BizTimes Milwaukee | March 27, 2023

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Baird to be naming rights sponsor for downtown Milwaukee’s convention center

By Andrew Weiland, staff writer

After 10 years without a corporate naming rights sponsor, the downtown Milwaukee convention center, long known as the Wisconsin Center, will get a new name. Milwaukee-based investment bank and financial services company Robert W. Baird & Co. will be the new naming rights sponsor for

BY THE NUMBERS

the facility, which will be known as the Baird Center.

The Wisconsin Center District board recently announced that it has authorized the district to finalize a naming rights agreement with Baird. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The 15-year deal and the new name for the con -

vention center will officially take effect in May 2024, when the $456 million expansion of the convention center is complete. The deal also provides Baird with a five-year extension option.

“Since our board trusted our bold vision and authorized the expansion project in 2020, we knew that a naming rights agreement would follow,” said Marty Brooks, president and chief executive officer of WCD. “The ideal naming rights partner would be homegrown, have a world-class reputation and, for the greatest possible success, share our core values and commitment to the city of Milwaukee. Baird meets and exceeds those qualifications and will give our convention center, and our city, yet another spectacular reason for visitors to add Milwaukee to their list of not-tobe-missed destinations.”

“This agreement fits with our ongoing efforts to build Baird’s brand across our global footprint and reflects our longstanding commitment to giving back to the communities where we live and work,” said Steve Booth, chairman and CEO of Baird. “The new state-of-the-art convention center will enhance Milwaukee’s growing reputation as a modern, forward-looking city, and we are honored to support and be part of its success.”

The downtown Milwaukee convention center opened in 1998

and was originally known as the Midwest Express Center under a naming rights agreement with the Oak Creek-based airline. The name of the convention center was changed to Midwest Airlines Center in 2002 when the airline rebranded and then to Frontier Airlines Center in 2010 after Frontier’s parent company acquired Midwest Airlines and phased out the brand, merging it into Frontier Airlines.

Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines purchased the naming rights for the Milwaukee convention center in 2012. It was known as the Delta Center until the airline terminated the deal in 2013. Since then, the facility has been known as the Wisconsin Center, and the Wisconsin Center District has been seeking a new naming rights sponsor.

The naming rights deal with Baird comes as the expansion project continues for the downtown Milwaukee convention center. That project, which began in 2021, is expected to be complete in May 2024. Upon completion, the facility will have 52 meeting rooms, a 300,000-square-foot exhibit hall, 22 loading docks, a 400-stall indoor parking garage, and a new rooftop ballroom with seating for 2,000 and outdoor terraces.

The Wisconsin Center District says it will use the rest of 2023 to transition the branding and logo package for the convention center. n

Rendering of the Baird Center.

WISCONSIN CENTER DISTRICT

The state of Wisconsin is creating a fund with federal American Rescue Plan Act dollars to invest in startup companies.

$50 MILLION

ANTIMUSSEL

LOCATION: Plymouth

FOUNDER: Tyler Rezachek

FOUNDED: 2022

SERVICE: Removal of the invasive zebra mussel

EMPLOYEES: 1

GOAL:

Launch a pilot program this spring

EXPERIENCE: Previously founded an industrial hemp brokerage

Plymouth startup AntiMussel tackles

Lake Michigan’s zebra mussel problem

By Ashley Smart, staff writer

WISCONSINITES who enjoy spending their time on Lake Michigan are no stranger to zebra mussels – an invasive creature that has not only made its home within the vast body of water, but also congregates on boats and other surfaces.

Army veteran Tyler Rezachek is one of these Wisconsinites. His frustration with constantly having to clean the mussels off his boat led him to identify a problem with a business-related solution.

Rezachek began leaning into his entrepreneurial side following a five-year stint in the Army, from 2008 to 2013. He found the transition back into civilian life was less than smooth.

“I quickly realized I was unemployable and needed something to myself,” said Rezachek.

While attending an entrepreneurship bootcamp for veterans at Texas A&M University, he tapped into an idea that had lingered in his mind for years.

“That was one of the most pivotal moments in my life,” Rezachek said. “It gave me the confidence to start thinking about AntiMussel.”

Rezachek, who grew up fishing on Lake Michigan, officially launched AntiMussel last May. The startup’s solution to zebra mussels is

to have the creatures vacuumed up by boats that are set to patrol an automated path. Once the mussels are collected, they are converted into calcium carbonate.

“We normally get calcium carbonate from rocks,” said Rezachek. “The process right now is mining big rocks, smashing them into a really fine powder, putting it into a pill form, and selling it. The rocks they’re mining are limestone, which are several-million-years-old seashells. In my mind, you can just skip those million years, and we can pull them off the lake.”

The calcium carbonate made of out zebra mussels has a higher purity rate than the product made from limestone. It is the world’s only source of renewable calcium carbonate, according to northeast Wisconsin’s economic development corporation New North.

AntiMussel took home second place and a $1,000 cash prize at New North’s pitch competition, which was held at TitletownTech in Green Bay last December. In addition, Rezachek has also received $16,900 in grant funding. Outside of that funding, he has been bootstrapping. Rezachek is hoping to launch a pilot program in Plymouth this spring. n

LILA ARYAN PHOTOGRAPHY

Tyler Rezachek

MEET THE

Education:

Bachelor’s, Milwaukee School of Engineering; Master’s, University of Illinois Chicago

What was your first job, and what did you learn from it?

“Dairy Queen – I learned that I’m not cut out for fast food and customer service.”

If you could have dinner with any two business leaders, who would you choose?

“Robert F. Smith and Rihanna.”

What are some of your favorite destinations or places to visit?

“Anywhere with sun, sand and sea.”

What is one book you think everyone should read?

“I have two: 1) ‘The Color of Money – Black Banks & The Racial Wealth Gap’ and 2) ‘The Alchemist.’”

What’s your hobby or passion?

“Biking (or spinning), swimming, listening to music.”

What was your first car? How long did you drive it for?

“’95 Honda Accord with ground effect lights. I drove it until I left for college. My brother then totaled it.”

If you could take a one-year sabbatical, what would you do?

“Travel the globe.”

What has been your company’s most significant success over the past 12 months?

“We successfully closed our first fund oversubscribed with significant institutional support and have since provided seed funding to highly scalable startups led by founders of all different backgrounds.”

As you enter your office, what would you choose to be your walk-up theme song?

“‘I’m the Best’ by Nicki Minaj. It’s one of those songs that makes you feel like you can accomplish anything. It’s a ‘hype yourself up’ song.”

What is the biggest risk you have ever taken?

“Leaving my corporate role to raise capital for a venture capital fund.”

What’s at the top of your bucket list?

“I’d like to have multiple portfolio exits, resulting in outsized returns for our investors.”

What has you most excited about the future?

“I’m excited to see the growth of existing Gateway portfolio companies, as well as continuing to meet and work alongside new, passionate founders.”

“I’m

excited to see the growth of existing Gateway portfolio companies, as well as continuing to meet and work alongside new, passionate founders.”

Dana Guthrie is managing partner at Gateway Capital, a Milwaukee-based venture capital fund dedicated to investing in pre-revenue startups. A software engineer by training, Guthrie raised $13.5 million within eight months, and the fund began making investments in startups last year. Health data technology startup Geno.Me recently launched its data exchange platform and relocated from Madison to Milwaukee as a result of Gateway Capital’s investment. Guthrie previously founded and managed Alchemy Angel Investors, an angel investment network focused on early-stage startups, while working for Johnson Controls.

This Q&A is an extended profile from Wisconsin 275, a special publication from BizTimes Media highlighting the most influential business leaders in the state. Visit: biztimes.com/wisconsin275 for more.

DANA GUTHRIE

Managing partner Gateway Capital Partners MILWAUKEE

MY FAVORITE TECH

JEROME MIASTKOWSKI

Miastkowski is the founder of Milwaukee tech startup Aeroplicity, a blockchain-based aerospace and defense platform geared toward small and medium-sized businesses. The bulk of his day is spent immersed in the world of technology. Here are four apps he uses regularly.

CHATGPT

“I started using ChatGPT right before it became mainstream, and I can say that it has completely changed how I approach my work. Before ChatGPT, when I was stuck on a block of code, I would endlessly search Google and Stack Overflow looking for a post with a similar issue and solution and then try to apply that to my specific problem. But now, with ChatGPT, I can simply input information about the issue, and it provides me with an updated block of code, even identifying the root cause of the problem. While it is not perfect and can sometimes struggle with complex code structure, it is still far superior to any other code assistance tool I have used.”

RUBYMINE

“I’ve been using RubyMine for years, and I do not know how one would get by in their day-to-day without it or another advanced IDE (integrated development environment). Compared to other IDEs I’ve used in the past, RubyMine’s overall usability is superior. It also isn’t limited to just Ruby on Rails as it has various plugins available, which provide code assistance for a range of other languages, making it an ideal tool for multi-language projects.”

TRELLO

“Trello is another versatile tool that I’ve been using for years. At its core, it’s a simple list-making application that can be adapted to fit the way I want to work. What I appreciate most about Trello is the level of control it gives me to create processes that align with my workflow.”

GRAMMARLY

“Grammarly is a tool that has improved my writing across all of my devices. While it’s effective in catching obvious typing errors, what sets it apart is its ability to identify the tone of my writing and suggest changes that help me communicate more effectively.” n

Julie Fussner Chief marketing officer

Culver’s Franchising System LLC

1240 Water St., Prairie du Sac culvers.com

• Julie Fussner became Culver’s first-ever chief marketing officer in January.

• The CMO position was created, in part, out of a need of higherlevel leadership as the 38-year-old company grows in value to nearly $3 billon, with 900 locations in 26 states. That’s up from 600 locations in 24 states when Fussner first joined Culver’s in 2017 as vice president of marketing. “The growth of the company and then the really complicated marketing landscape that we’re in – it seemed like it was the right time to create this position,” said Fussner.

• Up until two years ago, Culver’s spent more than half of its annual media dollars on traditional TV commercials. Now, it spends that much on digital ads.

• Fussner leads a 17-person marketing team (and growing) that creates thousands of pieces of content for the company’s digital marketing channels, including mobile banner ads, paid and unpaid social media content on Facebook, Instagram and Tik Tok, and ad spots for streaming platforms like Hulu.

• With such a broad customer base, Fussner says the challenge is finding the most efficient way of reaching each segment.

• Fussner’s career in food marketing is tied to a deeper belief in the food. “If it’s leveraged in the right way, it can forge major human connections. … One of the things that’s really special about Culver’s is people go there for special events and celebrations. It’s a place that brings joy.”

• She takes her coffee with cream. n

ANDY KRYSTOWIAK Chief executive officer Swarming Technology

“Giannis: The Improbable Rise of an NBA Champion”

By Mirin Fader

ANDY KRYSTOWIAK has recently spent some time taking a deep dive into the life of one of Milwaukee’s brightest sports stars.

“I don’t make a habit of idolizing professional athletes. At least not anymore,” he said. “As a child, I certainly had my share of ‘sports heroes.’ Michael Jordan, Brett Favre and Ken Griffey Jr. were all household names when I was growing up playing junior high and high school sports. I admired these athletes specifically because of what they were able to achieve on the court or on the field, but it didn’t extend

much further than that.”

Recently, Krystowiak picked up a copy of ‘Giannis: The Improbable Rise of an NBA Champion,’ for reasons beyond sports.

“While I find myself in awe of the things that Giannis Antetokounmpo can do on the basketball court, my true interest in the man goes much deeper. His life story epitomizes perseverance, determination, work ethic and self-reflection – all attributes that can determine our successes and failures as both individuals and business owners,” he said. n

Lumpia City is Milwaukee’s gateway to Filipino food

MILWAUKEE-BASED Lumpia City started out as a humble popup stand pulled from a garage. Over the past seven years, the company has grown to become a well-known name in Milwaukee, operating a concession stand at Fiserv Forum and selling its products at 23 locations.

Lumpia City founders Samantha Klimaszewski and Alexa Reyes were just 22 years old when they began offering their take on Filipino food to the masses in the summer of 2015.

Reyes, a California native, met Klimaszewski by chance after she took a spur of the moment road trip to San Diego. Klimaszewski decided to make the move from Wisconsin to San Diego after the couple made an undeniable connection. They deepened their bond through a shared history of entrepreneurship in both their families.

When discussing possible business ventures to embark on together, Reyes brought up lumpia, a traditional Filipino food similar to an egg roll. Traditional forms of lumpia are often made with ground pork and mixed vegetables.

“Being from Wisconsin, I kind of asked if she’d ever used mac and cheese in something like this,” said Klimaszewski. “My Wisconsin brain went to that. From that little conversation, we started going to farmers markets in San Diego.”

The couple began making what they could on a weekly basis within a shared kitchen space in San Diego. But a push from

farmers market organizers to have vendors operate out of food trucks – along with the high cost of living in California – led the duo to move back to Milwaukee in 2016.

“We were here visiting, and we saw the food truck industry was starting to take off,” Klimaszewski said.

Soon, Lumpia City’s concession trailer began popping up at Milwaukee street festivals. Klimaszewski and Reyes also targeted microbreweries as a cost-effective way to gain exposure.

From the company’s shared kitchen space on North Jefferson Street in downtown Milwaukee, Lumpia City is now producing approximately 8,000 to 10,000 units a month. Each piece of lumpia is rolled by hand.

Prior to the shared kitchen space downtown, the Lumpia City crew was working out of the now-shuttered Iron Grate BBQ Co. on South Howell Avenue on days the restaurant was closed.

Lumpia City offers a variety of flavors including Korean beef, fivecheese mac, chicken enchilada and reuben.

“Growing up, my family would experiment with different flavors like Mexican-style flavors and Italian. Because lumpia is fairly unknown, putting familiar flavors into this product is, I think, what gets people to come and try it,” said Reyes. “Then they’ll hopefully go out and seek traditional Filipino food.”

Lumpia City products are currently found in all full-service Sendik’s Food Market stores and

LUMPIA CITY

770 N. Jefferson St., Milwaukee

INDUSTRY: Food manufacturing

EMPLOYEES: Two full-time, three part-time lumpiacity.com

at Festival Foods locations in West Allis, Greenfield and Hales Corners. That’s in addition to Lumpia City’s concession stand at Fiserv Forum, which is run with the help of arena staff.

The couple credits Fiserv Forum’s former executive chef Kristen Schwab with getting them in front of the arena’s hospitality team. After seeing the product, Schwab recommended Lumpia City as a possible vendor for the arena.

Klimaszewski and Reyes are currently looking for their own building and want to invest in their own equipment to help automate their meat processing procedures.

Lumpia City was awarded a $120,000 Meat and Poultry Supply Chain Resiliency Grant (a state program funded by the federal American Rescue Plan Act) last fall, which will help with the cost of new equipment.

“It’s like a whole new ballgame we’re entering from being a small vendor to being a wholesale company, and that’s where we’re realizing you have to take baby

steps through this because there’s so much involved,” Klimaszewski said. “I don’t think this would be a conversation if we didn’t get that grant.”

Securing a new kitchen space is Lumpia City’s biggest goal for the year, along with expanding into other Midwest markets. n

ASHLEY SMART Reporter

P / 414-336-7144

E / ashley.smart@biztimes.com

T / @Biz_Ashley

Lumpia City founders Samantha Klimaszewski (left) and Alexa Reyes.

New Kohl’s CEO seeks improved performance, not company overhaul

By Maredithe Meyer, staff writer

KOHL’S CORP. board of directors set out to name its next chief executive last year with clear objectives.

“We’re not looking for a CEO who’s coming in to change the strategy that we’ve embarked on,” said board chair Peter Boneparth during the company’s third quarter earnings call in November. “What we are looking for is a very strong operator, somebody who can drive sales, somebody who can drive earnings per share, and somebody who understands the basic tenets behind the Kohl’s value proposition and the brand strategy.”

That somebody turned out to be retail industry veteran Tom Kingsbury, who was already in place as interim CEO and had been appointed to Kohl’s board in 2021, on account of a settlement deal with activist investors who had sought to shake up the boardroom earlier that year. Kingsbury was one of three new

directors who joined the board as part of the agreement, and having reached retirement age, that’s perhaps where he assumed he’d spend the final years of his decades-long career.

But now, at 70 years old, Kingsbury has his work cut out for him. Kohl’s had a net loss of $19 million and sales decrease of 7.1% in fiscal 2022 as the Menomonee Falls-based retailer struggled in an inflationary market.

HOLDING STEADY

So, how will he do it? Don’t expect a new grandeur turnaround plan. After all, that was never what the board wanted.

“Our efforts to drive the business are already underway,” Kingsbury said during his first earnings call in March. “… It’s not an overhaul. You know, there are some things that we need to be doing, and we’re already started working on it, but it’s not a total

overhaul. I just want to make sure that people understand it. I think there’s a lot of good things in place already today.”

Championed by Kingsbury’s predecessor Michelle Gass –whose out-of-the box approach led to several big moves including the launch of Amazon Returns and a partnership with Sephora – Kohl’s current turnaround plan, in short, aims to bolster sales and operating margin by capitalizing on active-casual apparel trends, improving its women’s business, and driving store traffic through Sephora shop-in-shops and store pick-up services for online orders.

Kingsbury will continue steering Kohl’s in that general direction while – in the face of today’s macroeconomic headwinds – focusing on four key priorities this year: enhance the customer experience, accelerate and simplify value strategies, manage inventory and expenses, and strengthen the balance sheet.

CUT OUT FOR THE JOB

To better understand how Kohl’s newest leader is equipped to get the retailer back on track, it’s worth taking a look at his track record.

After earning his business degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Kingsbury began his career at a high point for brick-and-mortar retail, with the rise of indoor malls and big box stores. Kingsbury joined The May Department Stores Co. in 1976 as a merchant, and by 2000 he had worked his way up to president and CEO of Filene’s, the company’s largest division at the time.

Then came his first stint at Kohl’s, where he oversaw store operations, information technology, e-commerce and business development as senior executive vice president from 2006 to 2008. From there, he went on to lead New Jersey-based Burlington Stores Inc., then known as Burlington Coat Factory, for the next decade.

During Kingsbury’s tenure as president and CEO, Burlington cemented its niche as a “pure offprice retailer,” setting in motion a new growth strategy that was aimed at improving inventory turnover, opening new small-format stores, increasing its merchandising mix and growing underdeveloped categories such as home and women’s apparel, according to the company’s website.

In 2013, Burlington went public for a second time – with an IPO of $17 per share – after eight years of private ownership by Bain Capital. By the end of that year, the company operated 521 stores and generated $4.4 billion in annual sales, up from 368 stores and $3.4 billion in annual sales in 2006.

Amidst growth and changes to the business model and brand name, store activity remained central to Burlington’s success as an off-price retailer. The company in the late ‘90s had been first in its category to adopt an online presence, but purchases through its website barely made up 1% of total sales, so in 2020 the compa -

Tom Kingsbury

ny announced it would shut down its e-commerce platform and use its website solely as a promotional tool.

When Kingsbury retired in 2019, Burlington had 727 stores and $7.3 billion in sales.

“He certainly has the kind of background you’d want to see as a CEO of Kohl’s, having built that business, which was little-known when he went in as CEO,” said David Swartz, senior equity analyst at Morningstar Research Services. “By the time he left, it was seen as really the third major discount, clearance-type department store. Burlington is still a distant third really from TJX (parent company of T.J. Maxx) and Ross Stores … but it’s a lot more competitive than it was.”

Specifically, it’s Kingsbury’s background in managing stores and supply chain that will serve him well now that he is at the helm of Kohl’s.

Following demand volatility from the highs of 2021 into the lows of 2022, Kohl’s has spent the past few quarters digging itself out from under a mountain of excess inventory. Markdowns after the holidays helped clear inventory and boost sales but the high cost of product and freight gave way to a gross margin of 23% for the fourth quarter, down from 33% year-over-year. Swartz pointed out that Kohl’s recently started advertising another big clearance sale of up to 70% off.

“That’s not great because you usually want to be done with your clearance sales by January,” said Swartz. “What Kingsbury will have to do is manage his supply chain better, so they don’t get stuck with too much stuff. It’s very difficult because you don’t want to have empty shelves either. … You have to find a level where you’ve got a manageable amount of inventory, but you

have stuff that people want.”

Swartz said discount stores like Burlington and T.J. Maxx base their business model on high inventory turn so that they can take in mass amounts of clearance items from department stores like Kohl’s and Macy’s. Kohl’s business model, on the other hand, is designed to sell products from brands like Levi’s, Nike and Eddie Bauer at full price.

NO QUICK FIX

Asked during the Q4 earnings call to compare his past experience to what’s ahead of him now, Kingsbury was quick to acknowledge that Burlington and Kohl’s are two different companies, while also offering some perspective.

“Even in my previous experience, you know … it took us a while to get things going in the right direction,” he said. “It’s just something you can’t do overnight.”

Beyond his career acumen, Kingsbury brings to the role another advantage for Kohl’s: the favor of the New York hedge fund and activist investor Macellum Advisors GP LLC. After years of pushing for improved performance and new leadership – culminating in a near-board takeover in 2022 – the firm has entered into a multi-year standstill agreement with Kohl’s, which means the retailer won’t be entangled in any more proxy fights for the foreseeable future.

“At one point, I expected that there would be another proxy fight this year given that the stock price has not recovered, and Kohl’s is coming off a very poor year,” said Swartz. “… So, the fact that (Macellum) is not fighting the proxy fight and they’ve decided they like the way the company is going is certainly important and could have been a major reason why (Kingsbury) was appointed the CEO.” n

FEATURED DEAL: CUDAHY TOWER APARTMENTS SOLD FOR $16.5 MILLION

The Cudahy Foundation recently sold the 14-story, Cudahy Tower Apartments building at 925 E. Wells St. in downtown Milwaukee to Shoreline Real Estate Co. for $16.5 million.

The historic building, known for its alabaster terra cotta façade, was originally referred to as Buena Vista Flats. The seven-story south end of the building was erected by meatpacking magnate Patrick Cudahy in 1908 and designed by famed architectural firm Ferry & Class, according to state historical records. The 14-story north end of the building was constructed in 1928 and designed by Holabird & Root.

The building had been owned by the late Michael Cudahy. It was transferred to the foundation in December 2022, following the patriarch’s death in March of that year. The 83-unit building also houses Bacchus – A Bartolotta Restaurant on the first floor.

WHO REALLY OWNS IT?

FORMER KOHL’S FOOD STORE IN WAUKESHA

Depending on the age of the person you ask, the 32,843-squarefoot retail center at 139 E. Broadway in Waukesha is either remembered as the former Kohl’s Food Store or the former Family Video.

What it is right now is a partially vacant retail building that once housed one of the downtown area’s only grocery stores. The 8,957-square-foot space at the center of the building, which sits between Marco’s Pizza and a Dollar General store, has been vacant since January 2021 when Family Video closed. The company purchased the building in 2003, two years after the grocery store closed.

The building remains owned by a limited liability company affiliated with Hoogland Foods Inc., the parent company of Marco’s Pizza, which acquired the building in 2021.

ADDRESS: 139 E. Broadway, Waukesha

OWNER: LLC affiliated with Hoogland Foods Inc. of Springfield, Ill.

ASSESMENT: $1.15 million

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Balancing preservation and growth in a city of aging buildings

BY CARA SPOTO, staff writer

Laid out in 1857 from land subdivided by Scottish railroad magnate Alexander Mitchell, the nine blocks that make up Historic Mitchell Street on Milwaukee’s south side were for decades home to Polish immigrants who made the area a center of daily life. A hive of commercial activity for Poles and other immigrants, the street had everything from shoe repair shops and clothiers to grocers, candymakers and butchers. Later, larger department stores came to the bustling business district, once dubbed “Polish Grand Avenue.”

Today, almost none of those original businesses remain. But their buildings do.

When businesswoman Zuwena Cotton first discovered the former Grand Department Store at 1101-1113 W. Historic Mitchell St. in 2020, the two-story, 70,000-square-foot building had been foreclosed upon twice and had only one tenant, a beauty supply store occupying 12,000 square feet.

Purchasing the building from Wisconsin Bank & Trust for $350,000, Cotton began talking with architects about redeveloping the 131-yearold structure into a mixed-used development, but soon learned that structural issues – and persistent flooding that damaged the basement and elevator –would make any adaptive reuse project, especially one including apartments, financially unfeasible.

Working for the better part of a year with planners at the city’s Historic Preservation Commission and architect Barry C. Yang, Cotton proposed replacing the former department store with a five-story, 55-unit apartment building with firstfloor commercial space. Dubbed “The Encore,” the building would honor the 1937 Art Deco-style façade that Russian-born businessman Ben Rosenberg commissioned for the former lady’s dress store while also providing something the Mitchell Street area desperately needs: density and quality family housing.

“I am trying to really honor the history of that area, but more importantly honor the dreams and desires of the Mitchell Street community,” said Cotton, an alum of Marquette University’s Associates in Commercial Real Estate program. “I want to give them the opportunity to create their own stories.”

But in December, the city’s Historic Preservation Commission voted 4-3 to deny Cotton the certificate of appropriateness (COA) she needed to raze the structure.

While the Zoning, Neighborhoods and De-

velopment Committee and the full Common Council later reversed that decision – stipulating that Cotton must have construction financing in place before getting a raze permit – the debate around the building has refocused attention on a common conundrum in this city of aging buildings: How can we make historic neighborhoods and buildings work for the people who live near them now? And how do we serve the needs of existing residents without sacrificing the richness and history of those districts? What is the best way to strike a balance between two important priorities for the city: historic preservation and economic development?

Those questions are even more prevalent in lower-income neighborhoods that can have trouble attracting the type of adaptive reuse projects that have transformed more affluent historic neighborhoods like the Third Ward and East Side.

What gets protected?

The average Milwaukeean reading headlines about old buildings in the city like The Grand Department Store, the endangered 139-year-old Miller Tavern in the Third Ward, or the recently razed Columbia St. Mary buildings at North Maryland and East Hartford avenues wouldn’t be faulted for wondering why some old buildings are considered historic enough to be protected and others razed with little more than a legal notice in the paper.

The reason often has more do to with how the city, state and federal governments approach historic preservation on a grand scale, than the actual value placed on any particular building.

The city of Milwaukee has 23 locally designated historic districts that its Historic Preservation Commission has jurisdiction over, and most of those are in residential areas. The rest of the historic districts in the city are federally designated. And while many historic districts have both local and federal designations, like Mitchell Street, there are several districts in the city, like the Walker’s Point, West Side Commercial and West St. Paul Avenue Industrial districts, that only have a federal designation. That means, while the buildings within the districts are eligible for federal historic preservation tax credits, they can be razed without permission from the city as long as they don’t individually have a local historic designation.

For instance, buildings along a two-block

Zuwena Cotton

stretch of South Second Street in the Walker’s Point district are part of their own local historic district.

There are also several seemingly historic commercial districts in the city that aren’t officially designated as a federal or local historic district. Lincoln Avenue is not designated as a historic district. Neither is National Avenue, where the iconic Bern Boys furniture building sits. There are also no historic districts along Kinnickinnic Avenue in Bay View, where the Faust Music building once sat (it was torn down to make way for a new apartment building). And although just a stone’s throw from the East Side Commercial historic district, the Art Deco-style Wisconsin Gas Building, at 626 E. Wisconsin Ave., has no historic designations. There was also no local, state or federal historic designation for the former Gugler Lithographic Co. building downtown at 1339 N. Milwaukee St., which was razed to make way for an apartment development that never happened. Today the site remains vacant.

There are plenty of buildings in Milwaukee that are located outside of historic districts but have individual historic designations, but that only happens if a city resident, or the property owner themselves, attempts to nominate the building for a historic designation. If a nomination application for a building is submitted – something that HPC staff say typically happens only once or twice a year – the HPC must still determine if the building could meet the criteria for nomination. Sometimes, even when a building is recommended by the HPC for local historic designation, the Common Council will ultimately deny the request, as was the case with the Gugler building.

Not just any old building can be nominated for a historic designation. It must have something about it that makes it remarkable, such as its architecture or how it was used in the past, explained Tim Askin, a senior planner for the HPC.

“A guy called me once and said, ‘I just bought this old air conditioning shop. Can it be designat-

ed so I can get historic preservation tax credits?’” Askin recalled. “I think I told the guy, ‘Unless Mr. Carrier invented the air conditioner in this building, it’s not happening.’”

Few demolition requests

Although numerous old buildings in Milwaukee have been razed to make way for developments, if the buildings aren’t in a historic district or aren’t already designated as historic, there is not much that can be done unless someone steps forward to try and save the building. That was the case with The Vermont, the Queen Annestyle apartment building at 610 E. Mason St. that was razed to make way for Northwestern Mutual’s 7Seventy7 apartment tower, which opened in 2018. According to Askin, a few people inquired about nominating The Vermont as a historic building, but nobody formally pursued an application.

The truth of the matter is the HPC just doesn’t consider many demolition requests for buildings that are in historic districts, or are designated historic.

A review of HPC meeting minutes from the past 13 years revealed that from January 2010 to January 2023, the HPC only considered seven demolition requests that weren’t for garages. Two of the certificate of appropriateness requests for demolition were for houses, and both of those were denied. Of the five commercial requests received during that time, four were approved. In most of those cases, the buildings themselves were not considered to be historic in and of themselves. The exception were the historic buildings razed to make way for the Milwaukee Marriott hotel at 625 N. Milwaukee St. In that case, a deal was struck with developers to retain the Wisconsin Avenue facades of the buildings and incorporate them into the design of the hotel.

Mitchell Street Historic District

Nestled tightly between South 5th and 14th streets, the Mitchell Street Historic District is one of the largest commercially zoned historic districts in the city. Comprised of 90 structures, it is mostly a mix of one- and two-story commercial buildings il-

Then: The Vermont 610 E. Mason St., 1985 Now: 7SEVENTY7 luxury apartments 777 N. Van Buren St.

A rendering of The Encore, a five-story, 55-unit apartment building planned by Zuwena Cotton.

WISCONSIN HISTORICAL SOCIETY MAREDITHE MEYER

lustrating a wide range of architectural styles from the late 19th to mid-20th century. Larger structures include the former Woolworths, Hill’s and Schuster’s department stores as well as the Kunzelmann-Esser furniture store, which is now loft apartments. There’s also the Modjeska Theater and the boarded-up former White Eagle Hotel, located just off Mitchell Street at 8th and 5th streets, that have all but been abandoned by their owners.

Today the mostly Hispanic business district is home to a bevy of small businesses, including auto shops, tattoo parlors, accounting firms and a variety of ethnic restaurants, featuring everything from Mexican to Pakistani and Syrian cuisines. Larger businesses nearby include El Rey Foods, which operates a large grocery store out of the former Sears Roebuck building at 1320 W. Burnham St., and the Mitchell Street Mall in the former Schuster’s building. The former Hill’s building is now home to the Milwaukee Public Library’s Mitchell Street branch and the Alexander Lofts apartments.

The Mitchell Street Business Improvement District – which is nearly contiguous with the historic district on Mitchell Street but also includes a handful of blocks along Forest Home Avenue and 15th Street – has about 100 businesses but only collected $116,528 annually in property assessments in 2022. That’s less than half of what the Brady Street BID, which also contains a historic district, collected in 2021.

But that doesn’t mean it’s not busy.

Located in one of the largest population centers of the city, Historic Mitchell Street was humming with activity on a recent weekday as 12th District Alderman and Common Council President José Pérez gave a quick tour of the area.

Pointing from the window of his Jeep, Pérez rattled off which of the property owners on the street – plenty of whom don’t live anywhere near the south side – are keeping up their buildings and following HPC guidelines, and which aren’t.

“That property owner did all the right things when he wanted to update the building,” Pérez said, driving down the 800 block. “This gentleman here owns where the scaffolding ends, and he is difficult. He just is. He owns that building across the street as well. He’s the type to ask forgiveness instead of permission, knowing full well he needs a COA to make changes.”

Beauty and the blight

To Pérez, Historic Mitchell Street has enough architectural gems that it’s hard to justify protecting shabbier structures, especially when there’s a proposal to better use the site.

“For the most part, there is enough character and good enough bones in these buildings that razing structures down here is not at the top of our list, but (11th and Mitchell) happens to be a strategic corner and a site that could use something new,” Pérez said. “I don’t want the (HPC) to lower their standards from a historic preservation standpoint, but there has to be some mechanism in place to weigh out what the building will be replaced with and how long the community can put up with it being a blighted property.”

Rather than erasing the impact the Grand had on Mitchell Street during the years it was open (1907-1982), Cotton said she is interested in honoring the stories of both Mitchell Street’s past and its present. Plans for the project include creating an opportunity center on the first floor where all neighborhood residents could attend a variety of classes on financial literacy, home ownership, career training and business development. Although she must wait until the end of this year to apply for affordable housing tax credits, she said she is already working to open the opportunity center in the existing building.

“I was told that maybe I should find an alternate location for the building, but I really can’t because I have come to know and love the people in that community,” she said. “I have walked up and down the blocks of the entire district. I have talked to over 65 different residents who are in support of this project.”

Preservation as a catalyst for growth

But tearing down any historic buildings in older commercial districts – even those with as many interesting, old buildings as Mitchell Street – can

Then: 340-346 N. Broadway, 1983 Now: Café Benelux, 346 N. Broadway

Zuwena Cotton looks out a window of the former Grand department store.

JAKE HILL PHOTOGRAPHY

CITY OF MILWAUKEE

MAREDITHE MEYER

mean eliminating the very structures that could someday make those districts extremely attractive to developers, especially those who are genuinely interested in improving the neighborhood, not just collecting rents from across the state or country.

To Alderman Robert Bauman, who represents downtown Milwaukee and the Third Ward, the key is finding a balance between old and new, and having a vision that values what makes a neighborhood unique.

“(The character of historic buildings) sets your community apart, because you are preserving the historical aspects of your city, and you’re preserving the architecture … as opposed to building row upon row of the same cookie-cutter apartment buildings where there is no sense of being anywhere special,” said Bauman, who sits on the HPC.

And Bauman, who has served the 4th District for nearly 20 years, has seen just what a focus on preservation can achieve. When he was first circulating nomination papers to run for office in 1992, a time when the mostly abandoned Third Ward was just beginning to see reinvestment, he remembers there only being a handful of registered voters living in the neighborhood.

Nancy O’Keefe, former executive director of the Historic Third Ward Association, recalls the area only having about 120 apartments when she joined the organization that year. Most of those units were in The Broadway at 234 N. Broadway, a former warehouse turned apartment building across from what is now Onesto, she said. The building was converted to condos two years later.

What really spurred the adaptive reuse projects we see in the Third Ward today, said Bauman, was a concentrated focus on the neighborhood by former Mayor John Norquist.

Unlike the urban renewal projects of the 1950s, ‘60s and ‘70s, which cleared entire blocks of historic homes and commercial buildings in the name of progress, Norquist’s plan to bring the Third Ward

back to life focused on making the buildings themselves a magnet for redevelopment.

“It was creating a physical infrastructure environment that was conducive to private real estate development, and then things just mushroomed from there,” said Bauman. “But it had structures –good, solid structures. And it built on those bones and created a new neighborhood almost from scratch.”

While only a few buildings have been razed over the years in the Third Ward, Bauman notes that what works for one neighborhood, might not work for another.

“If your first principle is historic preservation, then you make it work most of the time, understanding that there may be cases where it doesn’t work,” he said. “So, it really is a case-by-case situation. If we were solely focused on historic preservation, we would never have progressed west of (Milwaukee co-founder Solomon) Juneau’s cabin.”

Pérez agrees, especially after seeing buildings with local historic designations in his district continue to degrade as they wait for rehabilitation or redevelopment.

“Not every building can be blighted, waiting for the knight in shining armor to come in with historic tax credits,” he said. “Maybe I will become more of a believer when that happens with the White Eagle Hotel.”

Jeremy Ebersole, executive director of the Milwaukee Preservation Alliance, can understand Pérez’s frustration. Although the MPA lobbied for the HPC to deny the demolition request for The Grand, he has seen where the preservation community has too often been focused on preserving places in more affluent areas, or only springing to action when there is an official request to raze a structure.

“I would be the first to say that in the preservation field, at least historically, we have been too elitist as we have thought about what preservation

can be,” Ebersole said. “That system was built to reward the places that have resources, but I think that’s been changing over the last decade or so.”

Small buildings

So, what happens in places like Mitchell Street, that are outside of the economic hub of the city, and don’t have the kind of large historic structures that lend themselves to lucrative redevelopment projects?

That’s a question Milwaukee developer Josh Jeffers gets a lot. His firm, J. Jeffers & Co., specializes in historic adaptive reuse projects, most of which are multi-million-dollar redevelopments like the transformation of the Milwaukee Athletic Club or the Horlick Malted Milk factory in Racine.

But Jeffers is quick to note that he also does smaller rehabilitations, as long as he can get fed-

Then: 603 S. 5th St., 1989

Now: Taxco Apartments, 625 S. 5th St.

The former White Eagle Hotel building.

CARA SPOTO

WISCONSIN HISTORICAL SOCIETY MAREDITHE MEYER

Historic districts in the city of Milwaukee

This map highlights both national and local historic districts in the city of Milwaukee.

eral and state historic preservation tax credits. One such example is his firm’s rehabilitation of a single-story commercial building at 6519 W. North Ave. in Wauwatosa for local burger restaurant Crafty Cow.

“For much larger projects, you get more sophisticated developers who will come in and jump through all the hoops, and for the smaller, kind of main street projects, it’s the same amount of work for a much smaller project,” Jeffers said. “That being said, I have always been a big proponent of developers taking on smaller commercial buildings. … If you have a $1 million rehabilitation, you can get up to $400,000 of your construction costs funded through state and federal credits.”

Challenges

The problem on Mitchell Street is that a lot of building owners just aren’t interested in making building improvements, even if those improvements could be subsidized, Askin said.

“What I usually hear is, ‘My taxes are too high already,’” he said.

In addition to historic preservation tax credits, properties are also eligible for Department of City Development grants that can provide funding to spruce up both the exterior and interior of commercial buildings. Sadly, many property owners on Mitchell Street either don’t know about the grants or don’t tell their tenants about them, Pérez said.

That lack of interest, especially from out-ofstate property owners, is frustrating for Pérez, who sees the economic potential of Mitchell Street and other parts of the south side. Sometimes, he will get calls from those owners asking him what they should do with the historic structures they own.

“I’ll tell them, ‘Get up here, do this yourself. I can’t give you business advice,’” Pérez said. “I know what’s needed. It’s for operators and business owners to get down here and look at the buildings, talk to people and figure out what’s best.” n

Then: Faust Music building 2202 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., 1990 Now: Vue Apartments 2202 S. Kinnickinnic Ave.

DATAWRAPPER, OPENSTREETMAP, CITY OF MILWAUKEE DATA

WISCONSIN HISTORICAL SOCIETY

MAREDITHE MEYER

presents the 16th annual:

Tuesday, April 4, 2023

2:00-2:30pm – Registration/Networking

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Reinhart is pleased to once again sponsor the BizTimes M&A Forum and contribute our perspectives on the evolving dynamics of today’s mergers and acquisitions market given the challenging economic environment.

Year after year, we see a consistently high level of middle market deal flow. As a result, our attorneys are attuned to current trends, key players and emerging technical and economic issues. Representing buyers, sellers and financing sources, we are highly effective at structuring transactions to align with long-term goals, identifying opportunities to enhance deal value, and leading complex transactions under tight timelines. We help our clients identify, quantify and resolve complicated business, tax and legal issues involving multiple parties, who frequently have different if not conflicting objectives. Our deep experience, breadth of expertise and staffing approach result in efficient processes. We are delighted to have the opportunity to be part of today’s event.

Taureau Group is pleased to sponsor the 2023 BizTimes M&A Forum. Although M&A activity has slowed from record levels in the past two years, there are still signs of strength, and we continue to see a robust M&A environment in the lower middle market. If you are considering selling or looking for ways to grow through acquisition, we are here to help. Our award-winning team can discuss your objectives, answer any questions you may have, and develop and execute an ideal M&A strategy.

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Event Partner:

Profit sustainability the number one question for M&A deals in 2023

BY ASHLEY SMART, staff writer

THE LONG-TERM impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic are still being felt across the mergers and acquisitions market as both buyers and sellers look to determine the true value of businesses.

After some businesses saw boosts to both revenues and margins following the need to increase product pricing, those looking to buy companies are left trying to figure out whether those increased revenues will remain sustainable into the future and how much they should pay.

“Buyers are not taking EBITDA at face value as they did historically,” said Ann Hanna, managing director and co-founder of Milwaukee-based Taureau Group LLC. “Buyers are saying, ‘Well wait a minute. When commodity prices come back down, are we going to have to give these price increases back?’”

There are two factors affecting EBITDA, which stands for earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. The first factor has been the significant increases in commodity prices that have given some businesses a boost in both revenue and margins. The second is strong post-pandemic demand in 2021 and 2022, which has also caused many companies to experience increased revenue and margins compared to years past.

Hanna said that strategic buyers currently

have an advantage over financial buyers, like private equity firms, because they generally pay with cash and aren’t as impacted by rising interest rates. When interest rates were lower, financial buyers had the advantage of being able to pay higher values.

“We still have a lot of money out there. We don’t have fewer financial buyers, but what we do have is a slight suppression on the values that they can pay,” said Hanna.

MACROECONOMIC CONCERNS

2021 and the first half of 2022 were record months for M&A deals, said Robert Jansen, managing director of Milwaukee-based Bridgewood Advisors Inc. Since then, the number of deals being done has shifted back to normal levels as concerns over inflation, interest rates and labor challenges continue.

“With all that said, I tend to be a bit of a contrarian and Bridgewood has had some incredible wins bringing high-quality companies to market while other M&A firms are in a holding pattern,” said Jansen.

He believes demand is still there and valuations for healthy businesses will remain strong. Jansen said for many business owners, it’s still a good time to sell and capture top value.

Despite this outlook, macroeconomic concerns remain at large within the M&A market. Axios Pro Deals Sentiment Report for 2022 surveyed thousands of readers who work in the dealmaking sector to gauge their sentiments on the current M&A landscape. The report found that today’s political and macroeconomic environment continues to be the biggest concern for respondents looking to make a deal in the coming months.

“Readers across the entire deal spectrum universally expect lower valuations on every type of deal,” according to the report.

While Hanna acknowledges these headwinds, she also believes their impact may have been overstated. Demand for M&A deals remains strong, she said.

“I believe the real story is what has happened to EBITDA in this market,” said Hanna, explaining that buyers are questioning the sustainability of higher valuations and could be “discounting” the measure of EBITDA in their determinations of how much money to spend on an acquisition.

DEAL STRUCTURES MAY LOOK A BIT DIFFERENT

Jansen explained in the current M&A environment, buyers are emphasizing diligence and

Ann Hanna Nick Kozik Robert Jansen

testing scenarios, so it becomes that much more important for companies to demonstrate their sustainability.

To address some of the ongoing discrepancies in the valuation of companies, he predicts firms may look to implement different deal structures. Those deals could include the use of seller paper or earnouts, in which the buyer agrees to make additional payments to the seller based on the future performance of the company.

“I expect we’ll see certain deal structure, such as earnouts, becoming more common to bridge various gaps in valuation, forecast expectations and holes in the capital structure,” said Jansen.

He said financing for deals has become increasingly important given higher interest rates and the availability of debt capital, which may sideline certain private equity firms and position corporate buyers to outmaneuver private equity when competing for acquisitions.

For Milwaukee-based investment banking firm TKO Miller, some of the hardest deals over the past several years have involved businesses that performed especially well, as those companies then had to justify their value to buyers.

“Those deals can be the hardest to work out if

you don’t have a good story or narrative as to how they’re going to be sustainable,” said Nick Kozik, director at the firm.

TKO Miller has had to adjust how it pitches to clients and prioritizes transparency in how it is evaluating businesses.

“It’s very important to set the value expectations and be up front about them,” said Kozik.

Aside from the ongoing dilemma of valuations, he believes it is still a good time to sell a business as there are fewer deals currently on the market. This means that a company that may have fallen closer to the bottom of the pack a year or two ago looks even more attractive today.

“This year has really picked up again quite a bit. I would say for a sub $150 million to $200 million deal, you’re probably looking at a very small discount compared to absolute peak valuations in 2021,” said Kozik.

The sectors that are most attractive to buyers right now include utility and HVAC services, food manufacturing, industrial automation, and veterinary and health care services. Companies in the technology and home construction and remodeling sectors have seen the sharpest decline in interest from buyers. Businesses in the metals space

also continue to be popular purchases as well as packaging and medical device companies. Kozik said businesses that operate out of necessity will continue to perform strongly.

“If you want to sell this year, the earlier you can get into the market the better, because you’re getting ahead of any potential downturn. We’re trying to get people who are interested in selling into the market now while there’s sort of a lull,” said Kozik.

He expects more deals to come to market in the second half of the year and that there will be an additional pullback across the board for valuations within the next 12 to 18 months.

However, both Kozik and Hanna believe there is still plenty of demand for businesses and plenty of money available to complete deals. This, coupled with the ongoing trend of Baby Boomers looking to sell their businesses as they retire, means there are many deals to be completed.

“There’s not really an asset class that can get the returns that private equity can get right now, and I think as long as that’s the case and as long as there’s still money chasing private deals, I think those valuations, at least in well-performing sectors, hold up,” said Kozik. n

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2023 M&A Forum will help business buyers and sellers navigate the road ahead

BY ARTHUR THOMAS, staff writer

FOR BUSINESS OWNERS looking to sell their company, the past several years have been an exceptionally favorable market.

Before and after the COVID-19 pandemic, low interest rates and buyers with money to spend helped push valuations higher and higher.

The Federal Reserve may have raised interest rates sharply over the past year, but that hasn’t completely erased the seller’s market.

The 2023 BizTimes M&A Forum will help business buyers and sellers navigate the road ahead, delivering insights on how deals come together, lessons learned, dealing with rising interest rates and inflation, and much more.

The program will start with a keynote conversation featuring Palermo’s Pizza chairman and chief executive officer Giacomo Fallucca, Palermo’s director of business development Jasper

Fallucca and TrueMan McGee, founder of Funky Fresh Spring Rolls.

Palermo’s acquired a majority stake in Funky Fresh in early 2022 and is now working to grow the business into a national brand. The trio will discuss how Funky Fresh got its start, McGee’s plans to find a partner, the friendship that led to the businesses coming together, Palermo’s vision to grow Funky Fresh and how acquisitions play a role in the company’s plans going forward.

Following the keynote, Ann Hanna, managing director and founder of Taureau Group, will lead a panel discussion of experienced business buyers and sellers. The group includes:

» Mike Harris, founder of Jefferson Wells, which sold to Manpower in 2001, and co-founder of Patina Solutions, which sold to Korn Ferry in 2002.

» Alex Lawton, CEO of The Lawton Standard Co., a firm that specializes in high alloy and complicated metallurgical castings. The company has completed a number of acquisitions and mergers over the years.

» Vince Shiely, partner at Lubar & Co., a private investment firm that uses a buy-andbuild strategy to grow its portfolio of companies. Shiely was previously an executive at Briggs & Stratton Corp.

» Kate Westfall, a shareholder at Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren. Westfall is a member of the law firm’s mergers and acquisitions and private equity teams.

In addition to talking about their own experiences of buying or selling companies, the panel will discuss preparing to market a company, preparing personally for a transaction, how market factors impact a deal, legal considerations, identifying the right acquisition target, keys to an acquisition strategy and lessons learned.

In addition to individual transactions, the panel will also discuss trends in the current M&A market. A variety of factors have shaped the market including rising interest rates, which increases the cost of borrowing, potentially limiting what buyers are willing to pay; inflation and rising prices, which can cut into a company’s profitability and alter the valuation of a company; and the number of buyers and sellers in the market.

After the panel, the program will continue with breakout sessions to help attendees go even deeper on the M&A process.

Inge Plautz, senior vice president at Old National Bank, will moderate a panel focused on lessons from past deals, featuring Brian Adam, president and owner of Olympus Group; Joe Gibson, a former Zywave and Fiserv executive; and Terry Rowinski, chief operating officer at IMS Integrated Merchandising Solutions.

Adam will share lessons learned from Olympus’ merger with Las Vegas-based Screaming Images in early 2022. Gibson has experience in sourcing, diligence and integration efforts from 20 add-on acquisitions and three sales to private equity buyers. Rowinski has participated in or led multiple capital raises, acquisitions and exits with angel, private equity and venture capital groups.

Other breakout sessions will include Taureau Group’s Nick Mydlach and Corey Vanderpool, discussing factors that drive business value, and Reinhart’s Justin Voeks and Melissa Zabkowicz, highlighting emerging legal trends that every buyer and seller should consider.

The M&A Forum takes place from 2 to 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 4 at the Brookfield Conference Center. More information on registration is available at biztimes.com. n

Hanna

Harris Westfall

McGee Shiely

J. Fallucca

Lawton

G. Fallucca

M&A: BIG DEALS

Kohl’s, InSinkErator highlight area’s M&A activity of the past year

BY ARTHUR THOMAS, staff writer

THE PAST YEAR saw plenty of local merger and acquisition activity. One of the area’s biggest deals was one that did not actually come to fruition.

After pressure from activist investors, Menomonee Falls-based Kohl’s Corp. retained Goldman Sachs to engage with bidders for the company. After engaging with more than 25 different parties, the company negotiated exclusively with Ohio-based Franchise Group in June. The deal started with a $60 per share offer for Kohl’s, worth around $7.7 billion in total. Amid a shifting economic environment, the offer was cut to $53 per share or around $6.8 billion.

Ultimately, Kohl’s decided against a sale.

A big area deal that did become a reality in the year was the sale by St. Louis, Missouri-based Emerson Electric of Mount Pleasant-based InSinkErator to Benton Harbor, Michigan-based Whirlpool in a $3 billion cash deal. Whirlpool said it plans to keep the headquarters of the garbage disposal maker in Mount Pleasant.

BizTimes Milwaukee has covered more than 100 different M&A transactions since the start of 2022, here’s a sampling of some of the biggest deals:

» Brookfield-based Fiserv Inc. spent nearly $1 billion on five acquisitions. Businesses the company bought included Yacaré, Merchant One, NexTable, City POS and the remaining ownership stake in Finxact.

» Town of Genesee-based Generac Holdings Inc. paid a combined $25.7 million for two acquisitions including Massachusetts-based industrial generator distributor EEC and Blue Pillar, an industrial IoT platform. The company also reached an agreement to accelerate a contingent consideration in its acquisition of Canadian home automation company ecobee that included a $45 million stock payment.

» Milwaukee-based A.O. Smith paid $5.5 million in cash for Atlantic Filter Corp., its fifth water treatment acquisition since 2016. The Milwaukee-based company also had $4.3 million in expenses and $1.1 million in income tax benefit from a terminated acquisition during the third quarter.

» Milwaukee-based law firm Davis|Kuelthau s.c. merged with Chicago-based SmithAmundsen as of Nov. 1, creating a new firm called Amundsen Davis that has 230 attorneys operating in 12 offices across Illinois, Wisconsin, Missouri, Indiana and Ohio.

» Norway-based Orkla Food Ingredients acquired an 84% stake in New Berlin-based ice cream and frozen desert maker Denali Ingredients for $168 million.

» Brookfield-based Patina Solutions Group was acquired by Los Angeles-based Korn Ferry for $42.9 million, according to PitchBook.

» Sussex-based Power Test, a maker of dynamometers, was acquired by Dallas-based StoneTree Investment Partners. Terms were not disclosed. In 2020, Power Test made big acquisitions of its own, acquiring Milwaukee-based Taylor Dynamometer, a major competitor, as well as New Hampshire-based DynoMite Dynamometer.

» Brookfield-based Wolter Inc., an industrial equipment distributor, made two acquisitions in Ohio, acquiring Ohio Valley Maintenance in December and Valley Industrial Crane in April. The company also acquired Ohio-based Integrity Industrial Equipment in August 2020.

» Oconomowoc-based Sentry Equipment, a global provider of representative sampling and analysis technologies, acquired Utah-based Rebuild-it Service Group, a rebuilder and installer of clarifier drives and thickeners for municipal wastewater treatment applications. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

» Milwaukee-based EmPower HR, a professional employer organization and human resources outsourcing firm that made the Inc. 5000 list in 2021, was acquired by Arizona-based Vensure Employer Services. Terms were not disclosed.

» Campbellsport-based Drexel Building Supply, a wholesale building materials supplier, acquired McMahon and Co., a Jackson-based supplier of doors and millwork. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

» Franklin-based Krones Inc., a subsidiary of Germany-based integrated packaging and bottling line system manufacturer Krones AG, acquired a majority stake of Salem Lakes-based R+D Custom Automation LLC. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. R+D moved from Illinois to Kenosha County in 2020.

» A group led by two former executives at Cudahy-based Lucas-Milhaupt, Rich Ballenger and Erik Thompson, acquired CR Industries Inc., a metal fabrication shop also based in Cudahy after Ballenger met deal advisors at the BizTimes M&A Forum.

» Milwaukee-based Neostella, a global hyper-automation company, acquired Chicago-based Work-Relay. Terms were not disclosed. Work-Relay helps companies systemize and scale complex business operations.

» Menomonee Falls-based Engman-Taylor Company Inc., a distributor of metalworking tools

and supplies, was acquired by Melville, NewYork based MSC Industrial Supply Co. for $24.8 million.

» Milwaukee-based Rite-Hite, a manufacturer of loading dock equipment, industrial doors and safety barriers, acquired two Canadian companies: interior door firm Alpha Door Systems Inc. and loading dock company King Materials Handling. Both businesses were based in Ontario. Terms were not disclosed.

» Plymouth-based Sargento Foods acquired Fond du Lac County-based Baker Cheese Factory Inc., one of the top string cheese makers in the country.

» Milwaukee-based Healics Inc. sold all of its nationwide wellness operations to Pittsburgh-based Integrated Health 21 LLC. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Integrated Health is a portfolio company of Pittsburgh-based Tomayko Group Holdings, an investment and consulting company specializing in health care with a concentration in preventative health and wellness services.

» Union Grove-based American Roller Co. made two acquisitions, adding Illinois-based Bonell Manufacturing in January and purchasing Arkansas-based Big River Roller in early December.

» Nashotah-based design and construction company MSI General Corp. acquired Milwaukee-based architectural firm Tredo Group LLC.

» Plymouth-based Van Horn Automotive Group acquired David Hobbs Honda in Glendale, giving the dealership group a presence in the Milwaukee area and adding a Honda dealership to its portfolio.

» Brookfield-based Krause Funeral Homes & Cremation Service Inc. was acquired by Orlando-based Foundation Partners Group, an operator of funeral homes and cemeteries across the U.S. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

» Milwaukee-based Bartolotta Restaurants took full ownership of Harbor House from The Endeavors Group, which was led by the late entrepreneur and philanthropist Michael Cudahy. The late Joe Bartolotta and Cudahy opened the upscale seafood restaurant on Milwaukee’s downtown lakefront in 2010.

» San Diego-based Guild Mortgage, a mortgage lending company originating and servicing residential loans since 1960, acquired Pewaukee-based mortgage lender Inlanta Mortgage. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

» Wauwatosa-based My Choice Wisconsin, a Medicaid managed care organization serving customers throughout the state, was acquired by California-based Molina Healthcare Inc. for a net price of $150 million.

To see additional deals, visit biztimes.com. n

ANN HANNA COREY VANDERPOEL ANDREW SANNES TYLER CARLSON MICHAEL SCHROEDER TOM VENNER NICK MYDLACH

JACOB MEEHAN RON BURGERS JAKE MENDE

MARY NICOLE MYLES TAMMY HALFMANN CIARA JONES TRAVIS KALMUCK

JON MOREAU MICHAEL ERWIN JERRY PINES

Investing in budget-friendly professional development

BY LAUREN ANDERSON, for BizTimes

WHILE FEW EMPLOYERS would argue against the idea that professional development is valuable, two concerns often rise to the surface when it comes time to invest in workforce training.

“The gut reaction is ‘we can’t afford it’ or ‘we don’t have time; we need people to produce,’” said Gretchen Jameson, chief learning officer at Kacmarcik Enterprises.

Those reservations loom especially large for small to mid-sized businesses operating on a limited budget. But, in a tight labor market – in which workers recently cited a “lack of career development” as the leading reason for quitting in a 2022 McKinsey study – experts argue employers of all sizes can’t afford not to offer robust employee development opportunities.

“We know from labor market information and demographics that the labor force is hard to come by right now,” said Laura Catherman, executive director of the Corporate Training Center at Waukesha County Technical College. “And we also know that investing in your workforce, whether it be through employee engagement or ensuring you have a really strong workplace culture or the skill development of your employees, is one of the best ways to keep your workforce engaged and retained.”

A little creativity paired with discernment in how professional development dollars are allocated allow businesses to maximize their budgets as they invest in employees.

The first step, before investing in a particular workforce training opportunity, is to narrow in on the specific problem that you want to solve, said Jameson.

“Whatever you do, pick a learning experi-

ence with your team or small business that actually addresses some kind of performance gap,” Jameson said.

She cited a recent example at Kacmarcik Enterprises, in which a logistics leader discovered that late-shift crews were having difficulty making decisions on the floor, resulting in stalls to the workflow.

A natural reaction might be to pull the workers from the floor and take them through an hour-long training session on the nuts and bolts of operating the software, Jameson said.

Instead, the company built out a workshop experience on the floor that covered not only the software basics, but also included training in creative problem solving and making decisions on the fly. As workers participated in that workshop, managers focused on how to better develop trust in their team so employees felt permission to act on their problem-solving abilities.

“That way, we’re solving an actual performance opportunity as opposed to ‘here’s a course on Udemy,’’ Jameson said. “... If you don’t pair (training) to an actual gap, it’s not as effective.”

For employers who, at the thought of having employees sit through a training session, only see the potential loss of productivity, Jameson argues there are more efficient ways to promote learning in an organization. A learn-as-you-go approach is effective and tends to be lower in cost, especially in manufacturing settings.

“The reality is you can actually keep people working while they’re learning. In our industrial space, in particular, we’re helping people really understand that learning doesn’t mean, ‘OK, we’re going to march off the floor and have an hour of class

learning.’ … Your people could be super productive and be learning at the exact same time if you design it right,” she said. “And the result really is a better business bottom line and stronger KPIs on pretty much every engagement metric, revenue generation, innovation, research and development.”

For the budget-conscious employer, Catherman recommends short-term workshops, such as those offered at WCTC’s Corporate Training Center.

“Try a bite-sized piece of training that’s not going to take you away from your desk for a long period of time but is a way to learn something new –like perhaps a piece of technology has changed and it’s a way to dip your toe into the skill development pool,” she said.

Sending one or two employees to a training session and inviting them to share what they learn with their colleagues is not only cost-efficient, but also empowering to those employees, she added.

Digging into a company’s own internal resources is another way to save money while deepening employee engagement. Establishing mentoring relationships among employees can be particularly fruitful, especially if those partnerships are designed with intention, said Catherman.

“Companies that have a more formalized program or even just a more defined approach to it – rather than just saying, ‘We’re pairing you up with John. He’ll be your mentor,’ – building some goals into the program, defining the parameters of what that mentoring relationship looks like –those are the types of programs that we see being effective,” she said.

Employers should also encourage workers to connect with leaders and peers in their field that are outside the company, said Jameson.

“I would say, for every organization: figure out ways, especially for early-career people, to make networking happen, because they’re going to learn and then come back to you better able to do their job,” she said. “It’s a cost-effective way to promote learning in your organization.”

Leaders of small businesses should be particularly mindful of individual contributors, those who manage a one-person team and don’t have anyone in the organization to look up to within their area of expertise. Without investment, individual contributors are particularly susceptible to burnout or leaving the organization altogether.

“As a leader, be aware of who your individual contributors are and then help their managers or you yourself map out a simple development plan for that person,” Jameson said. “It doesn’t have to be a crazy curriculum, but think about how do I help this person advance in one or two goals?” n

Waukesha County Technical College’s Corporate Training Center offers professional development training for employers ranging in size from startups to Fortune 500 companies.

WCTC

New presidents of Waukesha County and Gateway technical colleges are gearing up for growth

BY LELAH BYRON, staff writer

IN JANUARY, Waukesha County Technical College in Pewaukee began a year-long celebration of its 100th anniversary.

The blue and gold festivities – including the reintroduction of “Ollie” the owl mascot – marked a milestone in the college’s history, said Rich Barnhouse, who joined WCTC as president in 2020. But it also means he’s just getting started.

“I have to make decisions that are going to be impactful years from now,” Barnhouse said. “That means we can’t take shortcuts today. Let’s look to the horizon – where are we going, and how are we going to get there?”

Tasked with fortifying the school’s foundation to succeed well into its second century, Barnhouse is leading new programs and partnerships aimed at workforce development in Wisconsin.

And he isn’t alone. Ritu Raju, new president of Kenosha-based Gateway Technical College, has embarked on a similar journey.

“All of us together are stronger than each of us alone,” Raju said. “It’s wonderful to talk to your colleagues and realize that, at the end of the day, we all have the same mission.”

LACING UP THE STEEL-TOED BOOTS

Two years into his term as president of WCTC, Barnhouse is still pinching himself.

“It’s really been a dream come true to be here,” he said.

But ironically, Barnhouse never envisioned pursuing a career in education, he said. Rather, with an undergraduate degree in exercise physiology, he initially aspired to work with Olympic athletes.

“My goal in college was to get out of school and never, ever return,” Barnhouse said with a laugh.

In a twist of fate, a passion for sports led him to an assistant director of operations position at Rice University, an elite private school in Houston, where he handled student athletics and recreation. There, where Barnhouse says he was “probably in over his head” with a team of 30 to 40 under him, he had a realization.

“There’s this whole ecosystem inside a college that’s kind of like running a large company or a city,” he said. “When I was at Rice, I just wanted to get deeper into the institution, out of athletics and into the center.”

While sorting out his administrative chops in

student affairs and enrollment management at various two- and four-year college settings, Barnhouse kept a watchful eye on Waukesha County Technical College.

“Everybody always talked about WCTC, because everything they did was robust, first-rate and with outstanding quality. I remember being really impressed,” Barnhouse said. “All the colleges in the Wisconsin Technical College System are outstanding, but I thought that if I ever had the chance to come to WCTC, I would take that opportunity.”

That opportunity came in 2020, when Barnhouse was selected from a pool of 60 candidates to be the next president of WCTC, a moment that vindicated his passion for technical schools, he said.

“This is about giving people the opportunity to go anywhere, to get into any field, whether they want to be a diesel mechanic or study literature. That’s pretty awesome, because that’s how you give people choices, and that’s how you change lives,” Barnhouse said. “I really felt, quite honestly, that this is where taxpayer dollars have a direct impact in the local community, the region and the state.”

‘GET ON THE SHOP FLOOR’

Throughout his first 18 months as president of WCTC, Barnhouse spent time in and out of manufacturing plants, back offices and foundries, he said.

“I was visiting two places a week,” he said. “I kept a pair of steel-toed shoes in the trunk of my Jeep, so I could get on any plant floor at any time.”

The reason for those visits was twofold, he explained. First and foremost is to provide the best overall education to the future workforce of Wisconsin. In addition to that is making sure that taxpayers get the best possible value for every dollar they put into the public community college.

“The only way to accomplish this is to reach out to area employers and see what their needs are for the future – to get on the shop floor,” Barnhouse said. “We need to build programs specifically for employers.”

That’s what Barnhouse discovered when he walked into Eaton Corp.’s facility in Waukesha. After that meeting, Barnhouse and his team created a niche bootcamp to train students for specialized manufacturing roles in coil winding, which he said are in high demand.

Also accomplished under Barnhouse’s leadership was the launch of the Excelerate program in 2022, which grants high school students the ability to attend WCTC full time during their junior and senior years. Students in the Excelerate program can then graduate high school with an associate degree and, from there, can directly enter the workforce or enroll in a four-year college as a junior.

“It cuts off two years of college debt and is little to no cost for the student because the district is

Rich Barnhouse

Ritu Raju

largely paying for the students to come here,” Barnhouse said.

But beyond new partnerships and programs, to Barnhouse, the heart of the job isn’t even listed on its description.

“My most important role is to inspire people, every day, in every conversation,” Barnhouse said, adding that he learned that lesson early on in his higher education career. “There was a student that came into my office 15 years ago, and he was really struggling. He said, ‘I have no support. Everybody’s working against me, and I don’t belong anywhere.’ Well, we had a really good conversation, and my parting words to him were, ‘No matter what situation you find yourself in, you can do this.’ Those are the four most powerful words on the planet.”

‘I HAVE NEVER FORGOTTEN MY ROOTS’

Also acclimating to the Wisconsin Technical College System is Ritu Raju, who bested hundreds of candidates in a nationwide search to be named president of Gateway Technical College in October, assuming the role in early January.

“I’m still only nine weeks into the job, so I’m still learning, but I’m so touched by the generosity of people and their willingness to help,” said Raju,

who has 18 years of experience in higher education with a focus on workforce development.

That generosity and willingness to help has not only come from within Gateway, which began in 1911 as America’s first publicly funded technical college, but also from neighboring institutions such as WCTC, Raju said.

“The Wisconsin technical college system is a space where we can work jointly and also be able to differentiate ourselves,” Raju said. “That’s a wonderful formula, because it allows us to think on the largest state level.”

After graduating with a bachelor’s degree from the University of Houston-Downtown, Raju went on to receive a master’s in English from Sam Houston State University and a Ph.D. in technical communication and rhetoric from Texas Tech.

In her first few months at Gateway, Raju has resumed the role of a student, receiving lessons from each department chair to better understand their academic niches.

“I’ve always been a servant leader,” Raju said, describing her style as “ethical, agile and strategic.” “I come from very humble beginnings. I have never forgotten my roots, and I’m never hesitant to say that.”

What that looks like in practice is working to dismantle barriers that students experience throughout their education journeys, such as food insecurity and financial pressures, Raju said.

“Our technical college students often have families, jobs and civic obligations while trying to complete their education,” Raju said. “We had our scholarship lunch last month, and I made sure that I visited with every single scholarship recipient that came to the luncheon. Their stories are so inspiring.”

“Every time I post on LinkedIn, I use the hashtag #GatewayProud,” Raju continued. “I’m so happy to say that I’ve used that hashtag so many times.”

As she settles in full-time to her role, Raju said what she is most looking forward to is attending her first Gateway graduation.

“I always cry at graduation,” Raju said. “I think that moment makes me understand the transformative power of education. Higher education, and particularly the community college and technical space, is a ministry. There’s always something you’re going to be thinking of. What do we need to do? Who else do we need to serve? And I find that to be extremely satisfying, and extremely humbling.” n

93% of MATC’s 2020-21 graduates are employed or continuing their education six months after graduation

EVERYBODY KNOWS MATC, BUT DO YOU REALLY KNOW MATC?

Marquette’s O’Brien Hall transforms campus and the community

The new home of Marquette University’s business and innovation leadership programs, the Dr. E. J. and Margaret O’Brien Hall opened its doors to students in January. The new building features up to 17 classroom spaces across four levels, 12 meeting rooms, a soundproof recording studio and a corporate boardroom.

The completion of the $60 million, 109,000 square-foot facility marks the largest fully donor-funded construction project in university history. More than 250 donors, including 60 who gave more than $100,000 and 14 who gave $1 million or more, contributed to the two-year fundraising campaign.

The building’s name was selected by an anonymous donor who gave the university $24 million for the project. BizTimes Milwaukee recently sat down with Tim Hanley, acting Keyes Dean of the College of Business Administration at Marquette University, to talk about the new building and what it means for students and the business community.

Tim Hanley

BizTimes Milwaukee: Can you discuss the components of the new building and what excites you about its amenities and features?

Hanley: There are many aspects of the building design that focus on simulating real business environments. Our corporate boardroom is modeled after a real one. Our Pitch Pit/Innovation Lab simulates a venture capital presentation setting. Students will find it easier than ever to transition from their Marquette education to professional settings with this new building.

In addition, so many aspects of O’Brien Hall were designed to create collisions between students, faculty and the business community, including our event space, coffee shop and open floor plan, among others.

We recently hosted a recruiter from my former company, Deloitte, in our lobby; she was able to have a full table setup with free bagels and muffins for students. We never had the space to do that in our old lobby.

We also invested in state-of-the-art classrooms to allow for a range of learning options: in-person, virtual and hybrid – the technology allows our faculty and students to move seamlessly among all three formats. O’Brien Hall was designed with the future of education in mind, and the future of education is to

PROUD PARTNERSHIP

CELEBRATING MARQUETTE’S NEW COLLEGE OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION BUILDING

Congratulations to our partner, Marquette University, on their campus’s newest addition: the Dr E. J. and Margaret O’Brien Hall. We are grateful to have had the opportunity to be a part of this exciting transformation and proud to have partnered with all who contributed to this project’s success.

be adaptable to change.

BizTimes:Canyoutalkaboutdonorsyouhadtobe able to create this space for the business school?

Hanley: O’Brien Hall is a 100 percent donor-funded enterprise, the first of its kind in Marquette history. We received more than $60 million in support from our alumni and benefactors.

It was gratifying to know that more than 250 total donors contributed to the project, and more than 60 of them gave at a level over $100,000. Fourteen donors invested $1 million or more. Many of them were first-time givers.

We’re blessed to have loyal alumni who feel a strong connection to our college. They received a worldclass education here at Marquette and felt strongly enough about the value of it to want to pass it on to the next generation. When we asked them for help, they stepped up.

Throughout Marquette’s “Time to Rise” campaign, we have also been able to raise over $30 million in support of efforts beyond the building, ensuring our college is positioned to serve the greater Milwaukee business community.

Every great city needs a great business school, and we’re poised to be that for Milwaukee thanks to our donors.

BizTimes: How do you see the building acting as a catalyst for interacting or collaborating with the businesscommunityandotherMarquetteUniversity colleges?

Hanley: It’s been our vision for quite some time to have our College of Business Administration and Opus College of Engineering adjacent to each other. The close collaboration we have between our colleges helped us develop programs like Innovation Alley. Now we have the physical proximity to complement the academic linkages that already exist.

We have also hosted high-impact events in the new building that we never could have hosted in Straz Hall, our former home. From a commercial real estate conference in January to a “fireside chat” with key alumni in February, our new event space offers both the capacity and the versatility to welcome the business community onto campus.

I have already had dozens of meetings with business leaders and high-level donors in the new building; at least one every day since we opened. I love showing them the student experience. We wanted to create an environment where “the lights are always on.” Our building welcomes our students for coffee in the morning, for classes during the day and for study groups in the evening.

Visitors are even more motivated to engage with the college after seeing that environment.

BizTimes: What does the completion of this building mean to Marquette University?

Hanley: I like to describe this building as a “game changer” — something that elevates the already outstanding work done around this university to another level.

O’Brien Hall is already changing the ways our current and prospective students think about our college. I can say the same thing about the many companies that are here to hire our students for internships and full-time positions.

I also see it greatly boosting our academics. For years, we have had nationally ranked programs within our walls — programs like Applied Investment Management, Supply Chain Management and Executive MBA, to name a few. Now we have a facility that allows these programs to be delivered in the most cutting-edge ways possible.

We are also incredibly proud that this year’s first-year business class is almost 40 percent larger than a year ago. Prospective students are potential customers,

and O’Brien Hall clearly has the things they value.

We also love the fact that this building anchors the west gateway to campus, an area that Near West Side Partners has put a lot of time and resources into developing. This building will hopefully encourage more traffic and private enterprise in the surrounding area.

BizTimes: What new features of the building do you like best?

Hanley: I love the way the building accommodates students from sunrise until well past sunset. Walk through our hallways and you’ll see education in action from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. in a way that you couldn’t in our old space. We wanted to make O’Brien Hall a place where students would want to be – not just from business, but from all over campus. That has come to fruition in just a few short months.

BizTimes: What has been your biggest surprise since the opening of the building?

Hanley: I’ve been blown away by just how much interest there is from business leaders. We just had our College Leadership Council meeting, which includes leaders from prominent companies in Milwaukee such as BMO and Deloitte, among others. Their response is

even more positive than we were expecting.

We are amazed at how many alumni have come back to campus to see this incredible facility. It has already served as an effective gateway for donations, time investments and overall alumni engagement.

BizTimes: What are the biggest differences between this new building and the prior home of the business school?

Hanley: Our students just didn’t have enough space

to gather and collaborate in the old building. We incorporated their feedback into the new design; now I see students utilizing the space well beyond their class time.

The technology enablement in our new facility is truly amazing — it now fits the way we teach and allows us to access outside speakers, whether they are speaking to us from Wall Street or Silicon Valley.

There is no doubt that O’Brien Hall is much more agile and versatile than Straz Hall. The last renovation

to Straz was decades ago. While it had adequate classroom space, it was not equipped to handle how we teach today. O’Brien has flexible layouts, modern camera technology and connectivity across the building to enable all different kinds of learning.

For example, in our Graduate School of Management, there is more demand for remote access, as graduate students would like to be able learn in their homes or places of employment. We installed a “studio” with a high-resolution camera and soundproof room to deliver their preferred method of learning without compromising educational quality. This is just one of many examples of how we have responded to both our undergraduate and graduate students.

BizTimes: What challenges did you encounter while getting the project over the finish line and open?

Hanley: The pandemic and related supply chain challenges certainly created some obstacles for our construction effort, but thanks to our great facilities team at Marquette and a great set of external partners like Findorff, we were able to deliver a project on time and relatively on budget.

We were also raising money for this important project

in the heart of the pandemic—a time of huge uncertainty. Despite the obstacles, we were able to fully fund every nickel of the $60 million cost with alumni and benefactor support. It is the largest donor-funded project in Marquette’s 140-plus year history.

As most of the business community knows, my predecessor, former Keyes Dean Dr. Joe Daniels, tragically passed away in February 2020 at the very outset of this project. It was a huge loss for us here in the college and for the entire university. This building started as his vision, and we feel privileged to have helped make it a reality.

BizTimes: Can you talk about your relationship with your construction partners?

Hanley: Findorff has been a fantastic partner not just to us, but to the university on several critical construction projects over the past several years. The team they provided us was first class in all respects and unsurprisingly included several leaders who graduated from Marquette’s Opus College of Engineering.

They teamed seamlessly with our facilities planning and management department, as well as many talented subcontractors. We also went through multiple iterations of what this building would look like.

Our architectural partner, BNIM, and Findorff were incredibly flexible in all the changes that were made in every step of the process.

Under the leadership of this combined team, we built O’Brien Hall in an ecologically sustainable way. Over 90 percent of the materials from McCormick Hall, the residence hall that used to occupy our location on campus, were recycled. Our building overall exceeds Wisconsin’s “Focus on Energy” program goals. We needed flawless execution to achieve all this, and that’s what Findorff gave us.

BizTimes: What’s your vision for the future of this building?

Hanley: I see this as a convening place for business in southeastern Wisconsin. We are encouraging our many stakeholders — both companies that hire our students and other prominent business groups like the MMAC — to think about how they might bring their leaders into our space. I want our students learning in a business hub that offers opportunities to interact with these organizations, and I want the organizations to see the talent we’re developing.

O’Brien Hall will become one of the premier places where business is done in Milwaukee.

Starting a business is hard work. It requires courage and a good idea, a great team and even better execution day in and day out, month after month, year after year. To grow and sustain that business for one, two or several generations, it requires innovation, teamwork and determination.

According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, about 20% of U.S. small businesses fail within the first year. By the end of their fifth year, roughly 50% have faltered. After 10 years, only around a third of businesses have survived. The businesses in this anniversaries section have survived and thrived for many times that.

So, it’s time to celebrate and POP THE CHAMPAGNE! For 28 years we at BizTimes Media have been happy to shine the spotlight on business success. These metro Milwaukee companies are celebrating special anniversaries from 20 to 160 years. Enjoy their stories and read about their plans for the future.

anniversary

2023 CELEBRATIONS

125 YEARS Reichel-Korfmann Rubber Co. Inc

100 YEARS North Shore Bank

100 YEARS Waukesha County Technical College

75 YEARS Werner Electric Supply

60 YEARS Tri City National Bank

40 YEARS Northwest Side Community Development Corporation

30 YEARS The Bartolotta Restaurants

30 YEARS Technology Innovation Center at Research Park

25 YEARS FLOOR360

25 YEARS Town Bank N.A.

A Wintrust Community Bank

20 YEARS Catch-22 Creative

20 YEARS Center for Urban Teaching

CONNECT

-

Intention,

Join us and keynote presenter Tim Kight, for Elevate Your Leadership, an event designed to take your leadership skills to the next level.

Register today for your all access pass! $55/person, registration includes access to Elevate Your Leadership, the exhibit floor, all business strategy seminars and the Power Hour networking reception. Tim Kight, Founder and

CEO,

For 160 years, through all of life’s moments, U.S. Bank has walked alongside Wisconsinites as they planned for their future. From buying their first house to saving for retirement and planning for what their financial legacy could be for their children and grandchildren, bankers from the north woods to Milwaukee are devoted to powering the potential of their neighbors and communities as people work to meet their financial dreams.

Called U.S. Bank Access Commitment™ is an initiative started in 2021 that focuses on building wealthy diverse communities in Wisconsin and across U.S. Bank’s 26-state footprint. The initiative started with the Black community where the wealth gap is the largest but is expanding to include the Hispanic community as well.

Access Commitment can be seen in action in Milwaukee through U.S. Bank Access Home. This initiative supports Acts Housing as it launches Acts Housing Homebuyer Power Pack, a cohort of nearly 140 potential homebuyers who can participate in 12 courses on financial education. Those who complete all 12 courses will earn $1,000 toward paying off debt or for a down payment.

“Homeownership is a cornerstone of wealth building,” said Nina Johnson, the branch banking market leader at U.S. Bank for Wisconsin. “Our team is proud to be able to partner with wonderful organizations in Wisconsin to make a lasting impact through education, access to lending options, our new mortgage loan officer development program designed to reach the Black community, and so

much more.”

That drive to support community runs deep.

For instance, near the beginning of the pandemic, U.S. Bank supported Wisconsin doctors, nurses and staff at three hospitals by providing a warm meal for workers caring for thousands of patients around the clock. That effort later expanded to include paramedics, fire fighters and more.

Between the pandemic and social unrest, it was also a challenging time for local businesses. During that time, the U.S. Bank team worked to provide support for restaurants and retailers to highlight new ways of doing business or raise awareness that they were open to customers.

“That legacy of service that existed before and during the pandemic, exists to this day on our team,” said Johnson. “Our bankers are passionate about community, volunteering with local organizations, providing financial education for families and small businesses, and so much more.”

Now more than ever, the community needs access to their finances, information and resources no matter where they are. It is why U.S. Bank has invested in mobile and digital technologies for families and businesses, where they can deposit checks, manage and pay bills, access financial education resources, and more. It brings the future of banking into the living rooms of millions.

A lot can change in 160 years, but one thing is certain.

“We’ll be here for Wisconsin over the next 160 years, just as we were for the last 160,” said Johnson. n

U.S. Bank employees enjoy supporting community events through volunteerism.

160 YEARS LATER, U.S. BANK POWERS THE POTENTIAL OF WISCONSIN

Originally founded as Baumbach Reichel, RK Rubber started as a brewing industry supplier of hops, kegs, hose, seals and other brewery related products.

In 1898 a young German immigrant, Ludwig Korfmann became a partner in the business. In 1908, Korfmann became president of the company.

In 1922 the company rebranded as ReichelKorfmann and operates today as RK Rubber for short. Korfmann son, Calvin, succeeded Ludwig as president of the company and continued the company’s brewing tradition by owning several brewing companies including Stevens Point Brewery, among others.

In 1967, employees Don Gutknecht, Lou Miller and Bill Ehlers purchased the business from Calvin and for the next 30 years focused the company’s distribution on power transmission, industrial hose, conveyor belt and specialized fabrication.

Over the past 25 years, industry changes coupled with several strategic merger and acquisitions created a perfect opportunity for the company to focus on rubber fabrication.

Today, over a century later, the company still carries on as a family-owned business under the leadership of Dell Gutknecht and his son Andy. The main goal is supplying OEM as well as end user customers but

rather than V belts and hose reels it has evolved into fabricated parts and finished conveyor belts.

What is a fabricated part? The list is endless, whatever our clients can dream up we strive to develop a solution to meet their needs. It may be a tank gasket, a sleeve for a concrete batch plant or a 1” thick 10-foot diameter seal for a tunnel bore machine.

We produce a wide range of products. We offer straight and tapered sleeves of all sizes in a wide variety of rubber compounds. Round, square and rectangular gasket from small die cuts to the extremely large hand fabricated sizes.

We manufacture a large variety of endless seals in machined or extruded profiles and a variety of sheet rubber services.

For conveyor belts we produce a large number of cleated magnetic separator belts cut to length and spliced (mechanical or vulcanized endless) along with many other made to order belts shipped direct or installed on site.

Going forward RK Rubber is actively looking to move into a larger facility to increase capacity and offer an expanded line up of in-house services.

Being resilient for the last 125 years just like our products we will continue to stretch our way towards our next milestone. n

RK Rubber team.

RK Rubber products

PROVIDING INNOVATIVE INDUSTRIAL RUBBER PARTS FOR 125 YEARS

Some things stand the test of time. Diamonds and gold certainly come to mind. Founded 100 years ago, so does North Shore Bank. High-touch customer service, always doing right by their customers and community, and sound financial principles and practices, has led to the bank’s rich history and promising future.

“As a community bank, our standout and strength are the relationships built in the communities where we do business,” said Jay McKenna, president and CEO of North Shore Bank. “From helping businesses grow to helping families handle their day-to-day finances, we’re with our customers every step of the way. Across 100 years, we’ve been a reliable, trusted financial partner to tens of thousands, and we’re just getting started.”

North Shore Bank was founded in 1923 by several teachers. It first opened in the back of a hardware store in Shorewood, Wisconsin. With one location, 10 employees and $22,000 in assets, the bank’s beginning was only a handful of years before the Great Depression that would test America’s fortitude and economic systems and security. Now headquartered in Brookfield, North Shore Bank survived and thrived, growing exponentially over the coming decades.

The bank has seen expansion throughout southeast Wisconsin and beyond through newly constructed offices and acquired multiple banks, growing services into Waukesha, Ozaukee, Kenosha, Racine, and Washington Counties, as well as Appleton, Door County, Green Bay, and more.

In 2004, North Shore Bank opened the first fullservice branch inside a multicultural supermarket on Milwaukee’s near southside, offering culturally supportive banking services and bilingual financial

literacy to improve access to banking opportunities for the area’s Latino community.

Today, North Shore Bank has 43 branches across eastern Wisconsin and northern Illinois, over 400 total employees, a strong commitment to each community it serves, and dedication to offering easily accessible and culturally suitable services to all.

With tailored banking solutions for businesses of all shapes and sizes, North Shore Bank is a trusted partner of longevity, proven and time-tested for 100 years.

The bank has helped its business clients navigate all kinds of ups and downs, from recessions to pandemics and beyond. The bank is heavily invested in helping businesses thrive and communities flourish because of its commitment to serve as their advocates, advisors, neighbors, and friends.

For the past 100 years, North Shore Bank has been leading the way in supporting the banking needs of the community. From the launch of the first video teller/ ATM in the state unveiled in Kenosha to generating nationwide support to address the country’s coin shortage and recirculating nearly $1 million in coin, the bank is consistently focused on meeting the needs of local businesses and communities.

“We are thankful to be able to celebrate our 100th year with our local communities, dedicated employees, and valued business partners – we wouldn’t be reaching this milestone without each of them,” added McKenna.

North Shore Bank will be celebrating its 100th Anniversary throughout Milwaukee and statewide throughout 2023. n

North Shore Bank President and CEO Jay McKenna and Area Branch Manager Alfredo Martin celebrate the opening of the new Mitchell Street branch serving the near south side community, with City of Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson.

TEST OF TIME: POISED FOR THE FUTURE

100 YEARS OF TRANSFORMATIVE EDUCATION

Throughout 2023, Waukesha County Technical College (WCTC) will celebrate an important milestone in the College’s history: its 100th anniversary.

WCTC, one of 16 Colleges in the Wisconsin Technical College System, has been a leader of workforce development and training for a century. The college has educated scores of students and contributes to the economy by providing skilled workers to fill critical roles within business and industry.

In 1923, Waukesha Vocational School was formed in the basement of Waukesha High School (now Les Paul Middle School). The high school principal doubled as part-time director, and the vocational school soon appointed a dedicated, full-time director, O.B. Lindholm, who also served as its first manual training instructor.

The school would expand and relocate – from the high school basement in the 1920s, to a new space on Waukesha’s Maple Street in the 1930s, to a sprawling campus on 110 acres of farmland in Pewaukee in the 1970s. It would also experience multiple name changes, among them Lindholm Vocational and Adult School, Waukesha Technical Institute and others.

The vocational school-turned-technical college’s beginnings were modest. In that first year, enrollment was just 443 students, but would rapidly increase; today, enrollment sits at more than 17,000 students annually.

In those early years, the school’s offerings were limited. Courses were available in the trades, general education, home economics and basic subjects. In the early 1940s, during the War, there was a great need for more highly skilled engineers, technologists and craftspeople, and the school responded by

adding a variety of new courses. The first one-year and two-year programs were offered in 1961 and 1962, respectively, and the school held its first formal graduation ceremony in 1964.

Starting in the 1960s the school sought advice from working professionals to help develop new programs, and occupational advisory committees were formed. The 1970s and 1980s saw the development of more partnerships and customized training opportunities, and the 1990s and 2000s ushered in an era of increased collaboration with K-12 districts and expanded high school dual credit opportunities.

A century after its humble start, WCTC boasts 170plus areas of study that lead to certificates, technical diplomas, apprenticeships and associate degrees. More than 1,400 industry professionals serve on advisory committees today, and tens of thousands of students are honored to call themselves WCTC graduates.

Richard G. Barnhouse, Ph.D., president of WCTC since January 2021, said he is grateful to all who have had a hand in the college’s success -- including students, faculty and staff, community members, legislators, business and industry partners, and others – and he’s looking forward to WCTC’s bright future.

“As we look back, we are grateful for so many accomplishments, victories, and the growth and development of a college that has been at the forefront of higher education for an entire century,” he said. “As we complete our first century of educational excellence, we are shifting quickly to ensure the foundation for our second century is built to excel.”

Learn more about WCTC’s centennial at www.wctc. edu/100. n

Waukesha County Technical College kicked off its 100th anniversary in January. Here the WCTC community welcomes the new mascot “Ollie.”

WAUKESHA COUNTY TECHNICAL COLLEGE CELEBRATES

Being a progressive electrical distributor has allowed Werner Electric Supply to provide innovative solutions to our customers with impactful results for the past 75 years. Our extensive team of electrical engineers, construction experts, and hands-on support technicians has kept businesses running efficiently from Iron Mountain to Kenosha.

Today, customers want dependability, innovation and on-time delivery to keep their projects on schedule and on budget and their production lines running. From our 220,000-square-foot distribution center in Appleton, Wisconsin, we deliver electrical supplies and industrial automation products and services across the Midwest. We effectively manage an inventory from trusted partners to ship more than 100,000 products every month quickly and accurately. Our business has evolved since starting as an appliance store and electrical contractor in Neenah, but the commitment to our customers has stayed the same.

“Our business has flourished because of the success of our customers,” said Craig Wiedemeier, president. “The extensive expertise of our team and the strong relationships with our vendor partners have allowed us to provide industry-leading solutions to our customer’s changing needs.”

To meet the needs of Wisconsin businesses, Werner Electric provides industrial automation, manufacturing software products, prefabricated and ready-to-install

The company began as an appliance store and electrical contractor shop before becoming Werner Electric Supply in 1948.

assemblies, construction electrical supplies, and a wide range of industrial and construction support services. More importantly, expert technicians guide our customers in exploring solutions to improve quality, reduce downtime, achieve project timelines and budgets, and minimize risk.

Thanks to ongoing relationships with the industry’s leading manufacturers including Eaton, Acuity, Brady and Leviton, just to name a few, we have access to the most innovative solutions in the world.

From developing a connected enterprise in a stateof-the-art paper mill, managing electrical materials on a large construction site, delivering preassembled critical components, to minimizing customers’ risks of cyberattacks, Werner Electric uses our extensive resources to provide personalized solutions and essential value for all customers.

As Werner Electric looks ahead to the next 75 years, we will continue our relentless pursuit of exceptional customer experiences. “Our ability to evolve and adapt to ever-changing market conditions and consistently deliver innovative solutions for our customers positions us well to continue our growth for years to come,” Wiedemeier said.

In southern Wisconsin, we are ready to serve the construction and industrial markets from offices located in Madison, Janesville, Pewaukee and Kenosha. Please visit us at wernerelectric.com to learn more. n

Above left: Current headquarters and regional distribution center in Appleton, Wisconsin.

Above center: Current president Craig Wiedemeier.

Above right: Werner Electric founder Walter Werner.

celebrating WERNER ELECTRIC SUPPLY: MARKING 75 YEARS OF INNOVATION

In 1952, at age 24, Dave Ulrich’s entrepreneurial journey began on the corner of 27th Street and College Avenue in Oak Creek.

“I moved out here with absolutely nothing,” the late Ulrich said. “There was a time when I tried to borrow $1,200 and couldn’t do it. But I had an opportunity, and I felt the need to do something. If you’ve got a dream, then you have to work in whatever way necessary to make that dream come true. It’s as simple as that.”

That $1,200 loan that never came to fruition was what prompted Ulrich to form the bank that would eventually become Tri City National Bank. His can-do attitude, roll-up-your-sleeves work ethic, and passion for small business continue in the bank today.

Initially known as Tri City State Bank, the first bank branch opened in Oak Creek on October 28, 1963, with a mission to treat every customer with fairness and kindness. In 1969, a second branch opened in Franklin, and by 1978, Tri City had five locations, serving Oak Creek, Franklin, Hales Corners, West Allis, and Brown Deer.

Maintaining the same entrepreneurial spirit as its founder, Tri City was an early adopter to new banking products and services. In 1981, the bank installed its first TYME Machine, an acronym for Take Your Money Everywhere. Tri City was also the first in the state of Wisconsin to have banks inside grocery stores. By 1990, the bank had more than 20 locations, with 10 in-grocery-store branches.

As the bank grew throughout Southeastern

Wisconsin, it also gave back to the greater community. In 1989, the bank began a relationship with the Milwaukee County Zoo, and to date, has provided nearly $1 million of support to this popular attraction. For nearly two decades, Tri City employees have volunteered with Revitalize Milwaukee, a local organization that works to fill the gap in housing resources by providing life-changing repairs and modifications to the community’s most vulnerable citizens’ homes.

Tri City has consistently been recognized for its strong bank operations, unparalleled customer service, and sound balance sheet. In 2009 — during the Great Recession when many other banks throughout the country were failing — Tri City acquired the Bank of Elmwood in Racine. Today, Tri City serves the community through its 28-branch network and its offering of digital services. Now in its 60th year of operation, the bank has more than $2 billion in assets and originates 95.2% of its loans in Southeastern Wisconsin.

“We’ve never lost our entrepreneurial spirit and our dedication to the customer,” said Colleen McGarry, executive vice president, granddaughter of Ulrich and a third-generation banker. “While my grandfather couldn’t have imagined all the technology that runs our community bank today, we’re still serving customers and businesses in the way he envisioned. Everyone is welcome at their hometown bank.” n

As your hometown bank, we believe in being a financial partner to our neighbors and building strong communities one relationship at a time.

Tri City opens its second bank branch at 30th Street and Ryan Road in Franklin. The branch would eventually move three blocks east into Oak Creek at 27th Street and Ryan Road.

ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT DRIVES SUCCESS OF TRI CITY NATIONAL BANK

Northwest Side Community Development Corporation (NWSCDC) is a private, 501(c)(3) nonprofit community development corporation and certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI).

We have a bedrock commitment to planning and cultivating community economic development activities.

This year, we are honored to celebrate 40 years of community reinvestment at work!

In 1983, the organization was established to create jobs, build partnerships and strengthen communities on Milwaukee’s Northwest Side.

With a holistic and collaborative approach to our mission, we continue to move the needle on job creation, business expansions, planning for public spaces, and investing in disinvested communities.

Through our various programs and initiatives, NWSCDC stirs community economic development. Our mission-based lending program has deployed $17M in capital to small businesses which have created over 1,080 new full-time jobs since 2000.

Today, NWSCDC has a diverse and expanding business loan portfolio, and manages higher loan

volume than ever before.

We are also assisting large-scale community development projects and supporting efforts to create environmental sustainability in disinvested areas.

Throughout our 40-year history, NWSCDC has innovated and adapted to changes in the community and economic development landscape. As partnerships have been critical to achieving organizational longevity and community impact, we remain dedicated to leveraging collaborations to create positive, long-term community change.

NWSCDC is in an exciting stage of its life as an organization. Join us on Wednesday, September 13, 2023 at Saint Kate - The Arts Hotel , for an evening of reflection, envisioning and celebration. n

NWSCDC staff at Green Tech Station.

Above: NWSCDC business client, Heaven’s Table BBQ.

Right: NWSCDC business client, A&A Services and Transportation

By Paul Bartolotta, Chef, Owner, Co-Founder, The Bartolotta Restaurants

On the 30th anniversary of The Bartolotta Restaurants, the word that comes to mind is gratitude –gratitude toward the past and present employees and the dining community that have supported our family business for so long.

The values that formed The Bartolotta Restaurants came from the memories Joe, Maria, Felicia, and I shared as children, gathered around our parent’s table. When Joe and I founded Ristorante Bartolotta in 1993, it was a tribute to our Italian heritage and traditions. It was inspired by those family experiences at our dining room table.

Today we refer to this as Bartolotta hospitality and we recreate “The Bartolotta Table” for our guests. Joe found the perfect location on State Street, and our dear friend Joe DeRosa, an amazing businessman and restaurateur, provided us with the backing and support we needed to start our journey. We truly could not have done it without him, and we would not be here today without him.

We have worked hard to earn the support and trust of the people of Milwaukee over the past 30 years. We are proud to have played a small part in nurturing new generations of chefs and leaders, to give back through our Care-a-lotta initiative, and to be active participants in our community.

As our company grew, we never strayed from “The Bartolotta Table” or our commitment to give back and show our thanks to this community. Our brand of hospitality was formed by those early experiences around the kitchen table, and Joe and I never forgot

that, because we owe our success to the people of Milwaukee and those who travel here.

Losing Joe in 2019 was a devastating loss. Not only had I lost a brother and business partner, but Milwaukee had also lost a pillar of its community. Joe loved this city, its people, and its culture. For me, losing Joe, taking sole ownership of our company, and navigating through the unprecedented challenges of the pandemic have been the greatest trials of my life.

I don’t know if I’ve taken the time and given myself a moment to grieve the loss of Joe. Fortunately, throughout these tumultuous past few years, the support of family, friends, and our great community has only reinforced that we need to keep moving forward and grow upon what we started more than 30 years ago.

As we look ahead to what comes next, we’ll continue to grow our Bartolotta Restaurants family and introduce new concepts in Milwaukee and beyond. We’ve already begun with the announcement of The Commodore – A Bartolotta Restaurant, a new restaurant and catering venue we’re opening this year on Nagawicka Lake. Every expansion is an opportunity to recreate those memories of “The Bartolotta Table” and give something back.

I’ve long believed that restaurants don’t get tired, owners do. I’m just getting started. I believe that there is so much more that I can do to show my gratitude to this community that has given us so much. Thank you, Milwaukee. n

The Bartolotta Restaurants team celebrating the Bucks Championship in 2021.

Right: Ristorante Bartolotta Exterior.

Below: Bartolotta Table on 28th Street.

Technology Innovation Center

Founded in 1993, the Technology Innovation Center at the Milwaukee County Research Park is the largest and longest running mixed-use business incubator in the Greater Milwaukee Area.

The Technology Innovation Center provides startups, growth companies, entrepreneurs, and non-profit organizations with everything they need to succeed including affordable space, conference rooms, classrooms, copy and print room, 24/7 secure access, in-house resources, business coaching and mentoring, resources directory, and financial assistance through loans and investor introductions.

Since 1993, 242 companies have called the Technology Innovation Center home. With a proven track record of 30 years, the Technology Innovation Center currently serves 66 member companies, has graduated 176 companies, and has created 1,573 jobs.

With more than 80,000 square feet of lab and office space available it is the ideal location for companies exploring innovative industries including

biotechnology, software and internet application development, medical equipment design, robotics and industrial automation.

Conveniently located near the zoo interchange, the Technology Innovation Center is centrally located within the Milwaukee County Research Park near the Medical College of Wisconsin, major companies, universities, and technical colleges. Proximity to major companies includes GE Healthcare, Zywave, Medical Technology Management Institute (MTMI), CoreLogic Insurance Solutions, and Bloom Companies, LLC.

The Research Park offers foreign trade zone recognition, an excellent quality life, and an exceptional community of high-tech businesses specializing in bioscience, information technology and software development, venture investment, and research.

More than 4,500 employees arrive at the Research Park each day. The Research Park continues to develop and redevelop to better serve its businesses. n

Top: Milwaukee County Research Park

Left: Laboratory Space

Above: Conference Space

How was the company started?

In 1998, Wisconsin Flooring was founded by Bob Tobe and Laurie Tobe in a building near the corner of Verona Road and County PD. The Design Mart was constructed on Verona Road in 2001 and Wisconsin Flooring moved to that location in June of that year. In 2006, the company went through a re-branding and has since been known as FLOOR360, a locally owned and operated company featuring a 10,000+ sq ft showroom in The Design Mart. A second location was opened in Delafield then moved to Butler with new offices, a design studio and showroom in 2019.

How has the company evolved since its inception?

We believe in constant learning and improvement while adopting best practices in product knowledge, design, customer service and installation. The natural evolution was to create a by-appointment showroom approach for servicing our residential customers. This approach allows us to provide a design experience that’s focused, fun and free of decision stress and crowd distractions. We doubled down on customer service by developing a team of project managers who monitor project progress and proactively communicate issues to prevent problems before they occur.

What do you attribute for the company’s success and longevity?

Instead of exclusively relying on revenue from the residential market and the ups and downs of the housing market, an emphasis was placed on diversification early on. The commercial flooring department was created to provide flooring and tile

for everything from Dan Dan Restaurant, to all the tile and surfaces inside the Bradley Symphony Center. A segment of our residential sales department now focuses exclusively on providing the best design, flooring, and installation for custom home builders in addition to renovations and remodels. We also have an in-house fabrication department to create custom area rugs and runners for homeowners and businesses.

What is your core philosophy?

We believe in cultivating and maintaining a team of good people internally and externally by consistently working on building relationships. Out of the almost 60 people on our team, a good portion have been with FLOOR360 over 15 of its 25 years. Our business is based on relationships with vendors, partners, customers, and most of all with team members. To strengthen existing relationships and build new ones in our community, FLOOR360 sponsors makeovers of non-profit facilities that rely 100% on volunteers and donors in the Milwaukee community through our participation in the Design for a Difference movement since 2015.

What do you see as growth opportunities for the company?

Enhancing our capabilities to create specialty offerings like custom carpet runners or installations with high-level of difficulty with high-end products in residential and commercial markets. We are committed to finding new ways to collaborate with our customers and provide superior service in person, in their home, or virtually. n

FLOOR360 staff

Above: St. Kate – The Arts Hotel

Left: DanDan Restaurant

CELEBRATING 25 YEARS OF PROVIDING RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL FLOORING

BANKING BUILT FOR WISCONSIN: TOWN BANK, N.A. CELEBRATES 25 YEARS

Town Bank, N.A. opened its first location in a house in Delafield, Wisconsin, in 1998 to serve the needs of the local communities and businesses that make up southeastern Wisconsin. In other words, we were built in this area, for this area.

Since our inception, Town Bank, N.A. has grown to over $3 billion in assets with over 20 branches throughout southeastern Wisconsin and recent expansion to the northeast with our newest commercial banking office in Appleton. In 2004 we joined Wintrust Financial Corp., a financial holding company with more than $50 billion in assets.

In 2018, we opened a downtown Milwaukee commercial banking office location, along with four downtown branches. This move expanded our presence in the local market and helped us address the growing needs of middle market businesses, commercial real estate developers, and large corporations in the Racine, Kenosha, and Madison markets.

Town Bank, N.A.’s deep roots serve all Wisconsin communities. Our bank managers recognize that businesses and their entrepreneurial spirit are cornerstones of our economy and provide the positive impact our communities need to thrive. Business banking relationships matter, and our banking model

is built on resiliency and providing expert service to middle-market businesses throughout the state.

In addition to delivering the best financial solutions for businesses, our team is committed to giving back and building strong partnerships with the companies and communities we serve. Decisions are made locally for the local community. We also have the longest-standing bank president in the southern Wisconsin market, Jay Mack, to further strengthen our commitment.

We’re “Wisconsin’s Bank for Business®”, and our decision to focus on southeastern Wisconsin, its residents, and the businesses that operate here is one we’re most proud of. We believe it’s our responsibility to do our part and invest in our local economy by supporting the businesses, organizations, and nonprofits that continue to build our home state.

Thank you for 25 years Wisconsin, and here’s to many more years to come! n

The first Town Bank, N.A. location in Delafield, Wisconsin.

Wintrust Commercial Banking at Town Bank, N.A.’s downtown Milwaukee location at 731 N. Jackson Street.

In a city that hosts several of the nation’s top and most recognized advertising and marketing agencies, Catch-22 Creative (C-22) is proud to stand out as a creative firm that is respected by the clients we serve, recommended by the people with whom we work, and responsible to those in need in our community.

Born from an idea by founder Don Schauf to operate differently, C-22 enters our 20th year with confidence built from commitment, continual learning, and a unique ability to adapt to the changing world of marketing communication.

C-22 offers full-service advertising and marketing services for organizations of all sizes – from global Fortune 500s to local startups and non-profits – which are looking for everything from strategy to graphic design, copywriting to video production, social media content to fully executed campaigns.

From the first project onboarded in 2003 to the newest addition to our growing list of clients, the C-22 team continues to place its focus on client success – agreeing on goals and working together to reach them. There are few things more gratifying than hearing a client partner report back that their relationship with C-22 was key to their success. We find that to be the ultimate validation

of our relationship with them, one forged through fairness, hard work, new ideas, and creative execution.

C-22 excels and specializes in business-tobusiness (B2B) marketing. Members of our team are skilled in research and are eager to quickly acquire in-depth knowledge about new products and new industries. We know that those in our B2B audiences are experts, and because of that, we need to become as knowledgeable as possible so that our communications speak to that expertise.

Our team is also committed to supporting the communities in which we live and work. Through the years, C-22 has donated more than $300,000 to organizations that help those in our community. And now under the direction of our President Nikki Wagner, C-22 continues its commitment to helping our community and the people within it.

We’re driven by knowing that so much of what we experience every day is a privilege. Being a part of a community. Developing relationships with companies behind some of the world’s most recognized brands. The time we spend collaborating as a creative team. We work hard every day because we’re grateful to be able to share in each of those. n

Members of the Catch-22 Creative team are committed to client success and giving back to the communities they serve.

CELEBRATING 20 YEARS OF RADICAL SUCCESS FOR OUR SCHOLARS

The Center for Urban Teaching (CfUT) was founded in 2001 by two professors at Wisconsin Lutheran College and became an independent organization in May 2013.

In 2023, CfUT is celebrating its 20-year anniversary since its founding and 10 years as an independent non-profit. The organization exists to identify, prepare, and support high-performing urban teachers, leaders, and schools.

CfUT’s vision is to be the number one producer and provider of high-performing urban teachers & leaders that are better prepared, better retained, and better positioned to have an increased impact on student achievement. Today, CfUT is led by executive director Krysta DeBoer, herself a proud alumna of CfUT. She continues to work closely with one of the program’s founders, Dr. Ray Dusseau, who remains an active member of the CfUT team.

Over the past 20 years, CfUT has successfully expanded the number of alumni serving annually and achieved the highest teacher retention rate in the nation helping schools close the achievement gap and minimize summer learning loss.

Its pipeline has expanded by over 8,000% and placed more than 500 alumni in the Milwaukee area, including over 20 sitting principals, that serve over 25,000 scholars today. Additionally, CfUT has achieved the highest teacher retention rate in the nation with 81% of CfUT alumni serving four or more years. Nationally, 50% of all teachers leave the field within the first 5 years and 30% leave after the first year.

CfUT is also proud to announce that nine of the top ten highest-scoring Milwaukee schools on the 2022

Wisconsin State Report Card are CfUT partner schools, and six serve as host sites for the CfUT Summer School Program, including Nativity Jesuit, St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran, Risen Savior Evangelical Lutheran, Mount Lebanon Lutheran, St. Marcus Lutheran, St. Augustine Preparatory, St. Charles Borromeo, St. Thomas Aquinas, and St. Roman’s Catholic.

CfUT has seen this radical success despite industry trends because of its core philosophy to focus on the person first, calling over career, and experiential training.

A nod to what’s next for CfUT

The organization is in the process of expanding to other Wisconsin metropolitan regions including Racine and Madison while faithfully working to reach a goal of 11% representation in the teacher and leader Milwaukee workforce.

CfUT believes this will serve as a tipping point, providing proof of what is possible and creating a stronghold in our city where the beliefs and results of CfUT’s alumni teachers, leaders, and partners will catch like wildfire throughout our region.

Over the past 20 years, CfUT has demonstrated that the teacher shortage crisis is a solvable problem.

Ultimately, CfUT believes our teachers, our leaders, and our schools hold our children’s future in their hands. We can all play a part in the effort to solve the teacher shortage crisis, close the achievement gap for our scholars, and improve our future workforce.

Contact CfUT at info@cfut.org to learn more about how you can make a difference and help expand CfUT’s mission and impact. n

CfUT Summer School Program Scholars, CfUT Executive Director, Krysta DeBoer and Founder, Ray Dusseau, and CfUT alumna Chloe Walker with scholar.

The Six B’s of Balanced Leadership

ROOM B

CyberSecurity - Important steps to safeguard your company from today’s threats

ROOM C

AVAILABLE

Financial Strategies To Help You Start, Manage and Expand Your Business

Strengthening Your Organization’s Strategic Advantage: Building a Smart and Healthy Culture

AVAILABLE

Exit Planning Options: Internal Sale, External Sale, Private Equity - Is an ESOP Right For You?

Live Leadership Lens with Marquette University President Mike Lovell

Securing the Future: Navigating the Intersection of Technology Management, Cybersecurity, and AI Going

- 5:30pm |

N OTA BLE WOMEN I N STEM

BizTimes Milwaukee is proud to present its inaugural showcase of Notable Women in STEM, spotlighting accomplished professionals and leaders in southeastern Wisconsin. STEM stands for science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The individuals profiled on the following pages were nominated by their peers at work and in the community and showcase the diversity of talent in our market.

METHODOLOGY: The honorees did not pay to be included. Their profiles were drawn from nomination materials. This list features only individuals for whom nominations were submitted and accepted after review by our editorial team. To qualify for the list, nominees must be based in southeastern Wisconsin and must be currently employed in a science, technology, engineering or mathematics-related role at a business or nonprofit in the region.

ADONICA RANDALL PRESIDENT AND CHIEF PROBLEM SOLVER ABAXENT LLC

As president and chief problem solver of Pewaukee-based Abaxent LLC, Adonica Randall leads the only technology solutions company in Wisconsin that is certified minority and Black-woman owned and operated, according to the company’s chief operating officer Sabrina Robins.

In the mid-1970s, Randall graduated with a computer science/ electrical engineering degree from Missouri School of Science and Technology, and a master’s degree in biomedical engineering from Marquette University. In the 1980s, she received a patent in MRI suite lighting.

Randall also led the Abaxent technical team that partnered with Johnson Controls on the network technology for Fiserv Forum and the COVID-19 alternate care facility at Wisconsin State Fair Park. “Ms. Randall is a precious hidden American figure who has lived among us and has made a major impact in the world of science and technology as a woman of color. Her contributions have been significant in the state of Wisconsin and beyond,” said Robins.

DR. KARIN HOFFMEISTER HAUSKE FAMILY ENDOWED CHAIR IN GLYCOBIOLOGY

AND DEPUTY DIRECTOR

VERSITI BLOOD RESEARCH INSTITUTE

Karin Hoffmeister is working to bring glycoscience into mainstream research and clinical practice.

The field focuses on uncovering the structure and function of sugar molecules and their role in health and disease.

This research could be critical when designing and testing new personalized therapies for blood diseases, but scientists may shy away from investigating sugar molecules because of their perceived complexity and because of the lack of education, research tools and collaboration opportunities, said Hoffmeister.

“The time is now to approach the complexity of sugars using novel ‘omics’ tools and artificial intelligence to unravel the sugar-code,” said Hoffmeister.

Hoffmeister is also a professor of biochemistry and medicine at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Wauwatosa and associate professor of medicine and pediatrics at Harvard Medical School. As head of the glycomics center at Milwaukee-based Versiti, she is developing a human glycome database to understand how sugar molecules on the surface of hematopoietic cells function in both healthy and disease states.

ANGIE KOCHANSKI DIRECTOR ARCH SOLAR

The solar industry in Wisconsin now employs more than 3,000 people, but, according to J.D. Smith, head of business development for Plymouth-based Arch Solar, the industry went through some lean years. Smith credits solar veterans, including Angie Kochanski, director of Arch Solar, for laying the foundation of the industry’s current success.

Kochanski worked for three other solar companies before starting Arch in 2017.

“Angie was Milwaukee’s all-in-one solar consultant, designer, site assessor, program coordinator, marketer, project manager, and most importantly, educator,” Smith said. “Sticking with it through those years of difficulty paid off in 2019 when the Wisconsin solar industry began to take off in earnest.”

This growth meant that Kochanski had to switch from doing everything herself to growing a team that hired an average of more than 12 people a year.

In the next three years, she trained nine new solar professionals, moved offices three times in 12 months, and still found time to bartend Wednesday nights at the bar in the Burnham Park neighborhood in Milwaukee that she co-owns with her husband.

ROBERTA BREHM PRESIDENT VYRON

Since Roberta Brehm purchased Waukesha-based HVAC contracting firm Vyron in 2018, its revenue has grown more than 70% and its employee count has grown from 49 to 66.

As president of the company, Brehm empowers each employee with the tools to provide solutions and add value in the marketplace, according to Alli Trampe, marketing and executive assistant at Vyron.

“Not only does she empower her employees, but she also empowers other women in the industry. Each year, Roberta hosts the Women in the Construction Industry Golf Outing. At this event, she invites women in the industry to a judgement-free setting where they can learn the basic rules of golf and raise money for a local charity,” Trampe said.

All proceeds from the golf event are donated to New Beginnings – A Home for Mothers, located in Milwaukee. Last year, the event raised more than $12,000.

Recently, Brehm founded and funded a private nonprofit foundation called the Vyron Community Foundation. Now in its first year of operation, the foundation funds efforts that support women in the community.

JENNIFER ZASPEL VICE PRESIDENT AND ACADEMIC DEAN MILWAUKEE PUBLIC MUSEUM

As vice president and academic dean of the Milwaukee Public Museum, Jennifer Zaspel, Ph.D., oversees collections and research, education and public programs and exhibits. She also leads the museum’s diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility initiatives.

Since joining MPM in 2017, Zaspel has expanded MPM’s research capabilities through academic appointments and partnerships, collaborations with dozens of universities, nonprofits and community groups, obtaining major research grants, and serving as a mentor to young scientists.

“Dr. Zaspel is passionate about engaging community members of all ages and abilities in science, which has led her to develop and grow MPM’s Community Science programming,” said Ellen Censky, president and chief executive officer of MPM. “From a partnership with the Urban Ecology Center to monitor firefly populations, to leading MPM’s annual BioBlitz, which engages 100 scientists with the public to track species in statewide parks, Dr. Zaspel works to get people involved in doing science alongside trained scientists.”

KATHY HENRICH CEO MKE TECH HUB COALITION

Kathy Henrich has led the MKE Tech Hub Coalition since its inception, growing the member base from six members to more than 125 organizations that work together to advance the tech-enabled economy of southeast Wisconsin.

In 2022, the organization:

• Launched a tech talent attraction website that has more than 3,000 visitors a month.

• Fostered more than 50 startups and provided $80,000 in grants.

• Exposed more than 20,000 students to tech careers.

• Developed more than 100 individuals in tech skills through internships, apprenticeships and upskilling programs in areas of AI, cybersecurity and software development.

• Created connections through events and one-on-one connections to advance the mission.

• Collaborated with more than 50 partners in the community. These partnerships include efforts to help advance the work of several other nonprofit missions through collaborative work, board involvement, fundraising and mentoring.

“Kathy’s leadership, which is rooted in collaboration, building strong partnerships and prioritizing the growth of the region, has been instrumental in advancing our mission,” said Molly Mulroy, MKE Tech Hub Coalition board chair and chief administrative officer at WEC Energy Group.

KAMELA GOODWYN DEAN, STEM ACADEMIC AND CAREER PATHWAY MILWAUKEE AREA TECHNICAL COLLEGE

For nearly two decades, Kamela Goodwyn, Ph.D., has worked to widen the talent pipeline for careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

As dean of the STEM Academic and Career Pathway at Milwaukee Area Technical College since 2019, and in her 15 years of higher education leadership experience, Goodwyn has partnered with corporations, community organizations, state technical colleges and local universities to advance STEM initiatives, especially those involving underrepresented student groups.

“Thanks to Dr. Goodwyn’s expertise and experience, more and more students are being encouraged to consider a STEM career,” said Mohammad Dakwar, vice president of learning at MATC. “She aims to have greater representation of women and people of color in these industries. With her visionary and strategic leadership style, Dr. Goodwyn ensures that MATC is doing its part to achieve that goal.” Goodwyn has created articulation agreements in STEM programs with Wisconsin universities, helped create a mobile STEM classroom, organized an annual STEM Expo and developed K-12 partnerships to build the STEM pipeline.

ASHLEY MILLER SENIOR INDUSTRIAL ENGINEER PROLEC-GE WAUKESHA INC.

Ashley Miller is a senior industrial engineer at Prolec-GE Waukesha Inc.

Prolec-GE is a joint venture between the Xignux Mexican consortium and General Electric. Prolec creates and sells products related to the generation, transmission and distribution of electrical energy. She is a graduate of both the University of Wisconsin-Platteville and the University of WisconsinMilwaukee.

“Ashley is an incredible leader within Prolec-GE Waukesha and exhibits a ton of pride in her work, her industry and especially furthering women in STEM,” said Elizabeth Sheehan, vice president of operations at Community Smiles Dental. “She seeks out professional and continuing education opportunities for herself, including attending the Society of Women Engineers conference, and locally she supports and leads through volunteering at different STEM programs in schools such as FeMADE. Her passion around STEM shines and it is a topic she loves to discuss at length.”

OLGA IMAS PROFESSOR

MILWAUKEE SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING

Olga Imas, Ph.D., is a professor of biomedical engineering in the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department at Milwaukee School of Engineering. She led the creation of an AI for Emerging Applications Certificate, expanding MSOE’s artificial intelligence education to undergraduates.

She also helped incorporate AI into biomedical engineering. Beginning in the 2023-’24 academic year, the biomedical engineering program will have two curriculum path options, the general path and AI path. Both paths provide foundations across the subdisciplines of biomedical engineering, and the AI path includes a series of courses that further prepares students to pursue career paths involving the areas of data science, machine learning and AI in the medical device industry and biomedical research.

In 2015 Imas was awarded STEM Forward’s STEMMY Award in partnership with GE Healthcare, in recognition of the GE Girls at MSOE program that she helped implement for middle school girls. She is a member of the American Society for Engineering Education, Biomedical Engineering Society and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.

DEANNA LEITZKE ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT OF ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE, CREATE INSTITUTE

MILWAUKEE SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING

DeAnna Leitzke, Ph.D., is a licensed professional engineer with 25 years of experience in the field and classroom. Her work at Milwaukee School of Engineering combined with her involvement on SHARP Literacy’s board of directors plays a critical role in developing the next generation of STEM professionals, according to Lynda Kohler, president and CEO of SHARP Literacy. Leitzke serves as the founding director of MSOE’s CREATE Institute, a center for project-based experiential learning, helping students bridge academic with real-world challenges. The institute partners with nonprofits, K-12 schools and businesses to provide students with the opportunity to use their knowledge to benefit the community.

“This hands-on approach to learning became the hub for MSOE students to broaden their 21st century skillset and positively impact the STEM industry. The CREATE Institute has made it easier for faculty to bring real-world projects that support their community into their classrooms,” Kohler said.

CONGRATULATIONS to MSOE’s Notable Women in STEM!

Dr. Olga Imas Professor of Biomedical Engineering

Dr. DeAnna Leitzke Associate VP of Academic Excellence

Milwaukee School of Engineering is proud to have female leaders in STEM driving innovation and pursuing excellence. MSOE faculty are inspiring generations of future STEM professionals in the classroom and laboratory, and with real-world projects. msoe.edu

KATE TREVEY DIRECTOR, FOTSCH INNOVATION AND ENGINEERING LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT CENTER MARQUETTE UNIVERSITY

Leading Marquette University’s Fotsch Innovation and Engineering Leadership Development Center, Kate Trevey creates programming for undergraduates, lifelong learners and corporate cohorts of engineering talent.

In 2014, Trevey co-founded Marquette’s Excellence in Leadership (E-Lead) program with Kris Ropella, Opus dean of the Opus College of Engineering at Marquette.

E-Lead began as a formal three-year undergraduate leadership curriculum layered on the regular engineering curriculum.

In 2019, Marquette alumni Chuck (former CEO of Cree) and Karen Swoboda challenged the program to double in size (from 20 students to 40 students per cohort) and to open the program to students outside of engineering. The E-Lead Program has since welcomed students from all undergraduate disciplines to work alongside the engineers. Today, E-Lead has 143 total alumni.

Trevey recently led the adaptation of E-Lead’s curriculum for professional audiences. One such effort is Igniting Insights: Innovation Leadership, a seven-week virtual course for professionals across industries. Additionally, Trevey and her team have begun offering custom leadership and innovation development programs for cohorts of engineering talent at companies within the region.

CARRIE BRISTOLLGROLL PRINCIPAL CIVIL ENGINEER AND CEO STORMWATER SOLUTIONS ENGINEERING LLC

Milwaukee’s water technology reputation is due in large part to leaders in government and business, and one of these leaders is Carrie Bristoll-Groll, chief executive officer of Milwaukee-based Stormwater Solutions Engineering.

“She and her company deliver innovative strategies that make our community safer and healthier. The staff at her company, mostly women, is a rarity in the engineering field. She has built a work culture on cultivating the passion of employees, helping them to feel fulfilled and satisfied in their work,” said Tia Torhorst, chief executive officer of Milwaukee Harbor District Inc.

“Carrie lives the example of work-life balance and is always looking for opportunities to learn and grow her own person, her company, and her mentees,” said Adrienne Cizek, senior project engineer at Stormwater Solutions. “She’s a very empowered female boss who loves to raise everyone up in the office. She wants to see everyone improving and growing and sharing knowledge with each other.”

DAWN WANKOWSKI ASSISTANT PROFESSOR CARDINAL STRITCH UNIVERSITY

Dawn Wankowski, assistant professor at Cardinal Stritch University in Fox Point has served as a faculty member since 2002. Her academic areas of expertise include anatomy and physiology, cell biology, environmental biology and immunology.

In her role as faculty advisor of Stritch’s Pre-Professional Group student organization, she mentors students who are interested in pursuing health care careers. Wankowski works with biology and chemistry students to identify internships that will complement their academic experience and develop their professional networks. She also helped plan the Blazing the Trail to Healthcare event that introduced high school students to nursing and health care academic degrees and career opportunities. In addition, Wankowski serves as faculty lead for the annual Stritch Service Day and as a mentor for a student team that participated in the Kapco Charitable Challenge.

As the vice president of the Stritch Faculty Council, she works with faculty from other disciplines as well as the university administration to help faculty meet students’ educational needs.

Dawn Wankowski

NOTABLE WOMAN IN STEM

The entire Cardinal Stritch University family congratulates you on this welldeserved recognition and thanks you for all you do for our University and students. You are the personification of the Franciscan values that have defined Stritch for more than 85 years.

ANGELA FREY PROFESSOR OF BIOLOGY AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE CENTER FOR ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE ALVERNO COLLEGE

Angela Frey has served as a professor of biology at Alverno College in Milwaukee since 1999. She previously held the title of STEM chair, and currently serves as executive director of the Center for Academic Excellence.

In these roles, Frey was involved in the mentorship of young women in STEM and helped provide access to STEM education to women and underrepresented populations.

“Angela is a true innovator. Being around her when she’s ideating about STEM education is inspiring. She is always looking for new ways to support Alverno students and encourage excellence in STEM education on campus,” said Meghan Walsh, dean of the School of Adult Learning and New Initiatives at Alverno.

In 2021, Frey helped pursue a grant from the National Science Foundation for nearly $500,000 to launch Alverno’s Truchan STEM Community Impact Program, which is designed to improve student retention in STEM fields and educate women to succeed in these careers. The project will engage 400 Alverno STEM students.

Frey was the campus liaison to the Wisconsin Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation from 2007-’22.

JOANNA JOY THEKKUMPURAM MANUFACTURING ENGINEER II WACKER NEUSON AMERICA CORP.

Joanna Joy Thekkumpuram began her career in 2018 as a manufacturing engineer at Wacker Neuson in Menomonee Falls.

“Over the past five years, Joanna has become a high performing member of the operations team by supporting assembly through process design and line design,” said Jon Lubner, director of manufacturing at Wacker Neuson.

In early 2022, Thekkumpuram supported the launch of a new production line for Wacker Neuson’s utility track loader, a stand-on mini loader. Due to the early success surrounding the UTL product, she led two iterations of capacity increases over a 12-month span.

“By applying the tools of industrial engineering, engaging operators, and working with the broader support team, she was able to successfully deliver a production line capable of producing eight times the original planned production volume,” said Lubner. Thekkumpuram also focused on another key assembly line to increase capacity by 20% during the same time frame, according to Lubner.

N OTA BLE WOMEN I N STEM

Presents:

APRIL 20, 2023

7:00am – Registration & Networking

7:30am-10:30am – Breakfast & Program

Italian Community Center

Prepare for the Future Today

Join us April 20th for a look at the issues shaping the future of Milwaukee County. A growing megaregion, demographic shifts, artificial intelligence, and continued advancement in automation, will all take center stage as topics that will either advance or limit the growth of Milwaukee County over the next 30 years. Take advantage of this opportunity to step back from day-to-day challenges and get an understanding what it will take to propel your business forward in the coming decades.

The program starts with a keynote presentation focused on future-proofing Milwaukee County. Business futurist Geoffrey Kasselman, CEO of Op2mize Energy, will cover underlying drivers of change, challenges and opportunities for Milwaukee County and the region, and potential strategies in areas like infrastructure, housing, employment, education, mobility and regional competition.

A panel with business and community leaders discussing a range of issues and breakout sessions will follow the keynote.

Make plans now; you’ll leave the morning with new perspectives and ideas to incorporate into your long-range planning and strategic thinking.

Panelists:

• David Crowley, County Executive, Milwaukee County (1)

• Abby Kursel, Partner, gener8tor (2)

James Phelps, President, JCP Construction (3)

Sponsor:

Keeping tabs on remote workers

Accountability is key

REMOTE WORK, which exploded during the past two years, isn’t going away anytime soon. Although many companies are requesting their employees return to the office, the idea of coming in to work five days a week just isn’t appealing to a significant number of employees.

According to a Gallup survey, it’s anticipated that during the next year the amount of hybrid employees will increase to about 53% of the total U.S. workforce. It appears that even if companies bring back some of the 100% remote employees, a hybrid solution is the best compromise to our current environment.

I’m not telling you anything new that employees have gotten used to the flexibility of not having to commute, being readily available for doctor appointments, children’s events and general home-life activities. However, many managers are frustrated with not being able to access their employees when they need them. A hybrid of three days in the office, two days at home may provide the best of both worlds.

Some employees also admit that there are downsides to being totally remote. These same employees are skeptical if they will be eligible for promotions. Those individuals working from home are not as quick to sign up for a class or take on additional responsibility when offered. This will hurt their career advancement chances. I know some employees feel they are overworked at home since they never really turn off their computer. However, there needs to be a balance of job tasks, new projects and regular interaction with the staff and management.

How do we charge up our remote staff to go the extra mile in being part of a team? Human beings

need to interact with others and get feedback. Socialization with those who are on our work teams is what makes a job fun and engaging. Without regular interaction with the people in your work group, daily responsibilities become very task oriented and unfulfilling. Additionally, consider those initiatives that are intended to be done “when we have time.” Logically, the individuals who are in the office will be the first ones tapped on the shoulder to pick up this work. If you are not present, not in the office, you miss those opportunities to be part of project teams which bring a great opportunity for exposure to other areas and senior level management.

Here are suggestions for employees to become a better partner in your teams:

1. Build relationships. Reach out for one-on-one conversations with co-workers, introduce yourself to others on web calls if you have not met before, offer your assistance to others if you hear if someone is overwhelmed with their current workload.

2. Take training classes. With your manager, identify if there are skill gaps in areas of the organization – step up to the plate and offer to take the time to learn something new.

3. Be available when most of the other employees are in the office so that you are regularly accessible. In Microsoft Teams, be sure your status is set as “available” as much as possible.

Managers have been stuck in a dilemma of not finding talent to get their jobs filled. Therefore, they have brought in benefits such as remote work and unlimited PTO. Companies who have stretched to accommodate new candidate requests, are now starting to regret it. Management is concerned about the business and meeting organizational goals. Companies need employees who are dedicated to getting the job done. Without a successful and profitable company, employees will not have a place to go to work.

The following items are suggestions for managers to implement in order to hold their staff accountable in getting the work done:

1. Pin down remote work policies and procedures. Put a section in your company employee handbook detailing what level or jobs are

allowed to work remotely. Also, have each remote or hybrid employee complete an agreement to indicate which days (normally) they will be working from home and which days they will be in the office.

2. Ensure there is regular communication with each of your remote employees. Set up a time to check in every week. This will allow the manager to ask about accomplishments related to established goals. Additionally, regular touchbase conversations provide the opportunity to develop personal and meaningful relationships. It truly makes a difference if the employee feels they have a relationship with their boss.

3. Find ways to bring your staff into the office. Hold lunch and learns or after-hour gatherings. Create contests or group activities where the staff wants to come into the office and interact with the team.

In summary, both the employee and management need to take steps to include the remote or hybrid employee into organization life and company goals. Without opportunities to connect with co-workers, the company culture, values and organizational performance will suffer. n

NICOLE SCHMIDT

Nicole Schmidt is a human resources consultant and the owner of Reward Strategies LLC (hrrewardstrategies.net). Previously, she was a global compensation manager for A.O. Smith. She can be reached at rewardstrategies@yahoo.net.

Charles Miller Chief commercial officer Evans Transportation Services

“In our business, we have to be available to jump into the fire when our customers need us most. That’s often at the end of a month, a quarter or year. It’s often a team of installers, or a construction team, or a production line waiting for the product they need to do their jobs. It’s the after-hours call when they need a real solution. That’s what we live for, and we embrace this because it’s what hopefully separates us from a very crowded field of competitors. But that doesn’t mean our team never sleeps or takes time for themselves and their families. In fact, time away from the office is a huge priority for us. We make it a priority so that when the moment comes when we need to go the extra mile, we have the will and the energy to happily jump into the fire and go to battle for our clients. Happy hours, ballgames, extremely competitive policies for paid time off, flexible work arrangement – those are just some of the things we do to help create balance. We also encourage our team to bring their families to events. For us, it’s a lot less about worklife balance as it is about finding ways to enjoy both sides of life more fully.”

How does your company promote work-life balance?

Todd Meissner President Color Ink

“In this post-pandemic era, we are finding ourselves catering to the needs of employees more than ever to optimize their work-life balance. Remote work is prevalent for some of our staff, simply by the nature of their job, or healthand family-related issues requiring them to work from home. The COVID-19 pandemic really placed an emphasis on the need to stay home if you are sick and to protect others in the workplace. Most recently, flexibility of hours has become an important factor for many. Those nearing retirement still want to work but are opting for reduced hours so that they can test the waters of retirement without experiencing the immediate lifestyle change that comes with it.

“Our company has really loosened the adherence to specific start and finish times for each shift. Daycare, school transportation, home responsibilities and after-work activities account for most of these changes. Carpooling to work has been another recent trend due to the rise of fuel prices. We also have a significant group of part-timers who opt out of benefits and choose to work seasonally so they can choose when to work and take extended periods of time off without repercussion. We believe that creating a clean, organized and modern work environment also goes a long way in contributing to our employees’ happiness and health. Five years ago, we started providing yoga classes to our employees free of charge to reduce stress and promote good health.”

David Corsaut President and chief executive officer Glenroy Inc.

“Promoting a culture of health and wellness is a key element to success. We often remind everyone (myself included) that it’s OK to take time for yourself. Too often, we get caught up in our dayto-day tasks that we forget about our own needs. Through our internal channels, we communicate tips about scheduling a few hours of ‘me time’ every week, whether that means going for a walk, reading a book or indulging in your favorite hobby. It’s important for all of us to prioritize our own physical and mental health. Another important factor of maintaining a work-life balance is setting boundaries. My workday may look different than others within the company. And that’s OK. Whether it’s setting time limits for when you check emails, declining after-hours meetings, or setting firm start and end times for your workday, it’s important for everyone to set clear boundaries so that you don’t get overwhelmed.

“It’s also helpful to plan for vacations and days off. Vacation time is meant to be used so you can rest and recharge. Giving yourself permission to take a break is just as important as keeping up with your workload. Finally, we frequently talk about the importance of knowing when to ask for help. While you may feel like you need to do everything yourself, enlisting the help of colleagues or asking your boss for some extra time to complete a project can be huge. Sometimes asking for help or keeping an open communication dialogue within your team can make all the difference in maintaining a healthy work-life balance.” n

BIZ PEOPLE Advertising Section: New Hires, Promotions, Accolades and Board Appointments

ARCHITECTURE

AG Announces New Senior Associate AG Architecture is pleased to announce the promotion of Justin Koeppler to Senior Associate. Justin has been a member of the AG Design Team for over eight years. He strives to foster a collaborative design process with clients and team members and provide exceptional environments for the communities and residents AG serves. He combines his construction knowledge with his visualization skills to create a design advantage, presenting client solutions that are innovative and buildable. As a Senior Associate Justin will provide valuable insights and leadership to support the future success of AG.

ARCHITECTURE

AG Announces New Senior Associate

AG Architecture

is pleased to announce the promotion of Hailey Schwobe, AIA to Senior Associate. Hailey has over ten years of project management experience on largescale architectural projects across market sectors. She is a valued and trusted team member respected by colleagues and clients for her knowledge, attention to detail and exceptional communication skills. Hailey believes project success relies on the ability to recognize and listen to the multiple inputs and different voices coming into a single project. She looks forward to bringing this holistic approach to helping build consensus around firm goals.

CONSTRUCTION

CG Schmidt welcomes Jeremy Theis as the Managing Director of the firm’s Healthcare Division. With over 20 years in the planning, design and construction industry, Theis will develop growth strategies to drive successful outcomes for the firm’s healthcare clients. Most recently, he was Director of Planning, Design and Construction for the Medical College of Wisconsin where he managed over 30 education, research and healthcare capital projects. Theis is a recognized real estate planning and development leader, a registered Professional Engineer in the State of Wisconsin and is active in the Milwaukee community.

HEALTHCARE

SMG is Proud to Announce a Promotion!

SMG is pleased to announce that Victoria Pagan has earned a well-deserved promotion from Claims Supervisor to Claims Manager. Victoria brings extensive experience in claims reviewing, processing, and payment. Congratulations on your new role!

COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE Collings Joins Borgman Capital as Vice President –Real Estate Kemp Collings joins private equity firm Borgman Capital as vice president-Real Estate. He brings a decade of business experience to source and execute real estate acquisitions, and support real estate initiatives for Borgman’s portfolio companies.

INSURANCE

FINANCIAL SERVICES

Dunker Joins

Robertson Ryan & Associates Board of Directors

Robertson Ryan & Associates recently welcomed Jim Dunker, an agent owner in WI, to their Board of Directors. Jim has been in the insurance industry for 35+ years and holds the designation of Certified Insurance Counselor. He joined RRA in 2008.

LEGAL SERVICES

von Briesen & Roper, s.c. welcomes Michael Sherer to its Waukesha office.

Michaels joins our Labor and Employment Law Section and focuses his practice on employment litigation, employment law counseling, collective bargaining, contract administration, and representation before the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

Chortek LLP

Promotes Eric Neuman to Partner

Chortek LLP is thrilled to announce Eric Neuman’s promotion to partner. He will manage the operations of the Assurance & Accounting department. He will also be an active participant in determining the firm’s strategic direction. Congrats, Eric!

HEALTHCARE

Michael Best Strategies

Welcomes Kim Allen to Healthcare Innovation Team

Kimberly Allen has joined Michael Best Strategies’ Healthcare Innovation Group as an Innovation & Strategy Principal. Allen is a veteran healthcare executive with nearly 30 years of experience across all commercial business lines.

Presents:

Wednesday, June 7, 2023

Brookfield Conference Center Join

biztimes.com/family

Sponsors:

MILWAUKEE CHAMBER THEATRE HITS FUNDRAISING GOAL, TO PROCEED WITH 2023-‘24 SEASON

Milwaukee Chamber Theatre announced that it has reached the first benchmark in its ongoing Sustainability Campaign fundraising effort, achieving more than $1.5 million in pledges for new and increased support for this and the next two fiscal years.

As a result, MCT will proceed with its 2023-‘24 season, to be announced in late March or early April when the renewal period for season subscribers opens.

“More than 700 individual donors stepped forward to keep MCT going and affirmed the value of a theater committed to the local,” said Marina Krejci, president of the MCT board of trustees.

In the face of a projected 35% operating deficit for fiscal year 2023, MCT’s Sustainability Campaign was announced on Feb. 14 and is intended to create a stable financial foundation for the company over the next three seasons. Later that month, MCT announced a $150,000 challenge match as part of the Sustainability Campaign to avoid closure outright.

“We could not have done this without the generous challenge match from Caran and Joel Quadracci, Donna and Donald Baumgartner, and the Herzfeld Foundation, each a visionary philanthropist committed to keeping Milwaukee’s arts and culture ecology rich and vibrant,” said Krejci.

Those in the performing arts are still feeling the COVID-19 pandemic’s impacts deeply, as studies project audiences won’t return fully to pre-pandemic levels until later in 2024, said Brent Hazelton, artistic director of MCT. To that end, MCT needs time and space to adapt to a new marketplace, he added.

“For us, creating that space sustainably involved reaching out for help to our community,” said Hazelton. “The amazing response in such an incredibly short period of time is a tremendous positive referendum … and we’re grateful for the opportunity this creates for us to do the hard work that lies ahead to create a truly sustainable institution.”

— Lelah Byron, staff writer

COURAGE MKE

1544 S. 6th St., Milwaukee, WI 53204 414-240-2882 | Couragemke.org

Facebook: facebook.com/CourageMke

Twitter: @Courage_MKE | LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/couragemke

Year founded: 2015 Mission statement: Courage MKE fuels a collaborative movement to provide the resources LGBTQ+ youth need to thrive.

DONATION ROUNDUP

The Pabst Theater Group donated $30,000 each to Milwaukee Area Domestic Animal Control and ArtWorks for Milwaukee by selling more than 100 historic Pabst Theater chairs that were recently replaced. | The Above & Beyond Children’s Museum in Sheboygan received two matching donations of $25,000 each from an anonymous donor and received $11,000 from a fundraiser held by 3 Sheeps Brewing Co. to recover lost revenue from admissions during the museum’s closure, caused by ice and water damage. | Eight female brewery representatives from nine different breweries spanning the Midwest collaborated to celebrate Women’s Month and have committed to match donations up to $2,000 for Sojourner Family Peace Center, in Milwaukee, the largest nonprofit provider of domestic violence prevention and intervention services in Wisconsin. | BILTRITE Furniture-Leather-Mattresses, which was recently named 2023 Retailer of the Year under 50 employees by the Home Furnishings Association, celebrated the award by donating $5,000 each to the Milwaukee Homeless Veterans Initiative and the Grand Avenue Club of Milwaukee.

Primary focus of your nonprofit organization: Our primary focus is providing housing for displaced LGBTQ+ youth (12-17) that are in the social welfare system. In late 2023, we will extend our programing to LGBTQ+ young adults (18-24) that are aging out of the system or are homeless. Our goal at Courage MKE is to reset the expectation of how group homes operate. We use a trauma-informed model with restorative justice practices, creating a sense of community and family. In 2022, the average length of stay for our residents was 168 days.

Other focuses of your nonprofit organization: Courage MKE believes that everyone should have access to post high school education whether through a trade school, certificate program or four-year university. Since 2015, we have provided over $29,000 in scholarships for post high school education.

Number of employees at this location: 16

Key donors: Jesse Mendelsohn and Dr. Anthony Porcelli, The

Fotsch Family, Kohl’s Corp., Target, Milliman, Mind Right Realty

Executive leadership: Brad Schlaikowski, co-founder and executive director; Jean Northway, program director

Board of directors: Dan Terrio, president; Robin Matchett-Schmidt, vice president; Sean Sullivan, treasurer; Andrea Aschtgen, secretary; Nick Schlaikowski; Pablo Navarro; Jamila Dawn Mitchell; Broderick Pearson; Lynne DixonSpeller; KB Bjerk; Erin Fay; Jaci Ruben

Is your organization actively seeking board members for the upcoming term? Yes

What roles are you looking to fill?

We are looking to fill member and treasurer roles.

Ways the business community can help your nonprofit: Nearly 40% of our annual revenue comes from private (individual and corporate) donations. Donations can be made at give.couragemke.org. We are also seeking Corporate Sponsors for our 2023 Gala.

Key fundraising events: 2023 Gala: Ohana, Nov. 3 at the Milwaukee County Zoo

The Glorioso brothers

This undated photo shows the Glorioso brothers, Teddy, Eddie and Joe. The brothers started Glorioso Brothers Foods at 1018 E. Brady St. in Milwaukee on Valentine’s Day in 1946. The store, now known as Glorioso’s Italian Market, moved from its original 1,500-square-foot space to a 10,000-square-foot space across the street in 2010.

— Photo courtesy of Glorioso’s Italian Market

COMMENTARY

Impressive turnaround for WCD

AT LONG LAST, the downtown Milwaukee convention center has a naming rights sponsor.

The Wisconsin Center District, which owns and operates the convention center that opened in 1998 and was originally known as the Midwest Express Center, has been seeking a corporate sponsor for the name of the facility since 2013. There were no takers, so it has been called the Wisconsin Center for the past decade.

Until now. Milwaukee-based multinational investment bank and financial services company Robert W. Baird & Co. has agreed to be the naming rights sponsor for the facility, which starting next year will be known as the Baird Center, under a pending 15-year deal.

Baird is an extremely prestigious brand. In 2021, the firm had 4,700 employes, revenue of $3.4 billion and operating income of $609 million, with more than 160 offices in the U.S., plus offices in London and Singapore.

And the fact that Baird’s executives think it would be good for their brand to have its name on the downtown Milwaukee convention center says a lot about the direction that the Wisconsin Center District is heading under its president and CEO Marty Brooks. He came to lead the WCD in 2018 after serving as senior VP and GM for the America’s Center Complex in St. Louis.

Brooks’ most impressive accomplishment in Milwaukee was finding a way to finally move forward with plans to expand the convention center, an effort that has been stalled for many years.

Construction on the $456 million expansion project began in 2021. When complete, the Baird Center will have 52 meeting rooms, a 300,000-square-foot exhibit hall and a new rooftop ballroom with seating for 2,000 and outdoor terraces. The larger facility will be able to host more and larger events.

The project is scheduled to be complete next year, in time for the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.

While the RNC’s main stage will be at Fiserv Forum, the convention will use numerous venues in Milwaukee, including the Baird Center. It will be a huge opportunity for Milwaukee and the Wisconsin Center District to show the world that the city and its newly expanded convention

VOLUME 28, NUMBER 18 | MAR 27, 2023

126 N. Jefferson St., Suite 403, Milwaukee, WI 53202-6120

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PUBLISHER / OWNER

Dan Meyer dan.meyer@biztimes.com

DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS

Mary Ernst mary.ernst@biztimes.com

COMMUNITY

ENGAGEMENT / OWNER Kate Meyer kate.meyer@biztimes.com

EDITORIAL

EDITOR

Andrew Weiland andrew.weiland@biztimes.com

MANAGING EDITOR Arthur Thomas arthur.thomas@biztimes.com

ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Maredithe Meyer maredithe.meyer@biztimes.com

REPORTER Ashley Smart ashley.smart@biztimes.com

REPORTER

Cara Spoto cara.spoto@biztimes.com

REPORTER

Lelah Byron lelah.byron@biztimes.com

SALES & MARKETING

DIRECTOR OF SALES

Linda Crawford linda.crawford@biztimes.com

SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

Christie Ubl christie.ubl@biztimes.com

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Paddy Kieckhefer paddy.kieckhefer@biztimes.com

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

Dylan Dobson dylan.dobson@biztimes.com

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

Christy Peterson christy.peterson@biztimes.com

SALES ADMIN Gracie Schneble gracie.schneble@biztimes.com

ADMINISTRATION

ADMINISTRATIVE COORDINATOR Sue Herzog sue.herzog@biztimes.com

PRODUCTION & DESIGN

SENIOR GRAPHIC DESIGNER Alex Schneider alex.schneider@biztimes.com

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center is a great destination site to host major conventions and events.

“I’ve spoken to my counterparts in Philadelphia, Cleveland, Minneapolis. (Hosting a national political convention) truly does boost lead generation for other meetings and conventions, it boosts leisure travel. It also spurs economic development,” said VISIT Milwaukee president and CEO Peggy Williams-Smith.

And the RNC will be the first great branding opportunity for Baird as the naming rights sponsor for the convention center.

“This agreement fits with our ongoing efforts to build Baird’s brand across our global footprint,” said Baird chairman and CEO Steve Booth.

Baird’s sponsorship is yet another sign that things are looking up for the Wisconsin Center District and the city’s tourism industry. n

ANDREW WEILAND

EDITOR

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/ andrew.weiland@biztimes.com

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5 MINUTES WITH… JACKIE Q. CARTER

JACKIE Q. CARTER took office as the City of Milwaukee’s new municipal port director in late February. She was tapped for the role by Mayor Cavalier Johnson, following the resignation of Adam Tindall-Schlicht, who assumed a White House appointment late last year as administrator of the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corp. Serving 15 years with the City of Milwaukee, including the past five as the port’s finance and administration officer, Carter takes the helm amid rising tides, with the nearly complete $40 million DeLong Co. agricultural maritime export facility and increased Great Lakes cruise activity at the port. Carter, the first woman and person of color to serve in the role, recently spoke to BizTimes Milwaukee associate editor Maredithe Meyer about her priorities for Port Milwaukee.

CONTINUED CRUISE SHIP MOMENTUM

“One of the things we’ve been working on – and we’ve gotten the final piece of funding for – is building that South Shore Cruise Dock south of Jones Island. Right behind the Lake Express Ferry, there’s a parcel of land that has a deep-water draft that we need for some of the larger ships, like Viking. We have some cruise ships that are able to dock on the south face of that terminal, but we have to do work on the infrastructure to be able to use the east face. So that’s one of the things that we’ll be doing is making space for, not just Viking who is already docking at Port Milwaukee, but for some of the newer ships that are being built for the

Great Lakes, so that they know this is a place where we have the infrastructure, we have the teams in place, we have the resources. Milwaukee is very excited to welcome cruise passengers, so the businesses are on board and all the different community partners that we work with are excited to help us market Milwaukee.”

GRANT FUNDING REMAINS KEY

“Port Milwaukee has been very successful in acquiring grants to support some of our work, our infrastructure needs. The city supports us through the capital program, but the way we try to leverage the dollars the city gives us is through grants, and so being strategic about how we use those and what we apply for, and also being mindful − now with so many opportunities for our tenants and partners to be eligible for some of those funds − working with them to make sure they’re going after those opportunities as well.”

ON THE PORT’S ROLE AS A ‘CONNECTOR’

“The thing that I really want to focus on is building on what we’ve already done. The port has done a lot of things really well, so of course making sure that our resources are being used as effectively as we can, but also connecting with businesses. The port has gotten a lot of press around cruising, there’s been press around my appointment, press around the DeLong agricultural facility, and so building on that and using that to make sure businesses in the region are aware of what we’re able to do and then connecting with them to see if there’s a space where we can support them. That’s really what the port exists to do, to be a connector for businesses and customers, getting regional products to international markets and getting products needed in the region from the international markets. That’s what the focus is going to be – making sure people understand why we exist, what we’re able to offer and looking for ways to partner.” n

Municipal port director, City of Milwaukee

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