Category Archives: Economic Development
Downtown thrives on successes of MOWA, The Bend
“The Wedge” and “The Bend” are leading the West Bend downtown cultural district to ever-wider prominence in terms of visitors and online presence. That happy trend came clear in yearend 2025 reports from the Museum of Wisconsin Art (MOWA and … Read the rest
Four families embrace Timmer’s legacy
Isn’t it great that stalwart Wisconsin families have linked up over 143 years to preserve the rich history of Timmer’s Resort on Big Cedar Lake. It all started in the Civil War era. Mathias and Margaret Timmer emigrated from Germany … Read the rest
New Museum Honors Midwest Firefighting
The better it gets, the better it gets for downtown West Bend redevelopment. The historic business district is already one of the nicest downtowns among small cities in America, and it will take another distinctive leap with the addition of … Read the rest
Community support lifted The Bend
Community support for The Bend Theater grew deeper and stronger in 2024. Here’s an update: Number of Events -- The theater, now in its third full year of operations, hosted 183 events last year, compared to 169 in 2023. People … Read the rest
Let’s cut grand deal for AI energy
Wisconsin leaders have been working for several decades to strengthen and diversify its economy away from its dependence on agriculture and manufacturing, and suddenly, shockingly, it is riding a new wave of game-changing innovation. The boom in cloud computing and … Read the rest
Steve Miller, Chris Farley, lead Bend vote
Here is a sneak preview of a forthcoming cultural addition to downtown West Bend. The Wisconsin Entertainer Wall of Fame (WOF) is taking shape in the Walkway between renovated Main Street and the upgraded Riverwalk. A community vote on the … Read the rest
Owners add facade charm to cultural district
Momentum is building for upgrades of the river-facing facades of downtown West Bend buildings. The most obvious improvement is just south of The Bend Theater at the old Main Exchange building that houses Baird Private Wealth Management and Sabor A … Read the rest
U.S. theatre managers wowed by city, The Bend
The Bend Theater is helping put West Bend on the map. Not that our lovely city needs a lot of help, but the broad and deep support from across the community is paying off. Two gigantic, shiny, black buses pulled … Read the rest
Microsoft: A monster game-changer for Wisconsin
Back in the 1980s when the central political theme in Wisconsin was “JOBS, JOBS, JOBS,” I frequently asked the question during speeches on economic development: “Can you name a major employer in Wisconsin that didn’t start here?” According to a … Read the rest
Update on The Bend: More Sell-out Crowds
It is so much fun to watch a new venture go well, and that has certainly been the case as the community has supported The Bend, a pure startup out of the ashes of the 1929 “movie palace.” My wife … Read the rest
