It wasn’t long ago that Manitowoc County’s future didn’t seem that bright. The loss of two major employers within the space of a few years — Mirro and Manitowoc Company — hit the city hard.
“If you did a story on Manitowoc 10 years ago, you probably were writing about how we’re close to being a ghost town,” says Manitowoc Mayor Justin Nickels. “Even though we had some legacy companies, it wasn’t looking good. And it’s changed drastically.”
With economic development as a top priority, “we really tried to pivot after that and focus a lot on our local businesses and what we can do to bring businesses in,” Nickels says.
Now, Manitowoc’s industrial park is full. The city has purchased another 90 acres along the interstate for future development so “if a business comes and says they want to locate to Manitowoc, we’ve got space for them,” he says.
Manitowoc also has seen the arrival of companies like bullet-maker Ammo, Inc., which employs 275 workers. Legacy companies like Kaysun Corporation, Lakeside Foods, Wisconsin Aluminum Foundry and Durham — which all have hundreds of employees — “have just seen a renaissance in Manitowoc,” Nickels says. Lakeside Foods has invested about $70 million over the last couple of years, and Wisconsin Aluminum Foundry — the largest aluminum foundry in the state — is completing the largest expansion in its 125-year history, Nickels says.
“I could name 15 other businesses that just have grown, moved to, expanded. And one key point is the city has really been supportive of all those businesses,” he says.
The last decade “gave us opportunities to invest in our downtown, revitalize our lakefront and riverfront, which is something that’s unique to our community,” Nickels says.
Among the updates in downtown areas within Manitowoc County:
- Progress on Manitowoc’s Wisconsin Maritime Museum’s new Wisconsin Maritime Heritage Center continues in a restored building a couple of blocks from the museum’s main location. It will focus on shipwreck history and include hands-on exhibits, Nickels says.
- In downtown Kiel, a large renovation of the historic A.A. Laun Lumber Company building on Fremont Street is underway. The new Lumberyard Brewery and Events venue is expected to be open by the end of April, with a capacity of 275 in the event space, 100 in the brewhouse and 150 in the taproom, says Ann Flad-Jesion, director of entrepreneurship & business development for Progress Lakeshore.
- In the Two Rivers downtown area, a new specialty boutique hotel with a spa for healthy drinks and craft cocktails is planned, adding to the growth of the hospitality and tourism market, says Elizabeth Runge, community development director for the city of Two Rivers.
Two Rivers is continuing to look toward diversifying growth and helping entrepreneurs find spaces to start up, “because we don’t have a lot of open spaces in our downtown,” Runge says. “So we’re trying to work with them and come up with creative ways to assist them and find them space.”
Other projects
Two Rivers recently saw two projects in its Woodland Industrial Park, Runge says. One is a new wood truss factory from the company Braun, which provides trusses for many construction projects within Manitowoc County. “It’s a huge win for us to have them expanding,” she says. “They were located elsewhere [in Manitowoc], but they’re just building a larger factory here in our industrial park, so we’re thrilled for that addition.” The project will be underway this spring.
Another project, a renewable energy and energy storage operation, is undergoing evaluation for a 10-acre site within the park, Runge says.
A trade-focused incubator called Growth Garage opened in 2023 on 34th Street in Two Rivers, she says. The incubator, owned by Dave Kalista, has space for three trade startups — as well as additional storage space — and “he’s completely full already.”
Housing
Runge says Two Rivers is continuing development of the Sandy Bay Highlands subdivision of single-family homes, adding infrastructure to make more lots available by fall. “Each lot would be sold and then the folks who buy the lots have their own designer and developer come in and build for them,” she says.
Two Rivers also has been working on the 54-unit West River Lofts project on property that formerly housed the Eggers West plant. That project has been delayed by the discovery of PFAS contamination, but additional soil sampling is underway and “the DNR is addressing the protocol with the results of this additional sampling and what will need to be done,” Runge says.
Also in Two Rivers, plans have been approved for a 71-unit multifamily apartment development by CR Structures, on the East Twin River with preliminary plans for construction to start in fall. Most units will have some view of Lake Michigan, Runge says.
Jamie Zastrow, executive director of Progress Lakeshore, says new developments include River Landing Waterfront Homes in Manitowoc’s River Point District by developers Abby and Dan Diederichs, and Mike Howe Builders, which is developing homes that target the starter-home or empty-nester market.
“There are some (projects) in the negotiation stage around affordable and workforce housing as well,” Zastrow says. A housing study reinforced that “we really need all levels of homes from workforce and affordable to market-rate housing,” she says.
The recent 87-unit River North apartment complex in downtown Manitowoc built by Allie Family Companies was full within a couple of months, Nickels says. The city is working with developers on more projects.
“Economic development has been our top priority,” Nickels says. “Downtown has been a priority, but moving forward, housing is going to be the absolute top priority because we have all these jobs. We have a place people actually want to move to now, and we’ve got to make sure they have a home.”
