Beechwood breaks ground on 89-room hotel
ASHWAUBENON – Beechwood Development broke ground Thursday, July 21, on a four-story Hampton Inn in the shadow of Lambeau Field.
The site at 830 Morris Drive, next to the Moose Lodge and about three blocks southeast of the stadium, was considered a blighted area and was formerly a tractor trailer repair shop.
Beechwood CEO Tom Arnot said if all goes well, he expects construction to be completed in April 2023 and the doors to open in May.
However, with regulation and uncertainties in the supply chain, Arnot said the coordination and planning are exponentially more difficult than in the past, and the ultimate cost and timeline are beyond his control.
“The prices today may be 10 or 20 percent higher tomorrow,” he said. “We had to order the elevator three months ago, and we ordered the steel two months ago. I don’t know if we can bring the project in on time or under budget, but we’re going to try.”
Asked whether Ashwaubenon needs another hotel, Village President Mary Kardoskee said ultimately, that’s something the market decides.
“The hotel people drive the market for hotels,” she said. “They do a lot of research and market analysis, and they’re not going to invest the money to build if they’re not sure.”
Kardoskee noted that in July alone, Ashwaubenon was brimming with out-of-town visitors as it hosted the European soccer match at Lambeau Field, a veteran’s motorcycle rally at the Expo Center, several concerts, a girls softball tournament and the village’s Sesquicentennial Celebration – and it’s not even Packers season yet.
Brown County, Green Bay rank high for wealth and liveability
BROWN COUNTY – Confirmation that Greater Green Bay is a fantastic place to live came in the form of two recent national rankings on wealth and liveability.
A study conducted by SmartAsset ranked Brown County tenth in Wisconsin for wealth based on three factors: investment income in the form of dividends and capital gains; median home value; and per capita income.
According to the rankings, Brown County residents had an average of $11,357 in investment income; a median home value of $237,345; and a per capita income of $56,093.
Separately, six Wisconsin cities made Livability.com’s 100 Best Places to Live in the U.S. list with Madison securing the top spot for the second year in a row and Green Bay placing 74th.
Other Wisconsin cities to make the list were Waukesha (No. 12), Appleton (No.39), Eau Claire (No. 78) and La Crosse (No. 89).
The rankings are based on data on economics, housing, amenities, infrastructure, demographics, social and civic capital, education and health care.
Seroogy and Boyd to present historical slide show on De Pere fire departments
DE PERE – The historical society will be presenting its third Photo Show of 2022 at 7 p.m. Aug. 10 in the auditorium at West De Pere High School, 655 Grant St.
Joe Seroogy and McKim Boyd will present the slide show on behalf of the De Pere Historical Society. The theme of the show is “The 150th Anniversary of the De Pere Fire Departments.”
A $2 donation per person is appreciated.
The presentation will also be streamed live for viewers who are out of town or cannot attend.
A link will be posted that day on the historical society’s Facebook page.
The De Pere Historical Society has one of the state’s largest collections of old photos and photo shows are held quarterly.
Packers award $250k for St. John’s shelter renovations
GREEN BAY – The Green Bay Packers announced this week that Packers Give Back has awarded a $250,000 impact grant to St. John’s Ministries to be used toward construction and rennovations at its several facilities around Green Bay.
As it continues to accommodate the growing needs of the homeless population, St. John’s Ministries has adapted its current buildings and stretched their uses, but they’ve reached a point where they must make significant structural changes and programming enhancements to grow into their next 15 years.
To address the need, St. John’s Ministries is renovating its Men’s Homeless Shelter, 411 St. John St.; purchasing a new building for the Micah Center, 612 Stuart St.; renovating a location dedicated to women with a daytime resource center (Wellspring) and a Women’s Shelter, 700 E. Walnut St.; and acquiring and renovating a building for socially-inclusive housing.
These capital projects will allow St. John’s Ministries to address the needs of the homeless and cost-burdened households experiencing isolation, marginalization, lower life satisfactions – all of which contribute to shortened life expectancies.
The projects will enhance St. John’s Ministries’ ability to serve the homeless population and those facing housing instability by creating socially inclusive housing and providing space for mental health services and gender specific programming.
“The Green Bay Packers have been longtime supporters of St. John’s Ministries and we are grateful for their commitment to making the community stronger,” said St. John’s Ministries Executive Director Dr. Alexia Wood. “The Packers Give Back Impact Grant is going to transform the lives of those experiencing homelessness or housing instability. We are grateful and inspired to know the Packers are in support of our vision for the future.”
St. John’s Ministries’ mission is to honor dignity, restore hope and create lasting change for those who are experiencing homelessness or housing instability in the greater Green Bay area.
“The Packers are proud to award the Packers Give Back Impact Grant to St. John’s Ministries for their transformative projects,” said Packers President/CEO Mark Murphy. “St. John’s serves many of our most vulnerable and at-risk neighbors by providing not only a warm meal and a safe place to sleep, but resources and ongoing assistance for those facing homelessness. We are honored to support their mission to create lasting change in our community.”
St. John’s Ministries has been helping those experiencing homelessness or housing instability since 2005.
The Packers Give Back Impact Grant is part of Green Bay Packers Give Back.
Combined with other Green Bay Packers charity endeavors, the grant program helps contribute to a comprehensive Packers charity impact that was in excess of $9 million in the past year.
Highway 57, 29 and 96 construction updates
BROWN COUNTY – Reconstruction of the intersection of Hwy. 57 and County K in the town of Scott continues to limit traffic to one lane in each direction during the week along a three-quarter mile stretch.
Both lanes of Hwy. 57 will remain open on weekends to accommodate Door County traffic.
Paving on the outside turn lanes is underway. Access to County K and Bay Settlement Road remains closed, except to local traffic.
The project will convert the intersection to a restricted crossing U-turn (RCUT), which removes cross traffic (full left turn) from County K following several accidents including multiple fatalities in the past decade.
The $2 million project began in May and is scheduled for completion in August.
WIS 29/County VV Interchange
Construction of a new grade-separated interchange at the intersection of Hwy. 29 and County VV in the villages of Hobart/Howard and the Oneida Nation Reservation will continue to cause lane closures along a 1.3 mile stretch of Hwy. 29 during off-peak hours.
The current RCUT intersection with County VV is closed, and access is detoured to the County U interchange.
Construction is expected to be completed in late fall. After the completion of the interchange at WIS 29/County VV, the intersection of Hwy. 29 and County U will be closed.
WIS 96 Resurfacing
Construction will begin this week on a 14-mile stretch of Hwy. 96 from Hwy. 32 in Wrightstown to I-43 in New Denmark.
The $12.8 million project includes recycling the current asphalt roadway in place and overlaying with a new asphalt surface, along with drainage improvements and a new single span bridge between Hwy. X and Ronk Road.
The project will be constructed in stages to minimize impacts to the traveling public.
The project is scheduled to be divided into the following segments with corresponding detour routes.
• Segment 1 Closure (August 15, 2022 tentative): Two-week closure between Hwy. 32 in Greenleaf and Hwy. B in Lark
• Segment 2 Closure (After Segment 1 closure. Approximate closure date: August 29, 2022 to November 2022) Three-month closure between Hwy. B in Shirley and I-43 in Denmark.
Graves joins The Business News
Former Green Bay Press Times editor Heather Graves has joined the The Business News as its new editor.
Graves brings to The Business News more than two decades of experience in journalism and editing.
She has a degree in mass communication with an emphasis in print journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay and has worked in the media field in a variety of capacities, including print journalism, broadcast journalism and public relations.
“I am incredibly excited to join The Business News team,” Graves said. “I look forward to bringing my more than 20 years of journalism and editing experience to this strongly-supported publication – continuing the pieces that already make it great, while adding things to further its strong mission.”
The Business News is a regional bi-weekly publication serving Northeast Wisconsin.
Ashwaubenon Museum Holds Open House to Celebrate Milestones
ASHWAUBENON – The Ashwaubenon Historical Society will host an open house from 4:30-6 p.m. Thursday, August 11 at the Ashwaubenon Museum, 936 Anderson Drive (the old Ashwaubenon Community Center).
The museum is celebrating its 50th anniversary in conjunction with the village’s Sesquicentennial.
Admission is free.
The Historical Society operates the museum which features exhibits from Ashwaubenon’s beginnings up to the past 50 years.
Included is a pictorial display of more than 50 farms that were settled in the area and a history of
pioneer residents.
There is also an exhibit focused on the business and residential history of the Broadway neighborhood and its role in the village’s growth and industrial development.
There is a replica of a schoolhouse which brings memories of the past and includes many school pictures through the years, along with a special exhibit from Ashwaubenon’s Centennial celebration 50 years ago.
Honoring veterans is another passion of the society, according to Historical Society President Annette Aubinger, with a room dedicated to veterans and military memorabilia.
Unique to the museum is a Hobo and Tramp Art Collection by Adolph Vandertie, a local artist.
A timeline of key events in the society’s history will be also be featured.
Aubinger said part of the mission of the historical society is to preserve Ashwaubenon’s past and present with a collection of artifacts from the area.
“History needs to be preserved,” Aubinger said.
Normal museum hours are 11 a.m.- 2 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays.
The museum is closed during the winter.
DMV extends hours to obtain ID ahead of primary
BROWN COUNTY – The Wisconsin Department of Transportation Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) will extend hours next week at customer service centers that are open on Monday and/or Tuesday.
These centers will remain open until 6 p.m. to enable those needing a required photo ID to vote in the August 9 primary election extra time to obtain one.
Most Wisconsin voters already have some form of ID to show at the polls, including a Wisconsin driver license or ID.
There is no separate “voter ID,” and a federally compliant REAL ID card is not required for voting purposes.
The Wisconsin Elections Commission explains the acceptable options to bring to the polls online at bringit.wi.gov/do-i-have-right-photo-id.
Steps to obtain an ID to vote
Anyone without the required identification to vote may obtain an ID free from the DMV. Voters looking to get their first Wisconsin ID should begin at DMV’s website wisconsindmv.gov/idcards.
Next, bring the required documents to apply at DMV’s Green Bay Service Center, 942 Van Der Perren Way.
Certain documents, such as a birth certificate, proof of identity and Wisconsin residency, are necessary to obtain an official Wisconsin ID card.
If all documentation is not readily available, the ID Petition Process (IDPP) may be used to obtain a receipt valid for voting while the remaining documents or verifications are obtained.
The voter should bring any documentation available to the DMV and complete the required application.
Finally, a receipt valid for voting purposes will be provided and may be used to show at the polls.
DMV offers this IDPP service and ID card for voting purposes free of charge.
Anyone who doesn’t have an ID to vote in the fall primary election should start the process now.
DMV’s toll-free voter ID hotline at (844) 588-1069 is available for questions on obtaining an ID to vote.
Questions regarding voter eligibility, poll locations, voter registration information or other election information may be directed to the Wisconsin Elections Commission website, elections.wi.gov/.
Bellin Hospital Honored with 7th Consecutive CMS 5-Star Rating
GREEN BAY — Bellin Hospital has received its seventh-consecutive five-star rating from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).
These ratings provide patients with information across five areas of quality: Mortality, safety of care, readmission, patient experience and timely and effective care.
“Through the truly extraordinary challenges presented in the past two years, Bellin’s providers and teams have remained devoted to delivering care focused on patient safety and experience,” said Chris Woleske, Bellin Health President and CEO. “This five-star rating is a direct reflection
of our team members’ commitment to offering our patients and communities the best possible care.”
More than 3,000 hospitals nationwide received a star rating during this evaluation period.
Of those, Bellin was one of just 429 (about 13 percent) to receive the highest rating of five stars.
Twenty-four hospitals in Wisconsin also received a five-star rating, with Bellin being the only one located in Green Bay.
Informational meeting on 10–year updates to land use plan
HOWARD – The Village of Howard and consultant MSA Professional Services will host a public informational meeting at 5:30 p.m. Aug. 15 in the village hall board room to discuss the 2022 updates to the village’s Comprehensive Land Use Plan.
The plan identifies future growth projections and provides a guide for public and private development.
In accordance with State Statutes, it provides the legal basis for the village’s authority to regulate land use and development and will be used by village officials when revising and administering zoning and development ordinances.
The plan is revised roughly every 10 years using census data and community input.
The existing plan was last updated in April 2012 and is available at villageofhoward.com