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![West Central Wisconsin Broadband Alliance Wins Regional Impact Award Photo](/media/userfiles/subsite_16/images/Post%201-40.jpg)
Momentum West has awarded the West Central Wisconsin Broadband Alliance with the 2023 Regional Impact Award for helping bridge the digital divide in rural Wisconsin. A coalition of civic leaders, service providers, and community members under the coordination of Chris Straight and Cliff Albertson have been collaborating to address the...
![Bill Lobner, Founder of Green Fleet, LLC Wins Entrepreneur of the Year Award Photo](/media/userfiles/subsite_16/images/Post%201-15.jpg)
Bill Lobner, founder of Green Fleet, LLC, was awarded the 2023 Entrepreneur of the Year Award by Momentum West for his outstanding contribution to the business community in West Central Wisconsin."Bill Lobner and Green Fleet are providing a classic service in a new and modern way," said Steve Jahn, Executive...
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Anderson celebrates 60 years of business
Jun 14 2024Slumberland has been a mainstay in the Amery community for years and owner Ron Anderson is celebrating 60 years in business. Ron Anderson and his wife came to the Amery community back in 1964 and have been here since. Starting off on Main Street after taking over Stenberg Furniture, the...
![A Strategic Approach to Integrating Tourism Into Economic Development Photo](/media/userfiles/subsite_6/images/a-strategic-approach-to-integrating-tourism-into-economic-development.jpg)
Tourism is an often-underutilized driver of economic growth, capable of transforming communities by creating jobs, fostering local businesses, and enhancing the overall quality of life. Economic developers and tourism professionals must work together to create a cohesive strategy that leverages the community’s tourism potential. Here’s how you can integrate tourism...
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The launch of the $100 million Wisconsin Investment Fund, the largest public-private investment in startups and entrepreneurs in state history, provides a promising boost to the state’s longstanding commitment to innovation. It also provides another powerful reason for businesses to put down roots in Wisconsin.Wisconsin’s $50 million investment, with funds...
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UW-Eau Claire Chancellor Jim Schmidt spoke to the crowd while standing at the site of what will become the Science and Health Science Building.“Not so long ago, this day seemed like a far-off dream,” he said.As a five-story, 330,000-square-foot and $340.3 million building, Thursday’s ceremony marked the beginning of construction...
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Tourism boosted the Eau Claire County economy by nearly half a billion dollars last year, according to figures released Tuesday, June 11, by the Wisconsin Department of Tourism.The state agency estimated the total economic impact of tourism in Eau Claire County was $459 million in 2023. That was a a...
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Students seeking to design communities now and into the future will have the opportunity to learn those important, in-demand skills at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls following the addition of an undergraduate community and environmental planning degree at the university. The Universities of Wisconsin Board of Regents voted Friday to...
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Eight decades is a long time for a family-owned business to be in operation. To put that in perspective, the first consumers of Olson’s Ice Cream were listening to reports of the D-Day invasion on the radio. “It’s been an honor to be a staple in the Chippewa Valley,” says...
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Nursing is more than recording blood pressure, starting an IV and giving medications.Jen Scheller, who is set to enter her last semester of the nursing program at Chippewa Valley Technical College, said nursing is about patients. Learning how to interact with the community and, in the end, being able to...
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Julia Hellquist wasn’t sure at first if higher education was the right choice for her. No one in her family previously had gone to college.However, as someone who liked to “fix things,” when she heard about UW-Stout’s lab-based, applied learning focus she knew it was the right fit. She graduated...
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Rural communities experienced widespread population decreases between 2010 and 2020 for the first time in history, impacting jobs, health care, education and other services.UW-Stout is in a unique position to help strengthen Wisconsin’s rural communities. Since 2021, the university has received multiple grants from the Freshwater Collaborative of Wisconsin to...
![Don’t Let Commercial Real Estate Pressures Impact Your Economic Development Goals Photo](/media/userfiles/subsite_6/images/Impact-of-Commercial-Real-Estate-Pressures-700x394.png)
The economic landscapes of communities nationwide are as unsettled as ever. One facet of this reality is the state of commercial real estate. Beginning with government-imposed shutdowns and social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses and individuals have changed their habits, incorporating remote or hybrid work practices into daily life...
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Core Products Donates to The Open Cupboard
Jun 3 2024Core Products, a certified family-friendly workplace, recently made its annual conduit contribution to The Open Cupboard. This contribution is part of their ongoing commitment as a Family Friendly Workplace."At Core Products, our employees are the cornerstone of our success. We are dedicated to fostering a workplace culture that not only...
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About a month ago, at the end of April, I was doing what most would expect from any other 20-something-year-old: I was scrolling voraciously through feeds across a handful of social media apps. It’s definitely a tool for this job, connecting me to locals and businesses and groups in the...
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Community kitchens like FEED Kitchens in Madison provide food entrepreneurs with room to grow while also chipping away at food insecurity.The pandemic shook up many industries, but its effects on food—both retail and restaurants—were unique and pronounced. Panic buying and manufacturing shutdowns exposed supply chain vulnerabilities—but the rapid development of...
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WEDC launches new website
May 31 2024WEDC has refreshed its primary website with bold new messaging and a visitor-focused structure that helps users quickly find the resources, guidance, and programs that best serve their needs.“With its active, kinetic design and bold photos of the people we’re here to serve, this new site exemplifies our vision of...
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Turning cow manure into home heat
May 31 2024Mahr Brothers dairy farm in Chippewa County spans 6,000 acres of gently sloping fields that are planted with corn, alfalfa, and soybeans and serve as home to about 3,000 cows.Brothers Brody, Jeremy, and Mike are fourth-generation farmers; their family has worked the land in the town of Delmar for more...
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A biohealth hidden gemFor decades, Wisconsin has quietly been an expanding force within the pharmaceutical industry. Now, with the recent announcement that Eli Lilly and Co. will take over a new pharma manufacturing plant, Wisconsin’s star may shine even more brightly.For decades, Wisconsin companies have been manufacturing the active pharmaceutical...
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Two major developments this spring demonstrate that the Wisconsin Idea—the belief that business, educational, and state leaders should work together to find new ways to improve people’s lives—is as relevant as ever in building an economy where every Wisconsinite has the opportunity to thrive.In early May, President Biden and Microsoft...
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Advanced sales classes in the UW-Eau Claire’s College of Business have become synonymous with philanthropy and community engagement over the past 15 years, raising more than $700,000 for the L.E. Phillips Career Development Center.Every year, CDC in Eau Claire provides vocational services and employment opportunities to nearly 1,500 individuals with...
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Tia Giebel has already started a photography business and a business that sells clothes. Now, she’s added a business for photographers and fellow photo lovers to gather and create: NXT Chapter Studio.Giebel, also the owner of Rose and Oak Photography and Wild Rumpus Clothing, got the keys to the now-rentable...
![The City of St. Croix Falls and 210 Civic, LLC Win Top Redevelopment Project Award Photo](/media/userfiles/subsite_16/images/Post%201-14.jpg)
The City of St. Croix Falls and 210 Civic, LLC, were the recipients of the 2023 Top Redevelopment Project Award by Momentum West for revitalizing the old Civic Auditorium and transforming it into the St. Croix Falls Historic Auditorium. This remarkable revitalization effort has transformed the aging Civic Auditorium into...
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5 Lessons from My Year on Main Street
May 23 2024I have been fortunate to work as an intern with WEDC’s downtown development team for the past 18 months, and during this time, I have gained a deeper understanding of and appreciation for how downtowns function and thrive. The following article offers five lessons from my year working with the...