The Daily Reporter articles from November 2003

The Daily Reporter archives from November 2003

Two tax incremental financing district reforms proposed.
November 3, 2003... Byline: Sean Ryan There are two plans in Madison to reform Wisconsin's tax incremental financing district laws - one to give towns TIF authority and a draft Senate bill proposing a broad range of reforms.The Assembly Committee on Rural...

Milwaukee Dept. of City Development selling Third Ward site.
November 4, 2003... Byline: Sean Ryan The Milwaukee Department of City Development has four unofficial offers for a vacant property it's selling in the Historic Third Ward."What we want to do is play off the explosive growth of the Third Ward, and we'd like...

Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century bills moving in Congress.
November 4, 2003... Byline: Jeremy Harrell Congressional leaders are defying predictions and moving ahead with a six-year transportation bill, but final approval of a complete package could still be a long way off, an industry observer said."The heart of this...

Federal govt. disallows Wisc. proposal to use project labor agreement for medical center.
November 5, 2003... Byline: Jeremy Harrell The federal government has put the clamps on a state proposal to use a project-labor agreement for the construction of a $160 million medical center in Madison.While PLA opponents cheered this development, they also...

Metropolitan Builders Assn. backs Milwaukee County Sheriff in mayoral race.
November 5, 2003... Byline: Sean Ryan The Metropolitan Builders Association is backing Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke in Milwaukee's mayoral race largely because of his dedication to regulatory reform."He would be very pro-economic growth and very...

Commentary: Reduce or ban retainage.
November 5, 2003... Byline: Donald Croysdale Last month, the State Assembly Committee on Government Operations and Spending Limitations held a public hearing on a bill to reduce the retainage percentage on public projects. The American Subcontractors...

Taxpayers speak their mind in rejecting school district referendums.
November 6, 2003... Byline: Chris Thompson Tuesday was a tough day for school districts and builders around the state.Ten districts requested a total of $178.27 million from voters in school project referendums. Voters approved only $7.07 million worth of...

Review of hospital construction sought.
November 6, 2003... Byline: Jeremy Harrell Two state legislators want to rein in what they're calling "the medical arms race" with a proposal to force state regulation of hospital construction projects."We just want to get some rhyme or reason to what's going...

Commentary: Nat'l Assn. of Industrial and Office Properties forms Wisc. chapter.
November 6, 2003... Byline: Matt Moroney A new trade association is forming in Wisconsin, and the interest generated has been overwhelming. On Oct. 29, the Wisconsin Chapter of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties held its first...

Wisconsin legislative committee approves apprenticeship tax credit.
November 7, 2003... Byline: Jeremy Harrell The apprenticeship tax credit gained new life Thursday when a key legislative committee approved a bill giving employers a financial incentive to hire new workers.This year's version of a bill that has seen multiple...

AFL-CIO and the Associated Builders and Contractors argue over competing apprenticeship programs.
November 7, 2003... Byline: Sean Ryan The AFL-CIO Building and Construction Trades Department and the Associated Builders and Contractors are scrapping over their competing apprenticeship programs.The labor union started it last week when it issued a report...

Commentary: Where has the time gone?
November 7, 2003... Byline: Daily Reporter Staff How do you measure wasted time?First, you find out when the state discovered it would receive federal funding to supplement the costs of constructing the $160 million University of Wisconsin Interdisciplinary...

Constructive Comments: November 7, 2003.
November 7, 2003... Byline: Dick Snow It seems as if there is a poll or referendum for everything these days, so there might as well be one to determine if the state motto should be reversed from Forward to Backwards? Or should there be the choice of...

Eau Claire-based PMSI provides everything under one roof needed for building a structure.
November 10, 2003... Byline: Jim Cryns You might think of this company as you would think of a Wal-Mart. Everything you'd require under one roof, except this shop is for the planning, budgeting and construction of public and private structures.PMSI is based in...

Proposed Fair Credit Reporting Act change gives employers more freedom.
November 10, 2003... Byline: John Finerty Construction industry employers are often called upon to investigate workplace accidents, employee theft, harassment or other types of misconduct. Some investigations are best left to outside experts such as safety...

Wisconsin Public Service Commission OK's We Energies' power plant plan.
November 11, 2003... Byline: Jeremy Harrell The state Public Service Commission on Monday put its final stamp of approval on We Energies' plan to build coal-fired power plants in Oak Creek.The commission took less than five minutes to approve unanimously a...

Wisc. Technical College System wants to work more closely with businesses.
November 11, 2003... Byline: Sean Ryan On the tail end of a 14-stop state tour, Wisconsin Technical College System President Richard Carpenter is talking about working closer with businesses, especially in construction."We could become one of the players in...

WisDOT considering design/build's use.
November 12, 2003... Byline: Jeremy Harrell Staff reductions at the state Department of Transportation are forcing officials to consider significant business changes, including the possibility of using design/ build for projects."We're talking about shifts,"...

Higher emerging business enterprise goals pushed.
November 12, 2003... Byline: Sean Ryan The National Association of Minority and Women Owned Law Firms, backed by three ethnic chambers of commerce, are calling Milwaukee to more than double its emerging business enterprise contracting goals."Contracting with...

Dept. of City Development opposes coalition's Park East plan.
November 13, 2003... Byline: Sean Ryan The plan to mandate numerous social programs in Milwaukee's Park East corridor redevelopment could increase project costs and scare developers away from the area.It could also become a popular talking point in the city's...

Job Creation Act debated.
November 13, 2003... Byline: Jeremy Harrell Legislative Republicans kicked their pro-business agenda into full throttle Wednesday with a gigantic, catchall bill that covers everything from wetland development to apprenticeship.The Joint Finance Committee...

Village of Saukville trying to attract new development.
November 13, 2003... Byline: Jim Cryns A famous wine producer once proclaimed that it would sell no wine before its time. There's a quiet village about 30 miles north of Milwaukee where developers and construction firms want you to know it's time.The village...

Majestic building renovation gets under way.
November 14, 2003... Byline: Sean Ryan Madison-based developer Gorman and Company, with ardent support from the Milwaukee mayor's office and the Doyle administration, started work on an affordable housing apartment by Grand Avenue Mall Thursday. "Last...

Lake Park Home Assn. backs contractor in dispute with Dept. of Natural Resources over materials.
November 14, 2003... Byline: Jim Cryns Tony Steffes' construction company, Steffes Construction, was selected to repair environmental damage at Lake Park Ponds, a 31-year-old condominium complex just north of Mequon Road in Germantown. But whether he will...

Groth Designs, Habitat for Humanity help renovate house into transitional living facility.
November 14, 2003... Byline: Chris Thompson The directors of Serenity Inns Inc. had big plans to renovate a Milwaukee house into a transitional living facility for homeless, addicted men in recovery. But it took the combined efforts of Groth Design Group...

Commentary: Constructive Comments Nov. 14, 2003.
November 14, 2003... Byline: Dick Snow After two decades, Wisconsin is once more in an economic development malaise. But who's to blame? Why does this state lead the nation in construction unemployment? Trying to figure it out is like trying to solve...

Commentary: Tips on employee background checks.
November 17, 2003... Byline: Charles Palmer Employers often hire job applicants with a criminal history. Often, when the criminal background of an employee is first discovered, it is in the context of an investigation into serious damage or litigation...

Hotel planned for downtown Milwaukee.
November 17, 2003... Byline: Chris Thompson A development team will present its plans for a $30 million Sheraton Hotel in downtown Milwaukee to the city's Redevelopment Authority on Thursday. The Milwaukee Convention Center Hotel LLC, an investors group...

Madison-area unions, organizations trying to recruit women, minorities.
November 17, 2003... Byline: Jeremy Harrell Madison-area unions, contractors and community groups are joining up to find ways to recruit more women and minorities to the building trades. "It doesn't do us any good to train if we can't put people to work,"...

Utility contract for Menomonee Valley stalled.
November 18, 2003... Byline: Sean Ryan The Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District can't award its contract to update utilities in the Menomonee Valley until a Milwaukee circuit court decides which of the two low bidders should win. The project's 18-month...

Transportation depts. develop alternatives for stalled bridge project.
November 18, 2003... Byline: Jeremy Harrell The Minnesota and Wisconsin transportation departments have developed new building alternatives for the stalled Stillwater Bridge project. Last week, the two state DOTs released a draft report that outlines five...

Commentary: Associated General Contractors of Wisconsin presents awards.
November 18, 2003... Byline: Bob Barker The total value of construction put in place was more than $11 billion in 2002 with an economic impact of almost $25 billion dollars to Wisconsin's economy. For every dollar spent on construction, there is $2.20 of...

U of Wisconsin System seeks better process to deliver construction projects.
November 19, 2003... Byline: Jeremy Harrell The University of Wisconsin System is seeking greater authority and latitude in the ways it delivers its construction projects. "Our process right now is a dinosaur," said Alan Fish, UW-Madison's vice chancellor...

Citizens Allied for Sane Highways wins mayor's design award.
November 19, 2003... Byline: Sean Ryan Milwaukee Mayor John Norquist's annual design awards this year hailed projects that reclaimed buildings' historic images and stimulated life on the sidewalks around them. Twelve of the 20 winners Norquist selected in...

Mechanical Contractors Association proposes drug-testing bill.
November 20, 2003... Byline: Jeremy Harrell The Mechanical Contractors Association of Wisconsin this week unveiled a legislative proposal to require drug testing on prevailing-wage projects statewide. According to the bill, in development for most of this...

Wife of Associated General Contractors govt. affairs director dies.
November 20, 2003... Byline: Daily Reporter Staff Diana Kay Boullion, the wife of James Boullion, government affairs director for the Associated General Contractors of Wisconsin, and the daughter of Dale Fenley, former Wisconsin Transportation Builders...

The Boldt Co. to cover difference in pay for employee being deployed to Iraq.
November 20, 2003... Byline: Chris Thompson Maj. Troy Torgerson is scared. It's not his upcoming deployment to central Iraq with the 264th Engineering Group of the Wisconsin Army National Guard that scares him. For Torgerson, his fear is even more personal...

Milwaukee Public Schools using new criteria to judge proposals.
November 20, 2003... Byline: Sean Ryan Milwaukee Public Schools' second shot at bidding two new school projects, this time using new criteria to judge proposals and a revised participation program, produced more and cheaper bids. "We got four proposals and...

Commentary: Building industry should give thanks.
November 20, 2003... Byline: Matt Moroney One week from today is Thanksgiving. This seems like a fitting time to look back and take stock of the proposals, initiatives and new laws for which the building industry can be thankful. This list is by no means...

WisDOT sets goals for Marquette Interchange project.
November 21, 2003... Byline: Sean Ryan The Wisconsin Department of Transportation has high hopes that contractors can meet the disadvantaged business enterprise goals on the first round of Marquette Interchange contracts. "There's a higher expectation from...

New scoreboards added to $83.7M Camp Randall renovation.
November 21, 2003... Byline: Jeremy Harrell The $83.7 million renovation of Camp Randall Stadium got a little bigger on Wednesday after the State Building Commission approved two new scoreboards and some needed repairs. The panel voted unanimously to allow...

Commentary: Stillwater Bridge project dispute still unresolved.
November 21, 2003... Byline: Daily Reporter Staff The Stillwater Bridge project runs deep. Since 1967, the bridge over the St. Croix River has divided more than the Minnesota and Wisconsin borders; the lift bridge built in 1931 has split environmentalists...

Commentary: Constructive Comments November 21, 2003.
November 21, 2003... Byline: Dick Snow Next week is Thanksgiving, which means rejoicing, remembering and reveling. A substantial hunk of the construction industry, having donned blaze orange, will likely be found doing all that while allegedly hunting...

Vote on Park East redevelopment plan delayed.
November 24, 2003... Byline: Sean Ryan Milwaukee's Redevelopment Authority delayed approval of the Park East redevelopment plan to see what the Common Council does with Alderman Marvin Pratt's proposed social mandates for private projects that receive city...

Bill to reduce retainage on public projects stalls.
November 24, 2003... Byline: Jeremy Harrell A dispute between municipal owners and industry representatives has stalled passage of a bill to reduce retainage on public projects. Last week, a state Assembly committee was scheduled to vote on a bill to...

Project-labor agreement on Weston coal plant signed.
November 25, 2003... Byline: Jeremy Harrell Unions in the Wausau area and the Wisconsin Public Service Corp., Green Bay, signed a project-labor agreement last week for construction of a 500-megawatt coal plant in Weston. The deal follows a statewide trend...

Milwaukee County Circuit Court to rule on bidding dispute.
November 25, 2003... Byline: Jeremy Harrell A Milwaukee County Circuit Court is leaning in favor of Super Excavators Inc., Menomonee Falls, in a bidding dispute with Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District. Last week, the court issued a temporary...

Common Council president blamed for Park East plan delay.
November 26, 2003... Byline: Jeremy Harrell Milwaukee city officials are butting up against deadlines for laying out a Park East corridor development plan, and they're pointing fingers at Common Council President Marvin Pratt as a cause of delay. On...

Commentary: Congress to vote on two important pieces of legislation this week.
November 26, 2003... Byline: Donald Croysdale On Monday, President Bush carried on a White House tradition by pardoning two turkeys, which thus avoided winding up on a Thanksgiving Day plate. This ceremony was apt since two pieces of legislation were...