Reminder - Join us for a free import/export educational session at FVTC Chilton on July 9th or online, details in article below.

Travel Calumet Original Podcast new episode available!

Guest Julie Johnson, Race Director of the Community First Credit Union Fox Cities Marathon Presented by Miron Construction, is our guest. Find episode #23, here, and listen to this or other episodes of The Travel Calumet Original Podcast.

Sargento announces leadership changes

By Aaron Holbrook, Insight Publications, June 27, 2024

Sargento Foods, Plymouth, announced Michael Pellegrino has been appointed chief operating officer following the retirement of two long-time company leaders.

Mike McEvoy's will retire from his position as executive vice president of operations and Kristi Jankowski's retire from her position as executive vice president of innovation.

Pellegrino joined Sargento in 2009. During his tenure he has held various executive positions including his most recent role as president and chief growth officer. In his newly appointed role as chief operating officer, Pellegrino's expanded responsibilities will include leadership for the business units (consumer products and food service and ingredients), operations, innovation, sales, supply chain and strategic planning. During his tenure, Pellegrino and his team have accelerated the growth of the Sargento brand to become a national market-share leader in the retail cheese category. He has also led best-in-class integrated marketing campaigns that have made Sargento one of the most recognized brands in the dairy case.

Click here for full story.

Zander Press celebrating 125 years of family ownership

Zander Press Inc in Brillion is celebrating 125 years as a family-owned business with plant tours of their commercial printing facility on July 18 from 2:30-4:30. Come and see how the magic happens and check out their latest printing and sign making technologies. As if 125 years wasn’t enough reason to party, they are also celebrating the 130th anniversary of The Brillion News. 

Started in 1894, the local newspaper was purchased by Otto Zander in 1899 and has continued as a family tradition boasting a 5th generation workforce. 

Come out for a tour at Zander Press Inc. and join us after for live music at Carstens Mill starting at 6pm. Bring a lawn chair and relax to all your favorite songs with TJ and Lynn outside on the deck. Cash bar will be available.  

Photo above is of Otto Zander, who purchased Zander press for $450 in 1899. Photo from www.zanderpressinc.com.

Professional Plating to host open house to showcase latest expansion

From Professional Plating, July 1, 2024

Professional Plating Inc in Brillion, WI is wrapping up our latest expansion, with the installation of an additional Barrel Zinc Plating line and a new Epoxy E-coat line. To celebrate the growth, they are planning an Open House for Wednesday, August 21st, at their location at 705 Northway Drive (Hwy 10 West), in Brillion.

Professional Plating (PPI) started in 1979, by Bob and Pat Endries. The business is still owned locally by the Endries family. Over the course of the past 45 years, several building additions were constructed which now covers over 200,000 square feet. The company began with just one production line doing zinc plating in a barrel operation. Over the years, PPI has added the ability to do zinc rack plating, acrylic and epoxy e-coat and powder coating. Various value-added services are also offered, including shot blasting and sand blasting. PPI has four semi-trucks that provide logistic services to customers across the state of Wisconsin. They employ 170 full-time Team Members.

During the Open House, informational walking tours of their facility will be conducted. The production lines will be in full operation. Tours will run from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. The public is welcome to attend.

Keeping nostalgia alive in Northeast Wisconsin

By Cheryl Hentz, The Business News, June 17, 2024

Family outings, date nights, fun with friends – you’d be hard-pressed to find someone over the age of 40 who hasn’t, at one point or another, visited a drive-in movie theater.

Though – according to DriveInTheater.com – some drive-ins in the United States date as far back as the 1910s, the first patented drive-in opened June 6, 1933, in New Jersey.

By 1951, the number of drive-in movie theaters in the U.S. had increased to a whopping 4,151.

By the early-to-mid 60s, drive-ins had reached their heyday with some 5,000 theaters coast-to-coast.

Wisconsin was a little late in joining the craze, boasting a mere 79 drive-ins across the state during this period.

Between the 1970s and 1990s, the popularity of drive-in theaters started to decline – people were buying smaller cars; there were several improvements to home entertainment, including color TV, cable, VCRs and video rentals, allowing people to watch movies in their homes; and owners of the land where drive-ins were located – usually 15 acres or more – were selling their land to developers of condominiums, multi-family apartment complexes and shopping malls.

Through the years, a handful of drive-ins throughout the Badger State have managed to stay afloat – and a few new ones were built in the last 20 years or so. 

Today, there are fewer than a dozen that remain in Wisconsin, four of which are in Northeast Wisconsin – helping people relive those cherished memories of years gone by while creating new ones for a whole new generation of people. 

The Chilton Twilight Drive-In Theater is located at 1255 E. Chestnut St. in Chilton – occupying the former Walmart space.

Vicki Radue and her husband, Michael, said they were contacted by the owners of the property asking if they’d consider doing an outdoor theater at that location.

Click here for complete story.

For more information click here

Valley Transit Center gets $25M for accessibility, affordable housing

From WTAQ-WLUK, June 2024

A project making improvements and building affordable housing units at the Valley Transit Center has received a big financial boost.

On Monday, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) announced $25 million in federal funds will help replace the Valley Transit Center in Appleton. The funding comes from the bipartisan infrastructure law’s “Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity” (RAISE) program.

Officials say the reconstruction project will improve regional connectivity and safety and accessibility, create jobs, and provide affordable housing options.

The new facility will be “more energy-efficient” and include 14 bus bays, ground-floor indoor and covered outdoor waiting areas, public restrooms, secure bike storage, vending machines, a ticketing office, an Appleton Police Department substation, and other infrastructural upgrades.

Expanded passenger amenities, ADA features and transit facilities are also highlights of the project, as well as improved transit operations. Additionally, in a future phase of the project, affordable housing units will be built above the new transit center.

Click here for full story.

Wisconsin food prices remain stable despite national increase

From Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation, June 27, 2024

According to the latest informal Wisconsin­ Farm Bureau Marketbasket survey, the total cost of 12 food items used to host a summer cookout for 10 totaled $66.38, down 0.5% from last year’s state average. Broken down by plate, the cost of a summer cookout in Wisconsin remains less than $7 per person.

The same survey conducted on the national level by American Farm Bureau totaled $71.22 which is 5% higher than last year’s national average – the highest national average since the survey was initiated in 2013.

“While we witnessed several price fluctuations across the items included in the summer marketbasket survey, the overall price in Wisconsin remained relatively stable from 2023,” said Wisconsin Farm Bureau’s Senior Director of Public Relations Cassie Sonnentag. “Wisconsin’s diverse agriculture industry lends itself to affordable food prices due to the availability and proximity to many of the survey’s items.”

Click here for complete story.

Calumet County Board vacancy - District 2

Calumet County is seeking citizens living in District 2 interested in serving on the Calumet County Board of Supervisors. Applications will be accepted to represent:

• District 2 – City of Appleton (Ward 25) click to see map

This appointment to the County Board is for the balance of a term which will expire 4-20-2026.

Applicants must live in Calumet County's District 2.

County Board members may be appointed to assorted committees, boards, and commissions with varying meeting schedules (anticipate 1 committee appointment). Ideally, candidates for the position have flexible schedules to accommodate these meetings. County Board meetings are held in Chilton on the 3^rd Tuesday of the month at 6:00 p.m. The Annual Budget Meeting is held at 9:00 a.m.      

The successful applicant must be a United States citizen, reside in District 2, be at least 18 years of age, and have no felony convictions.

Interested citizens meeting these requirements may submit their resume, along with a letter of interest by 4:00 p.m., Wed., July 10, 2024, to the County Administrator’s Office, 206 Court St., Chilton, 53014 or email county.admin@calumetcounty.org.

Resumes will be reviewed by the County Board Chair, who will make a recommendation for appointment, subject to the approval of the County Board. Equal consideration shall be given to all qualified applicants.

For more information call (833) 620-2730, ext. 2000. 

To register to attend the event onsite and in-person, please click here.

To register to attend the event online, please click here.

Reminder - Join us for free import/export educational session at FVTC Chilton on July 9th

By Rick Sense, Calumet County

Calumet County Economic Development and Fox Valley Technical College Chilton are partnering to offer an educational event at the FVTC Chilton facility on July 9 starting at 11am. The session is titled: Importing and Exporting Opportunities for Businesses of Any Size.

Ngosong Fonkem, the presenter, advises corporate leaders as they make strategic decisions, particularly in the context of dueling U.S. and China laws and regulations resulting from geo-political competition. He primarily focuses on day-to-day compliance with Customs laws and US Export Control and sanctions regulations, and with interventions - such as audits and investigations, and civil enforcement proceedings. With the trade lawyers and specialists at Harris Sliwoski, Ngosong also assists the deal teams (at Harris Sliwoski and at other firms) with due diligence on trade risk in M&A, private equity, and other transactions.

The session will be an excellent opportunity to learn more about the tools available to organizations looking to expand markets through trade. The event will be available at FVTC Chilton and streamed via Microsoft Teams. To register to attend onsite or online, please see the links above this story.

Reminder - EXPORTECH™ sessions start August 26th

ExporTech is a national, 12-week export assistance program helping executives grow revenue through optimal exporting strategies. Over 400 Wisconsin manufacturers averaged $1 million in new export sales in the first year after attending WMEP’s ExporTech. You will learn proven best practices for optimal exporting and develop your playbook to connect with global customers seeking your products.

Group Sessions Round 1 Start August 26th, 1-3:30 daily

Group Sessions Round 2: Week of September 23, 1-3:30 daily

Group Sessions Round 3: Week of November 4, 1-3:30 daily

COST: $10,000 - up to three participants. WEDC $5,000 scholarships are available. Scholarship applications are due July 19th.

Program Overview

• Small class sizes with individual attention
• Expert support outside class sessions
• Flexible virtual sessions for up to 3 executives
• Graduate with a go-to-market export plan
• Significant ROI potential in year 1 and beyond

To learn more, click here.

Market improves for Appleton home buyers while home sales continued to surge in 2024

By Jeff Bollier, Green Bay Press-Gazette, June 24, 2024

Appleton area existing home sales increased 20% in May, continuing a trend that has seen home sales surge 43% in Outagamie County in 2024.

Outagamie County home sales rose from 157 in May 2023 to 189 last month, a 20.4% increase, according to monthly housing market data released Thursday by Wisconsin Realtors Association.

For comparison, statewide home sales increased 11% to 6,566 last month while year-to-date statewide home sales have increased 12.1% to 23,849 through May.

There have been 776 existing homes sold through the first five months of 2024, up 45.3% compared to the same period in 2023. Outagamie County's year-to-date sales are about on par with the 778 sales recorded in 2022 but a little behind the 836 homes sold in the county 2021.

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June 23 Calumet County “Sundae” at the Fairgrounds huge success

The Calumet County Dairy Promotion Committee hosted the 37th annual Calumet County "Sundae” at the Fairgrounds on Sunday, June 23, 2024.

“Sundae” at the Fairgrounds is a free, family event that included music, an artisan cheese display, virtual farm tours, farm machinery displays, multiple booths and interactive educational displays.

This year's event drew more than 2,000 people according to event organizers.

Getting modern tools into the hands of today’s learners

By Heather Graves, The Business News, June 17, 2024

Scott Stump, CEO of the National FFA Organization, said the agricultural industry today is much different than the agriculture industry of yesterday – a pattern that will continue to evolve in the days, months, years and decades to come.

Learning what that means, Stump said, is crucial to the future of the industry and the world.

“It is critical that agricultural educators and students are not just keeping pace but are setting that pace,” he said. “Many of our students in (FFA) will not enter the profession for another five to six years, depending on what they do post high school, and we need to be showing them where agriculture is going to be or will potentially be, versus just continuing to show them where agriculture is at.”

This is important, Stump said, because the young people of today will be the leaders “who are going to change the world.”

“And to do that, they need to be on the cusp of the possibilities,” he said.

For complete story, click here.

U.S. workers are experiencing a gap between expectations versus reality

By Jack Kelly, Forbes, June 17, 2024

Workers are feeling less optimistic, according to recent data from Glassdoor’s Employee Confidence Index. Professionals reporting a positive six-month business outlook plummeted to 46.4% in May, continuing its spiral downward in the last two years.

A key factor impacting employee confidence has been declining satisfaction with leadership transparency and communication in the post-pandemic era.

In April 2020, employee satisfaction with “transparency” was at an all-time high in Glassdoor reviews—at 63%. “At the height of the pandemic, employees praised leaders for their transparency amidst a time of enormous uncertainty,” the report stated. Since then, it has plunged to 40%, which is weaker than the satisfaction rate pre-Covid.

Industries that saw the sharpest declines in employee confidence over the last year included pharmaceutical and biotechnology (-10%), aerospace and defense (-7.7%) and media and communication (-7.1%), which can be attributed to the wave of layoffs seen over the past 12 months in those sectors.

Click here for complete story.

WBA releases results of Bank CEO Economic Conditions Survey

In the Wisconsin Bankers Association’s latest Economic Conditions Survey of Wisconsin bank CEOs, 76% of respondents rated Wisconsin’s current economic health as “excellent” or “good.” Most survey respondents (70%) predict that Wisconsin’s economy will stay about the same over the next six months and expect inflation to either stay about the same (66%) or fall (26%). The responses from this recent survey underscored themes of economic stability and resilience compared to the previous survey at the end of 2023, when 68% of respondents rated Wisconsin’s health at the time as “excellent” or “good” and responses split between predicting the economy would weaken over the next six months (44%) and predicting it would stay about the same (47%).

For complete story, click here.

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