 Welcome to Love Where You Live, your monthly magazine of special things going on in Sheboygan County. I'm Betsy Alice from the Sheboygan County Chamber, and this morning's guest we have Dave Hoffman here from Sheboygan Squared. And I think Dave, you know, welcome to the show. Thank you, Betsy. Thanks for having me. It begs the question that I think is in some people's minds. I mean, I see it on the bus, I see it all over the place, and of course your office is with ours. But I'm sure some people are wondering what Sheboygan Squared is, and I think we can start there. Okay, great. Well, back in 1990, after the demise of Plaza 8, the Downtown Business Association incorporated into a business improvement district, and they named themselves Harbor Center. And I took the job back in 2012, and I noticed there was a big disconnect between the words Harbor Center and the district itself. As a matter of fact, because the marina was called Harbor Center, most of the calls I would get during the summer would be asking to book a slip. So I knew there was a disconnect, and if you're standing on the corner of 8th and Wisconsin, you don't get the connection with Harbor Center because there's no water. So we talked about this, and we knew we had to rebrand, and we asked Jason Lanius of Lanius Design to come up with a concept, and he came up with Sheboygan Squared, something to rebrand ourselves, bring us into the 21st century, and kind of make us a little bit hip. And as you can see, we've got the Harbor Center logo, which is with our vowels, like people text message nowadays. So we're trying to appeal to millennials and just basically refresh what the district is, and it's been working really well. Bright colors draw attention to the downtown, to the waterfront areas. I love it. You just reminded me my four-year-old granddaughter spells person, PRSN. So same, you know, we're working toward that generation. I find myself writing THX all the time instead of things. Oh, yeah. It's a great logo. It is a great new start, and I think it was a very fresh look at all the vibrant things that are happening downtown, too. Exactly. So communicating that is important. So your job is as the manager of Sheboygan Squared, Dave. In that capacity, what is your role in the relationships with those businesses and organizations downtown, and your greater role in the community? Well, you know, as I am the only employee of Sheboygan Squared, and so I become kind of the chief organizer, and we have reorganized, in addition to the branding, we've reorganized how the bid operates. We now have three standing working committees, development, operations, and marketing, and it's my job to organize those volunteers. The volunteers come from our members into these three working groups, and then each group works on a different segment of what the bid is trying to accomplish. And then my bigger job, I guess, is I act as a facilitator for all the businesses between one another and with the city, because, of course, we are kind of a bit quasi-governmental. It is a tax, it's a property tax, an additional tax on your property tax if you're located within the bid district. So I kind of act as a go-between between the city when they want to do something, for instance, with streets or parking or what have you. So I'm that person that communicates that and gets things worked out and makes things work a little bit better. And then, of course, we run events and try to do promotion for all of the businesses within the district. So kind of, there's a little bit of an ombudsman role there. Exactly, exactly. I do have to wear a great many hats in this job. It's been very challenging, but a lot of fun. I think, you know, from my perspective, your history here and the people that you've come to know over the years with your various kinds of work and volunteer activities has probably paved the way for you to do this job very well. Well, thank you. Because I grew up downtown, it gives me a sense of history and knowing what has happened over the last basically 40 years downtown gives me a good perspective as to where the members of the bid would like it to go. Right, and speaking of members of the bid, the Chamber of Commerce is a member of the bid. We happen to be in that district. We're happy that you chose to be there instead of out on the highway. Out on the highway. And we're happy too. I think we get a lot more traffic that way. We get a lot more tourists who come in the door and it's become kind of a central business place to go. Always activity, always something going on. Yeah, so that's a great thing. And one of our areas of focus as a Chamber is small business. And of course, small business Saturday is coming on November 26th. Yeah, shop till you drop. Our biggest thing is we want people to shop local. There isn't really that many things that you have to go out of town to purchase. I mean, we've got a lot of things downtown. We've got a lot of great restaurants to go after you're done shopping. We've got a lot of great shops. So we really want to promote shopping local because keep in mind that any dollar that you spend here in Sheboygan stays in Sheboygan. You know, you're paying for people's kids to go to school and summer jobs. Yes, just the money stays within the Sheboygan economy. So we really want to ask people to, you know, reconsider that trip to Milwaukee or to Green Bay and stay here in town and make your purchases. And you're going to be happier for it. And we're going to enjoy welcoming you back every year. So we've got a lot of great things. And of course, we co-op with the Chamber on small business Saturday. The American Express is sponsoring this and they send us all sorts of great goodies. Yeah. And Lori Curran from the Chamber and I get out there and distribute all the materials. And it's just a fun day. And of course, it's kind of like Black Saturday, I guess you'd call it. Yeah. A lot of people out shopping anyway. So join us downtown and on the waterfront and we'll show you good time. Absolutely. And you know, if you can't figure out what to buy here for that special person for that person who helps you during the year, Chamber cash is another solution. Oh, yeah. Yeah. I mean, great, a great tool. Just, I know I'm typical guy. I usually go shopping a day before Christmas Eve. Chamber cash is great. Just give me a couple hundred dollars. Yeah. And there, I think it's over 300 places now where that money can be spent or invested. The other thing I wanted to say about local business that I think is really remarkable. Those are the people that pay for the sports teams. Very good point. You know, those are the people that put money back in the community. Exactly. So even if it's a percentage higher, you know, it's worth that investment. And you're saving the gas. Well, big time. You're saving, making a whole day of it. Exactly. You have your ability. And my favorite part, because I'm a huge downtown advocate in any town, but especially here, is that I get to talk to the people who own it. Exactly. I mean, you go in, people strike up conversations with you. You get to know them. It's such a personal experience. And they know your kids, you know, you may have a comment, your kids go to school together, things like that. You go to Milwaukee, it's very impersonal. Right. Yeah, occasionally I'll even get a phone call from one of our merchants and say, you know, I know you like this thing. Exactly. And we just got one. True, true. So it is a very special thing. So please come out on November 26. In fact, come out any day. But come out on November 26 and help celebrate. The week after would even be better. Yes. Okay, let's talk about that. We have our own little version of Small Business Saturday. It's called Home for the Holidays. And that'll be Saturday, December 3. And we get about 40 of our businesses within the bid, and they all do something special that day. For instance, if you look at the list, we've got sunlight books. They have wassals and cookies, a register for a chance for a $50 gift card. Geez, you can go in GMs. You bring three more canned goods or a $5 donation. And you get two ferrins all night. Can't beat that. Wow. Aliveau, go in the first 50 people. That's fabulous. Get a free lip balm. You know, everybody does something special. And we also get a really great group. And I've had them now for, this will be the fourth year in a row, the Kohler High School Madrigal Singers. And they are just a blast. Oh, nice. Everybody loves them. They tear down draperies off of old buildings and make costumes out of them. And they look like they just stepped out of 1700 London, England, you know, the Charles Dickens days. And they, they are great every year. They just people love them. So I, I read the trolley. We take them around to all of our businesses. Well, not all of them, but they'll be performing from noon till two on the third. Yep. And I can't tell you where they'll be at any certain time. You're just going to have to come down and look for the trolley. They'll be pretty near there. So let's talk about what else you have in store for the holidays. Oh, well, very exciting. We have a company called Brilliant Lightscapes. It's Mark Mann. And he does are a really, really cool Christmas lighting every year. And he's going to be, he's actually working on it now. And of course you may have noticed that we spent quite a bit of time and effort on the water feature area of the library plaza. And we have the lights in motion to music. And we're going to be adding to that this year. So everybody should stop down and have a look at that. It's a really great show. You just tuned to 87.7 on your FM dial. As you're driving by, you'll see the lights going in, in synchronization with the, with the music. It's really great. That is fabulous. So can I also do that on my iPhone? I wonder. I have no idea. I'm not sure about that. But unless you have an FM tuner on your phone, you probably can't do it. Probably not. Yeah. So just one of my favorite events. I want to go back to summer just for a second. The Levitt Amp series of concerts. Oh, yes. The John Michael Kohler Arts Center has such a big roll in. And I'm curious, I'm assuming we're going to try for that again this year. One more time. All right. I'm not sure if we are going to be able to do it three years in a row, but we have been number one, of course, for the last two years, and we need to defend our title. So everybody needs to get out and vote, and vote for Levitt Amp, vote for Sheboygan, and we'll bring the music back this summer. Don't, don't, and it's hashtag, don't stop the music. Oh, it is. Hashtag, don't stop the music. Don't stop the music, yeah. And, and you'll see it on Facebook. And when you do, please share it. That's how all of that multiplication happens. You can only vote once per email address. And we have basically a little, almost four weeks to vote, starting November 1st throughout the month. So go ahead and go to Levitt Amp, and you'll see it all over social media. It's also just a point of pride that we win. Exactly. We're up against cities that are a lot bigger than us, and we kick their butts every time, so it's great. That is great. You bet. That is wonderful. So, you know, another part of downtown that I've kind of been a privy to, and I've noticed as it's been happening, but I'd like you to talk a little bit about all these improvements that are being made, because sometimes when they're done one at a time or a couple at a time, people don't notice. But I think overall the big impact, not only at this point in time, but in the future, is going to be huge. So tell us a little about those things that are happening. Oh, yeah. And I know we've got some pictures to show, but of course people are well aware of our development projects. All the credit goes to the city of Sheboygan, but we've been in on, you know, getting that all off the ground. We did commission the master plan back in 2013. And so you're seeing our developments at the site of the former Boston store. That one's going to be huge, the Encore Apartments, Market Rate Apartments, I believe there'll be 88 of those. And they will overlook the Art and Culture Square. We don't have a real name for it yet, but that's where we're going to have a, it's kind of like a secondary band shell. Should be a lot of events going on there over the course of the year. And so we're really excited about that. Of course there's development going on all throughout the bid. We have the new Parker Johns Restaurant is going up. The Portscape Apartments on South Pier. We're going to be having groundbreaking on the St. Cyril property across from Martin Automotive. It should happen sometime this month. And so, yeah, and the bid itself has been doing minor improvements. You probably noticed we have our signage, our Sheboygan Square signage, our lighting. We're lighting some of the alleyways, the non-traffic alleyways downtown. And we also have music at the library plaza. There's classical music playing from 8 a.m. in the morning till 10 at night, so check that out, too. Time to go down, it's getting a little chilly, but go down and have lunch there at one of those tables. Well, yeah, it might be a little overdue for that, but next summer we'll do it. Next summer will be fabulous, yeah. Yeah, it is fun to watch from our perspective as a chamber, too, to see that kind of housing development happening in the urban center. It's just a huge draw for the people that we need to attract to Sheboygan County for our jobs. You know, and many people ask me, when are you going to get a grocery store? Well, quite frankly, we're not going to get one until we have enough people living in the area to support it. And this is one way to get that started. Yeah, it's kind of that. What comes first, the chicken or the eggs? Exactly. And you know, you've got to start somewhere, and I think they're starting in the most dynamic place that'll make it a vibrant downtown. Bet, I'm excited. Yeah, so am I. What other future projects? We have some continued revitalization in the downtown and the waterfront on the books for the future. What's that look like, Dave? Well, you know, we've been concentrating, of course, on beautifying the area, making it more attractive for people to visit and to live there. And we're just going to increase our emphasis on trying to get new business. You know, we hired some people to help us go out and search for new retail stores. And we feel that that will bear fruit in the near future. We're going to continue our efforts with the city to develop our underutilized areas downtown. And we're going to concentrate. We're actually going to help them fund a parking study. Because there's been some controversy with, you know, should we keep the meters? Should we get rid of the meters? Should we build a parking structure? Well, we're going to ask some experts just exactly what they think we should do. And we're going to help fund that. So that will be a big part of what we're doing next year. Also, the very exciting, the federal government's come in and they're going to set up a marine sanctuary here on this side of the lake. And I'll tell you what, it's just going to be fantastic. It's bigger than people can even imagine at this point in town. Exactly. I can't wrap my head around how big this is going to be. So I'm just, 2017 is going to be a great year. Yes, it is. And the years beyond that, the marine sanctuary is such a fascinating project and has implications for not only our county, but all the surrounding counties and all the kids who live in these counties and can visit this marine sanctuary that really puts an emphasis on Lake Michigan, you know, and all of its riches and all of the things that it brings us. And I think in the future, we'll see a lot more business focused around that as well. I've learned more about Lake Michigan in the past couple of years due to this project than I did in all the years I've lived here. Wow. So I think, I mean, we need to focus on that and it's going to be great for tourism as well. Yeah. If anybody knows any hotel developers, we need you. Yes, we definitely have our capacity through much of the summer with our hotels at this time. So, yeah, signing times. Anything else, Dave? You know, that you'd like to tell us about future plans? Well, come to Sheboygan Squared and see what's changed. Absolutely. People say, what's going on downtown? Well, the only way to really find out is come on down and visit us and check it out. Go to our website. It's Sheboygansquared.com. Very good. Facebook. We're on Twitter and me on LinkedIn as well. So check all of that and see what's going on. And you can sign up for the messages that you send out. Sure. People know all the special events that are happening. Absolutely. Thank you so much for joining us today. And thank you for from on behalf of all the businesses in the area for the work that you do with Sheboygan Squared. Thank you, Betsy. And we wish you much success and call on everyone to shop locally over the holidays anytime this year. And I can't do it without you. That's right. Thanks. You bet. Welcome back. I'm Betsy Alice. And our next guest today is Paula Inda, the director of global sales and marketing for Kurt G. Joa. I call it one of the best kept secrets in Sheboygan County. Welcome Paula and congratulations to Kurt G. Joa for winning the safety leader award at our chamber champions gala in early 2017, probably before you were here. Yes. Yes. I thank you. It is an honor for the company and a personal honor to get to be on your show and talk about the company. First I just want to talk a little bit about you because you mentioned before we went on air that you're new here. Yes. You moved your family here and you've been here about eight months. Yes. So tell me what drew you here and how you're seeing it as a new person. We enjoy hearing those stories. Oh my goodness. I don't think we have enough time on your show for me to tell you all the wonderful discoveries that we've enjoyed since being here, which has been a very short time. I came to Kurt G. Joa and as I would say that I was led, I had one conversation with the executive vice president as well as the vice president of engineering and research and development. And after one telephone conversation, I hung up the phone and said to my husband, I think we are going to move. And this was the day after I had told him, we are not leaving Milwaukee. I am going to be spending a good long time here. The first conversation with Kurt G. Joa led to full-time employment which started in March and only just recently, two weeks ago, we made the move to be residents of Sheboygan County. Could not be more pleased with our decision. My husband feels the same way. We care for his special needs sister in our home full-time and we found a wonderful program to support her. In fact, I am surprised at all of the resources available for her given her special needs in this area. The community is extremely rich in resources for not only her but my husband and myself as well. It's been an incredibly rewarding experience. Well, thank you for that. I am very proud of the fact that this area with all of our family-owned businesses is a very generous area. Not to mention recreation and all the things because I moved here not too long ago myself but always good to hear from people who just moved here. We'll stay in touch on that topic. Kurt G. Joa, let's talk a little bit about it. It's a very successful family-owned business I think 80 years now in this area. I've toured the company so I kind of know what goes on there but for our audience you could, without giving away the top secrets, if you could share with them a little bit about what goes on at Kurt G. Joa. My pleasure. It is almost like working in Santa's workshop because it is magical to me. It is an organization that really is best summarized by stating it's a custom production problem solver. So we have a lot of different customers primarily in the medical or hygiene industries that come to Kurt G. Joa to solve problems they might be experiencing in production-related concerns. It may be that they want to increase production capacity or increase quality of their end product. Or we will have marketing leaders come to the organization and ask Kurt G. Joa to design the appropriate production machine that would produce the retail product they themselves have designed. Again, for the hygiene industry, which includes baby diapers, adult underpants, medical products such as protective clothing, face masks and things of that nature. So it's a wide variety of end products and Kurt G. Joa solves the intermittent stage between product design production and then the final retail sale. So they design the machines and have capacity to help others just solve design problems. They as well will do research and development for particular materials that may be involved in diaper manufacture as well as the manufacturing. So there's contract services available if someone in the local area just needs some additional manufacturing capacity. And then as well, technical support for our machines in the field as well as others who may be having difficulties. So a wide variety of different skills that are focused on creating and building the machine itself but available for many, many different uses. Wow, fabulous. I mean, I know that it's been just a very innovative and creative place for development of these machines and building these machines, correct? Yes. Yeah. So the Safety Leader Award was bestowed on or they earned Kurt G. Joa at our gala in February and it's a pretty distinctive award. It requires a very high level look at companies' safety records and improvement over time. So quite an honor. Can you share with us how the company plays this out, what their commitment to safety is and how the people who work there see that in their everyday lives? It truly is an honor for not only the management team but really all employees because it reinforces their efforts day to day to approach safety philosophically as an aspect of our culture as opposed to a mandatory set of regulations that are implemented after an incident occurs. So it is quite interesting to me to see the attention employees have and that innovation, which isn't a surprise because it's an innovative location in general but the innovation employees have demonstrated to further enhance the safety programs from a number of things such as certain roles that are required to be on a buddy system so that there is teamwork, many eyes and many different perspectives on a machine can help prevent different accidents from even happening as well as train the trainer methodology where we have safety specialists who train the rest of us including the leadership team and recently in fact another aspect of our safety program is to have an in-house open house so the safety team demonstrates their training program for everyone in the company in different shifts and as well for the leadership team and it's a two-way demonstration with different reproductions of machine scenarios or workplace scenarios so we role play what that safety concern might be and the proper approach to prevent any injury and it's really quite extensive and very proactive I have great respect for the approach employees take Nice, now when do they won this award? Yes, indeed I know their record has improved over time I know you weren't there at the time but I'm quite sure that it's been a progressive kind of thing Yes, yes, and again I give the employees full credit because they have really embraced it and made it part of our overall culture Well, we've got a couple more minutes so I'm going to ask you in your opinion what makes Kerchie Jo a great place to work Oh gosh, again probably not enough time but I would say the overall collaboration there's incredible openness ideas come from everywhere in the company not just management employees on the shop floor are continuously improving either quality aspects or efficiency aspects that contribute to the sense of fun really that everyone is part of the organization everyone is part of the solution and it's some healthy competition when somebody has a great new idea we celebrate together and that encourages others to do the same Wow, what a great environment that sounds like Indeed Yes, well we wish you continued success and congratulations to Kerchie Jo on winning this award and welcome to you to our community I hope you continue to find it so rewarding and thanks to all of you for joining us today and I hope you'll tune in again next month for Love Where You Live