Two long‑term economic development goals in Oshkosh took major strides forward in recent months, setting the table for potentially historic investments at Wittman Regional Airport and the city’s downtown.
The development at Wittman has been 20 years in the making, according to Tricia Rathermel, president and CEO of the Greater Oshkosh Economic Development Corporation. After a federal grant helped identify opportunities to diversify the local economy, the Oshkosh Aviation Business Park was created and gained runway access in 2021.
Rathermel says challenges remained.
“A lot of it was just needing to find the right fit. Most people don’t want to build on an airport because on a public airport you don’t own the land. You have a land lease,” she says.
Representatives of Volare Hangars, an Arizona‑based private investment and development company, recognized the opportunity after attending the Experimental Aircraft Association’s annual AirVenture Oshkosh held at Wittman. Volare develops premium mixed‑use aircraft storage facilities nationwide, with 1.5 million square feet completed or underway.
An agreement with Winnebago County calls for Volare Aviation LLC to lease the land for 50 years for 35 cents per buildable square foot and develop the entire 80 acres in phases. It could generate up to $614,000 per year.
Airport Director Jim Schell says it would be the largest expansion in the airport’s history.
Rathermel says the development will offer a mixture of opportunities for private pilots and corporate transportation as well as aviation services and manufacturing.
“It’s one of the things I like about this project,” Rathermel says. “We’ll have the ability to bring in people who are creating end products or components for the aviation industry. We also have the opportunity to bring in businesses that might be repair or maintenance.”
Rathermel says the next step is to understand the market need, and hosting half a million aviation buffs and professionals at AirVenture annually will help with that. Volare understands the unique opportunity at Wittman and potentially will incorporate decks atop hangars for people to watch the airshows that are part of AirVenture.
City Center identified as catalyst
Changes in the retail and office market in downtown Oshkosh have resulted in an underutilized space in the City Center. The former shopping center has 1,000 feet of frontage along the Fox River and has undergone some rebranding over the years.
It has included event space, offices and retailers, but a 2024 study of the downtown identified it as a “catalyst site” that could help generate growth downtown if it was redeveloped.
“A majority of our office users in that space have left,” Rathermel says. Some of the businesses relocated in the city; others have a reduced need for office space with more remote work.
The history of the site has been one of periodic renewal, according to Rathermel, who explains it went from industrial to retail to office space and each time brought more value to the downtown. That history, Rathermel says, leads to the question: “How does this site come back better?”
“One of the goals is to increase the assessed value of the site and bring additional tax revenue. Of course, housing does contribute to that if we incorporate housing into the site. I do know we want to bring some traffic back into the downtown,” Rathermel says.
That could take many forms such as a mix of retail, office and housing with public space along the river.
Rathermel urged the city of Oshkosh to purchase the site, saying it would make phased development more feasible and allow for a wider variety of funding sources. The city council tentatively approved purchasing the City Center for $12.5 million in late May.
“The city’s potential investment in City Center reflects our commitment to creating a vibrant, mixed‑use destination that strengthens downtown Oshkosh and supports long‑term economic growth,” says Kathy Griese, economic development services manager for the city of Oshkosh. “This is a significant opportunity to position a key riverfront site for redevelopment that benefits residents, businesses and the community as a whole.”
Housing not overlooked
Winnebago County created a $4.5 million Housing Development Revolving Loan fund and recently announced the GOEDC would manage the program.
“The housing market is not able to meet the needs of the community,” Rathermel says, adding that public intervention is needed.
It’s estimated that there is a need for 10,000 additional housing units in Winnebago County to grow its workforce population.
While the parameters and guidelines for the revolving loan fund are still being worked out, Rathermel says it will focus on affordable, single‑family housing and is intended to be sustainable. As developers repay the loans, it will be reinvested through additional loans.
Not all bricks and mortar
GOEDC also has taken steps to foster a culture of innovation. That priority came out of the five‑year plan GOEDC released in November.
The Innovation Foundry is a collaboration between GOEDC, the UW Oshkosh Center for Entrepreneurship and Economic Development and the Small Business Development Center at UW Oshkosh. It secured a $150,000 Small Business Technical Assistance grant from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation. It partners small business owners with UWO students and through artificial intelligence tools helps them bring new products to market.
“We do think it differentiates our community from others,” Rathermel says. “We are actively helping our businesses to innovate and grow.”
Learn more at InDevelopment
Learn more about recent developments in Oshkosh and throughout the region at Northeast Wisconsin’s premier commercial real estate conference Tuesday, Sept. 15 from 11:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. at UW Oshkosh. Register at insightonbusiness.com/indevelopment.
