Brown County saw a healthy mix of development countywide in 2024, and that will continue moving into 2025.
Lisa Jossart, vice president of economic development for the Greater Green Bay Chamber, says 2024 wrapped up strong, with a diverse mix of more than 30 business expansions in the area, slightly ahead of 2023.
A good portion of these expansions was in the manufacturing sector, she says, spurred by the long-awaited South Bridge Connector project that’s now underway. The project extends from Packerland Drive in the town of Lawrence to a new I-41 interchange. Across the Fox River, it will connect to County Trunk Highways GV and X in the town of Ledgeview.
“There are certainly areas in proximity to the [South Bridge] that are just booming like in De Pere, and the number of existing companies expanding in the manufacturing space is really strong,” Jossart says. “That South Bridge is going to open up a whole level of commerce that’s going to be good for the whole region.”
Brown County is working with the city of De Pere and the towns of Ledgeview and Lawrence on the project, which aims to address congestion in the vicinity of the existing Fox River bridges, accommodate increasing traffic, reduce travel time and increase safety.
The closest Fox River bridge near the project area is in downtown De Pere, which Brown County Planning Director Cole Runge says is roughly two miles north. This is problematic as areas south of De Pere, including Lawrence and Ledgeview, have been identified as high-growth areas.
“That was rebuilt in 2007, and it’s reached its forecasted volumes already, so this facility will help relieve congestion in downtown De Pere, not just based on the traffic that’s using it today, but also what we’re forecasting to exist 20 years and beyond in this area,” he says.
Runge describes the South Bridge Connector project as a single project made up of seven interlinking projects, six of which are county-led and all of which are underway in some form. The entire project is scheduled for completion in 2029.
“The good news is we’re designing all the sections right now,” Runge says. “The construction of the first section we intend to build, which is on the far west end, will begin in 2025.”
City of De Pere Community and Economic Development Specialist Quasan Shaw says the South Bridge project is opening up opportunities for companies looking to expand or move into the area.
“We are getting a lot of calls and doing a lot of tours with developers and brokers from the Valley, the Milwaukee area and around the state,” he says.
Runge says the project has been a significant catalyst for development, specifically industrial and business development. Recent developments in De Pere have included Georgia-Pacific’s $50 million distribution center, UnitedHealth Group’s $35 million building along I-41, a new addition to the Green Bay Packaging Folding Carton Facility and AmeriLux’s $40 million expansion in the city’s eastside business park.
“In the city of De Pere, for instance, we know that a significant amount of investment has occurred … as a result of this project being identified in 2020,” Runge says, “and now that it’s in the process of being built, I think additional development is being planned in that area as well.”
Other notable developments in Brown County include:
- Georgia-Pacific put its former Day Street paper mill up for sale in October. In January, representatives of the company told the city of Green Bay’s plan commission they were soon expecting developers to submit letters of intent or offers to purchase the 50-acre site located on downtown Green Bay’s east side. About a dozen local, regional and national developers have toured the site since October, representatives said.
- NOVA Green Bay broke ground in December. The 8-story, mixed-use, multifamily building on Cherry Street will add 268 luxury apartment units to downtown Green Bay.
- Brown County is considering moving the Aging & Disability Resource Center and Bay Area Workforce Development Board’s job center to the Brown County Central Library in downtown Green Bay. “It would be a combined-use resource hub for a lot of different people, including job seekers,” Runge says. A decision on the potential consolidation is expected this spring.
- Main Avenue in downtown De Pere is scheduled for reconstruction starting in 2027. The WIS 32 project is located west of the Fox River in the city of De Pere between Eighth Street and the Claude Allouez Bridge. “It would be rebuilding the street and adding pedestrian features, so it’s a beautification project in addition to road reconstruction,” Shaw says. A public involvement meeting was held in January, a step toward finalizing a preliminary project design this summer.
