Park Towne : News & Notes

A landmark in conserving farmland was reached Dec. 20 when the Dane County Board approved a new tool for communities and landowners to manage growth. This program, called "transfer of development rights," was more than 10 years in the making. The defining character of Dane County is our land and water. These invaluable assets provide beautiful scenery, support a farm economy that accounts for about 11 percent of the county's total economic activity, and create distinctive settings for our villages, cities, and towns.

Leading an ambitious, $28 million redevelopment of the troubled Allied Drive neighborhood is only the first item on Mark Olinger's to-do list for next year. Add to that the redevelopment of the Villager mall on South Park Street, the first update of the city's economic development plan in 25 years, the first update of the city's Downtown plan in almost 20 years, a rewrite of the zoning code and the oversight of the new economic and community development divisions.

The organization formerly known as REDE - the Regional Economic Development Entity - has a new name: Thrive. The name, regional brand and regional point-of-entry Web site were formally launched at a recent Collaboration Council meeting, the semiannual forum for discussion on regional stewardship involving regional leaders across business, nonprofit groups, education and government.

A Denver development firm is spending $2 million to renovate a pair of office buildings totaling 150,000 square feet on Deming Way in Middleton. Old Vine Acquisitions Corp . of Denver bought the buildings at 1800 and 1850 Deming Way for $9.5 million from Fidelity National Information Services , a financial services company that moved most of its operations out of the two buildings last year.

Did Mayor Dave Cieslewicz "get religion" this year? Cieslewicz, re-elected in April with 62 percent of the vote, had a mix of success and setbacks that have inspired a new, more focused agenda for 2008.

Planning Design Build and Virchow Krause Capital of Madison are partners in an indoor waterpark resort being built near Great America theme park in northeast Illinois. KeyLime Cove, which is just off Interstate 94 north of the Grand Avenue exit in Gurnee, Ill., is scheduled to open Feb. 29, spokeswoman Sheena Quinn said today.

Two large, global biotechnology companies have licensed the Transcreener technology developed by BellBrook Labs in Fitchburg for faster screening of potential drug compounds. Cisbio , a French company, and Invitrogen , a Carlsbad, Calif., biotech with offices and labs in Madison, will be able to combine the Transcreener with their own screening technologies and sell it to other companies. Invitrogen will also be able to use the system for drug development services it provides to clients.

West Business Services is opening a sales center in Middleton that could hire as many as 300 employees by the end of this year. Based in Omaha, parent company West Corp. provides a wide range of outsourced services to Fortune 1000 corporate clients, including telemarketing, conferencing, security and debt collection.

Bringing a grocery store back to the north side was the highlight of his career with the Northside Planning Council, Jim Powell says. The two-year struggle, which brought Pierce's Northside Market to the Northside Town Center where Roundy's had closed a store, offered one of the biggest challenges and most satisfying outcomes of Powell's seven years as facilitator for the city's oldest neighborhood planning council.

When Wisconsin lawmakers return to the Capitol next month, they'll have just three months to debate and pass laws before the fall elections. Here's what the two chambers and Gov. Jim Doyle plan to do...

Eight Wisconsin farms will share $1.5 million in Focus on Energy grants to build anaerobic digesters that use manure and other waste products to produce electricity and heat. The digesters use bio-gas produced by decomposing organic matter to power a generator or heating unit. The bio-gas is composed of up to 70 percent methane.

The 2007 U.S. housing bust hit everyone from would-be sellers of suburban split-levels to German bankers, as mounting home foreclosures led to billion-dollar bank write-downs, frozen credit markets and recession fears. The contagion was voted the top business story of the year by U.S. newspaper and broadcast editors surveyed by The Associated Press.

The head of one of the nation's largest homebuilders made headlines early this year by bucking his industry peers' projections of a housing turnaround by spring and instead predicting the market would struggle throughout the year. He was right. The housing market has gone from a "correction" to a "slump," and as 2007 comes to a close, there are signs 2008 will get worse.

Subprime fallout leads list of year's biggest stories. If one word could sum up the top business news story in Milwaukee - or the country - in 2007, that word would be "subprime." The bursting of the subprime mortgage bubble rippled through the economy, punishing an already weakened housing market, battering financial institutions - from Marshall & Ilsley Corp. to Allco Credit Union - and roiling the stock market.

Holiday Inn plan converts downtown offices. City committee backs developer's parking lease for hotel guests. Yet another hotel project has surfaced for downtown Milwaukee, and this one appears to be proceeding quickly...

Developers keep plugging away. The new year will likely meet Milwaukee area condo developers' expectations, largely because they are expecting less. Across the metro area, developers spent the last half of 2007 adjusting sales projections and marketing plans to reflect the realities of the housing market…

Uline's move to bring jobs. State aid lures Illinois firm to Pleasant Prairie; 350 new positions projected. When Milwaukee's Jos. Schlitz Brewing Co. went out of business nearly three decades ago, descendents of the founding Uihlein family held onto their entrepreneurial streak...

The old headquarters building of Marshall Erdman & Associates is part of prime land for development near University Avenue and Whitney Way. The 15-acre property, owned by Erdman Holdings, also includes land occupied by the recently closed Irish Waters tavern, 702 N. Whitney Way, and the Merrill Springs Inn, 5101 University Ave.

The Allied Drive Task Force, the Community Development Authority, and the design, marketing and financial packaging consultants are finally all on the same page in terms of redeveloping the city-owned properties on Allied Drive. All further planning will be focused on what has been called "Concept B" for the sloping 11.5 acre site southwest of the Boys & Girls Club between the east side of Allied Drive and the Madison-Fitchburg border. The city bought the property, currently occupied by nine apartment buildings with 129 units, from Troy Hauk in May 2005 for $4.3 million.

Four years ago, Marshall Erdman & Associates took a giant step when the Erdman family decided to sell the design/build company to private-equity partners. A few weeks ago, the company took another big step when it moved out of its longtime headquarters at 5117 University Ave., where the late founder, Marshall Erdman, once walked the hallways, and into a new building at 1 Erdman Place, along Deming Way in the Old Sauk Trails Office Park on Madison's Far West Side.

The new DaneVest Tech Fund I has announced its first investment is in Madison-based stem cell firm Stemina Biomarker Discovery. The $212,500 investment, along with a recent $125,000 investment by Madison-based Phenomenelle Angels, closes a common stock financing round of $1.5 million for Stemina. DaneVest said it also has the availability for additional follow-on investments in Stemina of up to $250,000.

The financial stars aligned Friday for Madison's long-awaited redevelopment of the troubled Allied Drive neighborhood. A consultant who has been evaluating the project's chances for receiving critical tax credits found his projections were "in the ballpark" of the architect's cost estimates during a Community Development Authority subcommittee meeting Friday afternoon.

Meriter Hospital plans to remodel some of its facilities beginning next year and add a physician office building and possibly a parking ramp within five years, hospital staff have started telling neighborhood groups and city planners. The hospital, which has bought several residential rental properties adjacent to its Park Street campus in the past year, also plans to replace its main inpatient tower within about 15 or 20 years, said Fred McGee, the hospital's vice president for planning.

The old quarters of Marshall Erdman & Associates at 5117 University Ave. were steeped in history, but had become cramped and inconvenient over the years. At the end of November, the company moved into a new 133,000-square-foot building along Deming Way built by the Gialamas Co. in the Old Sauk Trails Business Park.

ABC Supply founder Hendricks embodied entrepreneurial spirit

Madison, Wis. - The last time I spoke with Ken Hendricks was about a week before his death. I called to ask if he would help out with this year's Governor's Business Plan Contest, which interested him because it revolved around entrepreneurs like him. He promised to think about it and suggested we talk again after the first of the year. Tragically, it's a call that can never be completed.

Inland Companies plans to move to Pabst brewery building

Milwaukee-based Inland Companies Inc. plans to move its downtown Milwaukee office from 839 N. Jefferson St. to the Boiler House building in the former Pabst brewery complex, according to real estate industry sources.

Condo plan to be downsized. A planned four-unit condominium at 1710 Rawson Avenue faces some design hurdles and will likely be downsized before the Plan Commission approves construction. The planned development just west of the BP station at 17th and Rawson avenues would replace an existing home. While both Plan Commission Chairman Tom Zepecki and City Engineer Kyle Vandercar supported replacing an older home with a condo development, commissioners and alderman expressed concern about the architecture and density of the project that would be built on a lot that is only 90 feet by 120 feet in size.

County faces uphill battle over bluff development

La Crosse County ’s proposed comprehensive plan does not explicitly forbid home construction on steep slopes as some have suggested, said county planner Charlie Handy, because the plan is amendable and just suggests a guide for development. Although several people spoke against slope limitations at a public hearing for the comprehensive plan two weeks ago, Handy said many of the comments do not reflect the latest draft of the plan.

It will rank among the Milwaukee area's biggest construction projects in 2008, involves a major corporate headquarters and includes efforts to boost minority-owned businesses while creating high-profile, environmentally friendly buildings. Given those facts, the $73 millionmakeover for Johnson Controls Inc.'s corporate campus in Glendale has generated much less notice than a similar project - Manpower Inc.'s new headquarters downtown.

Wisconsin, area states lag behind U.S. in job growth, report says. Subprime spillover, industrial sector contributed to low rate. Wisconsin ranked 43rd among the 50 states and District of Columbia in annual job growth rate through November, according to federal data released Friday...

Area bankers: Recession in new year is unlikely

Fallout from national economic problems will affect the local economy in 2008, but two Northeastern Wisconsin bankers believe recession is unlikely. "I think you'll have pockets around the country suffering more than others," said Paul Beideman, chairman and chief executive officer of Associated Banc-Corp, Ashwaubenon. "In Wisconsin, it seems to me so far, we are doing very, very well."

Glendale apartments near OK. An apartment development that has been pending more than a year in Glendale is finally on the verge of gaining city approval. The Plan Commission has unanimously recommended a rezoning for Canterbury Court, a 60-unit luxury apartment community that is proposed for a former industrial site at 2233-2303 W. Mill Road. The Common Council has set a Feb. 11 public hearing to review that recommendation, City Administrator Richard Maslowski said Thursday.

Port's downtown 'on the cusp'

Port Washington - Things are beginning to stir downtown even though the owners of buildings that housed the Smith Bros. Seafood Restaurant and Lueptow's Furniture & Appliance store still are seeking tenants and a new owner. Three large buildings downtown have been vacant for most of this year, while the I-43/Highway 60 and Highway 33 interchanges in Grafton and Saukville have flourished. But the Port Washington downtown has struggled to fill its vacant buildings. That could be changing…

The pile of rubble on University Avenue at the Hilldale Shopping Center, below, will soon be replaced with the six-story, 140-room Hotel Indigo, above. The Madison Plan Commission on Monday approved the project, which will include a 100,000-square-foot office building and a 50,000-square-foot health club. A Whole Foods grocery is also being built on the property at Segoe Road and University Avenue.

Members of Madison's Plan Commission want more details on a proposal to replace the six buildings that share a small Downtown block with the Pinkus McBride Market and Deli with a four-story apartment building. The commission voted Monday to delay a decision on the plan by owner Phil Hees of McBride Companies that calls for demolishing or relocating the six rental properties containing 48 housing units in the 300 blocks of East Johnson, North Hancock and North Hamilton streets and building a 67-unit apartment building with underground parking.

Developers push for affordable housing. Most of project is likely supportable by city staff. Two area developers looking to build an affordable housing neighborhood south of Oconomowoc are working through the preliminary stages of the project's approval process. As with most proposals, there are early concerns that need to be worked out before they can advance. However, Maureen Stapleton and Steve Boysa stay optimistic that their development will move forward.

The core of troubled Allied Drive could be revitalized with new apartments, townhouses, single-family homes, roads, greenways and public places, a new conceptual design shows. The design, called "concept plan B," would preserve most trees and the sloping grade of the 11.5-acre site, and create a new road connection to an adjacent neighborhood in Fitchburg.

One of the region's largest accounting firms is the second major tenant to lease office space in the new Arbor Gate development at Todd Drive and the Beltline. Wipfli LLP announced Thursday it will relocate its Madison office when the twin six-story buildings are ready for occupancy in the fall of 2008.

With Dane County housing starts at record low levels, some area contractors are taking on more remodeling projects to stay afloat financially. Due to less demand, prices of lumber and some other building materials are down from record highs during the housing boom. The prices of other building materials, including metals and petroleum-based products, are more volatile, however.

A Middleton homeowner found the near-million-dollar home he bought last year came with a few extras he didn't expect - more than $90,000 in construction liens - and that led to criminal charges Wednesday against the home's builder. David E. Robert, 35, of Madison, former owner of Western Designs Construction Co. and current owner of Dave Robert Designs, was charged with one count of theft by false representation and one count of fraudulent writings.

BIOTECHNOLOGY Promega Corp., a biotechnology company based in Fitchburg, will open an office in Stockholm in January. Its Swedish subsidiary, Promega Biotech AB, will provide life science research tools to biotechs, laboratories and universities in that country.

The Hotel Indigo is a six-story, 150-room boutique lodging facility to be constructed at the Hilldale shopping center along University Avenue. Developer Joseph Freed & Associates had planned a condominium tower at the site but changed plans because of the slow real estate market. The firm plans to start vertical construction of the hotel in March and have it operating in 2009. Freed will own the hotel in a partnership with local investors.

After hearing that developers had secured a new location for the historic "Conklin House," the Madison Plan Commission Monday night OK'd plans for a new $24 million, 14-story apartment building at the bustling corner of West Johnson and Mills streets on the UW-Madison campus. Close to the UW chemistry building, the Ten Twenty-Two West Johnson apartment is aimed at students, professionals and researchers with families. It calls for 163 apartments from efficiency to four-bedroom units, with underground parking.

A new nightclub and restaurant is taking shape in Middleton in what had been Tallard's Station. Pachuco's nightclub is scheduled to open Thursday while the restaurant, Luz De Luna International Gourmet, is scheduled to open Jan. 5, said manager Pablo Paniagua. The building, at 8152 Forsythia St., off Airport Road, was home to Tallard's for more than seven years. Tallard's closed this fall and the building has undergone extensive remodeling, Paniagua said.

An arrest for theft of building materials might be the key to solving several similar cases being investigated by Madison police. David Brooks, 43, Madison, and two male juveniles, ages 15 and 16, were arrested Saturday morning after five boxes of aluminum siding were found strapped to the top of Brooks' van. Police believe the siding was stolen from a Veridian Homes building site in the new Heather Glen neighborhood.

M&I braces for loan losses. Bank to greatly increase reserves for fourth quarter. Marshall & Ilsley Corp. said Monday it will beef up reserves by as much as $235 million in the fourth quarter to cover potentially bad loans, most of them connected to the struggling real estate market.

The eight easels at the front of the room presented visions of the possible new apartment buildings, single-family homes, greenways and neighborhood layout that could be the cornerstone of the city's efforts to rejuvenate an area of Allied Drive long troubled by poverty and crime. But most of the nearly 100 community members who attended the public meeting Sunday afternoon at the Allied Drive area Boys & Girls Club to see those plans for the first time were more interested in who would and should be living in those new buildings.

Full Compass Systems is on a roll. At age 30, when some businesses might be content to follow a routine, Full Compass is about to shake things up. The Middleton company, which sells professional audio, video and lighting products to educational institutions, government agencies, corporations and entertainment places, plans to move back to Madison and build a custom-designed building with 150,000 square feet of office and warehouse space. That's twice its current size at 8001 Terrace Ave.

Whether your property tax bill went up or down this year, you can probably attribute the change to the needs of local schools and the sluggishness of Wisconsin lawmakers. Tax bills that began arriving in mailboxes last week are heavily impacted by lack of growth in state school aid and the Legislature's inability to pass a budget on time, which forced many districts to rely more than usual on local property taxes, the nonpartisan Wisconsin Taxpayer's Alliance says.

Scott Lockard, who recently succeeded longtime Madison market president Londa Dewey at U.S. Bank, said he doesn't see the bank changing dramatically in this market. "We've had great leadership and the legacies that we have in this market. We're going to focus on our community and focus on our customers." The bank, commonly identified by many people as the big glass bank on the Capitol Square, first opened its doors in 1854 as Dane County Bank. Later, it became the First National Bank of Madison, First Wisconsin National Bank and Firstar Bank before merging with U.S. Bank in 2001.

The Madison Plan Commission Monday night will hear a presentation from Joseph Freed & Associates over proposed changes to its Hilldale mixed-use development. Freed is putting on hold plans for additional condominiums, pending an improvement in the local housing market. It wants to place the new Hotel Indigo on University Avenue where a condo high-rise was originally proposed.

An 11-story condominium building planned as part of the redevelopment at Hilldale Shopping Center is being put on hold because of the saturated condo market. Joseph Freed & Associates said in a news release Friday that plans for The Heights, a 112-unit building that would front University Avenue, will be rescheduled to "a date that more appropriately and effectively meets the supply and demand of the Madison condominium market."

The decision by the Verona City Council and the Verona Town Board to schedule April referendums on whether to merge the city and town ought to be of interest to all Dane County residents. As rural areas of the county are annexed and developed at an ever-increasing rate, we will see more proposals of this kind. It is a predictable byproduct of the circumstance that has been created by the failure of county officials to establish sound and consistent land use policies.

RETAIL Discount retailer Big Lots will close its store at 3803 E. Washington Ave. on Jan. 19. The Columbus, Ohio, company operates 15 stores in Wisconsin, including one in Janesville and about 1,400 nationwide. The Madison store, which sells close-outs, manufacturers' overruns and discontinued items, opened in 2000 next to Kmart, but the Kmart store closed in 2003.

Of the hundreds of state natural areas in Wisconsin, few can match the spectacular beauty of the Dells of the Wisconsin River. Nestled along a five-mile stretch of the river just a few miles from the tacky streets of Wisconsin Dells, it is a scenic wonderland of sandstone bluffs -- some more than 100 feet high -- and canyons shaped by centuries of wind and water erosion.

TIF district eyed for Town Center. Special financing would cover improvements. A tax-incremental financing district that would help develop the city's Town Center appears to be economically feasible.

In this village, known for its Heidi and Wilhelm Tell festivals, a hopped-up cow is taking center stage. About 17 miles to the south, a dog with Canadian roots is trying to upstage Limburger cheese. Over the past year, the bovine and the canine have helped pump millions of dollars into the Green County economy and the numbers are likely to grow. A new $21 million brewery for the New Glarus Brewing Co. is nearing completion. Designed to look like a farm and blend into its rural setting on the village's south side, the new plant is needed so the 14-year-old company owned by Deb and Dan Carey can keep up with demand for its most popular brew, Spotted Cow.

Developer gets prison for tax evasion. Pewaukee man did not pay taxes for a decade. A four-story condominium that was to be built on the former Sentry site on Oakton Avenue in the Village of Pewaukee is now only a memory as the promoter of the project will be spending 18 months in federal prison for not paying his taxes for a decade.

The economy sprinted ahead at its fastest pace in four years during the summer, although it is expected to limp through the final three months of this year as the housing and credit debacles weigh on individuals and businesses alike. The Commerce Department reported today that gross domestic product grew at a 4.9 percent pace in the July-to-September quarter, unchanged from an estimate made a month ago. The performance was especially impressive given that the housing market plunged deeper into despair. Builders slashed spending on housing projects in the third quarter at an annualized rate of 20.5 percent, the most in 16 years.

Marcus Theatres Corp., a division of The Marcus Corp., today announced it has signed an agreement to purchase a portion of Paul Silk Film Buying Co. of Minneapolis, Minn. The transaction is expected to close on Jan. 14, 2008. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Under the agreement, Marcus Theatres will perform film buying services for 15 locations owned by five exhibitors, representing 152 screens located in Minnesota. Services will include film buying, booking and other related responsibilities and management services.

Shopping and soccer proposed for Iceport site. Continental Properties Company has partnered with the Milwaukee Wave to propose a soccer training and multi-use facility at the former Iceport site, in addition to a Wal-Mart. Representatives from Wal-Mart and Continental Properties were scheduled to meet with members of the Community Development Authority on Dec. 18 to discuss plans for the Cudahy Station development. The development would include a shopping center with Wal-Mart as the anchor, the Wave facility and a hotel.

Condos proposed for 17th and Rawson. A planned four-unit condominium building at 1710 Rawson Ave. faces some design hurdles before the South Milwaukee Plan Commission is ready to approve construction.

Apartment plan moves forward. With three of its harshest critics giving cautious support, a zoning change recommendation for a 60-unit apartment complex known as Canterbury Court received Glendale Plan Commission approval last week.

Pabst Farms recently announced the start of sales for a 144-unit luxury condominium project in the massive development at I-94 and Highway 67 in Oconomowoc. Grading has begun in preparation for the first phase of the condo project, called Village Crossing at Pabst Farms. The condos are expected to be ready for occupancy by mid-summer, 2008.

Waukesha-based Decade Properties Inc. recently purchased the largest hotel in Wauwatosa and one of the largest office buildings in Wauwatosa. The company purchased the eight-story, 150-room Radisson Hotel-Milwaukee West at 2303 N. Mayfair Road, Wauwatosa, and the six-story, 120,000-square-foot office building at 2323 N. Mayfair Road from Jacobus Mayfair Properties LLC, an affiliate of Jacobus Wealth Management Inc.

Condo, retail development gets green light. A mixed-use condominium project targeted for the 4500 block of Oakland Avenue has received the backing of the Shorewood Village Board and Community Development Authority.

The scenic sandstone bluffs of the Wisconsin River Dells would get a new neighbor - a luxury resort with waterparks, town homes and condos - if the state approves permits needed to build it next to a publicly owned natural area. The developers, Cambrian Development, are to make a presentation on the project at a public hearing Thursday evening by the state Department of Natural Resources.

As the Milwaukee and Mississippi Railroad laid tracks south of Mazomanie in the mid-1850s, the valley containing Black Earth Creek proved an ideal place to dam up the creek to provide water for the steam engines using the new rail line. The dam that eventually created Lake Marion at one point also powered the largest grinding mill in the region, now the Old Feed Mill, a restaurant and gift shop. But over the last 150 years, ownership of the dam became fuzzy, and upkeep dropped off. The structure began to deteriorate and now needs an estimated $70,000 to $80,000 in repairs.

Affordable rental units win approval. 2 projects proposed for city's north side. Two separate proposals for affordable apartments on Milwaukee's north side received approval Thursday from the city Redevelopment Authority.

WED., DEC 12, 2007 - Downtown Madison's prominent "glass bank" is expected to have new ownership by the end of the year. Madison-based Urban Land Interests is ready to close a deal with Minneapolis-based U.S. Bancorp in the next few weeks, the first sale of the U.S. Bank building on the Capitol Square since it opened in 1973. Brad Binkowski, a principal with Urban Land Interests, said his firm will "take a pretty comprehensive look at some pretty extensive improvements."…

Editors Note: Elsewhere in the same article… Owners of the Block 89 building at East Main and South Pinckney streets and 44 W. Mifflin St., the firm has also discussed with city officials a major redevelopment of the property across East Washington Avenue from the U.S. Bank building….

Thursday, December 13, 2007 - The Wisconsin Supreme Court deadlocked Wednesday on an important economic development case after its newest member recused herself to avoid a conflict of interest. The court divided 3-3 over whether Wisconsin's towns can enact ordinances suspending new development while they update their land-use plans. As a result, the court said it would send the case back to an appeals court to decide. Justice Annette Ziegler, who was elected in April, would have been the tie-breaking vote. But she did not hear the case because her campaign received donations from groups representing home builders and real estate agents. The case has statewide significance because state law requires all municipalities to develop comprehensive growth plans by 2010. Many planners argue such temporary suspensions are needed to avoid a rush of development before new, stricter rules are enacted. Real estate interests say they stunt economic development…

Tuesday, December 11, 2007 - Home building in Dane County fell to a low for November since MTD Marketing began tracking figures in 1999. There were 84 permits issued for new homes and duplexes in Dane County in November, down from the previous low of 91 last November and well below the range for November back to 1999 of 152 to 213. Year-to-date through November, the 1,089 permits issued are well off the 1,321 for the same period last year and far below the range of 1,770-2,361 from 1999-2005…

Friday, December 7, 2007 - Despite a rising mortgage delinquency rate here, Wisconsin had a lower foreclosure percentage than other states during the July to September period, at least in part because it has fewer subprime loans. "I still think Wisconsin will be spared the worst pain, given our more conservative lending and borrowing practices," said Stephen Malpezzi, chairman of UW-Madison's real estate and land economics department. "But less pain doesn't mean no pain. There will surely be some of our fellow citizens who will take hits." The state ranked 34th nationwide in delinquencies and 10th in foreclosure…

Wednesday, December 12, 2007 - Gov. Jim Doyle will outline initiatives today in the next phase of his Grow Wisconsin plan, which was first launched in 2003 to improve the state's economy. In a Milwaukee speech to the Competitive Wisconsin board of directors, Doyle is expected to suggest boosting state resources for agricultural industries, manufacturers and renewable-energy businesses. Competitive Wisconsin is an organization of business leaders formed in 1981 and committed to improving the state's business climate. An official of Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce, which represents small manufacturers, service companies, local chambers of commerce and specialized trade associations, said the governor is heading in the right direction but that bolder changes…

Thursday, December 13, 2007 - DirecTV has come up with a new twist in its competition with cable companies. For the next two weeks, it will be flying its new blimp - the DirecTV Starship - over Tampa, St. Petersburg and Orlando, Fla., showing NFL Network game telecasts and promoting DirecTV's high-definition service to cable customers who do not receive NFL Network from their local cable provider, Bright House Networks. The side of the blimp is an enormous 2,100 square-foot HDTV video light sign "screen."…

Editors Note: Could Madison rent this and fly it over Chicago - suggesting that we are a better Midwest location for business… I’ll drive…

12/13/2007 - Big Lots Inc. will close its East Washington Avenue store next month. The big box chain that specializes in selling overstock inventory at closeout prices will exit Madison by Jan. 19, saying the store is doing poorly in the market. "It is, frankly, not doing that well," said Rob Claxton, senior vice president of marketing for the Ohio-based company. "More importantly, we could not come to terms with the landlord on a new lease." The 20,000 square-foot store at 3803 E. Washington…

12/13/2007 - Dinner By Design may be a little late to the table here, but it's coming. The firm, which is based in northern Illinois, still plans to be the Madison area's third company in the growing meal assembly category, joining Michigan-based Main Dish Kitchen and Texas-based Super Suppers. Dinner By Design originally planned to open an outlet in Sun Prairie in the first quarter of this year, but the success of its site in Delafield caused the franchisee to delay the Sun Prairie store…

THU., DEC 13, 2007 - Leaking gasoline from a truck's fuel tank sparked a fire Thursday morning that reduced a Far East Side machine shop to a smoldering pile of twisted metal, Madison fire officials said. No one was injured in the fire at the Homburg Construction Co. machinery shop, 5709 Milwaukee St. But damage to the building and its contents was estimated at $300,000…

Thursday, December 13, 2007 - Mayor Dave Cieslewicz is hosting a series of listening sessions to get input on how to guide Madison's economic development in response to population and job growth. In October 2007, Edgewood College Business School students surveyed local businesses about their views on three labor supply issues: Quality of high school graduates, Latino immigrants as an employment source and commuter rail. These topics were selected after the students attended talks given by several city and business leaders about issues facing local businesses. A 12-question survey addressing these issues was e-mailed to 1,139 members of the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce. After several follow-up e-mails, 166 businesses confidentially responded, providing a very reasonable 14.6 percent reply rate. The responses, summarized below, should give the mayor food for thought. Quality of graduates While high school graduates fill many job openings in the Dane County area, only 39 percent of the respondents reported that current high school graduates are prepared for the workforce…

Editors Note: I served on the Neenah School board for eight years, and admit this is a huge challenge – but, business and industry will have to step up to the table and get involved if we want to change the system. Without apprenticeships, mentoring, internships, and new curriculum for the more than 50% of students that do not enter post secondary education tracks, we are letting students enter the workplace without workplace skills… Sorry I’ll get off the soap box now…

Thursday, December 13, 2007 - 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. Thrive previously announced that it had hired C. Basil Mundy for the position, but Mundy decided to take a paid advisory role with the organization so he could work with an angel investment group, Wisconsin Investment Partners, Thrive spokeswoman Jennifer Smith said…

Thursday, December 13, 2007 - Progressive Dane agrees with Tom Ticknor, the consultant hired by the city to update its economic development plan. Madison needs to create good jobs and opportunities for a diverse workforce. The Wisconsin State Journal recently published an editorial cartoon mocking certain Progressive Dane council members, suggesting they are too out of touch to meaningfully participate in the community conversation about quality economic growth. Let's set the record straight about Progressive Dane's stand on economic development planning. Social justice and "good" jobs are equally important. Sustainable economic development requires skilled workers…

Pfizer officials to visit Madison. Pharmaceutical firm on lookout for innovation. As part of its quest to replenish a dwindling product pipeline, the world's largest pharmaceutical company will be in Madison early next week...

Sunday, December 9, 2007 - Two wind-related businesses recently announced they are opening offices in the Madison area. Wind Capital Group, a wind-farm development firm based in St. Louis, has a new location at 2923 Marketplace Drive, Fitchburg. In addition to several wind farms in Missouri, Wind Capital says it is working on projects in eight states with the potential for generating a total maximum output of 500 megawatts of electricity. The new space will let the company expand to bring wind energy to the Upper Midwest, the company said…

Saturday, December 8, 2007 - Wisconsin is counting on wind power to propel the state most of the way toward its goal of generating 10 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2015. But a problem looms in the way: When wind farm developers apply to local governments to build turbines on specific sites, they too often are blocked by unreasonable restrictions. The local governments are frequently cowed into imposing, impossible-to-meet requirements or even moratoriums after opponents raise alarming concerns, commonly based on misinformation. To be sure, not every proposal to develop a wind farm deserves approval…

Friday, December 7, 2007 - The Wisconsin Rugby Club, headquartered in the Madison area, won the men's national championship in 1998. The group has the trophy - but they don't have a permanent home. "We don't have a place to put that trophy anywhere," said Jon Moyer, a past club president. "It's in a box right now. That's how bad it is." After a decision by the town of Cottage Grove, the club will have to continue to look for a home. The group had hoped to rezone 37 acres that would have had a clubhouse, fields for rugby and soccer and possibly other sports, but the town last week rejected the rezoning. The decision means the group, which formed in 1962, will remain nomadic a while longer and is also a chapter in the efforts to preserve green space in Dane County…

Editors Note: Lets find these guys and gals a home. It can be our little Christmas project. We could invite teams from across the nation, teams with CEO’s who would like it here. Besides nothing says Christmas like a scrum…

Brookfield additions planned. Ethan Allen Home Interiors plans to close its Brookfield store and move to a new, larger store that will be built at Brookfield Square, part of that mall's continuing redevelopment...

Grafton hospital gets endorsement. In a meeting packed with residents asking about plans for a new hospital and medical building, the Plan Commission on Thursday night endorsed four measures that Aurora Health Care needs to build them...

Summerfest plans south renovations. Beer price increase funds will foot bill, festival officials say. Summerfest's landlords are eager to see the much-anticipated plans for improvements to the south end of the city-owned festival grounds, to be paid for in part through the increased beer...

Input sought on New Berlin City Center. The public is invited to hear an update on the New Berlin City Center and discuss plans for future development phases. A public design meeting is set for 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 18, at City Hall, 3805 S. Casper Drive...

Silver Lake forms management district. 10-acre city-owned lakeshore property not included. Those living on Silver Lake might have felt as though they were living near a lake of gold Tuesday morning after the long-awaited approval for creation of a lake management district finally went through...

Two buildings proposed, backed for Brookfield Square. Furniture store to relocate at mall. Brookfield Square patrons could have a few0 more choices among restaurants and retail outlets under two new development plans backed by the city's Plan Commission this week...

Airport expansion would help with future growth. Plan adds gates, parking and space for new runways. General Mitchell International Airport representatives on Dec. 6 announced an expansion plan to accommodate increased traffic in future years...

Finding room to flourish. Cramer-Krasselt plans to relocate from traditional downtown space to artistic loft in city's Third Ward. Milwaukee's Historic Third Ward, long known as a place to live (think condos) and play (theaters, restaurants, shops) is also becoming a popular...

SC Johnson to occupy Sturtevant site. Village officials have confirmed that S.C. Johnson & Son Inc. will be the tenant in a new warehouse planned for the former Johnson farm parcel...

Lakefront project stalls. Economic factors have hindered financing for Pointe Blue plans. Many hopes for a big revitalization boost for Racine have been riding on planned development that has been touted as " Miami meets Cape Cod," but there has been little movement on the project...

Microbrewery plan gets boost from legal settlement. Hofbrauhaus Milwaukee would emulate beer hall. Prospects for development of a Hofbrauhaus microbrewery and restaurant at the former Pabst brewery have improved following the settlement of a lawsuit involving the proposed location, the building's owner...