor.
More hotels planned near airport
The list of proposed hotel developments near Mitchell International Airport keeps growing.
Pleasant Prairie drafts plans for more development near I-94
The Village of Pleasant Prairie's Community Development Authority (CDA) is drafting development plans for about 30 acres of village-owned land on property south of Highway 165 and west of I-94. The plans call for a 200-room hotel and conference center, restaurants, corporate offices, small retail stores, a gas/convenience center and a mixed-use facility.
Concrete being crushed at the North End site
Milwaukee-based Mandel Group Inc. recently began the process of pulverizing the demolished buildings from the former Pfister & Vogel tannery site in downtown Milwaukee, where the company will build the North End development.
Developer plans boutique hotel in Walworth County
Jenison, Mich.-based Rookus Group wants to build a 100-room boutique hotel and spa southeast of Black Church Road and Fontana Ridge Road, just outside of the Village of Fontana in Walworth County.
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