From tourism to wind farms, there is much activity the rest of the state should be watching for from its southwest region. These initiatives are driven by ambitious individuals, but also by progressive organizations. Many groups are putting their heads together to develop sustainability plans for the entire area.

The Big Picture
“I see an opportunity in these communities to find out where they might be able to better work together, to save money, be more efficient and achieve goals communally,” says Amy Seeboth, planning manager for the Southwestern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission (SWRPC). “We are sitting down as a region and developing a platform for accomplishing common goals.”

The SWRPC recently received an elite grant, which will facilitate these initiatives as part of the Sustainable Communities Plan. “We are one of 45 grants given and included in that number are big, political, powerful cities and organizations,” says SWRPC Executive Director Larry Ward. “It’s very humbling.”

The project is a three-year joint effort between Southwestern Wisconsin Community Action Program (SWCAP), the Southwestern Wisconsin Workforce Development Board, the Southwestern Wisconsin Transit Team’s LIFT, the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, as well as the Dubuque MPO.

A substantial part of the group’s focus will be analyzing housing and transportation trends and needs in the region. The housing is some of the oldest in the state, and very rural, explains Seeboth. The grant will enable a detailed housing inventory to be conducted throughout southwestern Wisconsin.

One of the consortium partners, the SWCAP, is particularly excited about the task because it can identify the locations of housing needs, and leverage other funding to provide solutions.

Ward explains that a significant concern he hears often from businesses is that their employees are unable to find local, affordable, quality housing. Many of the older homes are not insulated, making heating and cooling costs high. Another issue is that the most practical housing is a long commute from the communities’ employment centers. The consortium will be addressing this among other issues in the upcoming months.

The SWRPC also offers a little-known tool for small businesses, which can help promote sustainable growth. Working with the Pioneer Academic Center for Community Engagement (PACCE) at UW-Platteville, the team is able to offer affordable market analysis for small businesses.

“Most market analysis tools are much more expensive than a small business can possibly afford,” says Seeboth. As a regional agency, the SWRPC was able to purchase the necessary tools and with the low cost to businesses, subsidize the cost together. It’s just another opportunity to encourage and support local entrepreneurs.

“We have a great pioneer spirit in southwestern Wisconsin,” says Ward. “People volunteer and work in their community and those things are priceless.”

Where the Wind Blows
Another push for local development involves alternative energy. In Grant County there are currently two proposed 100-megawatt wind energy projects, White Oak (west of Cuba City) and Red Oak (near Patch Grove and Mount Hope). Both are rural projects; no turbines will be within a city or village limits. There is also another wind farm set for Lafayette County, and will be located between Darlington and Platteville.

The Grant County Economic Development Corporation (EDC) has worked hard to foster its local projects, for a variety of reasons. Ron Brisbois, the group’s director explains. “We need the electrical generation of the wind farms, which would pair well with our coal and biomass-fueled power plants in Cassville, and the existing 30-megawatt wind farm near Montfort,” he says. “Another reason is in trying to attract wind turbine component manufacturers. We currently have Wausaukee Composites in Cuba City, who is creating 200 jobs and doubling their plant size. We also have met recently with two wind component manufacturers looking to site large operations in the Midwest as Grant County is on the edge of the ‘wind corridor’ as the industry calls it.”

There have been some setbacks and opposition, but the EDC is optimistic. The Public Service Commission (PSC) setback rules were announced in late 2010 and found to allow the projects to move forward. The concern now is Gov. Scott Walker’s efforts to increase the setbacks on the sting of the turbine, and propose rules that may halt wind energy initiatives.

“We see so many opportunities to create jobs, revenue and new businesses,” says Brisbois. “The PSC went through an extensive process in 2010, with public hearing and meetings, to set the current rules. I hope that the PSC setbacks rules of 2010 remain in place. If they do, then southwest Wisconsin will become a force in wind energy.”

Farming for the Future
Wisconsin has always been known as a state rich in its agricultural heritage. Southwest Wisconsin is holding that title strong and proud with some innovative new endeavors.

“The interest in local foods is something we can benefit greatly from,” explains Ward. “We’re very interested in what we can do as an organization to identify markets and logistic issues.”

Seeboth agrees: “Especially right now when communities are having a difficult time competing on a global scale, much less a statewide scale.”

That’s where Rick Terrien enters the picture. As founding executive director of the Iowa County Area Economic Development Corporation, his passion and excitement for local agricultural initiatives is boundless.

He quoted the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture in a recent post on his blog, Sustainable Work. “On average, locally purchased products return 70 cents of every dollar to the local economy. Non-local products return only 40 cents. Steve Deller, an economist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison states that for every $100,000 of new sales of local food, 2.2 jobs are created and $77,000 of income brought back in.”

These statistics are very real to the economy in southwest Wisconsin.

To Karen Lehman, from Fresh Taste in Chicago, local is 250 miles from the Downtown Loop. Fresh Taste is an organization advancing local and healthy eating in the greater Chicago area, encompassing approximately 8 million people. The produce being grown in Wisconsin is what will give those millions of people local food.

A new three-facility regional food processing and distribution network (the Food Action Alliance) is being developed to meet that need. The first, the Wisconsin Innovation Kitchen, is already up and running in its new facility based in Mineral Point. (See “Kitchen Serves Up Jobs and Helps Farmers” on p. 39 to learn more.)  It is a state-inspected kitchen, offering a variety of food services, from packaging to shipping.

The second, Greenco Industries in Monroe, has 4,500 feet of refrigeration, storage and distribution capabilities. It also offers food-packaging services.
 
Third, the Sharing Spaces Kitchen in Prairie du Chien expects to open this year.

All three of these spaces are offering food producers the ability to sell their raw products, or on a different level, have the food processed with their own recipe, packaged and prepared for resale. One local pasta maker works with the Innovation Kitchen to produce pumpkin and squash pastas, which he sells to local restaurants and food stores.

The ability these facilities have to acquire and process local food will be able to make a dent in the needs and demand of the Chicago area, as well as all surrounding communities.

“We’re in a position to make a significant impact on the food lives of a lot of people that live around us,” says Terrien. “And, lift up the cover on the book and it’s an economic strategy.” 


Visitors Welcome
The tourism industry in southwest Wisconsin has been holding its own and slightly increasing the last few years, says Kathy Kopp, executive director, Platteville Chamber of Commerce.

The gem of Southwest Wisconsin tourism is, of course, the Mississippi River. Kopp sits on the Governor’s Council on Tourism, which has been instrumental in bringing awareness to the tourism benefits of the “Mighty Miss” and its Great River Road. Grant County alone has 57 miles of shoreline, and Wisconsin is one of the 10 states of the Mississippi River Parkway Commission.

“We talk to so many people that come to the area from all over the United States, Canada and internationally to see the Mississippi River,” says Kopp. “It’s very significant for tourism.”

Kopp says the Tri-State Tourism Council has looked at the millions among millions of people who live within a 200-mile radius of Platteville. “It’s pretty incredible,” says Kopp, who works with partners from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, Southwest Technical College, among other tourism, chambers of commerce and economic development groups to build awareness of the tourism industry in this area of the state.

Many industries are working to sustain and grow the economy of southwest Wisconsin. It’s an exciting time for all, whether working in the fields, factories, showcasing the Mighty Mississippi or defining housing options for the future. These hard-working and focused communities are showing the entire state what it means to come together as a team and advance the greater cause.



Kitchen Serves Up Jobs and Supports Farmers
“Who would have guessed that one of Wisconsin’s biggest economic stories is in a center for people with disabilities,” says Rick Terrien, executive director of the Iowa County Area Economic Development Corporation.

Owned by the Hodan Center of Mineral Point, the Wisconsin Innovation Kitchen is providing opportunities for people with disabilities and at the same time, promoting the growth of Wisconsin’s specialty agriculture sector.

The new 10,000-square-foot commercial kitchen and retail store in Mineral Point serves many purposes. Its kitchen is available for community food processing use, where local food entrepreneurs can rent the facility by the hour to make their own products, or hire the center to do it for them.

It also is the only kitchen of its type in the country that boasts a professional food processing staff. The organization began by managing a local Dairy Queen franchise, and has grown to a preparation, packaging, labeling, storing and shipping facility for a large variety and quantity of locally produced foods.

The Innovation Kitchen started up in 2001 and has since expanded to include more than 150 products, which are sold at more than 700 stores in 26 states under the Papa Pat’s Farmhouse Recipes label. This amount of production has all been accomplished quietly in southwestern Wisconsin, supporting local farmers and providing jobs to people with disabilities. The plan just keeps moving forward with the addition of two more centers.

“I’ve had some really great business opportunities in my life but this is the one where I feel I can make the biggest impact,” says Terrien.

By Jen Bradley

Jen Bradley is a freelance writer living in East Troy.

More Featured Articles