May 2012

Working the supply chain Economic challenges increase the significance of smaller manufacturers to OEMs

River runs through Real Estate

Comparing costs Health Care

May 2012 $3.95

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new north b2b MAY 2012

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Features

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18 COVER STORY ❘ Working the Supply Chain ❘ Economic challenges increase the significance of small manufacturers to OEMs 24 REAL ESTATE ❘ A River Runs Through Them ❘ Several property redevelopment projects enhancing the banks of the Fox River 30 ENTREPRENEURIAL ❘ Artists as Entrepreneurs ❘ Program teaches liberal arts students to think from a bottom-line perspective 36 HEALTH CARE ❘ Cost Comparison Updates ❘ Our annual list sharing costs of common medical procedures across the region

Departments

5,

On our Cover

4 From the Publisher 40 Professionally Speaking 6 Since We Last Met 10 Build Up Pages 17 Pierce Stronglove 35 Guest Commentary 42 Who’s News 49 Business Calendar 50 Advertiser Index 52 Government 54 Key Statistics

This attractive image of a welder hard at work adding value to a product represents at least one step in a manufacturer’s supply chain.

NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 3

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Staving off ‘referendum fatigue’

Despite success this past month, it’s getting tougher for schools to keep asking voters for more tax dollars

Sean Fitzgerald New North B2B Publisher 4 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

Can you imagine sending your kids to a school where – in the depths of Wisconsin winter cold – they huddle around a an empty oil barrel and burn last year’s text books and last week’s pop quizzes just to stay warm each day. It’s a Third World scenario and one not likely to happen in local schools, but not all that out of line.

Back in April 2009, after repeated failed efforts to replace and repair facilities across the Ripon School District, voters finally approved a $500,000 referendum package that was whittled down to the bone simply to replace the out-of-date boiler at Ripon High School. What would students have done if that referendum failed, too?

After nearly two decades of practice, Wisconsin’s “two-thirds funding” initiative for public education and it’s corresponding cap on local school district’s ability to determine their own expenses has a chink in its armor that continues to tear open with each failed local school referendum around the state.

That’s why it offered me some relief during the recent April 3 elections when a handful of local districts approved measures to improve their schools after past efforts to support similar plans failed.

In Oshkosh, voters approved constructing a $13 million new Oaklawn Elementary School to replace the outdated, dilapidated structure where students sat in their desks next to buckets to collect water leaking through the roof during rainstorms. It was the third time in the last decade that voters considered replacing the school. In Little Chute, voters authorized the school board to exceed state spending limits by $355,000 for each of the next years to help improve technology needs in the district. In fact, the only school referendum rejected in the region during recent elections was a request from Ripon to borrow $900,000 to purchase land for a future school site.

Time and again during the past 10 years, voters have faced multiple requests from school administrators and boards to provide additional funding to keep schools competitive during a time of difficult budget decisions.

When voters volunteer to increase their property taxes by approving such referenda, they sidestep the authority the elected board of education would have otherwise wielded in the days before the state’s two-thirds revenue for public schools program.

Now when voters turn down such a referendum request, they’re often emboldened to vote ‘no’ again the next time the board

presents a watered-down version of the same funding request, a phenonenon that occurs regularly in the event of many failed referenda.

Those voters tend to take the perspective of “Well, we said no last time, and the schools figured out a way to git er dun anyhow.”

In some districts, this ‘referendum fatigue’ has developed to a point where voters are so reticent to say ‘yes’ to raising their taxes that they’ll do so only in the most extreme cases, like needing a new boiler to heat a school building or when students sit alongside buckets catching rainwater.

Our current school funding system places an immense burden on school districts to prove the value proposition of large capital projects to a voting block that primarily isn’t educated on the meat of the discussion of why such capital expenses are necessary. When the first and foremost concern of a voter is “how will this affect my taxes” as compared to “what value is provided to the community through this investment,” we’ve given an awful lot of power to a person whose vote counts just as much as another who is well informed on all aspects of a referendum.

Of course, I’m not advocating that voters freely open their checkbooks to school districts.

Elected fficials and school administrators need to design cost-conscious referendum packages - and most do.

But all too often we’ll hear the argument, “Why can’t the school district run its finances the same way I run my own finances?” It’s a poor comparison of long-term, capital spending habits. Voters, teachers and school board members plan to eventually retire from their jobs, and we all eventually leave these and other worries behind and head to a better place. Humans don’t need to worry about the performance of the furnace in the home they previously lived in 10 years after they’ve passed away. On the other hand, school districts don’t retire, and school districts don’t die.

Again, it was refreshing to see ballot measures pass in both Oshkosh and Little Chute last month to help avoid strengthening the resolve of referendum fatigue in those districts.

At the same time, it’s incumbent that our state look at ways to allow local school districts to make necessary capital improvements without always having to go to the public for straw poll approval. It’s a component of the school funding system that needs to be adressed for the sake of our children, our communities, and our economy. www.newnorthb2b.com

PROFESSIONALLY SPEAKING

Employer use of Social Media

by Davis & Kuelthau, s.c.

Tony Renning

920.232.4842

If you have a particular labor/employment law question, forward it to Mr. Renning at info@newnorthb2b.com.

If he responds to your email in a future issue, your name and company will be withheld to preserve your privacy.

Reader Question: Should I be accessing applicant or employee social media sites?

Tony Renning: Social media sites enable users to post an array of personal information. This information then becomes potentially available to anyone, including employers (because on the Internet there is generally no “expectation of privacy”).

A survey commissioned by the online employment site CareerBuilder found that 37 percent of hiring managers use social media sites to research job applicants and employees (with over 65 percent using Facebook as their primary source). The use of social media sites by employers serves two primary functions: (1) identifying potential job candidates and (2) checking applicant or employee backgrounds (trying to find out all you can about those who apply to work for you as well as those who work for you).

Although employers have been checking social media sites for years, employ-

Sean Fitzgerald

Publisher & President

sean@newnorthb2b.com

Carrie Rule

Sales Manager

carrie@newnorthb2b.com

Kate Erbach Production

Contributing writers

Robin Bruecker Lee Marie Reinsch

Chief Financial Officer

Vicky Fitzgerald, CPA

ers lately have been demanding access to private social media activity as well.

Specifically, employers are asking applicants and employees to reveal their social media passwords.

Facebook has recently drawn attention to this issue by vowing to take legal action to protect its users’ privacy. Similarly, states such as Maryland have recently passed legislation banning employers from asking applicants and employees for log-in information on Facebook or other social media sites (Wisconsin has not passed such legislation).

While social media sites may contain interesting and informative information about an applicant or employee, given the potential exposure to liability, a prudent employer should tread carefully to ensure that their hiring and retention practices do not unlawfully discriminate based on information available through such applicant’s/employee’s social media sites. An employer who makes an adverse employment decision based upon

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Contact us: P.O. Box 559, Oshkosh, WI 54903-0559 • 920.237.0254 www.newnorthb2b.com

information gathered from a social media site may violate applicable employment laws. For instance, the information revealed may indicate the applicant or employee is a member of a protected class (e.g., over the age of 40).

For counsel as to the legal pitfalls associated with the use of social media, contact Tony Renning at (920) 232-4842 or trenning@dkattorneys.com or any other member of the Davis & Kuelthau Labor and Employment Team.

Tony Renning is an attorney in the Oshkosh office of Davis & Kuelthau, s.c.

(219 Washington Avenue). Mr. Renning provides counsel to private and public sector employers on a wide variety of labor and employment law matters. This article is intended to provide information only, not legal advice. For advice regarding a particular employment situation, please contact a member of the Davis & Kuelthau, s.c. Labor and Employment Team.

Green Bay

Fox Cities

Oshkosh

Fond du Lac NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 5

SINCE WE LAST MET

Since we last met Since We Last Met is a digest of business related news occurring in the Green Bay, Fox Cities, Oshkosh and Fond du Lac areas in the one month since the previous issue of New North B2B.

March 27 An ad-hoc facilities planning committee for the Campbellsport School District recommended a $42.4 million building project to construct a new high school and to remodel the existing middle and high school building into an intermediate school for fifth through eighth grade. The project would also involve remodeling the existing Campbellsport and Eden elementary schools to accommodate pre-school through fourth-grade students. The district’s board of education has held public listening sessions on the proposed project, but would need approval through a public referendum to borrow the necessary funding.

High School from 1999 to 2010. He will step in as Kaukauna’s top school administrator on July 1.

March 28 The Children’s Museum of Fond du Lac received a $10,000 grant from the Indiana-based Efroymson Family Fund to help identify site options for the museum’s future growth.

The museum moved into the Windhover Center in 2007, but has recently experienced space shortage due to increased program demand and visitor traffic. The museum’s facilities committee will use the funding to work with various consultants to evaluate potential facilities options during the next six months.

April 2

March 27 Kaukauna Area School District selected Mark Duerwaechter as its next superintendent of schools, replacing Mary Kay Weber, who announced her retirement last fall. Duerwaechter currently serves as assistant district administrator of secondary learning and leadership for Neenah Joint School District, and had served as principal of Neenah

The Wisconsin Department of Transportation began work on the $6.1 million project to improve 1.7 miles of Velp Avenue in Green Bay. The project includes new pavement, storm sewer, street lighting and landscaping from the intersection with Norwood Avenue to Military Avenue, and will include construction of a multilane roundabout at the intersection with Atkinson Drive. Work is expected to be complete by the end of September.

April 3

2007 May 9 - The Public Service Commission of Wisconsin approved Alliant Energy’s request to construct the 41-turbine Cedar Ridge Wind Farm in southeastern Fond du Lac County.

Once complete, the wind farm is expected to generate 98 megawatts of electricity, or enough to supply power for about 30,000 homes.

2010 May 11 - The town of Grand Chute and the city of Appleton entered into a mutual aid agreement between the town and the city police departments which would allow law enforcement assistance from either department to respond when an emergency call comes from either municipality. The new agreement is expected to shorten police response times in various areas near the border of the two communities.

6 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

Voters in the Oshkosh Area School District approved a referendum to build a new $13 million Oaklawn Elementary School, replacing the 60-year-old debilitated school building.

The new school will be a two-story, 68,000-sq. ft. building on the site of the existing Oaklawn School. Construction will begin this September and be complete for the beginning of the 2013-14 school year. Students will be housed off-site for the 2012-13 school year during construction.

April 3 Voters in the Little Chute School District approved a referendum authorizing the district to exceed state revenue limits by $355,000 for each of the next three fiscal years and by $250,000 for the following two fiscal years to help the district upgrade its technology hardware, software and infrastructure.

April 3 Voters in the Fox Valley Technical College District approved a $66.5 million referendum to finance seven separate capital projects for the school, most notably a $32.5 million public safety training center that will be built at Outagamie County Regional Airport in Greenville. Other projects to be located at the school’s Appleton campus include an $11.9 million health care technology center, a $7.4 million student success center, a $6.2 million expansion of the current transportation center, and a $3.5 million expansion of the existing

www.newnorthb2b.com

SINCE WE LAST MET agriculture center. The referendum package also included $1 million to purchase land in Oshkosh for future expansion, as well as $1.4 million to purchase the Chilton FVTC building, which it previously leased from a private developer.

April 4 The City of Neenah rolled out a plan to expand its existing tax incremental finance district near the intersection of Green Bay Road and Winneconne Avenue to help enclose a section of Goldsboro Creek to expand the existing parking lot near the former Pick’n Save grocery store for the development of a Festival Foods. The “pay-as-you-go” financing plan would pay the developer of the property $95,000 annually for the next 10 years to support the development of the property, which is estimated at nearly $10.5 million. The city originally created the TIF district in 2000 for the Kohl’s and Walmart developments located on the west side of U.S. Highway 41.

April 5 Gov. Scott Walker signed Senate Bill 463, legislation improving the state’s Angel Investment and Early Stage Investment Tax Credit Program by allowing the state to recapture the value of tax credits from companies who move out of state within three years of receiving investments that qualify for tax credits under the program. The bill also modifies the criteria the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. can use in recertifying a company for the program after it’s been initially approved for tax credits.

April 6 The U.S. Department of Labor reported 120,000 jobs were created nationally in March, keeping the unemployment rate relatively unchanged at 8.2 percent. Employment rose in manufacturing, food services and drinking places, and in health care, but fell in retail trade.

April 9 The Wisconsin Department of Transportation began work on the $2.3 million project to improve one mile of State Road 96 on Draper and Taylor streets in Kaukauna. The project includes replacing street and sidewalk pavement, expanding storm sewer capacity, and narrowing the streets to accommodate wider terraces. The road will be completely closed to through traffic for the duration of the project, which is scheduled for completion in late October.

April 10 The village of Ashwaubenon voted against funding a third of the cost for a $3.2 million pedestrian bridge over State Road 172 connecting Pioneer Park to North Road, indicating it wouldn’t be an appropriate expense during the current economic environment. The bridge would have been funded through a more than $2 million contribution from the state as part of the U.S. Highway 41 reconstruction project. The village would have also been responsible for ongoing snow and graffiti removal, as well as expenses to light the bridge.

Let the Name Calling Begin!

Call Me “Control Freak”

I’ve been called a “Control Freak” all my life.

ontrol Freak” Mark, AKA “C ager Regional Man Co-Owner See Mark’s work at the following local businesses: Gustman Motors, Women’s Specialty Care, Bay Industries, Lamers Bus Lines, Faith United Church, Simon Creek Vineyards, Tadych’s Econo Foods, Wolf River Community Bank and WireTech Fabricators to name a few.

A

FACE of Keller

Although my family may hate it, my customers love the fact that I’m a “freak” for the details. As a Project Manager, my perfectionist personality helps me keep my projects in control and my customers happy. My compulsive need to keep the details in check and my concern for my customers are two attributes I possess that help make my projects run smoothly.

I am a face of Keller, and you can call me “Control Freak” if you like, just trust that when I control the details, your project will be completed on time and within your budget. I am an Employee Owner, Project Manager, and Design/Build Expert. But don’t just take me at face value, call today and experience for yourself the difference that is Keller, Inc.

Construction Excellence Since 1960

1.800.236.2534 l www.kellerbuilds.com Offices in the Fox Cities, Madison, Milwaukee & Wausau NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 7

SINCE WE LAST MET April 10 A total of four Democratic candidates submitted valid nomination papers to run as candidates in the recall election against Gov. Scott Walker, including: Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, former Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk, Secretary of State Doug La Follette and state Sen. Kathleen Vinehout (D-Alma). The four face off in a primary election on May 8. The winner will take on Walker in a general election June 5.

April 13 Austin Straubel International Airport in Brown County received state approval for a $350,000 project to design a new international passenger terminal to allow U.S. Customs and Border Protection to operate in a permanent facility. Construction on the terminal itself is scheduled for 2013. The state will contribute $175,000 toward the cost of the design, while Brown County will incur the remaining $175,000.

April 16 The state Department of Transportation began work on the $2 million construction of a multi-lane roundabout at the intersection of State Road 15 and County Road CB in Outagamie County near Greenville’s business park. The intersection will be closed for the duration of the project, which is scheduled to be complete in September.

April 17 The Fox Cities Convention & Visitors Bureau awarded a $50,000 grant to the City of Neenah to help construct a 360-ft. trestle bridge across Neenah Slough on the southern edge of Little Lake Butte des Morts, connecting Herb & Dolly Smith Park with Arrowhead Park. The grant – which comes from the bureau’s Tourism Development Fund – will augment the total $121,000 cost of the bridge construction, which is slated to be complete this fall.

April 18 The Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority awarded $12.6 million in federal Affordable Housing Tax Credits to fund 21 housing developments in the state, including the following projects in the region: CAP Services Inc. received $311,363 to build the 24-unit Berlin Senior Village in Berlin; Wisconsin Housing Preservation Corp. received $633,757 to remodel the 84-unit Green Bay Family Apartments; Commonwealth Development Corp. received $556,978 to build the 46-unit Riverside senior living development in Fond du Lac; and the City of Oshkosh Housing Authority received $894,833 for the second phase redevelopment of the 51-unit Court Tower apartments. The tax credits are awarded each year over a 10-year period, and developers agree to reserve a portion of their housing units for low- and moderate-income households for up to 15 years.

April 19 The state Department of Workforce Development reported Wisconsin lost 4,300 private sector jobs in March.

Job gains occurred in manufacturing with the growth of nearly 2,000 positions, but were offset by the loss of 4,500 jobs in the construction industry.

8 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

www.newnorthb2b.com

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We help our clients achieve success, which in return leads to our success.

In fact, First Business reported record net income of $8.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2011.

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Commercial Lending : Treasury Management : Equipment Finance : Asset-based Lending : Trust & Investments : Private Banking

Fox Cities: 920-734-1800 Oshkosh: 920-231-2400 Green Bay: 920-435-5442

BUILD UP FOND DU LAC

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Build Up Fond du Lac 1

- 1155 S. Military Road, Fond du Lac, Rolling Meadows Development, renovation of a former nursing home and an addition to the fourth floor for a 101-room hotel and conference center. Project completion expected in July.

2 - 1061 E. Johnson St., Fond du Lac, Kwik Trip, a new convenience store, fuel station and fuel station canopy.

10 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

www.newnorthb2b.com

BUILD UP OSHKOSH 3

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Build Up Oshkosh 3

- 1755 W. Fernau Ave., Oshkosh, C FedEx Ground, a 13,950-sq. ft. addition to the existing distribution facility.

Project completion expected in August. General contractor is Bayland Buildings of Green Bay.

4 - 1410 Algoma Blvd., Oshkosh, C Paine Art Center & Arboretum, a 3,600-sq. ft. addition and remodel of the existing carriage house for a conservatory to host receptions.

Project completion expected in December.

5 - 600 Block of Algoma Blvd., Oshkosh, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, a five-story, 340-bed residence hall.

6 - 1250 S. Koeller St., Oshkosh, T.J. Maxx, a new retail strip center development.

Projects completed since our April issue: • Saputo Cheese USA, 325 Tompkins St., Fond du Lac. • ImproMed. 310 Ohio St., Oshkosh.

• U.S. Cellular, 1210 S. Koeller St., Oshkosh.

• Bergstrom Used Cars, 3365 S. Washburn St., Oshkosh.

Take the first step toward a professional, quality built construction project...

Building Quality Communities Contact us or visit our Web site for a full listing of your local construction professionals.

9 2 0 . 7 3 3 . 3 1 3 6 y 866.966.3928 y www.newbt.org NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 11

BUILD UP FOX CITIES Build Up Fox Cities

The Build Up department of New North B2B includes a monthly two-page spread identifying significant commercial and industrial construction projects ongoing in the Fox Cities area.

C - Indicates a new listing

1 - 2693 W. Grand Chute Blvd., town of Grand Chute, Appleton Alliance Church, a 105,300-sq. ft. addition to the existing church campus.

2 - 3335 N. Lynndale Dr., town of Grand Chute, Our Shepherd Child Care and Family Ministry Center, a 13,500-sq. ft. addition to the existing child care center. Project completion expected in May. 3 - 1825 N. Bluemound Dr., town of Grand Chute, C Fox Valley Technical College Jones Dairy Farm Culinary Theatre, a 6,800-sq. ft., 120-seat theater for culinary demonstrations.

Project completion expected in December.

4 - 2690 W. Lawrence St., town of Grand Chute, Kolosso Chrysler Jeep, a 7,100-sq. ft. addition to the existing automotive dealership to expand the body shop. Project completion expected in May. General contractor is Keller Inc. of Kaukauna.

5 - 1313 Holland Road, Little Chute, C Outagamie County Highway Department, a 2,406-sq. ft. addition to the existing county highway offices.

6 - 2551 Northridge Dr., Kaukauna, Classic Gears and Machining, a 19,504-sq. ft. addition to the existing industrial

facility. Project completion expected in May. General contractor is Keller Inc. of Kaukauna.

7 - 1801 Progress Way, Kaukauna, G&G Machining, a new 37,120-sq. ft. manufacturing facility. Project completion expected in October. General contractor is James J. Calmes Construction Co. of Kaukauna.

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- 109 W. Second St., Kaukauna, C East Wisconsin Savings Bank, a 25,000-sq. ft. addition to and remodel of the existing bank building. Project completion expected in September.

9 - 1700 Nixon St., Little Chute, Poly Flex, a 54,000-sq. ft. manufacturing facility. Project completion expected in June.

General contractor is Keller Inc. of Kaukauna.

10 - 130 W. Main St., Little Chute, Little Chute Windmill Inc., a windmill and village visitor center.

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- 3813 E. Calumet St., Appleton, C PH East of Appleton, a multi-tenant retail building to include AE Jewelers and a Qdoba Mexican Grill restaurant.

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- 101 Main St., Neenah, Affinity Health System, a two-story, 31,400-sq. ft. medical clinic building.

Projects completed since our April issue: • Heartland Business Systems, 1700 Stephens St., Little Chute.

• B&L Properties, 2220 Bohm Dr., Little Chute.

• U.S. Venture, 558 Carter Ct., Kimberly.

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12 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

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BUILD UP FOX CITIES 2

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(920) 498-9300 | baylandbuildings.com |     

COMMERCIAL INDUSTRIAL AGRICULTURAL DESIGN/BUILD GENERAL CONTRACTOR NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 13

BUILD UP GREEN BAY Build Up Green Bay The Build Up department of New North B2B includes a monthly twopage spread identifying significant commercial and industrial construction projects ongoing in the Green Bay area.

C - Indicates a new listing

1 - 1325 Cornell Road, Howard, SMT Machine & Tool, a 25,450-sq. ft. addition to the existing manufacturing facility.

Project completion expected in May. General contractor is Bayland Buildings of Green Bay. 2 - 1575 Lineville Road, Howard, C Grand Central Station, a remodel and addition to the existing building for a new convenience store and fuel station. Project completion expected in July. General contractor is Bayland Buildings of Green Bay. 3 - 1966 Velp Ave., Howard, Vandervest Harley-Davidson, a 32,451-sq. ft. addition and renovation of the existing retail building.

4 - 1230 Hurlbut St., Green Bay, Oneida Energy Gasification, a 70,000-sq. ft. pyrolytic gasification electricity generation plant.

5 - 2301 Hutson Road, Green Bay,

C Multipond America, a 24,000-sq. ft. remodel and expansion of the existing industrial building. Project completion expected in August. General contractor is Bayland Buildings of Green Bay.

14 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

6 - 315 N. Washington St., Green Bay, Watermark, a sixstory, 70,000-sq. ft. mixed-use development which will house Hagemeister Park restaurant and Children’s Museum of Green Bay. Completion expected in May. 7 - 2851 University Ave., Green Bay, Milo C. Huempfner Department of Veterans Affairs Clinic, a new 192,000-sq. ft. outpatient clinic for veterans services. Project completion expected in the spring of 2013.

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- 1330 Bellevue St., Bellevue, KI, a 100,200-sq. ft. addition to the existing manufacturing facility. Project completion expected in June. General contractor is Bayland Buildings of Green Bay.

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- 100 Grant St., De Pere, St. Norbert College Michels Commons, an addition to the existing student commons and cafeteria. Project completion expected in May.

10 - 1511 Lawrence Dr., De Pere, Grand Central Station, a new convenience store and fuel station. Project completion expected in June. General contractor is Bayland Buildings of Green Bay. 11 - 1800 Lawrence Dr., De Pere, Bellin Health - De Pere West, an addition and alteration of the existing health care clinic.

Projects completed since our April issue: • Tower Clock Surgery Center, 1077 W. Mason St., Green Bay.

www.newnorthb2b.com

BUILD UP GREEN BAY 2

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It’s coming... the 7th Annual Corporate Wellness Awards

Alla Tua

SALUTE!

Nominations due by May 7, 2012. Send your nomination by mail to: New North B2B, P.O. Box 559, Oshkosh, WI 54903 or email: sean@newnorthb2bcom.

NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 15

AROUND THE BOARDROOM

226 The length in feet of the Guinness World Record-breaking paper airplane flight made on Feb. 26, 2012 in California.

The airplane was made using a sheet of Conqueror CX22 paper from Appleton Coated in Combined Locks.

Title: How to Make Money in Real Estate in the New Economy Author: Matthew Martinez Publisher: McGraw-Hill (December 2010) Pages: 192 List Price: $20.00 Why Buy: “Matt Martinez is the Warren Buffett of real estate investing. I give his books to all investors who buy buildings from me.”

Frank Ponce, Commercial & Investment Properties Scott Anastasi Realty

QUOTEWORTHY

Wisconsin trusts the voters to sort out these issues at the ballot box.

“

matter how politically objectionable some people may find this, “ No it is not a legal reason to deny someone a place on the ballot.

Kevin J. Kennedy, director and general counsel for the state’s Government Accountability Board, defending his agency’s decision on April 17 to allow so-called “protest candidates” on the ballot for the May 8 Democratic Party primaries to recall Gov. Scot Walker.

Better Business Bureau New Members

Businesses accredited through the Northeast Wisconsin office during April 2012 Bay Residential Design & Builders LLC, Green Bay BPD Engineering LLC, Green Bay Coating Holdings Ltd., Green Lake Don’s Auto Service, Oostburg Economy Movers Inc., Green Bay Eddie’s Auto Repair, Neenah Kristin’s Squeaky Clean LLC, Kaukauna Mattke Media Solutions LLC, Sturgeon Bay Mike Rabe Trucking, Eldorado Miles Kimball Company, Oshkosh N.E.W. Windows & Patio Doors, Coleman Open Door AV Entertainment, Sheboygan Packerland Brokerage Services Inc., Green Bay Piotter’s Construction LLC, Appleton Priced Less Computers, Fond du Lac S & H Remodeling Inc., Sheboygan Scotty Landscape Supply, Sheboygan Silverwater Productions LLC, Plymouth Spring-Green Lawn Care, Green Bay Strength of the Hands LLC, DePere Wenz Home Furniture, Green Bay When You’re Away LLC, Sheboygan Will Roder Construction, Sturgeon Bay

16 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

Creative Construction with Experience

• commercial • retail • industrial • hospitality design/build & consulting services

920-759-5033

2204 Crooks Avenue, Suite A • Kaukauna, WI 54130 team@frontierbuildersandconsultants.com

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AROUND THE BOARDROOM

C

Tree Cho Sewf

an being genuinely kind to others be a treat?

Absolutely. Always. Will your organization’s kindness return to renew and refresh, like a boomerang in a swift and small circle, or an asteroid in a much larger orbit? Yes, one way or another, it all comes back.

Treat others well and you treat yourself, too.

Despite that truth, genuine kindness seems to have become an exceptional quality. Marketeers, shameless opportunistic nitwits they are, offer their publics plastic deeds of goodwill.

These are see-through, often no- or low-cost self-serving efforts made with a single intent: to make the organization look good.

Yogurt was once an unassuming and wholesome product, all by itself. Most of it has active probiotic cultures (acidophilus) that are good for you. If that’s not good enough, the category’s big-dog brand puts a pink ribbon graphic on their package lids and then invites you to save them up and mail them in. They say they’ll donate ten cents for each pink lid to the Susan G. Komen Fund for the Cure.

Even Mother Stronglove was moved, demanding her beverage concierge to create a brandied cherry yogurt breakfast smoothie – a $36.50 move in the right direction (sort of) where her heart (not her breasts or liver) is concerned.

The somewhat sordid fine print in all of this is that Yoplait will donate UP TO $2 million, and you’ve got to wonder how many people are drawn into buying the higher priced brand because it’s augmented by the subtle philanthropic warmth they experience every time they take a spoonful of the product, then wash, dry and mail the lids (remember to use “Fund the Cure” stamps!) into an already maxed-out corporate social responsibility program.

I suppose it benefits the U.S. Postal Service, and probably reduces the burden on local landfills (what if we did something similar with soiled disposable diapers?), but surely it sells more Yoplait. Raising over $30 million over a 13-year period is certainly nothing to sniff at, and you’d hope some good has come of it, but after 20 million cups are sold annually, how many lids were mailed in for nothing?

Throw in the Planned Parenthood debacle. I had no idea yogurt could be so messy. If I buy Yoplait and send in the pink lids, am I helping to find a cure for breast cancer, funding an abortion clinic, improving my digestive tract, or just wasting my time and postage? Maybe we should call it a day, buy Roundy’s, and Mother Stronglove can resume her relatively non-political Mimosa routine.

Compare with Enerpipe, the twelfth-largest employer in New London, enthusiastically supporting the YMCA Strong Kids Campaign with financial contributions and volunteerism.

They believe every kid deserves the opportunity to experience YMCA programs, regardless of their family’s financial picture. With financial support from companies like Enerpipe, no person is denied the benefits of a YMCA membership based on financial limitations.

YMCA programs such as child care, camping, swim lessons, youth sports and teen leadership programs do more than teach skills; they instill confidence, responsibility, and help young people to be strong in spirit, mind and body. All of this helps kids grow into healthy, contributing adults.

Does Enerpipe leverage its care for healthy kids to sell its capabilities in developing and supporting a healthy process for refrigerated storage of not-from-concentrate juice, specifically in producing aseptic piping and refrigeration systems for the transfer and storage of juice from sterilization to on-site storage vessels before final consumer packaging? No, they do it out of love. And love and marketing are concepts that have not married up until recently.

Man, are you having yogurt or orange juice for breakfast today? What are these companies telling us? What are you telling your customers? How did everything get so emotionally and politically charged?

The fabled mouse is on the spot: No act of kindness – no matter how small – is ever wasted. So treat yourself. Follow goodness and truth, and good things will follow.

Behind the façade of Mr. Stronglove is an advertising professional wielding strategic and conceptual stealth in all forms of media (except book jackets). Send comments (or crisp twenties) to piercestronglove@gmail.com. To submit work for review, it must be attached as a PDF in Adobe format with no other attachments.

NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 17

COVER STORY

Working the supply chain Economic challenges increase the significance of smaller manufacturers for the OEMs who rely on their product

Story by Sean Fitzgerald New North B2B publisher

18 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

www.newnorthb2b.com

COVER STORY It wasn’t all that long ago that a number of product and equipment manufacturers made most of the parts that went into the final assembly of their products sold to the endmarket user.

John Deere Co., the agricultural and heavy equipment manufacturer with substantial operations in Wisconsin, is an oftenshared example of a firm that made every component part of its tractors right down to the bolts that had “JD” stamped on the head.

In the last four decades or so in the United States, manufacturers have discovered sourcing various components not only helped make the supply chain from raw materials to finished products more manageable, but it often carved out a host of inefficiencies, lower-than-expected quality on parts, and wasted costs. Just because an operation is among the best in the world at making and selling agricultural equipment doesn’t mean that it can efficiently and effectively forge the bolts that hold it together.

Now that horizontal integration dominates much of the manufacturing environment in the U.S., it’s accepted that anywhere from 50 to 90 percent of the total cost of goods sold on a product from an OEM comes from their external supply chain. In fact, it’s rare that an OEM is below 50 percent in regard to the value its supply chain contributes toward the end product, said Buckley Brinkman, executive director of Wisconsin Manufacturing Extension Partnership, which has emerged as the nation’s leading MEP in supplier development.

“It’s a trend that you outsource and take a purchasing approach to your supply chain,” Brinkman said.

Of course, there’s lots of hidden costs in the supply chain, and a variety of advantages to minimizing the stations in the supply chain where waste and mistakes can rear their heads.

Borrowing many of the best practices in product sourcing that helped lead to Toyota’s rise as a heavy machinery manufacturer a half century ago, the science and philosophy of supply chain management has been ever evolving during recent decades as original equipment manufacturers – or OEMs, for short – strive to compete in what seems to be a shrinking global marketplace.

Various processes – often in combination with one another – have been adopted by northeast Wisconsin manufacturers to remain ahead of the curve on competitors, adding jobs and generating revenue here in the region.

Journey to improve WMEP itself works with OEMs and many of the smaller manufacturers in their vendor supply chain to teach and implement systems to provide consistent quality and remove inefficiencies from the manufacturing process that otherwise increase the amount of time and the total cost to create product.

For manufacturers who haven’t endured any kind of supply chain improvement system previously, WMEP offers its Accelerate program as an introduction to the lean journey, teaching the very basic principles of process improvement. Not surprisingly, those newly indoctrinated manufacturers generally find the greatest return on investment at the outset of the process.

“For manufacturers who have not worked in a lean environment, it’s not uncommon to take 50 to 70 percent of waste out of the process,” said Brinkman.

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NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 19

COVER STORY

Manufacturing Matters! conference focuses on hot topics Take-away strategies to attract and retain skilled and motivated workers, create a culture that embraces innovation, and drive growth through e-business and continuous improvement are key topics of focus at the Manufacturing Matters! conference coming on May 9.

The annual conference hosted by Wisconsin Manufacturing Extension Partnership will be held at Frontier Airlines Center in Milwaukee. It’s designed to provide immediate and tangible benefits to busy manufacturing executives and operations staff.

“We’ve been talking to manufacturers all year to make sure that this content is relevant, timely, and worth the investment of one day away from the plant,” said Buckley Brinkman, CEO of WMEP. “We know that manufacturers are extremely busy, so we’ve targeted one-hour sessions for executives and operations staff that are highly interactive and provide information they can take back and immediately use to improve their operations.”

Highlights of the day include: • Finding talented workers - Morning keynote speaker, Tim Sullivan, former president and CEO of Bucyrus International Inc. and now special consultant for business and workforce development for the state of Wisconsin, will share his insight into the skills gap from two perspectives – as a manufacturing executive and as a key leader in the State’s approach to addressing the issue.

• The challenge of managing a business through a period of rapid growth, especially in a struggling industry, is the focus on the afternoon keynote address

from Aaron Jagdfeld, president and CEO of Waukeshabased Generac Power Systems and winner of the 2011 Manufacturer of the Year Award.

• New Innovation Track - Adam Hartung, the author of ‘Create Marketplace Disruption: How to stay ahead of the competition’, will distill the knowledge gained from 20 years of practical experience in driving change and profit. He’ll be joined by Sarah Miller Caldicott, the great grandniece of Thomas Edison and author of the book ‘Innovate Like Edison,’ sharing her unique insights into the methods necessary to create an innovative organization based on collaborative teams.

• A panel of industry thought leaders and senior executives sharing best practices and insights from Wisconsin manufacturing firms.

• Idea Exchange Rooms, a new offering this year connecting presenters with manufacturers in order to share ideas, information and solutions to issues related to talent management and innovation.

• Also new this year is the Food & Feed Track, which will review the steps manufacturers can take to become compliant with safety regulations as well as how to avoid common pitfalls during safety audits.

• Multiple break-out sessions are divided into two channels: Executive and Operations. The Executive channel will focus on advanced talent management, workforce development, innovation, e-business solutions, and capital/finance; and the Operations channel will focus on continuous improvement, food & feed, and quality/regulatory/legal awareness.

For more information or to register, go online to www.manufacturingmatters.org or call 877.856.8588.

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COVER STORY WMEP is in the process of rolling out its proprietary MPX software, which – with just a few hours of entering data from the shop floor and from the front office – can help manufacturers identify bottlenecks in their production process to help improve throughput time. The software nearly replicates a value stream mapping process that a manufacturer might endure, but it can identify problem areas and help determine solutions to trim waste in a matter of hours as compared to a few weeks.

“It’s a fairly structured process that can be done quickly to analyze bottlenecks in production,” Brinkman said.

During its pilot testing of the software, Brinkman reported the manufacturer test-driving MPX was able to improve its throughput by a surprising 38 percent. Brinkman said WMEP hopes to roll its MPX software out to a broader audience of manufacturers later this year.

Bottom line success For Ashwaubenon-based Wisconsin Plastics Inc., the process of removing waste from the supply chain is a continual effort that doesn’t simply stop after the completion of each goal.

“Our customer is always asking us every year, ‘What can you do to reduce our costs,’” said Bruce Wendt, vice president of operations for WPI. Wendt said the manufacturer of injection-molded plastic parts and some fully-assembled products that contain complex plastic components is in the process of implementing a vendor rating system in an attempt to streamline its suppliers to only the best and most responsive who can effectively meet their

Working the supply chain

needs. Rather than dealing with hundreds of vendors at a time, Wendt said it’s important to consolidate the supply chain and be among one of the most important customers to that vendor.

Wendt also said that WPI’s customers continue to shrink their exposure to inventory, WPI has adjusted its financial forecasting model to buy based on demand rather than buying raw materials based upon customer orders. It may seem to be a tedious difference, but Wendt said it’s been critical toward reducing inventory and freeing up available cash.

“We used to order large quantities (of plastic resin raw material), now we just order what we need for the week. That really makes the forecasting we do even more critical,” Wendt said.

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COVER STORY

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Results have already proved striking. At the beginning of 2011, WPI experienced three or four inventory turns a year on its plastic resin. Now, Wendt reports, WPI purchasing has increased its efficiency to roughly eight inventory turns annually, and he aims to gradually increase that statistic to 12 turns per year.

Wendt’s goal has been to reduce the company’s raw materials inventory in half, then to reduce it in half again, continually.

He’s been working with suppliers to provide their product on consignment, so that WPI only pays for the raw materials it buys from the vendor at the time it’s used and pulled into production.

So what’s been the real value of these supply chain improvements to Wisconsin Plastics Inc.?

During the past 15 months, WPI was able to reduce its inventory by 30 percent, and as a result, free up nearly $2.3 million of cash flow that was otherwise sitting somewhere out on the shop floor in inventory, Wendt said.

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Certainly the recession and economic challenges that have impacted most areas of the U.S. economy since 2008 are playing a role in how manufacturers approach their suppliers.

In certain instances, noted Brinkman, OEMs have been taking some of the pressure off more reliable vendors to drive down costs, recognizing there’s a long-term advantage to ensuring a quality supplier remains successful and that continual efforts to force them to drive down cost will only result in driving that supplier out of business.

The economic downturn has also highlighted the fact that offshore supply chain sourcing is difficult to manage, said Glen Thielke, an economic and workforce development instructor with Fond du Lac-based Moraine Park Technical College.

“We have a couple of companies that have picked up business from offshore competitors that they previously had years ago,” Thielke said, adding that the fallen of value of the U.S. dollar also plays a role in the affordability of abandoning cheap, offshore sources of commodity parts and materials.

With a 29-year career in industry working for manufacturers to improve quality, supply chain management and international sourcing, Thielke has worked for Moraine Park the past seven years helping local manufacturers implement lean and process optimization strategies into their operations. He’s a Six Sigma master blackbelt and has used his expertise to provide Six Sigma training for a number of local manufacturers, particularly those that supply Caterpillar Inc., which requires Six Sigma methodology in its supplier network, Thielke said.

During his past seven years at MPTC, Thielke said he’s seen changing trends in the kinds of training services manufacturers are requesting, but most are seeking some kind of consulting that in some way impacts the supply chain. In recent years, he said there’s been more of a push toward suppliers having corrective action requirements in place, and Thielke and his colleagues have provided training to help manufacturing clients implement such corrective measures into their processes.

From his perspective, the efforts made by these manufacturers to adopt change and improve operations has meant opportunities to survive and to grow. He said a number of his clients continued to remain successful throughout the recession.

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REAL ESTATE

A river runs through them Property redevelopment projects enhancing the banks of the Fox River in several area communities Story by Robin Bruecker

Submitted photo

The Landing, the first completed building at the Eagle Flats development on the Fox River in downtown in Appleton, opened to its first residents this past February.

24 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

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REAL ESTATE

Photo by Stolley Studio

The stretch of the Fox River in Oshkosh where this year’s phase of Riverwalk construction will occur.

With so many of us drawn to water – whether for recreation, relaxation or a business need – it’s no wonder that so much development takes place along shorelines that aren’t set aside for natural habitat and wetlands. Houses and commercial buildings line the Fox River and other waterways, with large windows providing a view of the water in all its moods and seasons.

Several Fox River communities have had several redevelopment projects under way, or are beginning new ones.

Take a trip downriver, starting by Lake Winnebago and ending at Green Bay.

Riverfront promenade In Oshkosh, a multiphase promenade project has been making its way along the banks of the Upper Fox River between the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh and the mouth into Lake Winnebago. By the end of this year, the riverwalk’s north side will be finished from UW Oshkosh to the Leach Amphitheater on Ceape Avenue. Currently work is being done between Jackson and Main streets in the City Center area, with hotel renovations taking place in the former Park Plaza.

The former Park Plaza Hotel was purchased this past February by a partnership that includes John Pfefferle and Rich Batley, who own and manage the CopperLeaf in Appleton and the Best Western Premier Bridgewood Resort Hotel in Neenah, along with the UW Oshkosh Foundation, noted Oshkosh City Manager Mark Rohloff.

“They have closed the hotel and are working on plans to renovate it with an opening planned for early 2013,” said Rohloff.

North-side moorings on the riverbank in front of the hotel will be added for people traveling by boat. “The 40 transient docks to be installed between Jackson and Main streets are in three clusters – one set by City Center and Becket’s Restaurant, one set in the middle of the block, and another set by the downtown hotel,” said Allen Davis, director of community development for the City of Oshkosh.

The stretch of riverfront has also been redeveloped on Marion Road between the Wisconsin and Jackson street bridges. This area, according to Davis, had consisted of a “concrete batching plant, Mercury Marine manufacturing space, a foundry, a gas station, and other manufacturing concerns.”

New AccuCom and Morton Pharmacy buildings opened in 2010, followed by The Rivers Senior Living community last year, Davis said. All were created by Alliance Development, which holds a master development agreement for the remainder of Marion Road’s vacant land. Additionally, Davis noted that a section of the riverwalk, 48 transient docks, and grading and landscaping were completed along Marion Road by the City in 2011.

South-side work will begin on a section of the riverwalk near the Wisconsin Street Bridge this year, with bidding starting this month and construction to follow in June. According to Davis, this half-mile section will include a trail with benches and lighting, a new deck and railing for the fishing pier, and improvements along the shoreline for habitat, boating and fishing.

There’s a nod to the history of the area as well. The City’s Landmarks Commission is working with the Fox-Wisconsin Heritage Parkway and Oshkosh Public Museum to create historic signs, and with the parks department for additional riverwalk panels, explained Davis. In addition, the city is collaborating with Canadian National Railway to place a couple of interpretive panels at the old CN bridge that is part of the trail, with the railroad company contributing $20,000 to this project.

Funding for the riverwalk and docks has come from various sources, including city funds and grants from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Davis said. The city was also awarded site clean-up grants from the federal Environmental Protection Agency and the former Wisconsin Department of Commerce.

“The total project costs for all three segments are budgeted for about $8 million,” he noted. “The City’s share of the project costs are included in four different (tax incremental

NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 25

REAL ESTATE finance) district plans. The city is fronting the local dollars up front with city borrowing, and TIF revenues are planned to pay off the debt.”

Donors have offered to help with benches and panels along the riverwalk.

With the historic industrial owners of the riverfront property having bowed out and moved into outlying industrial park property, this redevelopment means the general public can enjoy more of the Fox’s shoreline.

“This redevelopment will also have spillover benefits to our downtown businesses, many of whom have been hanging on in anticipation of this work,” Rohloff said. “We have some great shops and restaurants in the downtown area, but until we have additional destinations for visitors, they are not as well-known. The exposure that our businesses will have to new tourists, including pedestrian, bicycle and boating traffic, will be tremendous.”

New commercial life Further down the Fox in the City of Neenah lies the site of the former Bergstrom and Glatfelter paper mill at the foot of Little Lake Butte des Morts, which is part of the Lower Fox River. After the city razed and remediated the downtown property, it was opened to commercial redevelopment and companies began moving in.

Plexus Corp.’s global headquarters, completed in 2010 on the site of the former Glatfelter mill along the water in downtown Neenah.

“Things are progressing very nicely with the Glatfelter redevelopment – in fact, they are probably ahead of schedule if anything,” said Chris Haese, director of community development and assessment for the City of Neenah. He explained Plexus Corp. moved into its new $16 million global headquarters in June 2010, while Affinity Health System will open its new $7 million clinic toward the end of this year.

“We have signed development agreements for two additional projects, one being Plexus Development Center, which is expected to break ground in spring 2013, and the other being a mixed-use retail development expected to break ground this fall. With these developments, only one of the seven development sites remains open for development,” said Haese. “Although we have not entertained any proposals for that site, we remain optimistic that something will occur in the next few years.”

The city itself provided $9 million in TIF funding to help remediate the site and prepare it for development.

“Not only is a substantial source of blight in the heart of our downtown being removed, but it’s being replaced with development that will provide for as many as 600 new jobs and an increase of the tax base by $42 million,” noted Haese.

26 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

A riverfront neighborhood As the Lower Fox strikes farther north, it passes through the City of Appleton into an area once occupied by several paper mills. Near downtown, there have been a couple of mixed-use projects taking place – the island-based Eagle Flats, previously occupied by Riverside Paper Corp. for a century, and nearby RiverHeath. The city has been involved with both projects, as they fit with an overall long-term plan for redeveloping the riverfront.

“The redevelopment of the river has created synergy between the projects. This is an opportunity to build a neighborhood and provide the community with access to the water,” said Karen Harkness, director of community development for the City of Appleton.

The first phase of the Eagle Flats project is well under way on the east side of the development site, involving the demolition of the former Riverside (Kerwin) Paper Mill and remediation of the site to prepare for the construction of two residential buildings valued at $14 million.

The first of the two affordable housing buildings is The Landing, which includes 54 units. It’s already nearly full since the building opened in February, according to Renee Torzala, director of communications and marketing for Stadtmueller & Associates in Appleton, the firm developing Eagle Flats. The second residential building, Riverwalk Place, is co-developed by the Appleton Housing Authority and will have 70 seniorliving apartments once it’s ready for occupancy at the end of July. The project was financed with a combination of TIF funding, WHEDA tax credits and traditional financing.

Other plans for the Eagle Flats area include adaptive reuse of an existing office building east of Lawe Street. For phase two, commercial development and tenant recruitment are being discussed, Torzala said.

“This former industrial area is slowly transitioning to a residential neighborhood, where people will be able to live, work and play within a small urban area,” Torzala said. “Future trails, safe streets, transit routes and the trolley will link Eagle Flats to downtown Appleton and neighboring attractions.”

Located just a few hundred yards downstream along the water adjacent to Lawrence University’s Banta Bowl, RiverHeath will feature a mix of townhouses and apartments along with retail, restaurant and office spaces. The first townhomes were completed just a month ago.

“We will be building a 26-unit apartment building this summer for occupancy in summer 2013,” said Mark Geall, an Appleton

An artist rendering of the townhouses under development at RiverHeath on the Fox River in downtown Appleton. www.newnorthb2b.com

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REAL ESTATE Green aspects on the water When waterfront development projects preserve or restore natural land along the banks and make other “green” improvements, we all benefit.

The Oshkosh riverwalk includes several green aspects: • The public has been re-connected to the Fox River in the downtown area.

• The site has undergone environmental remediation from more than a century of industrial operations.

• Foreign structures and sediment were dredged from the river.

• The riverbanks were stabilized with riprap and native plantings.

• The recycled concrete foundations of the old buildings serve as a base for the trail and fill for the remediation.

• A recycled-plastic alternative to wood called Trex was used for the riverwalk and docks.

In Neenah: • The former industrial site is now home to nearly 25 acres of park land in four locations along the Fox River and Little Lake Butte des Morts.

• Whenever possible, materials were reused to avoid placing them in the landfill.

• The two buildings currently on the redevelopment site were constructed with Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design – or LEED – standards.

native and one of the principals for Tanesay Development. “We will continue to build the townhomes with BerHoff Homes even while the apartment building is being built.” Those townhomes will feature high ceilings and windows, and hardwood floors.

Retail and office buildings will follow, and businesses including restaurants, a coffee shop and a photography studio have already committed to space. Among recreational uses, the RiverHeath grounds will feature a rink for ice skating and a marina. The overall price of the project has been projected at $55 million.

“These brownfield sites were not utilized to their highest and best use, nor were they inviting for development,” noted the City of Appleton’s Harkness. “Now, these sites are mitigated and integrated back into the community, creating welcoming, vibrant and vital space for gathering, working and playing.”

An attractive stroll In De Pere, thanks to an anonymous donor, trail work has begun on the Riverwalk and Wildlife Viewing Area along the east bank of the river.

The project incorporates the existing Voyageur Park green space, connects to downtown, adds decorative lighting, extends the trail along a peninsula, and constructs a new lighted viewing pier out into the river, complete with a pavilion. Visitors can spot bald eagles and waterfowl such as pelicans and herons, as well as a variety of fish from the viewing pier.

The area is a good walleye fishing spot, and the locks system is registered as a historic district. The economic impact from tourism, special events, and fishing is estimated at $1.9 million annually, according to the City of De Pere. Funding will come from TIF financing, grants, private donations and other sources.

For Eagle Flats in Appleton: • Groundwater and soil remediation has cleaned up the habitat for local wildlife.

• Parts of the old paper mill were recycled.

• The new multi-family housing uses less space and fewer resources compared with single-family homes, and was designed with solar panels and energyefficient heating, cooling, windows and insulation to comply with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Energy Star program.

• With its location in downtown Appleton, Eagle Flats residents can walk to several shops, restaurants, and in some cases, even workplaces.

Its neighbor, RiverHeath, received a grant of $978,000 from the U.S. Department of Energy for a geothermal exchange system for heating and cooling.

Electric power will be sourced through solar panels and hydroelectric power.

In downtown Green Bay, the City Deck incorporates natural elements through the use of chemical-free, insect-and-water-resistant Ipê hardwood from Brazil for the deck, docks and benches, plus trees, grasses and pervious draining concrete pavers.

28 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

near

The historic lock tender’s building Voyageur Park on the Fox River in De Pere.

On the boardwalk Along the Fox River’s home stretch before it empties into the bay of Green Bay are an east-shore promenade project called City Deck and an industrial-turned-mixed-use building called WaterMark.

When the 1,200-lineal-foot City Deck between Walnut and Main streets is finished, it will have something in common with Atlantic City and Coney Island: All three boardwalks have used tropical Ipê hardwood, known for standing up well to the elements. Phase two is in progress and should be finished by September, according to Jon Mueller, a civil engineer with the

www.newnorthb2b.com

REAL ESTATE

A promotional photo from the City of Green Bay touting The City Deck project along the east bank of the Fox River.

City of Green Bay. As of late April, the substructure for the docks was going up and floating docks were being fabricated.

This section of riverfront had been transformed in phase one from a small park, a parking lot and a parking ramp that blocked access to the shoreline’s dock wall, to a more aesthetically pleasing area with trees, grasses, pavers, benches and lighted timber boardwalk. Phase two expands a couple sections of the deck over the water, with three wheelchair-accessible gangways and 650 feet of transient docks.

Several state and federal grants have funded both phases, Mueller noted, indicating the phase one total cost was $7 million, developed with $3.5 million in matching funds from the city. The phase two total cost is projected to be $3.25 million, with nearly $850,000 in funding from the city. The project has also been supported through various private donations.

The City Deck creates a new waterfront gathering place for the community and visitors, whether they arrive by car, bike or boat. Vehicles get free weekend parking at the ramps on Main and Cherry streets, just a block from the City Deck. Mueller also noted entertainment activities are tied in with the boardwalk on an ongoing basis, including Dine on the Deck on Wednesdays and live local music on Friday nights.

Another source of entertainment along City Deck is Wa t e r M a r k , a renovated warehouse An artist rendering of the nearly complete which contains WaterMark redevelopment in downtown Green Bay. the 15,000sq. ft. Children’s Museum of Green Bay as well as Hagemeister Park Restaurant. When it opens this month, the museum will contain 12 interactive exhibits, an interactive oak tree, water play, and an imagination station. Named for the Green Bay Packers’ first football field, the Hagemeister Park Restaurant will sport an outdoor courtyard, ice rink in the winter, and a whopping 52-foot bar. On the upper levels of the WaterMark building are offices and 18 loft condos.

It’s fitting that the shore of the river that has played a major role in the history of the people, commerce and ecology of the region should be given new life for generations to come.

Robin Bruecker has 16 years of experience in magazine and marcom writing. Contact her at robinbrueck@yahoo.com.

NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 29

ENTREPRENEURSHIP

any icons of the arts world didn’t exactly start out in the black. Vincent van Gogh mooched off his brother for most of his life, and Edgar Allan Poe got nothing from his first book but a copyright and a few editions from the publisher. Even J.K. Rowling is reported to have been on welfare before “Harry Potter” supported her.

So maybe it’s stories like those that lead artists to suspect financial gain and creativity are mutually exclusive.

Some Baby Boomer musicians view making too much money as taboo for an artist.

“It’s sort of perceived that ‘If your motivation is money, it’s going to ruin your music,’” said Tom Washatka, jazz saxophonist who has been plying his trade for more than 30 years in the Fox Valley.

Way before little Tommy Tucker sang for his supper, we romanticized the idea of the starving artist warming himself on the flame of his passion.

Somehow it seems like poets in garrets should be so amply fueled by their creative fire that they don’t need fiscal fortification. We pay fake wrestlers to entertain us but not street mimes or subway singers, since the latter seem so happy doing what they do for free.

“I think the perception with many people in society and even, unfortunately, the parents of musicians that are up and coming who want to pursue music as a career, is that it’s not something you do as a career, it’s something you do as a hobby,” said Janet Planet, longtime

artists

Story by Lee Marie Reinsch

as entrepreneurs

New program through Lawrence teaches liberal arts students to think from bottom-line perspective

30 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

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ENTREPRENEURSHIP Fox Valley-based jazz vocalist, instructor and owner of Janet Planet Enterprises.

But Planet and others defy the notion that artists take an unwritten vow of poverty. Poets and potters have as much right to prosperity as psychiatrists and presidents.

“I am a small business, and my music is my product,” said Rob Anthony, acoustic guitarist and singer-songwriter based in Appleton. “You have to keep in mind that when money exchanges into your hands, you have to produce results, and that means satisfying customers, market retention, making sure people will come back to that establishment. You have to put a smile on your face, make sure the staff is happy and the owner is happy.”

Mr. Bojangles, Inc.?

Being an independent artist doesn’t mean sleeping till 3 p.m. and trilling out a few notes when the muse strikes.

“People see Janet Planet on stage singing and they think ‘How glamorous,’ but that’s not all there is to it,” Planet said.

As CEO of themselves, freelance and indie artists are in charge of promoting and producing their products, booking gigs, negotiating and collecting payments, and marketing, blogging, tweeting and Facebooking, in addition to actually performing or producing something.

“When people are hiring you, you have to give them a return on their investment,” Anthony said. “You have to make sure you are representing their establishment to the best you can do so when guests leave, they say, ‘I will be back, I will bring money, and I will bring a friend next time.’ If you can’t do that, then you aren’t being a good businessperson.”

Artists also have to diversify, Planet said. In L.A., they’re called WAMS, or waiter-actor-model-singers. Here, creatives just wear many hats, and not all of them are berets.

While Planet supports herself entirely on music, singing isn’t all she does. Janet Planet Enterprises owns a small record label, and she does voiceovers and commercials and she works at a radio station when she’s not performing in concert.

Her husband, Washatka, owns a company called Narrator Tracks, which creates and sells royalty-free music to corporations like GM, Toyota and American Express. One of his tunes ended up in the movie “The Bucket List.” He’s done some 95 CDs. The little enterprise not only keeps the lights on in the Washatka house, but keeps many companies from violating music copyright laws by playing music for which they don’t have licenses.

Business cool But ouch, my head! All of these words: diversification, customer retention, marketing. How do artists pick up business know-how?

Enter stage left: the Innovation & Entrepreneurship program, or I&E for short, at Lawrence University in Appleton.

In its fourth year, the program includes courses that teach students to look for market needs, speak persuasively about solutions, and see the world from a bottom-line perspective.

The program combines classes and faculty from the economics, physics, music and social sciences departments.

I&E is aimed at enabling students to take their liberal arts education from the realm of thought to the realm of action, said Adam Galambos, assistant professor of economics at Lawrence.

NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 31

ENTREPRENEURSHIP Galambos defines ‘entrepreneur’ as an agent of change. The word comes from the French for ‘to take into one’s own hands,’ or to undertake.

“An entrepreneur is somebody who takes charge of their own destiny,” Anthony said.

“Our students learn to analyze the natural, social and political world around us, and use that understanding to identify needs, problems in the world, and to solve them in innovative ways,” Galambos said.

Like the problem of empty storefronts on College Avenue.

Hopping from solution to solution The Rabbit Gallery in downtown Appleton refers to student-run, short-term art galleries that are set up in vacant storefronts on College Avenue. The locations jump around, hence the name. Galambos and Gary Vaughan co-teach the class that makes The Rabbit Gallery happen. Students start

with an abbreviated business plan with financial projections, then they plan, paint and prepare the spaces, call for and curate art, work with artists and the community, and open and staff the gallery, according to Vaughan.

“These are things that as business owners, we may take for granted, but this is the first experience for many of them,” said Vaughan, who owns Appleton-based Guident Business Solutions and teaches business and finance at Lawrence and Concordia universities.

It wouldn’t be much of a real-world experience if everything glided along perfectly. For a recent batch of students, the lease needed to be tweaked, negotiations had to be made back and forth about the gallery site – it was actually too large, and the students had to finagle renting just part of it – and the water didn’t get turned on when they needed it.

Without water, students had to find somewhere else to clean their paint brushes and rollers. Then later they realized they

Janet Planet

On the Web

www.janetplanet.com Tom Washatka www.tomwashatka.com Narrator Tracks www.ntracks.com Rob Anthony www.robanthonymusic.com

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ENTREPRENEURSHIP would need a cash register.

Add to this the no-shows – volunteers who signed up to staff the gallery but never showed – and you have a well-rounded entrepreneurial experience.

“It’s always simple to read about starting a business in a book, or talk about it as theory in a classroom, but real life is different,” Vaughan said. “Working with people and working in teams is something you can’t really teach out of a book.”

Overall, Rabbit’s succeeding. In its first two years, the Rabbit Gallery showed off 112 pieces of art and drew almost 600 visitors. The traffic and exposure helped last year’s building landlord find a longer-term tenant, making for one less vacant storefront on College Avenue. And students learned what bosses and business owners go through.

Would you like fries with that major?

One problem with artists is that they often think very narrowly of what they do and what they can do, said Brian Pertl, dean of the conservatory of music at Lawrence University.

A typical career path for a music major, he said, might lean toward practicing really hard and landing a job in an orchestra.

But professional orchestra jobs are hard to come by, and once someone lands one, they don’t want to leave it.

“So the chances of actually getting one of those jobs are pretty slim,” Pertl said. “But that doesn’t mean you can’t have a life in music and you can’t combine your passion with your profession.”

Pertl would know about the whole making-a-profession-outof-your-passion thing. As if majoring in English and trombone weren’t bad enough, the Lawrence alum must really have made his parents shudder when he announced his plans to earn a master’s and Ph.D. in ethnomusicology. But before he went to grad school, he went to Australia, Tibet, Nepal and India to study the use of harmonics in didgeridoo (also called didjeridu) playing and Tibetan sacred chanting.

How much more unemployable could one person make himself?

Then came a call from Microsoft asking him to play that didgeridoo for one of its first music-of-the-world CDs – Encarta. And that opened the door to a 16-year career at the software colossus, where he managed Microsoft’s media acquisitions group.

The journey back to Lawrence came via his musical performances at his alma mater, where he was asked to apply for the position of dean of the conservatory of music.

Take the Guesswork Out of Your Budget Ahern’s 2011 construction project costs were within 1.3% of our original estimates

Passion vs. Practical Every dean wants graduates to find well-paying jobs.

Pertl looked at the music conservatory in the 21st century and asked how it serves the needs of musicians now.

“It’s not enough to show up for practice three hours a day and graduate and hope for the best. You need to be proactive, thinking about how we can make lives in music,” Pertl said.

Students need to keep their end goal in mind from Day 1, not just a month before graduation, when they all panic, he said.

The idea behind the I&E program is to get students out of their shells and thinking about where opportunities might lie and what they can do with their art, especially considering existing tools like the Internet and Skype. They’re asked to think of themselves as a product and how to market their talent as

800.532.4376 www.jfahern.com

NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 33

ENTREPRENEURSHIP a thing.

“There are many things we have never asked a student to think about in a conservatory setting, and these are all things that I am asking them to think about very seriously in these classes,” Pertl said.

Didgeridooist for rent, call 857-5309 Pertl’s class came up with an online booking tool that improves upon the old-fashioned “Need a drummer?” gig boards of yore.

The project forced students to think through the business of booking talent, from finding musicians to researching bookingagency commissions.

“They learned a lot about working with people, working with the web, working with their business model, thinking what their revenue stream would be, thinking about what their costs were going to be as a whole,” Pertl said. “I can guarantee these are things they never thought about.”

They also get a taste of what employers look for when screening for reliable help: people who show up on time, people who deliver what they promise, and people who can be depended upon to represent their employer well.

“A lot of it (predicting which applicants will be reliable) is a judgment call, but we talk about ‘How much of this are you already doing?’ It certainly gives us a greater comfort level if they are already (performing publicly),” Pertl said. “If they come to us and say ‘We don’t have a car, and we only know

three songs,’ it’s like “No, this is not going to work.’”

Some students in his class asked if the booking service would be responsible for providing taxi services to wheel-less musicians, or for transporting their instruments and equipment to events for them.

“Think about that – if that was your business model – is that a smart thing to do or do you want to hire people who have transportation so you don’t have to worry about it and it’s not your responsibility?’”

Reduce, reuse, reframe Instead of thinking of being a musician as a negative in business, students should realize they’ve got many skills that are critical in the business world, which a lot of people going into the business world don’t have, Pertl said.

“You have collaborative skills because you are working with other people all of the time as a musician,” he said. “You have listening skills because you are listening to nuance and all kinds of tiny microchanges in tone, but when you are in a negotiating session or collaboration session, those same nuances in speech can trigger success or failure in that collaboration or negotiation. You’ve got creativity, because that is what we do, and in a survey about the most important asset for a CEO, creativity was voted No. 1.”

Lee Marie Rensch writes and edits from Green Bay.

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GUEST COMMENTARY

Seed funding has plenty of room to grow Wisconsin’s angel investing foundation increases, but work is far from over

Tom Still President, Wisconsin Technology Council

Lisa Johnson, the Madison entrepreneur who is vice president of innovation for the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp., had a front row seat at a March 2012 gathering of angel investors from across the United States and beyond.

Her takeaway: Many of those investors envy what Wisconsin has done to stimulate angel investing over time.

“There was no question that we’re viewed as being an innovative state when it came to (investor tax credits) and other programs related to angel investing,” said Johnson, who attended the March conference of the Angel Capital Association. “At the same time, there’s so much more we can do to improve our programs and to help more startups.”

Johnson, who was an executive at Semba Biosciences and Novagen, knows what early stage companies need to grow – and that often involves angel and venture capital. She brings that experience to her new chair at WEDC, the successor agency to the state Department of Commerce, where the importance of startups in Wisconsin’s economy is an everyday topic.

The angel conference, attended by investors from 49 states and more than 20 countries, provided the backdrop for a sneak preview of an annual report on Wisconsin’s investment climate. Released this past March, the 2012 Wisconsin Portfolio charted angel capital deals for 2011 as well as venture capital rounds for the same year.

Wisconsin firms raised more than $152 million in early stage funding in 2011, reflecting a record year for angel investments but a decline in venture capital financing from 2010 totals. The total showed venture capital investments at $91.7 million – down about 30 percent. Angel investments, including angel groups and individual “super-angels,” increased to $61.1 million, up about 20 percent.

Total early stage investments charted by the Wisconsin Angel Network for 2010 were $180.9 million, with $130.7 million in venture capital investments and $50.2 million in angel group and individual investments.

The number of venture deals in Wisconsin stayed fairly steady in 2011 with 22 transactions, compared to 24 in 2010, while the number of reported angel deals increased from 54 to 63. Because some companies attracted both angel and venture financing, there were 76 Wisconsin companies that re-

ceived some type of early stage financing.

Since 2003, when angel network-only investments were pegged at $1.74 million, there has been a 35-fold increase in angel group and individual investments reported through WAN, which is part of the Wisconsin Technology Council. During that same period, the number of angel groups grew from five to 27, one of the highest per capita totals in the nation.

Other states are catching up, however.

Minnesota and Nebraska essentially copied Wisconsin’s investor tax credits law, which took effect in January 2005, and took it one step further by allowing out-of-state investors to collect credits. About 30 states have created state-leveraged venture capital funds, which are focused on investments that follow angel rounds.

This last session of the Wisconsin Legislature ended without action on major venture capital legislation, which would have allowed the state to create a “fund-of-funds” to attract private capital from outside Wisconsin while spurring new venture funds at home.

Venture capital is vital to a startup economy because angel groups and individual investors can only take most companies so far. Venture capital is often required to accelerate company growth – and to create more jobs. Unless angels can pass the baton to venture capitalists or find other exits for their investments, companies can stall out or move to other states in search of additional capital.

“The meteoric growth of angel investment in Wisconsin proves we are doing a lot of things right,” said Tim Keane, managing director of the Golden Angels, one of Wisconsin’s largest angel networks. “Sustaining this growth will require the concerted effort of investors, entrepreneurs and state policymakers. We are especially concerned about our follow-on capacity for these companies – an issue we need to address.”

Wisconsin’s support for its homegrown angel investors is a nationally recognized success. As the smoke clears from the state’s political fires, perhaps Democrats and Republicans alike will come together to build on that success – and keep Wisconsin in the lead.

Still is president of the Wisconsin Technology Council. He is the former associate editor of the Wisconsin State Journal. To read the full report, visit: www.wisconsinangelnetwork.com.

NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 35

HEALTH CARE

Comparing health care costs The Wisconsin Hospital Association Information Center regularly collects and publishes data about charges and services provided by Wisconsin hospitals and outpatient surgery centers. Providing this cost and quality data was part of a state government and WHA initiative to make health care more transparent to Wisconsin patients.

Each year since 2002, New North B2B magazine has published average charges from each facility in our readership area for sample services and procedures common to employers. To compare cost figures from other health care facilities or for other procedures, visit Wisconsin’s PricePoint System online at www.wipricepoint.org.

~ Research conducted by Emily Bodin for New North B2B

Normal Newborn......................... Discharges St. Elizabeth Hospital, Appleton................ 984 New London Family Medical Center.......... 119 Theda Clark Medical Center, Neenah..... 1,196 Appleton Medical Center........................ 1,188 Mercy Medical Center, Oshkosh................ 572 Agnesian Healthcare, Fond du Lac............ 797 Bellin Health, Green Bay......................... 1,107 St. Vincent Hospital, Green Bay................. 747 Aurora Baycare, Green Bay..................... 1,488 St. Mary’s Hospital, Green Bay.................. 661 Aurora Medical Center, Oshkosh............... 624 State Average..................................................

Median 2011 $785 $1,543 $1,533 $1,513 $1,420 $1,904 $1,890 $2,205 $2,476 $2,737 $3,341 $2,618

Median 2010 $969 $1,441 $1,447 $1,458 $1,487 $1,764 $1,785 $2,153 $2,340 $2,661 $2,851 $2,388

Knee Replacement...................... Discharges Theda Clark Medical Center, Neenah........ 166 Appleton Medical Center........................... 475 Mercy Medical Center, Oshkosh................ 458 New London Family Medical Center............ 52 St. Elizabeth Hospital, Appleton................ 254 Bellin Health, Green Bay............................ 827 Aurora Baycare, Green Bay........................ 202 Aurora Medical Center, Oshkosh............... 173 Ripon Medical Center.................................. 18 St. Vincent Hospital, Green Bay................. 253 Agnesian Healthcare, Fond du Lac............ 135 St. Mary’s Hospital, Green Bay.................. 249 State Average..................................................

Median 2011 $23,162 $24,963 $25,645 $26,059 $26,005 $30,459 $33,228 $35,027 $45,480 $37,222 $39,002 $40,570 $37,106

Median 2010 $22,885 $23,802 $24,055 $25,604 $25,813 $30,354 $30,838 $33,162 $33,173 $34,734 $37,712 $37,780 $35,266

36 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

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HEALTH CARE Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary.

Discharges Theda Clark Medical Center, Neenah.......... 73 Appleton Medical Center............................. 87 Mercy Medical Center, Oshkosh.................. 64 St. Elizabeth Hospital, Appleton................ 108 Bellin Health, Green Bay.............................. 94 Ripon Medical Center.................................. 21 Aurora Medical Center, Oshkosh................. 71 St. Mary’s Hospital, Green Bay.................... 43 Aurora Baycare, Green Bay........................ 109 St. Vincent Hospital, Green Bay................... 47 Agnesian Healthcare, Fond du Lac............ 105 State Average..................................................

Major Bowel Procedure.............. Discharges New London Family Medical Center.......... N/A Appleton Medical Center........................... 196 Theda Clark Medical Center........................ 89 St. Elizabeth Hospital, Appleton................ 101 Ripon Medical Center.................................... 9 Aurora Medical Center, Oshkosh................. 44 Mercy Medical Center, Oshkosh.................. 56 Aurora Baycare, Green Bay.......................... 86 Bellin Health, Green Bay............................ 144 Agnesian Healthcare, Fond du Lac.............. 89 St. Mary’s Hospital, Green Bay.................... 63 St. Vincent Hospital.................................... 112 State Average..................................................

Median 2011 Median 2010 $7,523 $6,613 $6,990 $6,751 $8,822 $7,299 $8,360 $8,426 $11,671 $9,688 $9,841 $9,690 $12,598 $10,448 $13,200 $11,839 $15,961 $13,366 $12,495 $13,367 $17,193 $15,236 $13,369 $12,460 Median 2011 N/A $21,244 $22,223 $20,781 $32,601 $26,560 $25,585 $39,331 $37,566 $43,393 $44,544 $48,851 $42,072

Median 2010 $17,146 $20,137 $20,978 $21,031 $25,256 $26,744 $27,042 $35,018 $37,290 $37,543 $39,128 $42,144 $39,045

NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 37

HEALTH CARE

Angioplasty w/o heart attack..... Discharges Theda Clark Medical Center, Neenah.......... 33 Appleton Medical Center............................. 87 Mercy Medical Center, Oshkosh.................. 54 Aurora Medical Center, Oshkosh................. 32 Aurora Baycare, Green Bay.......................... 66 Bellin Health, Green Bay.............................. 66 St. Elizabeth Hospital, Appleton.................. 51 St. Vincent Hospital, Green Bay................... 92 Agnesian Healthcare, Fond du Lac.............. 50 St. Mary’s Hospital, Green Bay.................... 58 State Average..................................................

Median 2011 $22,193 $28,902 $38,192 $40,823 $40,154 $34,415 $39,918 $45,629 $46,043 $47,167 $48,375

Median 2010 $23,061 $30,169 $32,849 $34,180 $34,293 $34,461 $36,919 $39,101 $40,069 $45,763 $43,927

Vaginal Delivery........................... Discharges Appleton Medical Center........................... 928 New London Family Medical Center............ 80 Theda Clark Medical Center, Neenah........ 917 St. Elizabeth Hospital, Appleton................ 847 Mercy Medical Center, Oshkosh................ 449 Aurora Medical Center, Oshkosh............... 462 Bellin Health, Green Bay............................ 885 St. Mary’s Hospital, Green Bay.................. 559 Aurora Baycare, Green Bay..................... 1,178 St. Vincent Hospital, Green Bay................. 653 Agnesian Healthcare, Fond du Lac............ 607 State Average..................................................

Median 2011 $3,299 $3,498 $3,490 $3,540 $3,553 $3,808 $4,228 $5,077 $5,032 $5,582 $6,579 $7,174

Median 2010 $3,086 $3,223 $3,301 $3,393 $3,512 $3,591 $3,983 $4,414 $4,699 $4,814 $6,176 $6,746

Cesarean Delivery....................... Discharges Appleton Medical Center........................... 306 Mercy Medical Center, Oshkosh................ 163 St. Elizabeth Hospital, Appleton................ 223 Theda Clark Medical Center, Neenah........ 469 Aurora Medical Center, Oshkosh............... 191 New London Family Medical Center............ 36 Bellin Health, Green Bay............................ 297 St. Vincent Hospital, Green Bay................. 199 Aurora Baycare, Green Bay........................ 420 St. Mary’s Hospital, Green Bay.................. 131 Agnesian Healthcare, Fond du Lac............ 239 State Average..................................................

Median 2011 $7,181 $7,352 $7,431 $7,544 $8,758 $8,621 $10,645 $11,449 $12,753 $13,519 $14,868 $14,203

Median 2010 $6,930 $7,169 $7,443 $7,467 $8,371 $8,925 $9,638 $10,427 $12,286 $12,904 $14,014 $13,304

38 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

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2012 SUMMER Leisure GUIDE

Tuesday night concert series June 19

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Orpheus

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July 10

Tin Sandwich www.tinsandwich.org

Mad Polecats

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July 31

Greg Waters

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the Broad Street Boogie www.gregwatersmusic.com

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PROFESSIONALLY SPEAKING

The Impact of Health Care Reform

by Jackson Kahl Insurance Services

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 has brought about sweeping changes to the health care system and how we, as consumers, access and pay for health care. Here are just a few of the key reform changes that have already gone into effect: • Adult children may be covered to age 26; • Emergency services are covered at the in-network rate; • HSA, FSA and MSA funds may no longer be used to purchase over-thecounter drugs on a pre-tax basis without a prescription; • The penalty on HSA distributions that are not used for qualified expenses increased from 10 to 20 percent; • Lifetime dollar limits have been removed on essential health benefits; • Preventive care services are covered at 100 percent if in network.

Looking ahead: • New reporting requirements have gone into effect this year. Employers with

Kim Becker

more than 250 employees will be required to report the cost of employees’ health benefit coverage on their 2012 W-2 forms that are distributed in January 2013. This is for informational purposes only and does not mean that employees will be taxed on these dollars.

• Recently, the U.S. Department of Labor released a new set of Frequently Asked Questions relating to the new summary of benefits and coverage (SBC) notice requirements under Health Care Reform. The FAQs address issues relating to the requirement that group health plans provide participants and beneficiaries with an SBC at certain times during the enrollment process and upon request. It also contains information on what the SBC must contain in terms of information about the plan and coverage. Compliance with the notice requirements will take effect in September of this year.

• Effective Jan. 1, 2013, the health care law will limit the amount of contributions to

800.524.5467 health FSAs to $2,500 per year, indexed by the CPI for subsequent years.

Plotting a course to manage these changes can be daunting. With the help of the Jackson Kahl Insurance professionals, we can bring together all of this information and create a platform from which you can better manage your exposure and ensure compliance as the regulations, mandates and laws become effective. Call us today to schedule an appointment and we’ll help you navigate the choppy waters that lie ahead.

Kim Becker is an Insurance and Human Resources Consultant at Jackson Kahl Insurance Services, LLC. She has over 20 years of Human Resources experience including financial services and manufacturing, in both union and nonunion environments. Kim is PHR certified and is licensed in Wisconsin in Life and Health and Property & Casualty insurance.

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PROFESSIONALLY SPEAKING

Do I Have Time to Get an MBA?

by University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Have there been times in the last few years when you’ve thought to yourself, “I really need to go back to school to get my Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree,” and then promptly decided you didn’t have time in your life just now?

If so, you’re not alone. It’s very common.

It’s a big decision, and a big personal commitment.

Ninety-five percent of MBA students at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh are working professionals. On average, they have eight years of business experience and demanding jobs. Many travel frequently. Some have families. Others are engaged in volunteer activities. There’s one thing they have in common – all have busy lifestyles.

So how do you fit graduate studies into an already packed schedule, and do it well?

The UW Oshkosh MBA program is designed for working adults. Classes are held

Kathy Hagens

in the evenings, Monday to Thursday. Most classes are held one night per week, from 6 to 9:10 p.m. Classes are held in a variety of locations each semester – Oshkosh, Green Bay and Stevens Point, as well as offered online.

Many students typically take two classes per semester. Most find that a load of three to six credits is manageable. The average student completes their degree in three and a half years. Students also like the flexibility of being able to take a semester break if their business or personal schedules require time off with no penalty.

Students come from a variety of backgrounds including business, engineering, healthcare and many others. The industries and companies are diverse: consumer products, manufacturers, insurance, banking, financial, hospitals, retail and nonprofit, just to name a few. Normally there are students representing 200 to 250 different companies each semester in various

920.424.7407 classes. And, of course, this mix of students and companies provides an exciting opportunity for networking.

So why wait another year? Call today to find out how you can get started on your MBA. Kathy Hagens is the MBA Program Director at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh College of Business. She earned both her MBA and Bachelor’s Degree from UW Oshkosh. She has over 15 years experience leading strategic planning, marketing, branding and communications. She can be reached at HagensK@uwosh.edu.

“Professionally Speaking” is a promotional spot for business professionals to share their expertise with New North B2B readers. To learn more about how your business can take advantage of opportunities with Professionally Speaking, contact Carrie at 920.237.0254 or email carrie@newnorthb2b.com.

Credit Card Debt - Huge Impact on Credit Scores

by Credit Matters, Inc. Unknown to many people, high balances on revolving accounts can have the greatest negative impact on credit scores.

Revolving debt – including credit cards, lines of credit, charge cards, and some home equity lines of credit – make up about 30 percent of your credit score. If the amount you owe on revolving debt is more than 30 percent of your available credit limit, this will reduce your credit score.

The amount of available credit being used is called the utilization ratio, and is calculated by comparing the total of your revolving account balances to the total credit limits.

Say you owe half of your credit limit (a 50 percent utilization ratio), your credit score could drop by 20 to 50 points, depending on what other credit items are in your credit report. Your score drops further with higher utilization ratios. If your utilization ratio is over 80 percent, then your score may drop Dan Krueger

by 60 to 120 points.

A common mistake people make is paying off a card and then closing the account.

While it’s good to pay off debt, closing the card reduces their total available credit limit, affecting the ratio calculation. Example: Say you have two credit cards each having a $1,000 credit limit, and the balances are $200 and $800. Your utilization ratio would be 50 percent ($1,000 total balance on $2,000 total credit limit). Now if you pay off the $200 balance and close the account, then your remaining card would have the $800 balance with a $1,000 limit yielding an 80 percent utilization ratio, effectively dropping your credit score by as much as 80 points.

One solution to reduce the utilization ratio is to contact the credit card issuer and ask them to raise your credit limit. This may seem counter intuitive since you are increasing your spending capacity and the risk to the card company; however, credit score calculations

800.531.7279 don’t consider the risk based on what you could spend, just on what you have spent relative to your aggregate credit limit.

Dan Krueger is the owner of Credit Matters, Inc., a registered Credit Service Organization with the State of Wisconsin. Since 2003 Credit Matters has assisted over 3,000 consumers and small business owners with credit restoration and consultation services.

For assistance with your credit management or score improvement needs, call us at 800531-7279.

“Professionally Speaking” is a promotional spot for business professionals to share their expertise with New North B2B readers. To learn more about how your business can take advantage of opportunities with Professionally Speaking, contact Carrie at 920.237.0254 or email carrie@newnorthb2b.com.

NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 41

WHO’S NEWS

Small Business Solutions

Moraine Park Technical College is offering opportunities for small businesses and entrepreneurs through short, noncredit courses designed around targeted topics relevant to the small business owner/manager or aspiring entrepreneur.

Upcoming Small Business Short Courses: Marketing Your Small Business: June 27 Tax Deductions for Small Business: July 11 Web Site Design for Your Small Business: July 25 Classes held from 5:30-8:30 p.m.

Cost for each class: $39

Jumpstart Your Business Plan Thursdays, October 11 - November 15 Fond du Lac Campus 5:30 - 9:30 p.m.

Cost: $500

Register today: 920-924-3449 or training@morainepark.edu.

For more training opportunities, visit morainepark.edu/training.

Performance-Minded Business Solutions Moraine Park Technical College Is an Equal Opportunity/Access Employer and Educator.

42 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

Incorporations New North B2B includes a monthly list of new business incorporations filed with the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions.

Brown County

Needlepoint Crafts LLC, Facsheng Xiong, 3649 May Lane, De Pere 54115.

Get Reel Outdoors LLC, Patrick Kotowski, 3976 N. Parker Way, De Pere 54115.

Smet Transport Services LLC, Chad Smet, 800 O’Keefe Road, De Pere 54115.

Blue Steele Firearms LLC, James Scott Steele, N5944 Amanda Lane, De Pere 54115.

Bolender Designs LLC, Philip Scott Bolender, 992 Pennings St., De Pere 54115.

New Quality Management Systems LLC, Mary N. Boeselager, 1365 Jordan Road, De Pere 54115.

Heritage Lake Storage LLC, Karl R. Guns, 3690 School Road, De Pere 54115.

Pampered Pet LLC, Tanya Catherine Smejkal, 119 S. Webster Ave., De Pere 54115.

Living Hope Lutheran Church, Jacob Dumke, 2158 Mahogany Trail, De Pere 54115.

Home Remakes LLC, Larry Bednarski, 1523 Shadow Ridge Way, De Pere 54115.

Fox Meadow Lawn Care LLC, Joel Fenske, 1988 Fox Meadow Dr., De Pere 54115.

Hanna’s Lasting Beauty LLC, Hanh Thi Zepnick, 327 Main Ave., Ste. C, De Pere 54115.

Lakeshore Construction Services LLC, Philip T. Sosnosky, E2326 Collegiate Road, Denmark 54208.

RJH Sales & Computer Repair LLC, Joshua R. Hundsrucker, 1023 Coppens Road, Green Bay 54303.

Green Bay Cricket Association Inc., Shahul Azad, 1254 Carole Lane, Green Bay 54313.

R & L Industries LLC, Michael J. Schlumpf, 1651 Cass St., Green Bay 54302.

Kelley Market Research LLC, Christine L. Kelley, 1524 N. Bay Highlands Dr., Green Bay 54311.

Healthy Living Chiropractic Clinic Inc., Marie-Andree C. Gelinas, 858 Hansen Road, Green Bay 54304.

All Care Recovery Specialists LLC, David Horkman, 1014 Parkview Road, Green Bay 54304.

1 Fine Line Carpentry LLC, Dylan Brian Hill, 12524 Velp Ave., Green Bay 54313.

With Sympathy Gifts & Keepsakes LLC, Chelsea Hanson, 2153 Kensington Lane, Green Bay 54311.

Rehome Consignment.com LLC, Paul Howard Glowinski, 2979 Allied St., Green Bay 54304.

John’s Action Towing LLC, John R. Berna, 1640 Cass St., Green Bay 54302.

Mulino Furniture LLC, Lorri Kieff, 929 Willard Dr., Ste. 234, Green Bay 54304.

MVP Management LLC, Valerie Hubbard, 1233 Shadow Lane, Green Bay 54304.

New Wave Courier LLC, Floyd Leonard Paul, 321 S. Washington St., #201, Green Bay 54301.

Economy Movers of Green Bay LLC, Kurt Dumke, 1014 Parkview Road, Unit C, Green Bay 54304.

Arrow Construction Services LLC, John J. Petcka, 310 Packerland Dr., Green Bay 54303.

Client Finance Services LLC, Dennis John Hinic, 1248 Morris Ave., Green Bay 54304.

www.newnorthb2b.com

WHO’S NEWS Great Mid West Roofing LLC, Mike Martin, 1502 Cardinal Lane, Green Bay 54313.

Floor Care Specialists LLC, Joseph Giesbers, 3066 Sandia Dr., Green Bay 54313.

Christian Community Sports Inc., Richard Hasseler, 3200 Libal St., Green Bay 54301.

Diversified Scientific Solutions LLC, Francis Junio, 4396 Chatham Dr., Green Bay 54313.

Death’s Door Tattoo LLC, Wade Michael Brunette, 1315 W. Mason St., Green Bay 54303.

Accurate Drug Testing LLC, Stephanie Lynn De Keyser, 1100 Columbia Ave., Green Bay 54303.

Allouez Village Shoppes LLC, Gregg J. Slusarek, 801 Hoffman Road, Green Bay 54301.

Cheesy Love Cheesecakery & Bakery LLC, Jennifer Lynn Corcoran, 1161 Berner St., Green Bay 54302.

Premier Motorcars LLC, Eric Schmoll, 745 Ontario, Ste. 1, Green Bay 54311.

Edits On The Dotcom LLC, David Charles Mueller, 329 N. Jackson St., Apt. 12, Green Bay 54301.

Glam Girlz Inc., Sheila Higginbotham, 6418 Ledgetop Ct., Greenleaf 54126.

N.E.W. Quality Care Inc., Lisa Glinski, 1632 County Road S, Little Suamico 54141.

Delicious Dishes Catering LLC, Brenda J. Walkowiak, 3406 County Road S, Little Suamico 54141.

DJB Anesthesia Services LLC, Daniel Jean-Baptiste, 3668 Wildcat Trail, New Franken 54229.

I.M. Plumbing LLC, Nicholaus M. Metzner, 784 Riverside Dr., Suamico 54173.

Fond du Lac County

MH Graphic Design Services LLC, Michele Hall, W2014 County Road Y, Campbellsport 53010.

Howlin Transport LLC, Brent Barbuch, N4030 Vista Dr., Campbellsport 53010.

Wisconsin Religious Pilgrimages LLC, Rosa M. Bord, W847 Airport Road, Campbellsport 53010.

Midwest Nutraceuticals Inc., Steven G. Meress, 180 Knights Way, Fond du Lac 54935.

Precision Custom Coatings LLC, Christopher M. Gilson, 183 3rd St., Fond du Lac 54935.

Designs on a Shoestring LLC, Jeri Lynne Meiklejohn, 558 S. Park Ave., Fond du Lac 54935.

Studio W Interiors LLC, Bethany R. Wiskow, 120 4th St., Fond du Lac 54935.

Temperance Entertainment LLC, Maurice A. Craine, Sr., 143 Ellis St., Fond du Lac 54935.

Full Diameter Machining Inc., Thomas A. Klima, N8105 Billene Dr., Malone 53049.

Bryant Lawns, Gardens & Landscapes LLC, Edward Kenneth Bryant, Jr., W13206 Scandi St., Ripon 54971.

CE Clausen Farms LLC, Christian Clausen, N8770 State Road 44, Ripon 54971.

Thomas James Real Estate LLC A Provider Of Commercial & Industrial Real Estate Brokerage Services Businesses Looking For Commercial & Industrial Real Estate Look To Us

EXPECT THE BEST In Marketing Services & Personalized Care Tom Scharpf / Broker Owner 920.379.0744 x tjr2216@aol.com x tjrsite.com

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SMALL - BANK

BIG - BANK

At First National Bank ~ Fox Valley, we know you... and we know banking. Our bankers’ 80 years of combined experience mean you can trust us to develop a financial solution that best fits your business needs today and tomorrow.

Call us today at 920-729-6900 or visit www.fnbfoxvalley.com.

Green Lake County

Laura Children’s Learning Home Day Care LLC, Laura Velez Aleman, 152 N. Capron St., Berlin 54923.

Trillium Hill Farm Biofuels LLC, Douglas David Jones, N8257 County Road F, Berlin 54923.

Outagamie County

Solo Mortgage Corp., Nicholas J. Salm, 42 E. Parkview Way, Appleton 54913.

Orthopedic Therapy Specialists LLC, Michael Zielinski, 4535

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NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 43

WHO’S NEWS N. Habitat Way, Appleton 54913.

Westhill Centre LLC, Larry E. Lind, 17 Park Place, Ste. 100, Appleton 54914.

Stephani Farms LLC, Steven K. Wieckert, 3033 W. Spencer St., Appleton 54914.

RxLink Sports Medicine Clinic LLC, Vallie M. Kaprelian, 801 Keller Park Dr., Appleton 54914.

Well Adjusted Wellness Center LLC, Janelle Maimie Curlee, 612 E. Longview Dr., Ste. B, Appleton 54911.

Bill’s Custom Conveying LLC, William R. Porretto, Jr., W2854 Schmalz Cir., Appleton 54915.

JeaneG & Healthy You LLC, Jean George, 909 N. Sharon St., Appleton 54914.

Expressive Therapies LLC, Sara Devine, 511 E. Marquette St., Appleton 54911.

Queen’s Nails Inc., Alex A. Pham, 1717 W. Brewster St., Appleton 54914.

Dream Day Events LLC, Jacqueline Korth, N3513 Scenic Lane, Appleton 54913.

Moving Seniors Home LLC, Cynthia R. Misner, 1501 W. Cloverdale Dr., Appleton 54914.

Top to Bottom Pest Control LLC, Christopher Stenstrom, 1816 N. Superior St., Appleton 54911.

Skyline Roofing and Construction LLC, Paul Charles Ecklor, W7023 Everglade Road, Greenville 54942.

Rick Wunderlich Excavating LLC, Julie Wunderlich, N3045 County Road M, Hortonville 54944.

Booky’s Tree Farm LLC, Robert Buchman, W8362 County Road MM, Hortonville 54944.

Lyfe Lyke Taxidermy LLC, Lori L. Sommer, N1537 Winchester Road, Hortonville 54944.

Erica’s Sweet Sensations Bakery LLC, Erica Rose Laross,

1005 Saunders Road, Apt. 9, Kaukauna 54130.

Pickle Patch Photography LLC, Pamela Bloy, 1540 Harrison St., Kaukauna 54130.

Kaukauna Youth Band Organization Inc., Ted Olson, 168 Arthur St., Kaukauna 54130.

Kimberly Hardware Heating & Cooling LLC, Gary Lee Jansen, 613 E. Lincoln Ave., Little Chute 54140.

Innovative Engravings LLC, Tadd Krueger, N8947 Lawn Road, Seymour 54165.

Absolute Heating & Cooling LLC, Tyler James Weise, N2435 County Road G, Seymour 54165.

Winnebago County

Rick’s Goldsmith Shop LLC, Richard Gene Sawotka, 4128 Oakridge Road, Larsen 54947.

Black Creek Eyecare LLC, Charles J. Burgess, 1255 Appleton Road, Menasha 54952.

Crazy Buffet Inc., Yan Chai Chen, 1550 Appleton Road, Menasha 54952.

J.W. Welding LLC, Jason William Harold, 845 Sixth St., Menasha 54952.

Three S Trucking LLC, Benjamin Jeffrey Schrader, 825 First St., Menasha 54952.

Badger State Vending LLC, Eric Jacobson, 1223 Appleton Road, Menasha 54952.

JS Concrete LLC, John D. Schmidt, 8132 S. Oakwood Ave., Neenah 54956.

Wisconsin Powersports Inc., Kirk Ecklund, 6991 State Road 76, Neenah 54956.

Wisconsin Auction Service LLC, Thomas John Egan, 3017 State Road 116, Omro 54963.

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44 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

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WHO’S NEWS Fox Valley Ceramic Tile LLC, Mark Daniels, 1528 S. Koeller St., Ste. #166, Oshkosh 54902.

920 Tattoo Company LLC, Steven Michael Anderson, 578 N. Main St., Oshkosh 54901.

Pristine Cleaning Services LLC, Karen M. Piechowski, 20 Cherry Park Ct., Apt. F, Oshkosh 54902.

Fannin Plumbing LLC, Patrick Jay Fannin, 3467 Oregon St., Oshkosh 54902.

Appletonnightout.com LLC, Michelle Ann Baumann, 7426 Country Club Road, Oshkosh 54902.

Chadd Krueger Carpentry LLC, Chadd T. Krueger, 1846 Sunkist Road, Oshkosh 54904.

Shaemus and The McNally Boys LLC, Jason Baer, 401 N. Main St., Oshkosh 54901.

Christopher J. O’Connell Agency LLC, Christopher J. O’Connell, Sr., 914 E. Murdock Ave., Oshkosh 54901.

Sakura Japanese Steak House Inc., Chun Yeung, 330-340 N. Koeller St., Oshkosh 54902.

Superior Roofing & Remodeling LLC, Mai Vue Yang, 5536 County Road S, Oshkosh 54904.

Silvio Janitorial LLC, Silvio Matamoros, 475 S. Westhaven Dr., Apt. #E-1, Oshkosh 54904.

Prime Source Graphics LLC, Gary Leroy Sanders II, 1018 W. South Park Ave., Oshkosh 54902.

Healthcare Path Finders, Inc., Malinda Feinauer, 784 James Road, Pickett 54964.

Bloomin’ Good Gardeners LLC, Carole Dorsch, 672 County Road M, Pickett 54964.

Salon Envy LLC, Amber Gyrion, 6880 County Road M, Winneconne 54986.

BT&C Associates LLC, Jeffrey A. Jahnke, 1107 Twin Harbor Dr., Winneconne 54986.

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Building permits B2B includes a monthly list of building permits (not to inlude residential projects) in excess of $400,000.

Goodwill Industries – Shiner Center, 1341 W. Spencer St., Appleton. $472,000 to remodel the interior of the existing warehouse and distribution center. General contractor is R.J. Albright Inc. of Oshkosh.

March 27.

Familiar faces you know and trust.

Together, our team has over 100 years of experience serving the financial needs of the Fox Valley area.

Paine Art Center & Arboretum, 1410 Algoma Blvd., Oshkosh. $1,789,897 for a 3,600-sq. ft. addition and remodel of the existing carriage house for banquet reception space. General contractor is J.H. Findorff & Son Inc. of Madison. March 27.

At Bank First, we’re focused on providing the flexibility you need now to meet the demands of a new marketplace. Our experience, resources and ideas can help you adapt in this everchanging environment.

Fed Ex Ground, 1755 W. Fernau Ave., Oshkosh. $536,000 for a 13,950sq. ft. addition to the existing distribution facility. General contractor is Bayland Buildings of Green Bay. March 30.

St. Elizabeth Hospital, 1506 S. Oneida St., Appleton. $2,460,000 to remodel the third floor birthing center. General contractor is Boldt Construction Co. of Appleton. April 10.

PH East of Appleton, 3813 E. Calumet St., Appleton. $552,000 for a new multi-tenant retail center to include AE Jewelers and Qdoba Mexican Grill.

General contractor is The Redmond Company of Milwaukee. April 11.

New businesses Cape Financial Group opened at 2345 E. Mason St. in Green Bay by J. Franklin Cape as an independent brokerage office aligned with Raymond James Financial Services. Cape has more than 30 years experience

Please consider stopping in, calling or emailing our team!

Clockwise from top: Mike Dempsey, Jessica Darmawan, Carol Franz, Mei Bloechl, Joan Woldt, Meghann Kasper

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For Better Banking, Think First.

NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 45

WHO’S NEWS

Faccio

Klinker

Hunt

Biro

Teal Consulting Group, LLC opened in Oshkosh by Marcia Teal to provide expert opinions on business value and investigative financial forensic analysis. The firm also identifies financial irregularities or fraud-related activities within a business. Teal has more than 15 years of accounting experience. Teal Consulting Group can be reached by calling 920.744.7376 or by going online to www.tealcg.com.

The following organizations in the region were recognized during the recent 22nd Annual Wisconsin Main Street Awards: Best Downtown Image Campaign/Item - Honorable Mention to Downtown Fond du Lac Partnership for its annual report; Best New Downtown Business - Honorable Mention to The Docking Station, Green Bay, On Broadway District; Best Business Marketing Campaign to Beerntsen’s Candies, Green Bay, On Broadway District; Best Sustainability Award to Leicht Park Solar Panels, Green Bay, On Broadway District; Best Façade Rehabilitation over $7,500 for the 204-208 Watson Street property in downtown Ripon being developed

by Mary Flanagan and Scott Kearney; and Best Upper Floor Development for the 28 N. Main Street Loft in downtown Fond du Lac being developed by Sam Meyer.

Wisconsin Safety Council and Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development presented 2011 Wisconsin Corporate Safety Award to 14 employers within the state, including the following from the region: Georgia Pacific Green Bay Broadway; J. F. Ahern Co. in Fond du Lac; MAG – IAS in Fond du Lac; RGL Specialty Services in Green Bay; Scheck Mechanical Wisconsin Corp. in Kaukauna; and Tweet/Garot Mechanical, Inc. in Green Bay. Immel Construction of Green Bay received a Construction Safety Excellence Award from Associated General Contractors of Wisconsin for working 535,000 labor hours without a losttime injury.

Aurora BayCare Medical Center in Green Bay and Mercy Medical Center in Oshkosh both received the Outstanding Achievement Award from The Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons. A total of 106 accredited and newly accredited cancer programs across the U.S. received the award this year.

Wold

Garrity

J. F. Ahern Co. of Fond du Lac received a 2011 Best Project Award from the Wisconsin Division of State Facilities for its contributions to the new University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Centennial Hall academic building. The state DSF annually recognizes two projects of distinction.

Awards and honors earned by individuals are listed separately in the Who’s News section of New North B2B.

Goeser

Truehart

in the financial services industry. He is a Certified Financial Planner, an Accredited Estate Planner, and holds the Charted Financial Consultant and Charted Financial Underwriter designations. Cape Financial Group can be reached by calling 920.272.2273 or online at www.capefinancialgroup.net.

Business honors

Chevalier

Kempfert

Appleton Downtown Inc. presented the following awards to organizations during its recent annual dinner: Downtown Business of the Year Award to Angels Forever – Windows of Light; Dreamers and Doers Award was presented to the Boys & Girls Club of the Fox Valley; Expansion/Renovation Award to Copper Rock Coffee Company; Rising Star Award to Green Gecko Grocer & Deli; Walter Kalata Landmark Award to The Queen Bee; President’s Award to the Octoberfest Board of Directors; and its Farm Market Vendor of the Year to Venneford Farm Country Meats.

Kohlmeyer 46 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

New hires EP-Direct in Fond du Lac hired Liv Moyer to assist with its graphic composition. Moyer had previously owned Set in Ink LLC in Fond du Lac since 2004.

Candlewood Suites in Appleton hired Gina Hartl as its director of sales. Hartl has more than 20 years of sales and marketing experience in the hospitality industry, most recently as a group sales manager at Landmark Resort in Door County.

The Green Bay law firm of Hager, Dewick & Zuengler, S.C. hired Wendy A. Miller as a paralegal.

Spark Advertising in Neenah hired Ray Faccio as its business development director. Faccio has 18 years of agency experience and more than 25 years in advertising, marketing, public relations, sales and account management.

He most recently led the business development efforts at Arketype in Green Bay. Melissa Hunt was hired by Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. as a regional account manager for the East Central region. Hunt previously served as a community development specialist for the Fond du Lac County Economic Development Corp. for the past three years. She earned the Economic Development Finance Professional certification through the National Development Council.

The Children’s Museum of Fond du Lac hired Heather Biró as its development and external relations coordinator. She www.newnorthb2b.com

WHO’S NEWS

Hodgkiss

Dennis

Schaffmeyer

Downs

Olsen

assists in the coordination of logistics and communications for the museum’s development initiatives related to facilities and programming. She previously served as the director of client relations and as an account executive for BrownBoots Interactive in Fond du Lac.

as director of events and hospitality services; John Dorgan as manager of event sales and services; Allen Wildish as financial reporting manager; Zach Ludtke as merchandising sales manager; and Lucas Hartwig, Catherine Lute and Benjamin Crow, all as membership services representatives.

The University of Wisconsin-Fox Valley in Menasha hired Meagan Kempfert as a marketing specialist. Kempfert previously served as the marketing coordinator for the Boys & Girls Club of Oshkosh.

McMahon in Neenah hired Kevin Chevalier as an architectural designer, Dawn Goeser as a process engineer, and Terry Wold to its administrative support services team. Chevalier has more than 15 years experience in the architectural field.

Goeser works on process-related water and wastewater design, while Wold facilitates project needs and receptionist services.

Hoffman LLC of Appleton hired Joe Truehart as a senior project manager. Truehart has 15 years experience in the design and construction industry, having most recently served as a senior project manager with Orion Energy Systems.

Aegis Aesthetics of BayCare Clinic Plastic Surgery in Green Bay hired Lori Buss as a licensed aesthetician. Buss has more than 10 years of laser and medical aesthetics experience.

Goodwill Industries of North Central Wisconsin hired Jay Jankowski as a buildings and grounds specialist. Jankowski previously owned and operated CSM Development/ Jankowski Construction.

Skyline Technologies, Inc. in Green Bay hired Lindsey Garrity as a recruiter. She most recently worked at Spectrum Brands as a senior recruiter.

Water-Right, Inc. of Appleton hired Bob Klinker as professional level dealer program associate. Klinker has management, sales and marketing experience in the water treatment industry. He is responsible for conducting sales training and management workshops for the company’s Pro Level dealer network.

AIA in Neenah hired the following staff members: Kara Main as a marketing services coordinator; Sabrina Audette as a receptionist; Teresa Buss as a collector; and Eric Myers as a customer service representative.

The Business Success Center at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh hired Mindie Boynton as an outreach program manager. She is responsible for connecting local businesses with resources available at the university.

Omnni Associates in Appleton hired John Haese to expand its transportation client base. Haese has more than 30 years experience in highway department operations, having worked the past 15 years as a county highway commissioner.

EAA in Oshkosh hired the following staff members: Janine Diana as vice president of human resources; Mary Ann Dilling

J. J. Keller & Associates, Inc. in Neenah hired Steve Killough as a senior consulting practice manager and Jimmy Sill as a DOT lead safety consultant. Killough has more than 25 years experience in the chemical and energy industries as a supply chain and logistics specialist, and has extensive experience with all major modes of transportation including truck, rail and marine. Prior to his tenure as an independent advisor, Killough spent 18 years at Vulcan Materials Company, first handling its trucking contracts and later as a supply chain manager. Sill has more than 20 years experience in the transportation industry, including 12 years in regulatory and compliance consulting. Most recently, Sill operated an independent regulatory and safety consulting firm. His background includes loss control and risk management advisement, FMSCR training, policy development, curriculum development, fleet optimization and maintenance, and yard operations.

Woelz

Baldukas

Utpadel

Promotions The Business Bank promoted Dave Kohlmeyer to chief operating officer and Bill Hodgkiss to chief lending officer.

Kohlmeyer will continue to maintain his current role as chief financial officer. Hodgkiss, Appleton market president, is responsible for all lending and sales activities for both the Appleton and Green Bay offices.

Fond du Lac-based Guaranty Title Services, Inc. promoted Kristeen Pelot to president and chief operating officer and promoted Katie Schmitz to director of sales and marketing.

Pelot began with Guaranty Title in 2002 and was promoted to the firm’s Info-Pro Mortgage Services Corp. in 2005, where she most recently served as its director of search operations.

Schmitz started with Guaranty in 2002 in construction disbursement, and later moved into closing services. She was promoted to Fond du Lac office manager in 2010.

EAA in Oshkosh promoted the following staff members: Trevor Janz to manager of EAA chapters and Eagle Flight program; Barb Hall to manager of business planning and

Bayer

McKeag

NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 47

WHO’S NEWS analysis; Susan Levitte to member benefits manager; and Kevin Hazaert to web content specialist.

is a registered land surveyor and currently leads all survey efforts for the company.

Fond du Lac-based Fox Valley Savings Bank named James J. Rothenbach, president and chief executive officer, to the additional role as chairman of its board of directors. Rothenbach joined the bank in March 2010 as president and CEO.

ImproMed LLC in Oshkosh promoted Sarah Baldukas to paper product specialist in its sales and marketing department. She started with the company in April 2011 as a receptionist.

Gardan, Inc. in Hortonville promoted John Dennis to president and CEO. Dennis joined Gardan in 2008 as a sales engineer and was promoted to vice president in October 2011. He has more than 10 years experience in manufacturing.

Appleton-based ThedaCare promoted Maryjeanne Schaffmeyer to chief operating officer of its hospitals, transitions of care and home division, and promoted Mary Downs to vice president for its spine and orthopedic business lines. In her new role, Schaffmeyer oversees Appleton Medical Center, Theda Clark Medical Center in Neenah, ThedaCare At Home and the Heritage and Peabody Manor communities. Schaffmeyer previously served as vice president of operations for Appleton Medical Center.

Downs spent the past three years as executive director of ThedaCare Behavioral Health, where she was integral in the creation of Catalpa Health pediatric behavioral health.

Individual awards Tamara Mugerauer, owner of Tamara’s the Cake Guru in Oshkosh, won both Best of Show and was voted People’s Choice during the Art of the Cake Competion at the 2012 Wisconsin Restaurant Expo for her 3-tier whimsical jungle themed entry. Mugerauer also took gold for her wedding cake in the Extreme Wedding Cake Competition. Brittany Wilms, an employee of Tamara’s the Cake Guru, took gold for her entry in the student division in the Extreme Wedding Cake Competition.

Appleton Downtown Inc. presented its Bernie Pearlman “Downtowner” Award to Jay Schumerth, senior general manager at Radisson Paper Valley Hotel, and presented its Volunteer of the Year Award to Tom Kern.

Elections/appointments

Goodwill Industries of North Central Wisconsin promoted Maria Muniz to area team leader at the Menasha retail store and training center. She had been a sales associate at the Grand Chute retail store.

Pamela Utpadel, president of Universal Insurance Advisors in Appleton, was named president of the Fox Cities chapter of Wisconsin Association of Health Underwriters.

McMahon in Neenah promoted Chad Olsen and Doug Woelz to associates of the firm. Olsen has been with McMahon since 1994 and is a professional engineer specializing in wastewater solid handling. Woelz

Dan Bayer, director of virtual construction for Miron Construction Co. in Neenah, was named an associate representative for the American Institute of Architects - Wisconsin board of directors.

It takes more than 100,000 nails to finish the average construction job. But, it takes only one construction company to deliver an exceptional finished product, down to the last nail.

CONSTRUCTION DELIVERED.

N2193 Bodde Road • Kaukauna, WI 54130 • (920) 766-7940 • www.JamesJCalmesConstruction.com 48 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

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BUSINESS CALENDAR Appleton Downtown Inc. named the following officers for its board of directors for 2012: Trevor Frank, SEH, president; John Hendrickson, US Bank, vice president; Robyn Gruner, AT&T, secretary; Mary Greiner, Schenck, S.C., treasurer; and John Peterson, Peterson, Berk & Cross, executive officer.

Certifications Tim McKeag, vice president of the Appleton office for First Business Bank – Northeast, earned the Certified Treasury Professional designation by the Association for Financial Professionals.

Sue Kiser and Brenda Melnarik, both registered nurses with the De Pere office of Unity, earned the Certified Hospice and Palliative Nurse designation from the National Board for Certification of Hospice and Palliative Nurses

Business calendar New North B2B encourages businesses and organizations looking to attract interested persons to upoming events to send an announcement to: New North B2B, Attn: Who’s News, P.O. Box 559, Oshkosh, WI 54903.

For more events, log on to www.thenewnorthevents.com.

May 2 Fond du Lac Area Association of Commerce Coffee Connection, 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. at the University of Wisconsin Fond du Lac, 400 University Dr. in Fond du Lac. Cost to attend is $2 for members. For more information or to register, go online to www.fdlac.com or call 920.921.9500.

May 3 Leading with Integrity, a seminar and luncheon event from Excellence In Leadership, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Oshkosh Convention Center, 2 N. Main St. in Oshkosh. Keynote speaker is Steve Stanley, partner and owner of Huntington Creek capital, discussing contemporary leadership of organizations in the wake of corporate corruption nationally during the past decade. Cost to attend is $40 per person or $290 for a table of eight. For more information or to register, call 920.223.0517 or go online to www.eilgroup.org.

May 4 Coffee & Conversation, a government affairs event from the Heart of the Valley Chamber of Commerce, 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. at Little Chute Village Hall, 108 W. Main St. in Little Chute. Outagamie County Executive Thomas Nelson and Airport Director Marty Lenss will discuss how Act 10 impacts the county, the FVTC expansion, the proposed convention center, and the landfill energy program. No cost to attend for chamber members. For more information or to register, call the chamber at 920.766.1616 or go online to www.heartofthevalleychamber.com.

May 8 Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce Sales Club, 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. at the chamber building, 120 N. Jackson St. in Oshkosh. No cost to attend for chamber members. For more information, call 920.303.2265 or go online to www.oshkoshchamber.com.

May 9 Manufacturing Matters!, a daylongconference and exhibition from Wisconsin Manufacturers Extension Partnership, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at Frontier Airlines Center in Milwaukee. Keynote speakers are Tim Sullivan, former CEO of Bucyrus International and a consultant to the state for business and workforce issues, and Aaron Jagdfeld, president and CEO of Generac Holdings Inc. in Waukesha. Cost to attend is $395. For information or to register, go online to www.manufacturingmatters.org.

Better

Leaders Decisions

RESULTS

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peers helping peers grapple, wrestle and come out on top with sound solutions to serious and significant business obstacles and, most importantly, new business opportunities. Our membership network has experience with a wide gamut of issues such as: Working with entrepreneurs Risk-taking Dealing with ownership in transition Finding the most effective personnel Strategic planning Benefit and retirement planning Doing business globally Implementing new technologies

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Michele Bernstein

800.236.9832

tec@tecmidwest.com www.tecmidwest.com NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 49

BUSINESS CALENDAR May 10 Women in Management – Oshkosh Chapter monthly meeting, 11:15 a.m. to 1 p.m. at La Sure’s Banquet Hall, 3125 S. Washburn St. in Oshkosh. Program is Effective Branding on a Limited Budget. For more information or to register, go online to www.wimiwi.org or contact Nancy Jo at njdietzen@chamco.org or 920.232.9786.

May 15 Fond du Lac Area Association of Commerce Business Connection, 5 to 7 p.m. at U.S. Bank, 55 S. Main St. in Fond du Lac. Cost to attend for members is $2 with advanced registration or $5 at the door. For more information or to register, go online to www.fdlac.com or call 920.921.9500.

May 17 Heart of the Valley Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours, a monthly professional networking event, 5 to 6:30 p.m. at High Cliff Restaurant, W5095 Golf Course Road in Sherwood. No cost to attend for chamber members, but registration is appreciated by calling 920.766.1616 or going online to www.heartofthevalleychamber.com.

May 17 YPF Amazing Race, an annual event from Young Professionals of Fond du Lac, 4 to 7 p.m. in downtown Fond du Lac. This event involves exploring Main Street and stopping in at a variety of shops and restaurants in the downtown. Cost to participate is $10 for YPF members or $15 for non-members. For more information or to register, call the Fond du Lac Area Association of Commerce at 920.921.9500 or go online to www.ypfdl.org.

May 22 A.M. Oshkosh, a morning networking event sponsored by the Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce, 8 to 9 a.m. at Blue Door Consulting, 21 W. New York Ave. in Oshkosh. No cost to attend, but registration is required by going online to www.oshkoshchamber.com or calling 920.303.2266.

May 22 “Tweet N Eat,” a lunch event from Propel, the young professionals organization in Oshkosh, 11:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. at Renewegy, 3650 Jackson St. in Oshkosh. A presentation and tour from executives at Renewegy, a high-tech wind turbine manufacturer. Cost to attend is $10 for members and $15 for nonmembers, and includes a box lunch. For more information or to register, call 920.303.2265 or go online to www. propeloshkosh.com.

June 12 Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce Sales Club, 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. at the chamber building, 120 N. Jackson St. in Oshkosh. No cost to attend for chamber members. For more information, call 920.303.2265 or go online to www.oshkoshchamber.com.

Coming to B2B in June Alla Tua Salute!

Our 7th annual awards recognizing workplace wellness success

50 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

Advertiser Index Bank First National www.bankfirstnational.com.................................. 45 Bayland Buildings Inc. www.baylandbuildings.com............................ 13 Better Business Bureau www.wisconsin.bbb.org............................... 34 Bouwer Printing & Mailing www.bouwerprinting.com.......................... 40 Capital Credit Union www.capitalcu.com........................................ 54 CitizensFirst Credit Union www.citizensfirst.com . ............................ 23 City of Appleton www.appleton.org................................................ 19 City of Neenah www.neenahgov.org............................................... 34 Credit Matters, Inc. www.creditmattersinc.com.................................. 41 Davis & Kuelthau, s.c. www.dkattorneys.com..................................... 5 Dental Associates www.careplusdentalplans.com............................... 23 Digiprint www.digiprint.biz............................................................ 14 Epiphany Law www.epiphanylaw.com. ............................................ 56 First Business Bank www.firstbusiness.com. ...................................... 9 First National Bank ~ Fox Valley www.fnbfoxvalley.com. ................... 43 First Weber Group/Schwab Realty www.firstweber.com.............. 22, 51 Frontier Builders & Consultants www.frontierbuildersandconsultants.com.. 16 Guident Business Solutions www.guidentbusinesssolutions.com............ 29 Hanson Benefits www.hansonbenefitsinc.com.................................... 20 Heidel House Resort & Spa www.heidelhouse.com........................... 32 Jackson Kahl Insurance www.jacksonkahl.com. .............................. 40 James J. Calmes Construction www.JamesJCalmesConstruction.com.... 48 J. F. Ahern Co. www.jfahern.com. ................................................. 33 Keller Inc. www.kellerbuilds.com. ..................................................... 7 KI www.ki.com. ......................................................................... 44 Larson Engineering Inc. www.larsonengr.com.................................. 45 Leach Amphitheater www.leachamphitheater.com.............................. 39 Mahoney’s All American Grill www.mahoneysgrill.com....................... 21 Moraine Park Technical College www.morainepark.edu..................... 42 National Exchange Bank & Trust www.nebat.com............................. 2 Network Health Plan www.networkhealth.com . ................................ 55 NEW Building & Construction Trades Council www.newbt.org.......... 11 Oshkosh Convention & Visitors Bureau www.visitoshkosh.com.......... 39 Oshkosh IrishFest www.oshkoshirishfest.com.................................... 39 Outagamie County Regional Airport www.atwairport.com. ................ 37 Poker on the Fox www.pokeronthefox.com........................................ 39 Provident Financial Consultants www.providentfc.com...................... 27 Rhyme www.rhymebiz.com........................................................... 19 Sadoff & Rudoy Industries www.sadoff.com................................... 10 Security Luebke Roofing www.securityluebkeroofing.com. ................ 8, 27 Skyline Technologies www.skylinetechnologies.com............................ 21 Spancrete www.spancrete.com. ..................................................... 12 Stolley Studio www.stolleystudio.com.............................................. 31 TEC www.tecmidwest.com. ............................................................ 49 Thomas James Real Estate www.tjsite.com................................... 43 UW Oshkosh College of Business www.mba.uwosh.edu................... 40 Village of Little Chute www.littlechutewi.org..................................... 33 WI Dept. of Transportation www.us41wisconsin.gov......................... 51 Winnebago County Solid Waste Management www.co.winnebago.wi.us/solid-waste/container-rental-program. ..................... 29

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Dennis Schwab 920.233.4184 schwabd@firstweber.com

Grant Schwab 920.203.1917 schwabg@firstweber.com

Dick Casey 920.216.0115 caseyd@firstweber.com

NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 51

GOVERNMENT

Local election results from April 3, 2012 County Boards Brown County Board of Supervisors District 1: Tom Sieber 796, Mark Tumpach (i) 668 District 4: Erik Hoyer 542, Robert Miller (i) 469 District 6: Dan Haefs (i) 478, Steven Boehlen 181 District 12: David Landwehr 792, Craig Fletcher 637 District 13: Norb Dantinne (i) 1,249, James Anderson 535 District 15: Patrick Williams 679, Carole Andrews (i) 578 District 17: John Van Dyck 891, Vicky Van Vonderen (i) 857 District 19: Dan Robinson 1,031, Mike Fleck (i) 899 District 23: David Steffen 912, Mary Scray (i) 476 District 24: Tim Carpenter (i) 930, Richard Schadewald 786 Fond du Lac County Board of Supervisors District 4: Sherry Behnke (i) 347, Sarah Ann Everson 308 District 5: Mike Gannon 424, LeRoy Schmitz 386 District 6: Thomas Dornbrook (i) 539, Lowell Prill 465 District 8: John Muentner, Sr. (i) 372, Thomas Schumacher 345 District 12: Dennis Stenz 660, Thomas Schuppe 174 District 19: John Zorn (i) 366, Tina Roehrig 246 District 20: Lisette Aldrich 227, Nick Heintz 161 District 22: Ted Eischeid 575, Cary McQuitty 460 Outagamie County Board of Supervisors District 1: Tanya Rabec 424, Evan Borchardt 202 District 2: Helen Nagler (i) 644, Brian Farmer 251 District 3: Charles Schmidt 468, Anne Strauch 334 District 4: Katrin Patience 458, Peter Beckley 412 District 5: Jerry Iverson (i) 738, Howard Miller 363 District 11: Lloyd DeGroot 395, Paul Hirte 312 District 13: Leroy Van Asten 137, Jason Fischer 106 District 15: Ken Vanden Heuvel 638, Dan Schommer 306 District 16: Barney Lemanski 662, Jerry Roberts 327 District 17: Kathy Groat 666, Bill Recker 446 District 19: Peter Stueck 680, Yancy Grawien 170 District 20: Mike Thomas 641, Ann Muenster 625 District 21: Travis Thyssen 616, Dan Buechel 424 District 23: Nicholas Hofacker 788, Charles Kramer 291 District 24: James Pleuss 719, Van Callies 345 District 25: Jeff Nooyen 452, Nancy Christensen 179 District 27: Dean Culbertson 456, Alan Schmidt 419 District 28: Kevin Sturn 478, Ed Bush 465 District 30: Shane Griesbach 579, Traci Martens 332 District 32: Mark Rahmlow 555, Debra VanderHeiden 439 District 34: Daniel Rettler 468, Bob Weyenberg 293 Winnebago County Board of Supervisors District 14: Claud Thompson (i) 603, Patrick Kriz 300 District 18: Bill Wingren (i) 873, John Daggett 134 District 32: Patrick Brennand (i) 747, Larry Last 595 District 35: Tom Snider 678, Doug Nelson (i) 535

City Councils City of Appleton mayor Tim Hanna (i) 10,163, Curt Konetzke 5,097

52 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

City of Appleton Common Council District 2: John Robin Hill (i) 605, Thomas Van Susteren 381 District 4: Joe Martin 435, Jeff Lutz (i) 386 District 10: Michael Smith (i) 422, Jason Schmitz 385 District 12: Cathy Spears (i) 743, Tom Goehler 311 City of De Pere Mayor Michael Walsh (i) 3,073, Donna Gilson 1,393 City of De Pere Common Council District 3: Scott Crevier 430, Bob Heuvelmans (i) 402 City of Fond du Lac Common Council (4 seats available) Jim Sabel (i) 4,384, Lee Ann Lorrigan 4,121, Gary Miller (i) 4,041, Rob Vande Zande (i) 4,018 votes, Daniel Sitter 2,812 and John Piper III 2,394 City of Green Bay Common Council District 3: Andy Nicholson (i) 569, Joseph Prosser 251 District 4: Timothy DeWane 601, Daniel Bins 587 District 5: Amy Kocha (i) 689, Brad Hopp 259 District 6: Joseph Moore 314, Richard DeBroux 295 District 7: David Boyce 386, Jeanine Hammes 293 District 8: Jesse Brunette 999, Christopher Wery (i) 785 District 9: Jim Warner 739, Guy Zima (i) 631 District 10: Mark Steuer 747, Steven Deneys (i) 710 District 12: Tom Sladek 973, Pat Buckley (i) 696 City of Menasha Common Council District 6: Dan Zelinski (i) 198, Linda Stoll 175 District 8: Kevin Benner (i) 258, Randy Ropella 140 City of Neenah Common Council District 1: William Pollnow Jr. 795, Tamara Hasz 338 City of Omro Mayor Bob Breu (i) 379, Jim Daubert 288 City of Oshkosh Common Council (3 seats available) Steve Cummings (i) 8,053, Steve Herman (i) 7,670, Jef Hall (i) 6,986 and John Daggett 3,007 City of Waupun Mayor Jodi Steger (i) 1,049, Todd Snow 429 and Jay Graff 331

Village Boards Village of Allouez Board of Trustees (3 seats available) Lori Rasmussen 1,234, Randy Gast (i) 1,145, Penny Dart (i) 1,128, Jim Genrich 989, Pat J. Collins 949, Andrew E. Kersten 591, Matthew Harris 495, Bobbie Fredericks 340, Chris Culotta 320 and Angie Runge 318 Village of Ashwaubenon Board of Trustees Wards 7-8: Mark Williams (i) 404, Joel Opperman 133 Wards 9-10: Ken Bukowski (i) 428, Paul Lotto 210 Wards 11-12: Michael Malcheski 234, Don Pamperin 170 www.newnorthb2b.com

GOVERNMENT

Local election results from April 3, 2012 Village of Bellevue Board of Trustees (2 seats available) Steve Soukup (i) 1,510, Tom Katers 1,101, Adam Gauthier 667 and Jon Soyring 393

Green Bay Board of Education (2 seats available) Andrew Becker 10,990, Mary Frantz 9,368 and Mary Ann Anderson 9,064

Village of Howard Board of Trustees Wards 7-8: George Speaker (i) 245, Mike Hoppe 234

Hortonville Board of Education Greenville/Grand Chute seat: David Schlichting 1,813, Kristal Delbecchi 1,350

Village of Kimberly Board of Trustees (3 seats available) Marcia Trentlage (i) 705, Dave Opsteen (i) 694, Dave Hietpas 647 and Tom Gaffney (i) 622

Howard Suamico Board of Education (1 seat available) Jeff Eilers 2,342, Peter App (i) 1,762

Village of Little Chute Board of Trustees (3 seats) Larry Van Lankvelt 1,076, James Hietpas (i) 1,034, Tammy Frassetto (i) 986, John Elrick 704, Jessica Schultz 606 and Brian Joosten 592 Village of Suamico Board of Trustees (2 seats available) Daniel Roddan 1,098, Michelle Eckert 1,042, Matthew Athey (i) 987 and Dennis O’Donnell 696

School Boards Appleton Board of Education (2 seats available) John Mielke (i) 12,557, Kay Eggert (i) 11,119 and John DeVantier 6,041 De Pere Board of Education (2 seats available) Dan Van Straten 2,640, Rhonda Matzke 1,771, Douglas Seeman (i) 1,457 and Sayuri Pearson Longnecker 652 Fond du Lac Board of Education (2 seats available) Eric Everson (i) 5,792, Susan Jones (i) 4,939, Peg Lautenschlager 4,714 and Will Jewson 3,212

Kaukauna Board of Education (2 seats available) Giovanna Feller (i) 2,336, Sally Jo Feistel 1,960, Philip Kohne (i) 1,954 and William Hastie 1,241 Menasha Board of Education (3 seats available) Eric Thiede (i) 1,479, Mark Mayer (i) 1,478, Steve Thompson (i) 1,405 and Justin Duell 941 Oshkosh Board of Education (3 seats available) Matthew Wiedenhoeft (i) 8,357, Kelli Saginak 7,500, Karl Loewenstein (i) 7,279, Jared Erdmann 6,829 and John Daggett 3,797 Winneconne Board of Education (3 seats available) Donna Hanson (i) 1,066, Robert Ronk 839, Mark Kunde 838, Gay Anderson 826, Andy Wegner 678 and Greg Kleinheinz 605 Wrightstown Board of Education (3 seats available) Mike Van Eperen (i) 954, Rick Roundy (i) 867, Thomas Eggert 797 and George Buttke (i) 670

Freedom Board of Education Freedom/Appleton/Osborn seat: Kevin Schuh (i) 1,014, Melissa Westemeier 791

NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012 l 53

KEY STATISTICS March

Per gallon of regular unleaded gasoline.

$411.1 billion

$3.85 April 15 $3.89 April 8 $3.92 April 1 $3.92 Apr. 22, 2011 $3.91 April 22

0.8%

from February

6.5%

from March 2011

Source: New North B2B observations

March

Appleton Fond du Lac Green Bay Neenah Oshkosh Wisconsin

March

96.6

5.8%

Unch.

from February

from February

10.3%

3.8%

from March 2011

from March 2011

March

(Manufacturers and trade)

February

$1,578 billion

1.3%

0.6%

from February

from January

from March 2011

from February 2011

3.4%

8.6% 8.4% 9.8% 8.7% 7.3% 7.6%

9.8% 9.7% 11.2% 10.0% 8.2% 8.6%

Prices for small businesses using less than 20,000 therms.

Listed price is per therm.

(2007 = 100)

654,000

Feb. Jan. Feb. ‘11

8.9% 8.3% 10.0% 9.2% 7.6% 7.9%

7.6%

$0.746 March $0.806 Apr. 2011 $0.933 April

Source: Integrys Energy (Numbers above 50 mean expansion. Numbers below 50 mean contraction.)

March February

53.4 52.4

If there are indicators you’d like to see in this space, contact our office at 920.237.0254 or email info@newnorthb2b.com.

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54 l NEW NORTH B2B l MAY 2012

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