WEDA Wire – November 22, 2024

As the air turns crisp and the twinkling lights remind us that the holidays are near, it’s the perfect time to reflect on our accomplishments and look ahead with excitement! Together, we’ve navigated a busy election season, and our WEDA committees have hit the ground running with impactful initiatives.

From setting priorities in the Legislative Committee to preparing academy sessions for the upcoming year, the energy within WEDA is electric. And before we know it, we’ll kick off WEDA’s grand 50th Anniversary celebration in 2025, marking five decades of economic development excellence across Wisconsin!

Looking ahead, I’m thrilled to share a few highlights:

• YPEN Virtual Holiday Meetup: Mark your calendars for Thursday, December 12, at 4:00 PM – a great way to connect and spread some holiday cheer.
• ED WOW Lunch Meet-Up: Don’t miss it at the Governor’s Conference in Milwaukee this February!

As we wrap up 2024, let’s take a moment to celebrate the progress we’ve made together and the partnerships that make our work meaningful. THANK YOU, our members, for your invaluable partnership and dedication, which have been the foundation of our success. Here’s to a joyful holiday season filled with peace, prosperity, and continued success for our communities in Wisconsin.

Cheers to all of you, and may 2025 bring even greater opportunities for us to grow and thrive.

Warm wishes~melissa

Dear WEDA Members,

As we move into the final month of 2024, I’m excited to share some key updates that highlight WEDA’s ongoing commitment to growth and service to our members. This is a pivotal moment for our organization as we strengthen our operational foundation and prepare to welcome new leadership in 2025.

The WEDA Board of Directors has made a significant decision to partner with Badger Bay Management, an association management company that brings a wealth of expertise and experience. Badger Bay will now manage WEDA’s back-office operations, ensuring a seamless infrastructure that supports our mission. Their team serves over 35 other membership associations across Wisconsin, providing support and infrastructure in areas such as:

• Website and Communications to keep members informed and engaged
• Membership Services to improve data management and events coordination
• Information Technology for enhanced security and efficiency
• Banking and bookkeeping to ensure efficient and timely transaction processing with robust internal controls
• Governance and Finance to contribute to effective Board and Committee meetings, financial oversight, and compliance

By entrusting these critical operations to Badger Bay, we are positioning the next President & CEO to focus on advancing member services, strengthening strategic partnerships, and leading WEDA’s mission with vision and energy.

The search for WEDA’s next President & CEO is about to begin, and we invite members to help spread the word about this exciting opportunity to shape the future of our organization. Stay tuned to your inbox and the WEDA website for updates on the process. We are confident this next chapter will bring fresh ideas and dynamic leadership to advance WEDA’s mission.

As we look ahead, we also bid a heartfelt farewell to Sharon Berge, who is retiring as Grants and Membership Administrator at the end of November. Sharon’s dedication to WEDA’s mission and her exceptional ability to get things done have been invaluable—she will be greatly missed.

At the same time, we are excited to welcome Eric Ostermann, CEO of Badger Bay, and Liza Rosenthal, our new Events and Membership Manager, to the WEDA family. You’ll have an opportunity to meet them both at the Governor’s Conference on Economic Development, February 5-7, 2025, in Milwaukee.

This year’s Governor’s Conference will be one for the books as we kick off WEDA’s 50th Anniversary celebration and commemorate the 50th anniversary of Tax Increment Financing in Wisconsin. With these major milestones, we’re planning an event that reflects the incredible growth and impact of economic development across the state. We hope to see strong attendance from all regions of Wisconsin for what promises to be an inspiring conference that honors WEDA’s legacy and highlights ideas that will build a prosperous future.

By WEDC Secretary and CEO Missy Hughes

What do health care breakthroughs, thriving neighborhoods, and dancing tractors all have in common?

They’re all examples of breadth and depth of innovations taking place every day in Wisconsin. These and countless other creative advances are pushing our state relentlessly forward, helping to build an economy where everyone has the opportunity to thrive.

At the third annual Wisconsin Economic Summit held recently in La Crosse, leaders in biohealth and biotechnology, community development, artificial intelligence (AI), sustainable technology, the arts, and more told how they are tapping Wisconsin’s immense resources to develop cutting-edge innovations.

What emerged from those discussions is that Wisconsin’s combination of world-class research and educational institutions, pathfinding manufacturers, highly skilled workers, and climate-friendly location continues to make our state ideal for businesses pursuing new ideas.

But there’s one more ingredient – the “secret sauce,” if you will, that makes Wisconsin so successful: collaboration. Taking the time to make connections opens the way even more new ideas and opportunities.

Collaboration among biohealth companies has played a critical role in Wisconsin earning a Regional Tech Hub designation from the U.S. Economic Development Administration, which will provide up to $50 million to position our state as a global leader in personalized medicine.

Before the Tech Hub consortium was formed, there was little, if any, formal communication among academics, entrepreneurs, and more established biohealth companies; now, one of the Hub’s first steps is taking is to create a single database of medical information that will enable partners to devise personalized treatments for many diseases.

“No one company can do this by themselves,” said Wendy Harris, regional innovation officer for the Wisconsin Biohealth Tech Hub. “The Tech Hub is a place to connect the dots and allow these companies to collaborate.

AI can assist in these collaborative efforts by allowing innovators to “find the problem, address the problem, and then train AI to find ways to improve” both processes and outcomes, whether it’s in the fields of manufacturing, medicine, or other areas, said Matt Kirchner President of ATS/LAB Midwest and Host of the TechEd Podcast.

It’s also critically important to collaborate as widely as possible by involving not only experts in the same or related fields, but stakeholders, customers, and those affected by potential changes.

When GE Healthcare sought to improve their breast cancer imaging equipment, they formed an all-female team that designed a machine more tailored to women’s bodies. Then they sought sought patients’ feedback. The screening system is now more comfortable, which makes screenings less stressful, and yields more accurate results.

“These changes sound trivial, but they make a big difference for women,” said Jyoti Gupta, president and CEO of Women’s Health and X-Ray at GE HealthCare.

Meanwhile, in southeast Wisconsin, the Kenosha Innovation Neighborhood (KIN) is working closely with residents to revive a community scarred by recession, plant closings, and civil unrest. The plan calls for creating a STEM high school, an innovation center, and offering career training programs through the local technical college.

As KIN board chair Tim Mahone told us, the residents’ input is critical to the project’s success because “the biggest tool in your toolbox is the people you serve.”

While residents in Kenosha are making their voices heard about what kind of neighborhood they envision living in, the arts play a vital role in creating communities where people want to live, work, and grow.

Creativity – and innovation – is also essential to making art, and collaboration is at the heart of the Reedsburg-based Wormfarm Institute, which offers a residency program where artists can live and work on a farm and “get dirty, eat well, and make art,” in the words of executive director Donna Neuwirth.

The Institute’s Farm/Art DTour attracts an estimated 20,000 visitors to rural Sauk County every other October for a 50-mile route of art installations, performances, and educational exhibits demonstrating the importance of agriculture, environmental stewardship, and the arts. One of this year’s highlights, which drew the attention of The New York Times, was an unlikely pairing of farming and art – a “ballet” of three tractors pulling hay rakes, all moving in unison to classical music.

Collaboration drives innovation, and for Wisconsin to continue to lead in innovation, we must continue to build on the connections we’re establishing.

As our closing speaker, former Kimberly Clark executive Pete Dulcamara, put it, “If you want to go faster, go alone. If you want to go farther, go together. If you want to go farther, faster, go together as one Wisconsin.”

Missy Hughes is secretary and CEO of the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation, the state’s leading economic development organization.

Election in Rearview Mirror; Focus Shifts to 2025-26 Legislative Session

Once the polls closed on election night, and the dust settled, it became clear relatively quickly that the political chessboard in Wisconsin would not be radically different. Of course, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D) won reelection, and the Wisconsin U.S. House of Representatives delegation partisan split remain at a 6-2 split in favor of Republicans. In the state Legislature, the GOP maintained majorities in both the Assembly and Senate, but there were some notable shifts in the overall partisan make-up at the State Capitol.

The State Assembly entered the night with a 64-35 Republican majority, with most pundits expecting the GOP to lose several seats due to redistricting, and once all the votes were counted, Assembly Republicans earned a 54-45 seat majority heading into the next legislative session. In the State Senate, Republicans lost four highly-contested races and will enter the new session with a 18-15 majority – down from their current 22-11 seat majority.

After each election cycle, state lawmakers meet in partisan caucus – Assembly GOP Caucus, Assembly DEM Caucus; Senate GOP Caucus; and Senate DEM Caucus – to choose their respective leadership teams for the new legislative session. This election cycle was no exception of course, and all four partisan caucuses recently elected their leaders for the 2025-26 session.

There were no huge surprises, as most of the leadership team members from each caucus from the 2023-24 session retained their positions. However, there were some developments of note. Most prominently, Sen. Chris Kapenga (R-Pewaukee) decided not seek reelection for Senate President, and Sen. Mary Felzkowski (R-Tomahawk) was elected to replace him in the post. In addition, Rep. Scott Krug (R-Nekoosa) was selected as Assembly Assistant Majority Leader to replace a retiring colleague; Sen. Mark Spreitzer (D-Beloit) was chosen as Senate Minority Caucus Chair after serving in a lower leadership position last session; and Rep. Clinton Anderson (D-Beloit) was elected Minority Caucus Vice-Chair, as the previous lawmaker who held the post decided not to seek the position for the upcoming session. Please find the full legislative leadership results below:

Assembly Republicans

• Speaker – Rep. Robin Vos (R-Rochester)
• Majority Leader – Rep. Tyler August (R-Walworth)
• Assistant Majority Leader – Rep. Scott Krug (R-Nekoosa)
• Speaker Pro Tempore – Rep. Kevin Peterson (R-Waupaca)
• Majority Caucus Chair – Rep. Rob Summerfield (R-Bloomer)
• Majority Caucus Vice Chair – Rep. Cindi Duchow (R-Delafield)
• Majority Caucus Secretary – Rep. Nancy VanderMeer (R-Tomah)
• Majority Caucus Sergeant at Arms – Rep. Treig Pronschinske (R-Mondovi)

Assembly Democrats

• Minority Leader – Rep. Greta Neubauer (D-Racine)
• Assistant Minority Leader – Rep. Kaylan Haywood (D-Milwaukee)
• Minority Caucus Chair – Lisa Subek (D-Madison)
• Minority Caucus Vice-Chair – Rep. Clinton Anderson (D-Beloit)
• Minority Caucus Secretary – Rep. Mike Bare (D-Verona)
• Minority Caucus Sergeant at Arms – Rep. Jodi Emerson (D-Eau Claire)

Senate Republicans

• Senate Majority Leader – Sen. Devin LeMahieu (R-Oostburg)
• Senate President – Sen. Mary Felzkowski (R-Tomahawk)
• Senate Assistance Majority Leader – Sen. Dan Feyen (R-Fond du Lac)
• Senate President Pro Tempore – Sen. Patrick Testin (R-Stevens Point)
• Senate Majority Caucus Char – Sen. Van Wanggaard (R-Racine)
• Senate Majority Caucus Vice-Chair – Sen. Rachel Cabral-Guevara (R-Appleton)

Senate Democrats

• Senate Minority Leader – Sen. Dianne Hesselbein (D-Middleton)
• Senate Assistant Minority Leader – Sen. Jeff Smith (D-Eau Claire)
• Senate Minority Caucus Chair – Sen. Mark Spreitzer (D-Beloit)
• Senate Minority Vice Caucus Chair – Sen. Dora Drake (D-Milwaukee)

The 2025-26 Wisconsin legislative session is right is around the corner, and WEDA is well prepared to engage with lawmakers and pursue policies in the State Capitol that promote growth and prosperity across the state. In fact, the WEDA Legislative Committee recently finalized and approved WEDA’s Legislative Agenda for the 2025-26 legislative session. The agenda lays out the Association’s top legislative priorities, as well as our broader legislative goals important to WEDA members. Please find below a list of our top priorities heading into the next session:

• Energy Infrastructure – Exempt utilities and ATC from Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) and Certificate of Authority (CA) requirements for energy infrastructure projects of certain size, length, cost, and in certain locations.
• Modernize TIF Law – Modernize the state’s Tax Incremental Financing (TIF) laws to provide communities with greater TIF flexibility.
• Statewide Closing Fund – Create a statewide deal closing fund to provide low interest loan / grant funding to help to close financial gaps for key economic development projects.

Please CLICK HERE to review the full outline of the 2025-26 WEDA Legislative Agenda.

In addition to be greenlit by the Legislative Committee – based on member feedback and months of discussion and debate – the 2025-26 WEDA Legislative Agenda was also recently approved by the WEDA Executive Committee. The agenda will be voted on by the full WEDA Board next week. Following Board approval, a final Legislative Agenda with additional content and explanation of WEDA’s policy positions will be published and distributed to members, stakeholders, and key state policymakers.

Achievements in Economic Development Recognized at 2024 CEDA Awards

The Wisconsin Economic Development Association (WEDA) congratulates all 2024 Community and Economic Development Award (CEDA) winners recognized at the annual CEDA Awards ceremony, which was held September 26, 2024, in Eau Claire, WI as part of WEDA’s Fall Best Practices Conference. The CEDA Awards were established by WEDA to recognize economic development projects and programs, as well as businesses and organizations that have made significant contributions to Wisconsin’s economy.

“Economic development drives growth and prosperity throughout Wisconsin, attracting capital investment, creating new jobs, and providing an improved quality of life for residents. However, the hard work of economic development professionals is usually underappreciated and often unrecognized,” said WEDA Interim President and CEO Kathryn Berger. “The CEDA Awards provides a much-needed opportunity to celebrate economic development and the accomplishments of so many hard-working industry professionals. I am thrilled to congratulate each CEDA finalist and winner.”

Three CEDA finalists were selected in each of the four following CEDA categories: Business Retention and Expansion; Community Impact; Real Estate Redevelopment and Reuse; and Talent Attraction, Development, and Retention. The winners in each category were announced and celebrated at the awards ceremony attended by over 200 economic development professionals from across the state.

Please find a list of the winners below:

Business Retention and Expansion Category – This award recognizes a single economic development project in which a community successfully mobilized to retain or expand an existing business of great importance to the community.

• Winner – Encompass Early Education and Care (Oconto Falls, WI) – Encompass Early Education and Care is leading a transformative project in Oconto Falls to address the critical shortage of childcare in collaboration with the Tourism and Economic Development Corporation for the Oconto Region (TEDCOR) and Oconto County Public Health. Their new childcare center, which opened in June 2024, provides 140 childcare slots and employs 18 teachers and aides. The center is more than just a building; it serves as a lifeline for working families. Over half of Oconto County’s labor force leaves the area daily due to childcare constraints. Encompass’s holistic family care approach ensures that parents can work confidently, knowing their children are in capable hands. This project exemplifies the power of vision and collaboration. Encompass’s legacy extends beyond bricks and mortar, standing as a testament to community resilience and commitment.

Community Impact Category – This award recognizes innovation in community development that promotes and advances health and economic prosperity in Wisconsin communities. Finalist projects in this category demonstrated at least one of the following: Development or expansion of the community’s entrepreneurial ecosystem; development of quality placemaking or place keeping initiatives; redevelopment of blighted buildings into a project that has revitalized the community; or development of downtown or main street workforce housing.

• Winner – Green County Home Construction Cooperative (Green County, WI) – The Green County Development Corporation (GCDC) Home Construction Cooperative was created to address two critical issues in the Green County area – the shortage of skilled trades workers and the lack of affordable family housing. The program, kick-started through the donation of a vacant home from SSM Health Monroe, engaged 16 students from Monroe High School in the renovation of the donated home. Working together with local contractors in one-hour blocks three days per week, students gained trades skills experience that will last a lifetime, including exposure to general construction, plumbing, HVAC, electrical, masonry, and landscaping. The Home Construction Cooperative, which is boosting affordable housing stock and developing the next generation of skilled trades professionals one house at a time, is positioned to make an impact well into the future.

Real Estate Redevelopment and Reuse Category – This award recognizes innovative real estate redevelopment or reuse projects that demonstrate measurable and quantitative impact on employment and tax base, as well as sustainability measures, such as conservation of energy and water.

Due to a tie in scoring for the top initiative, this category has two CEDA Award Winners:

• Brooke Street Lofts (Fond du Lac, WI) – Brooke Street Lofts is a historic adaptive reuse preservation of The Northern Casket Company building and Winnebago Cheese Factory in Fond du Lac. At one time the property hosted thriving casket and cheese businesses and supplied jobs to hundreds of Fond du Lac residents. Eventually the buildings were abandoned, continued to deteriorate, and became a rundown eyesore for the neighborhood. These three-story brick buildings have been converted into 62 affordable housing units. The Northern Casket Company property also houses a community room, business center, fitness room, onsite property management office, and outdoor playground. The project focused on preserving as much historic detail and integrity as possible in these National Historic Register buildings, and created much-needed, affordable homes for the community. The $19.9M project, which was completed in October 2023, was made possible through the successful efforts of the Wisconsin Partnership for Housing Development, the City of Fond du Lac, numerous funders and lenders, and Commonwealth Construction.

-And-

• The District (West Bend, WI) – Located on the corner of North Main Street and West Washington Street in West Bend, The District riverfront property was formerly the site of the West Bend Brewing Company, which operated from the late 1800s to the 1970s. For more than 50 years, the site was underutilized and deteriorated to a point of blight and disrepair. It served as an eyesore and deterrent in Downtown West Bend, rather than an economic development catalyst. Under the projects, HKS Holdings, LLC redeveloped a blighted 3-acre site in downtown West Bend into 177 market-rate apartment units and commercial space for 1840 Brewing Company’s new taproom – paying homage to the site’s legacy as a brewery. The District is comprised of seven townhouses and two, four-story buildings. It offers modern, spacious apartment units with beautiful views of the Milwaukee River and historic downtown, access to the Riverwalk, kayak landing, and more. This $42 million investment is expected to generate over $34 million in new tax base.

Talent Attraction, Development, and Retention– This award recognizes initiatives or programs that document successful talent attraction, development, and retention outcomes. Finalists in the category successfully illustrated how their talent initiative provided a strategic and innovative approach to meet specific workforce goals, including strengthening the skills of the workforce, talent attraction and retention, and addressing barriers to employment such as childcare, housing, and transportation.

• Winner – The New North Talent Campaigns (Northeast Wisconsin) – Due to an aging population and a shrinking workforce, the New North, a regional economic development organization in Northeast Wisconsin, developed an innovative approach to attract more residents to fill open jobs across all industries in their 18-county footprint. Tapping into a WEDC Talent Marketing Co-op Grant and other private sector investment, New North implemented an extensive digital marketing campaign with multiple programs targeting specific demographic groups, including the “more YOU in NEW” campaign to attract millennials to the region, as well as the “Find your True North” program geared toward young professionals and outdoor enthusiasts using a targeted social media approach to promote the benefits of living in the New North. They also partnered with Mission Wisconsin on a digital campaign promoting the state’s veteran benefits that targets U.S. veterans living outside Wisconsin. The successful programs helped make the New North one of the fastest growing regions in the state, significantly boosting overall net migration and bringing 81 veterans and their families to Northeast Wisconsin.

CEDA finalists were screened and selected by an impartial panel of judges comprised of key WEDA members and partners. The independent panel reviewed many projects that were submitted for consideration, but the 12 finalists and ultimately the winners were selected based on the significant economic impact each project has had on its respective community or region.

The 2024 CEDA Awards would not have been possible without the support of WEDA’s generous partners and sponsors, including the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation; Alliant Energy; Dairyland Power Cooperative; First Ring Industrial Redevelopment Enterprise; Madison Gas & Electric; US Bank; the Wisconsin Economic Development Institute; and Xcel Energy.

By Marie Barry – Director of Community Economic Development, Rural Wisconsin Health Cooperative

Reading through the annual CEDA Awardees is always an exciting experience as the projects coming to fruition across Wisconsin highlight the creativity, tenacity, and local commitment that economic development embodies in our state. However, this year’s CEDA Finalists and Awardees also highlighted a unique theme in our state’s economic development landscape: the engagement of rural hospitals!

In this year’s CEDA Awardees, two of the category winners included deep involvement from local rural hospitals. In the Community Impact category, the Green County Home Construction Cooperative was launched when SSM Health Monroe Clinic donated a hospital-owned home to Green County Development Corporation in order to launch this new program. In the last Community Health Needs Assessment undertaken in Green County, housing was identified as the second highest priority item because “safe, affordable housing is imperative to the health of an individual and for a thriving community.” The improvement plan prepared to take action on this need asserts that the hospital’s vision is “to have available, affordable, accessible, and safe housing for all Green County residents.” Partnership with the Green County Development Corporation through the Green County Home Construction Cooperative allowed both organizations to take action on their goals of improving local housing conditions.

In the Business Retention and Expansion Category, Encompass Early Care and Education was recognized for drastically expanding the childcare availability in Oconto Falls, WI. Statistically speaking, the healthcare workforce is likely to be disproportionately impacted by childcare challenges due to the concentration of females in the workforce. According to the US Census Bureau, women hold 76% of all healthcare jobs. Women account for more than 85% of registered nurses. Post-pandemic, additional evidence shows that childcare is more likely to influence a woman’s employment decision than a man’s. For example, 51% of women indicated the cost of childcare was a consideration for their career compared to only 34% of men (Conroy & Runge, 2020). Therefore, it is highly logical that both HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital in Oconto Falls and Bellin Health Oconto Hospital in Oconto are supportive of this exciting development in their community. The HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital Foundation supported the project with a $10,000 donation and both organizations support local economic development activities with staff time dedicated to serving on local boards.

Finally, a rural hospital fueled one of the CEDA Finalists in the Talent Attraction, Development and Retention category: Grant Regional Health Center and Growing Lancaster. Growing Lancaster focuses on growing the local workforce through being more welcoming to immigrants and newcomers in the Lancaster community. Organic conversations between the hospital CEO and other local business leaders spawned this ongoing collaboration. The hospital serves as the lead organization in organizing meetings, acts as a fiscal agent on grants for Growing Lancaster, and has donated time and money to support the group’s activities. The group has started English Language Learner classes, organized cultural events, celebrated Welcoming Week, hosted workshops on translation resources for businesses, secured grant funding to boost local banking access and successfully seen an increase in the number of local businesses employing newcomers and immigrants to fill crucial workforce gaps.

Rural hospitals and economic developers have organically synergistic goals of strengthening communities in order to grow vibrancy, wealth and health. This year’s CEDA Awards provided a beautiful illustration of what can be accomplished when these organization work in partnership with one another with the ultimate winners being our Wisconsin communities and their residents!

WEDI Handbook provides key information on state economic development programs through a single access point.

The Wisconsin Economic Development Institute – WEDA’s non-profit foundation established to conduct research to increase the effectiveness of economic development across the state – is excited to unveil its latest project for WEDA members.

The WEDI Board, comprised of long-standing WEDA members and economic development experts, is thrilled to introduce you to the WEDI Economic Development Toolbox Handbook, which was officially unveiled last Friday at the WEDA Fall Best Practices Conference. The Handbook is a catalog and overview of state economic and community development programs in Wisconsin. It was developed to provide a one-stop, user friendly resource for economic development professionals on programs and incentives offered by state agencies to drive economic growth. The online platform provides information on how loans, grants, and tax credits can support economic opportunities in your communities.

Please take advantage of this valuable new resource as you work to provide new opportunities and prosperity for businesses and residents in your communities.

Check out the latest job opportunities in the economic development field on the WEDA Job Board:

• Community Development Director / City Planner – City of Two Rivers, WI
• Development Director – City of Wausau, WI
• Digital Marketing Director – Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation
• Manager, Corporate Attraction and Expansion – Milwaukee 7 Regional Partnership
• Planning Services Manager – City of Oshkosh, WI
• Solar for All Director – Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation

Please CLICK HERE to view job descriptions.