» Interstate 41 Corridor
Brown, Calumet, Outagamie, Winnebago, Fond du Lac Counties
Quarry Quest ends its run
The quest has come to rest.
Quarry Quest recently celebrated its 17th and final year by raising more than$80,000 as it welcomed 15,000 children and adults to explore the inner-workings of an active quarry.
During the past 17 years, $1.5 million in proceeds from the event have been donated to local children’s charities and the Quarry Quest Environmental Education Fund, which provides grants to local elementary classrooms for supplies, activities and field trips related to earth science, geology and construction.
Quarry Quest has been hosted by the Michels Materials quarry in Neenah since its inception.
Fond du Lac retains its finance friendly rating
The latest federal Cost of Living Index shows that Fond du Lac County remains an affordable place to live, work and raise a family.
The after-tax cost for a professional/managerial standard of living is 96.6, or 3.4 percent below the national average of 100. Each quarter, Fond du Lac County Economic Development Corporation collects data for the COLI which is produced by the Council for Community and Economic Research.
The index measures regional differences in the cost of consumer goods and services for professional and managerial households in the top income bracket. It is based on more than 90,000 prices covering 60 different items in 271 urban areas.
» The Northwoods
Florence, Marinette, Menominee, Oconto Counties
A bridge over rushing waters
The Oconto Area Chamber of Commerce is backing a feasibility study for building a footbridge across the Oconto River in the city.
The 10-foot-wide bridge would extend from Holtwood Park along Holtwood Way north to Charles Street, terminating across from The Ruins miniature golf course. Advocates say the bridge will provide recreation, tourism and economic benefits.
The bridge project is being overseen by a subcommittee of the Chamber named Grow Oconto, which is chaired by former mayor Don Nerenhausen. The group received support from the City Council in the spring to move ahead with the study. Since then, the Chamber and the committee are working to finish raising the $18,000 to pay for the study, being conducted by Stantec, a Mequon design company.
Besides the design, the feasibility study also includes soil samples, planning an abutment that will support the bridge in the center, and getting approvals from the DNR and Corps of Engineers. The study should be completed in January.
» West Central
Shawano, Waupaca, Waushara, Marquette, Green Lake Counties
Ripon College building project gets a boost
Ripon College announced a $14.3 million fixed-rate low-interest loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development division to help finance the cost of renovating and expanding the J.M. Storzer Athletics, Health and Wellness Center.
The loan, provided through the Community Facilities Direct Loan program, is designed to develop essential community facilities and foster economic growth. U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin (Wis.), U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman (Wis.), Ripon Mayor Gary Will and area schools and businesses wrote letters of support.
“Securing public financing from the USDA is a critical step in our efforts to move ahead with this important project for our campus and the surrounding community,” says Zach Messitte, president of Ripon College. “We are now in the process of working with alumni and friends of the college on leadership gifts that will help us reach our goal of opening the new facility by the fall of 2017.”
The project, estimated at between $18 million and $22 million, will be financed using a mix of public and private loans and philanthropy.
» The Lakeshore
Door, Kewaunee, Manitowoc, Sheboygan Counties
Plymouth cheese plant to close in 2016
Missouri-based Dairy Farmers of America announced it plans to close its Plymouth cheese manufacturing plant by early next year and lay off the 304 workers there.
The closure comes despite a $13.4 million project in 2011 to modernize the plant, which included $1.5 million in public financing aimed at keeping the aging plant in operation.
The plant has been in operation since 1954 and produces Borden cheese along with private-label cheese products.
The closure is slated for January, when the property will be put up for sale.
“Business decisions that impact the lives of our employees are incredibly difficult,” John Stephens, the company’s chief operating officer for consumer brands, stated in a news release.
Icebreaker Mackinaw prepares for winter’s ice
The United States Coast Guard Icebreaker Mackinaw completed repairs at Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding in Sturgeon Bay in preparation for winter operations on the Great Lakes.
Winter operations are especially hard on icebreakers and their endurance is paramount to shipping on the Great Lakes. Last winter, ice breaking started in December and lasted for 128 days, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.
The repairs were performed in the FBS U.S. Navy-certified floating dry-dock.
The 240-foot vessel was built by Fincantieri-Marinette Marine, sister company to FBS and member of the Fincantieri Marine Group, and delivered to the USCG in 2006.
Manitowoc readies for corporate spinoff
The Manitowoc Company, Inc. has made its initial filing of a Form 10 Registration Statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in connection with the company’s previously announced plan to separate its Cranes and Foodservice businesses.
Manitowoc anticipates effecting the separation through a tax-free spin-off of the Foodservice business, which the company expects to be completed in the first quarter of 2016.
“We believe that the separation will allow each company to focus on its unique growth profile, product categories, distribution systems and strategic priorities,” says Glen E. Tellock, chairman and chief executive officer of the company. “The separation will also enable each company to implement the right organizational structure, operating model and financial targets.
The separation remains subject to the approval of the Manitowoc Co. Board of Directors and the satisfaction of certain other customary conditions, including the effectiveness of the Form 10 Registration Statement.
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