Brown County hosts annual tour of economic investments, real estate developments

BROWN COUNTY — Brown County Executive Troy Streckenbach hosted a bus tour on Tuesday, Sept. 15, for local real estate developers and real estate agents which showcased several locations throughout the county in various stages of development, as well as recent investments in local infrastructure.

The first notable spot on the tour was the Interstate 41 interchange at Southbridge Road (CTH GV and EB), which has been in progress for several months and is now scheduled to be fully operational in October of this year. The South Bridge Connector project won’t be completed until 2031.

“The South Bridge Connector is an awesome regional project and it’s very helpful for us to be able to get a new interchange in Lawrence, and that’s going to spur development big time for us,” said Patrick Wetzel, Town Administrator for the Town of Lawrence.

The tour also featured two walking tours: One of the Sports Emporium and One Wisconsin Volleyball location, and one of downtown De Pere.

Located in Lawrence, the Sports Emporium showcased their ability to draw major youth sporting tournaments and events to Brown County, not only bringing in money from across the state, but also restricting burdensome statewide travel costs for local families.

The collaboration between the Sports Emporium and the Town of Lawrence made this project possible within recent years.

“Our goal was always to have the opportunity for athletes of all ages to stay active here, year round,” said Sports Emporium General Manager and Director of Coaching Derrick Rhodes.

“We were originally looking at expanding the footprint of our current facility, and through conversation with Patrick and the Town of Lawrence, this space and his vision of a sports corridor was coming together and we were able to get a parcel of land here and put this together.”

The Sports Emporium also has facilities for and partnerships with local programs such as the Green Bay Blizzard and Green Bay Glory.

One Wisconsin Volleyball on the other side of the building gave participants a look at their new mezzanine viewing level and several new courts.

The downtown De Pere walking tour gave insight into recent renovations to the old Shopko location with investments in a boutique-style shopping center, new condo developments and a new public parking structure.

“One of the council’s targets was not to make it look like a parking ramp, so we tried to do our best to not have it stick out like a sore thumb,” said Dan Lindstrom, development services director of the city’s efforts to be mindful of each new project.

In addition to the walking tours, participants on the tour had the opportunity to see approximately 15 new housing developments and subdivisions in progress throughout Lawrence, Ledgeview, Bellevue and De Pere.
“Coming together each year to tour key sites — whether they’re visionary concepts or fully completed projects — gives us a shared understanding of the opportunities ahead and reinforces how collaboration drives real progress for our communities,” said Government Affairs Director for the Realtors Association of Northeast Wisconsin Jennifer Sunstrom.