833 East lands MLB’s Bud Selig, Grace Matthews as tenants
The 833 East office building under construction in downtown Milwaukee has landed more tenants, including Major League Baseball commissioner emeritusBud Selig and the first local office of investment manager Heck Capital Advisors. Also, Grace Matthews Inc. has decided to move its office with 18 employees to 833 East, and previously announced tenant Jason Industries Inc. is more than doubling its planned footprint in the building, according to a Thursday announcement. Milwaukee developer Irgens has a third, undisclosed tenant to lease 2,758 square feet, and letters of intent from two other companies to lease more than 37,000 square feet. If those deals come together, the first large office built downtown in more than 10 years would open in March with 65 percent occupancy. The 18-story office building is under construction near the downtown lakefront on East Michigan Street. Anchor tenants include law firm Godfrey & Kahn, Irgens and Colliers International, which is handling leasing for 833 East. Irgens also recently announced the Rare Steakhouse will fill the building’s first-floor restaurant space. “We’ve been able to secure a number of high-profile, high-quality tenants and expect existing space to generate a lot of interest as the building nears completion and takes its place among several new developments in downtown Milwaukee,” said Scott Welsh, CEO of Colliers International – Wisconsin. Selig will move his MLB satellite office to 5,685 square feet in 833 East from the neighboring U.S. Bank Center. Investment bank Grace Matthews will move into 6,269 square feet from its downtown office on North Milwaukee Street. The 833 East office will be a new branch office for Rhinelander-based Heck Capital, which has clients in 35 states with more than $3 billion in assets. Steve Palec from Colliers represented Heck in its site search. “They made the initial decision that they wanted to be in downtown Milwaukee,” Palec said. “They absolutely considered a number of different buildings.” The largest new lease deal in terms of square-footage is for Jason Industries, parent company to a number of manufacturers. Jason is expanding its space from 12,506 square feet to a full building floor of 26,043. “Jason Industries is growing as a company right along with the growth happening in downtown Milwaukee,” said David Westgate, Jason CEO. “As we recruit new talent and build our workforce, it’s imperative to offer a dynamic environment where people can live and work.”
Sep 24th, 2015 by Jeramey Jannene
How former Mitchell airport director Slaybaugh went from thrilled to frustrated
“A little bigger but the issues are the same,” was how Terry Slaybaugh described his job leading General Mitchell International Airport after running a smaller operation in Dayton. It was mid-March, about halfway through a three-month stint at Mitchell airport that ended with Slaybaugh’s abrupt resignation and return to Dayton International Airport. He was working on long-term plans to deal with noise from the airport affecting surrounding households, reaching out to old industry contacts to drum up ad revenue and questioning whether parking outside the baggage area should be allowed for 30 or 60 minutes. But Slaybaugh’s emails indicate that he encountered new issues — such as compiling informational reports for elected officials. Those elicited a different tone than mid-March emails saying he was enjoying the job and that, “everyone at the County have gone out of their way to make me feel at home.” See our Sept. 25 weekly edition for a rundown of Slaybaugh’s time at Mitchell airport, and the items that made him ultimately decide to return to Dayton rather than move his family to Milwaukee. Some of Slaybaugh’s most pronounced statements are in regard to a “performance management” report, and showed frustration at documenting airport operations instead of actually operating the airport. There is a good amount of business school jargon in the management reports, with one email indicating he should “focus everyone on the task of eliminating or mitigating one of the important performance deficits that is preventing them from achieving this purpose.” Slaybaugh wrote an extended response to that task in a April 7 email to his senior staff, writing that staff correct deficits “in real time but do not document it.” “A 24-hour operation constantly improves by the necessity to support constant activity,” he wrote. “People not being able to drive into the Airport and Park continuously would be a deficit, airplanes not landing and taking off continuously would be a deficit, people not being able to arrive at ticket counters, gates and baggage claim continuously would be a deficit. It occurs but not for long, usually only for minutes before we correct it. Often the reason is different and occurs sporadically. How do you manage that? With talented people that are rewarded for commitment, ingenuity and perseverance. How do we implement Performance Management?” See the weekly edition Friday for the exclusive story on his three-month stint at Mitchell airport, based on information culled from more than 1,200 Milwaukee County emails acquired by the Milwaukee Business Journal through an open records request.
Sep 24th, 2015 by Jeramey Jannene
Restoration Hardware moving into Rubin’s space
After more than 20 years in business, Rubin’s Furniture, 224 E. Chicago St., will close. Restoration Hardware, another home furnishings retail chain, will take over the space, according to Rubin’s owner, Bob Rubin. Restoration Hardware left Mayfair Mall in 2012 after 12 years in business. The business plan was to morph from mall-based stores to stand-alone “design galleries.” Rubin says he has 60 days to leave the Third Ward building and; consequently, much of the stock will soon be “drastically reduced.” The two Madison-based Rubin’s locations will remain open. “Our Milwaukee customers have been very loyal,” says Rubin. “We look forward to serving them in our Madison stores.”
Sep 24th, 2015 by Jeramey Jannene
Ex-Milwaukee Bucks dancer sues franchise claiming wage abuse
A former Milwaukee Bucks dancer has sued the NBA franchise, claiming it engaged in “prolific wage abuse” of her and other members of the team’s dance and cheerleading squads. Earlier this year, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers paid $825,000 to settle a similar lawsuit from the NFL team’s cheerleaders. According to Lauren Herington‘s lawsuit in Milwaukee federal court, Bucks dancers spend hours in training, wardrobe maintenance, practice and dancing at games, as well as appearing at charity events and posing for a calendar. When you divide their hours by their flat rate payments— $65 per game, $30 for practice and $50 for special appearances — they earn less than the required minimum wage most weeks, according to the lawsuit. Furthermore, the team did not pay overtime to dancers in weeks they worked in excess of 40 hours, the suit claims. “The Milwaukee Bucks have exploited dozens of young women who dream of dancing professionally for the NBA by requiring them to effectively work for less than minimum wage or nothing at all,” said one Herington’s attorneys, Ryan Stephan of Chicago. “Moreover, the Milwaukee Bucks’ emphasis on physical appearance and almost round-the-clock mandatory workouts not only violates applicable law, but also sets a bad example for our youth.” Bucks spokesman Jake Suski said the organization had not been served with the lawsuit Thursday. “We take these issues seriously and are looking into the matter,” he said. The 18-member Milwaukee Bucks Dancers, formerly known as the Energee dancers, perform during home games and have their own pages on the team’s official website. This year, the team held auditions in July and turned the finals into a live, free, public performance at Peck Pavilion downtown. Herington, 21, of Illinois, was a Bucks dancer during the 2013-2014 season, Stephan said, and is in college and working. Herington’s suit seeks class-action status, to represent all Bucks dancers and cheerleaders from current and past three seasons, an estimated 40 people. The lawsuit says the Bucks violated the federal Fair Labor Standards Act and Wisconsin’s minimum wage and wage payment, claims and collections laws. The lawsuit seeks damages of any payments owed, plus 50% of wages owed by unpaid, liquidated damages accrued from the date wages were due, as well as costs of bringing the case, including attorney fees. Herington is represented by Larry Johnson of Hawks Quindel in Milwaukee, and Chicago law firms Andreson & Associates, and Stephan Zouras LLP.
Sep 24th, 2015 by Dave Reid
411 building undergoing $15 million in renovations
Downtown Milwaukee’s 411 Building is getting a $15 million facelift as its owners try to compete with the glitzy office towers currently under construction along the lakefront and in the suburbs. Jeff Patterson, president and CEO of Chicago-based Riverview Realty Partners, which owns 411 E. Wisconsin Ave., said improvements to the 32-year-old building are already paying off. Since Riverview Reality purchased the building in May 2014, occupancy has gone from 78 to 86 percent. Riverview also just extended its lease with the Wisconsin Athletic Club for 10 years. The club leases the entire sixth floor, which is 22,638 feet. Beginning Tuesday, the club began expanding to 7,500 feet of the fifth floor. The plan is to expand its cardio and weight lifting area on the sixth floor and offer group fitness classes on the fifth floor. Construction at the Wisconsin Athletic Club will be complete by the end of the year, Patterson said. The Wisconsin Athletic Club is paying for those renovations and did not return calls for comment. The work Riverview is doing includes upgrade the building’s elevator systems, HVAC system, lobby, roof and adjacent parking structures. The café on the first floor has been completely upgraded and a business lounge has been installed. A conference center for all of the buildings tenants has also been built on the first floor. LED lighting has been added to the lobby and all of the stone on the walls and floor will be refinished. “We want to remain competitive and one of the top five Class A buildings in the city,” Patterson said. “And frankly, we thought this would help lease the building. We’ve had success in other markets doing this program and so far, we’re having success here.” Quarles & Brady LLP leases the most space in the 654,165-square-foot building. The law firm extend its lease 10 years in 2014. It occupies seven floors, leasing 186,000 square feet. Northwestern Mutual also recently moved into two floors, leasing 55,000 square feet. Riverview Realty Partners, an affiliate of Stamford, Conn.-based Five Mile Capital Partners LLC, purchased the building from a tenants-in-common ownership group. The 411 building sold for well below its assessed value of $87.7 million, according to city records.
Sep 23rd, 2015 by Jeramey Jannene
Bucks will break ground on arena in November, owners say, but when will real work begin?
The Milwaukee Bucks majority owners made their strongest statement yet on starting arena construction — announcing a groundbreaking ceremony for some time in November — but the question remains whether the project will start in earnest that soon. “We couldn’t be more excited about the direction this team is headed on and off the court,” the statement to Bucks fans said. “We want to see you all there when we break ground on our new building in November, and we can’t wait to see a packed arena for opening night just five weeks from now.” The message to Bucks fans was posted on the NBA.com website Tuesday afternoon and signed “Marc, Wes and Jamie” for Marc Lasry, Wes Edens and Jamie Dinan. No date has been set for the November ceremony, Bucks spokesman Jake Suski said Wednesday. “We’re planning a groundbreaking event in November,” Suski said via text. Suski declined to comment on whether the groundbreaking will be largely ceremonial or will mark an actual start to the arena project. Just hours before the Bucks’ majority owners posted their announcement, team president Peter Feigin was asked whether it is realistic that the Bucks will start construction this fall. “It’s all how you define construction,” Feigin told reporters after an event where Mayor Tom Barrett signed resolutions for $47 million in city funding toward the arena district.“There’s already been several million dollars put into pre-construction to get this in. We will publicly submit designs, get zoning permits and everything in the next 60 to 90 days and we’ve already started that process. It’s on schedule as fast as possible.” The Bucks organization hopes to complete the arena in time for the 2017-2018 season, which will start in late October 2017, Feigin said. He said that will require “a real accelerated schedule” for construction. On Sept. 15 at a Milwaukee Business Journal luncheon, Bucks co-owner Mike Fascitelli, in a first from the Bucks leadership, acknowledged that construction may not start this year and be complete by fall 2017. He said a spring 2016 construction start and 2018 completion date would be more realistic. Several major hurdles remain. They include: Submitting a design to the city of Milwaukee and receiving approval from Milwaukee Common Council committees and the full council; Attaining building permits necessary for the project; Negotiating a lease with the owner of the new arena, the Wisconsin Center District, and; The Wisconsin Center District selling $203 million in bonds to finance the bulk of the $250 million in public funding for the arena. Downtown Milwaukee Ald. Bob Bauman, who has told Bucks representatives their conceptual design needs major revisions, said the team has yet to officially submit a design plan. “I guess that’s fine,” Bauman said of the Bucks holding a groundbreaking event in November. “But I don’t see any real work starting anytime soon.” Bauman said “it’s conceivable” the city approvals will be completed by the end of November, allowing the Bucks to begin arena construction very late in 2015. […]
Sep 23rd, 2015 by Jeramey Jannene
City anticipating lawsuit after denying Silk’s request for downtown strip club
Silk Exotic’s application to open a strip club downtown was denied by the Milwaukee Common Council Tuesday when the group unanimously upheld the Licenses Committee’s recommendation without any discussion. Silk has tried for years to open an establishment downtown; its latest proposal was to put a club on the fourth floor of an office building at 804 N. Milwaukee St. The Common Council’s denial will likely mean another lawsuit will be filed against the city, said City Clerk, Jim Owczarski. “We are anticipating we’ll get sued again,” Owczarski said. Silk Exotic owner Joe Ferraro could not be reached for comment. Silk is currently involved in two lawsuits against the city over its inability to get a license. Those lawsuits came up during the Sept. 17 Licenses Committee meeting. In February, the owners of Silk Exotic won a big victory in federal court as a jury awarded them a judgment of almost half a million dollars for revenue lost because the city would not grant them a license for a Downtown strip club. The suit is on appeal in the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. The second lawsuit has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Lynn Adelman, who presided over the first trial. Silk has three locations, one location in Milwaukee, 11400 West Silver Spring Road, and locations in Middleton and Juneau. In 2010, the Common Council rejected Silk Exotic strip club proposals at 730 N. Old World Third St. and at 117 W. Pittsburg Ave. in Walker’s Point. In 2013, Silk Exotic tried unsuccessfully to open approval for plans for a strip club in a city-owned parking structure at 4th Street and Highland Avenue, across the street from the BMO Harris Bradley Center. Last year, the Common Council rejected two more Silk Exotic proposals in Walker’s Point at 505 S. 5th St. and 906 S. Barclay St.
Sep 23rd, 2015 by Jeramey Jannene
Restoration Hardware plans store for Historic Third Ward
Restoration Hardware, a luxury home furnishings retail chain, plans to open a store in Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward, replacing long-time retailer Rubin’s Furniture. The store is planned for 224 E. Chicago St., according to a sign application submitted to the Chris Rute, coordinator for the Historic Third Ward Architectural Review Board. That building is owned by a group affiliated with Rubin’s Furniture, according to city assessment records. Bob Rubin, who owns Rubin’s Furniture, couldn’t be reached for comment. Rubin’s Furniture, based in Madison, has operated for several years a store on the building’s street level, with just over 27,000 square feet, according to city records. The building, a former warehouse, leases office space on the two upper floors to marketing and communications firm Cramer-Krasselt. The sign application shows a Restoration Hardware exterior sign in the middle of the building’s street level. Also, the architectural board on Wednesday unanimously approved plans for a new loading dock submitted by the building’s owner, Rubin 224 East Chicago LLC. There’s no word on when Restoration Hardware plans to open the new store, Rute said. A spokeswoman for the chain’s owner, Corte Madera, Calif.-based Restoration Hardware Holdings Inc., couldn’t be immediately reached for comment. Restoration Hardware operated a store at Mayfair mall, in Wauwatosa, for 12 years before closing in 2012. At that time, Restoration Hardware Holdings said it was converting from mall-based stores to larger stores it calls “design galleries.” The company said the target size of design galleries is approximately 21,500 square feet of selling space, about triple the size of a mall-based store. The Third Ward store would be opening at a time when downtown and its surrounding neighborhoods, including the Third Ward and Walker’s Point, continue adding hundreds of new upscale apartments. It also would be the latest in high-end retailers opening in the Third Ward. They include home furnishings and decor retailer West Elm, which opened its first Wisconsin store in June at 342 N. Water St.
Sep 23rd, 2015 by Jeramey Jannene
Q&A with Mortara’s Brian Brenegan
Mortara Instrument Inc. has set a course to double in sales in five years. The Milwaukee-based designer and manufacturer of medical diagnostics and cardiography devices is building a 64,000-square-foot expansion and hiring 150 workers in the first step to tackle those ambitious growth plans. The 33-year-old company currently employs 400, with 200 of those in Milwaukee, and is one of the fastest-growing firms in the area, making a name for itself internationally, and raising Milwaukee’s profile as a biotech hub. Chief operating officer Brian Brenegan sat down with me to share insight about the company’s growth plans, and why he doesn’t want to go public anytime soon. What have been the biggest challenges in keeping the company based in Milwaukee? “For us to successfully grow, we need to recruit high-quality engineers. As big as we are in the medical device community, we’re just unknown in Milwaukee. That was a challenge for recruiting, because we often got the response of, “Who’s Mortara?” So we’ve invested in our brand and become more vocal in the community. There are certain cities in the U.S. dominated by medical device companies, like Boston, Minneapolis and Seattle, but we’re not looking to outsource our engineering by any means. “With labor, many companies have gone to manufacturing outside the U.S. We’ve been successful in designing our products to have a lower labor content. The typical electrocardiograph device has about one hour of labor, down from five hours. With that, there’s little cost savings to be gained in manufacturing outside the U.S.” Have you ever thought about going public? Is that in the cards for the next few years? “As a global tech company that’s privately held, it gives us a lot of opportunities to be creative. We can minimize our tax exposure, increase competitiveness and pour money back into the company because we’re not worried about the next quarter. You go public, not because you want to, but because you need an exit strategy or the capital. We don’t need either.” How do you plan to double the company’s size in the next five years? “We’ve had tremendous growth the last five years. Now that we’ve surpassed $100 million in sales, we’re wondering how we can double the company again in the next five years. We’re looking at setting up entities in China and Brazil to support the sales in those two territories, like we have in Australia, the U.K., Italy, the Netherlands and Germany. “We’re not going to acquire sales. It’ll be strong, organic growth. But we believe it’s doable. It’s the quality of the product, our name brand and the tech capabilities we have, which surpass anything out there. We have the biggest investment in R&D of any of our known competitors.”
Sep 23rd, 2015 by Dave Reid
DNR board tables sale of lakefront land to Walker donor
Bowler — The Natural Resources Board on Wednesday tabled the pending sale of frontage on a northern Wisconsin lake to a major political donor of Republican Gov. Scott Walker. The DNR and business executive Elizabeth Uihlein had reached an agreement to sell 1.75 acres of lakefront on Rest Lake in Vilas County. The sale required review and final approval from the Natural Resources Board. But board members during their regular monthly meeting quickly voted, 6-0, to table the matter until February after the deal came under criticism in recent days. Board Chairman Preston Cole of Milwaukee said the board early next year expects to review thousands of acres the Department of Natural Resources intends to sell because of a directive from the Legislature. But Cole said the board wants to examine the Vilas County sale in a more comprehensive fashion. “This one sticks out in a lot of ways,” Cole said. “We just want to make sure that when we go through this process that it is done clearly and openly.” The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported on Sunday that the DNR planned to sell the lakefront parcel to Uihlein, who owns an adjacent 11-unit condominium complex that does not have access to the lake. The agreement called for the DNR to sell Uihlein 765 feet of lake frontage in the Town of Manitowish Waters. The price, $275,000, was on the lower end of two independent appraisals that ranged from $238,000 to $384,000. The price of $275,000 is $359 per foot of lake frontage. Douglas J. Haag, who manages land transactions for the DNR, said the sale was based on the value to the new property owner. The lakefront land is one of a series of large-scale property sales now underway by the DNR. They were prompted by the Republican-controlled Legislature, which in 2013 ordered the agency to put 10,000 acres up for sale by June 30, 2017. Lawmakers pushed for the sales because of worries over mounting costs of land purchases through the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program. The state owns about 1.5 million acres and has conservation easements on more than 300,000 acres. Wisconsin taxpayers are spending $1.6 million a week to pay for debt service on that land, according to state budget figures. The DNR has so far identified 118 properties totaling 8,300 acres for possible sale. As part of that process, DNR personnel are called in to study the ecological significance of the land. Haag said the DNR was using a separate, approved process to sell the land to Uihlein, who approached the DNR about buying the parcel. Uihlein and her husband, Richard, have donated nearly $3 million to Walker in recent years. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has reported the couple donated $2.5 million to Unintimidated PAC, a political action committee supporting Walker’s presidential bid that was formed in April. They also have contributed nearly $290,000 to support Walker’s elections for governor. Also, Richard Uihlein donated $200,000 to Our American Revival, an organization formed by Walker in January. Richard […]
Sep 23rd, 2015 by Dave Reid
Michigan firm initiates Marc Marotta Award; Foley’s Childress first winner
A Michigan-based charter school firm has initiated an award named after the late Marc Marotta and selected Foley & Lardner LLP attorney Jason Childress as the first winner. National Heritage Academies of Grand Rapids is one of the nation’s largest charter school management companies, running 80 schools in nine states including Milwaukee Scholars Charter School on Milwaukee’s northwest side. The late Marotta, then an attorney at Foley & Lardner, represented Milwaukee Scholars Charter School when it received a contract as a UW-Milwaukee charter school in 2011. Marotta died April 8 of natural causes at the age of 52. Marotta was BMO Harris Bradley Center chairman and previously served as secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Administration under former Gov. Jim Doyle. Marotta also served on the boards of Milwaukee World Festival Inc. and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee. National Heritage Academies (NHA) spokeswoman Megan Dekraker said the company decided to name an award after Marotta because of his leadership “as we worked to provide high quality education choice in the Milwaukee area.” Marotta was “a dedicated advocate and passionately worked on behalf of causes and issues for which he believed in deeply,” Dekraker said. “NHA is proud to have called Mr. Marotta a friend, and those within our organization who knew him best were forever changed for the better because of his influence upon their life,” Dekraker said. Childress works at Foley & Lardner’s Madison office as a public affairs director. He is a member of Foley’s government and public policy practice. Childress was recognized with the first Marc Marotta Award for his Wisconsin state legislative lobbying efforts on behalf of National Heritage Academies, Dekraker said. Childress, a colleague of Marotta’s, led an effort to expand the number of charter school authorizers in Wisconsin, the firm said. That provided National Heritage opportunities to expand in the field of public charter schools. “It seemed fitting that he would be honored first because of his tireless advocacy and unwavering integrity in how he does his work,” Dekraker said.
Sep 23rd, 2015 by Dave Reid
Pop-up dinner showcases the beauty of raw
When you hear the phrase “raw food,” what’s your initial reaction? Do you think of delicious foods like gazpacho and pesto? How about heirloom tomato salads or coleslaw? Or do you immediately presume I’m talking about a radical lifestyle diet? Personal Chef Karen Gill, who hosts a pop-up dinner at Amilinda, 315 E. Wisconsin Ave., on Sept. 27, says that she looks at raw dishes as being just another way to prepare great food. “I don’t approach raw as a dietary lifestyle,” she explains. “I just think of it as a new cuisine. It’s like Mexican or Malaysian. It’s something new to explore.” Gill, who has been working as a personal chef since 2004, says she discovered raw foods a few years ago when she was looking for a way to eat healthier without giving up desserts. “I have a sweet tooth,” she says, “And I fell into raw food through desserts. The first recipe I tried was a chocolate avocado mousse, and it was delicious.” The mousse was so good Gill decided she wanted to learn more, so she enrolled in a raw cooking class through an area organization. “It really opened up my world to a new cuisine,” she says. “And I found a lot of recipes that are healthy, easy to make and delicious all at the same time.” One of her favorite recipes is a raw marinara sauce made in the blender with fresh tomatoes and herbs. “I loved the idea that I could whip out a pasta sauce in the blender in less than ten minutes,” she says. “I mean, your grandmother’s 12-hour-long simmering sauce is delicious, but I don’t always have time for that. It’s really freeing to know that you don’t have to slave over the stove for hours to make a really delicious dish.” Gill says people are frequently surprised by just how flavorful raw dishes can be, especially when care and attention is taken to using the best and freshest ingredients. “This is the prime of harvest season,” notes Gill. “So, it’s the perfect time to do this. I probably wouldn’t do this dinner in January. But now? It’s the perfect time to enjoy all the great fruits and vegetables that Wisconsin has to offer.” Gill’s dinner, “Un-Cooked,” will feature five delectable courses, including dishes like a greens and apple “mojito,” aged cashew “chevre” with herbs de Provence and tomato zucchini flax crackers, a cauliflower and apple soup with pickled onions, zucchini alfredo with marinated mushrooms, spinach and pine nut “Parmesan” and cocao nib and almond cake with vanilla sauce. Uncooked takes place on Sept. 27 at Amilinda, beginning at 5 p.m. The cost is $55 per person, which includes five courses with beverages available for purchase. For more information, or to make reservations, visit amilinda.com.
Sep 23rd, 2015 by Dave Reid
