Your Honor

Mielke

County Materials Corp., Marathon, won the 2004 Concrete Design Award for Region 4 from the Wisconsin Ready Mixed Concrete Association for the company's work on the McCleary Bridge, which connects Wausau with the town of Rib Mountain. … James Ritter, a senior at Marquette University, won the Associated General Contractors of America James L. Allhands Student Essay Competition. His winning paper focused on the contractors' role in sustainable engineering. Ritter won an all-expenses-paid trip to the AGC national convention and a $1,000 scholarship. … William J. Mielke, chief executive officer and president of Ruekert/Mielke, Waukesha, won the Lifetime Achievement Award from the University of Wisconsin Construction Club for his contributions to the engineering profession and the construction industry. … Julie Davies of Weather-Tek Design Center, Brookfield; Barbara Hacker of Kelmann Corp., Wauwatosa; and Justin Kreger of My Penthouse/Turn-Key Homes, a division of Creative Horizons, Waterford, won Employee of the Year Awards from the Milwaukee Chapter of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry for their daily work performance. … Architect Lisa Kennedy, Whitefish Bay, won the 2005 Golden Award from the American Institute of Architects Wisconsin for her contributions to AIA at the local, state and national levels as well as her work on licensing and other government-affairs issues on behalf of the profession. … Bob Scholz, a senior consultant in the Milwaukee office of RMT Inc., won the EH&S Division 10 Childress-Loebler Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Foundry Society for his work improving the environment and employee health and safety in metal casting-related industries.

On the horizon

Uihlein Wilson Architects Inc., in association with Booth Hansen, Milwaukee, has earned approval to proceed with the design of the estimated $28.2 million Dayton Street Residence Hall for the University of Wisconsin-Madison. … Venture Architects, in association with Moody Nolan Inc., Milwaukee, is moving forward with an estimated $32 million expansion and renovation of the Phoenix Sports Center at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. … McWilliams Burgener Architecture, Milwaukee, is preparing construction documents for an expansion and renovation of the St. Francis Public Library in St. Francis. … Ansay and Associates, Port Washington, and Horizon Development Corp., Verona, are developing a village square with a Luxembourg American Cultural Center, elderly housing, a food store and other commercial development in Belgium. … Wisconsin Hotel Co. LLC, Aventura, Fla., is planning an estimated $12 million renovation of The Hotel Wisconsin on Old World Third Street into a multiuse development. … Henneman Raufeisen & Associates Inc., Madison, has signed on to provide architectural and engineering services for an estimated $2.4 million utility extension at a residence hall in Platteville. … Jewell, a division of Clark Dietz, Spring Green, will work as the engineer for a bridge-replacement project on Norwegian Hollow Road in Dodgeville. … Kueny Architects LLC, Pleasant Prairie, is working with the Kenosha County Board of Supervisors on an estimated $4.4 million public parking ramp on 10th Avenue and 54th Street in Kenosha. … Ayres Associates Inc., Eau Claire, will provide engineering services for a new wastewater-treatment plant in Boyd. … Continental Properties Co. Inc., Menomonee Falls, is developing a 227,000-square-foot shopping center for a Wauwatosa site that previously held portions of the Briggs & Stratton Corp. … Engineer Bonestroo, Rosene, Anderlik & Associates Inc., Mequon, is working on an estimated $3.5 million renovation and expansion of the Moore Road Street Department Garage in Port Washington.

Closing shop

Bill Dentinger Inc., a masonry contractor based in Waukesha, will permanently shut its doors as soon as it completes its remaining contracts. Bill Dentinger and his wife, Shirley, have run the company since its inception in the 1970s.

In memoriam

Koenig

Einar Austad, Madison, died April 5 of undisclosed causes. Austad, 75, founded Austad and Son Inc., an acoustical ceiling contractor in Madison, in 1982. … Kenneth F. Sullivan, Madison, died April 1 of undisclosed causes. Sullivan, 97, moved to Madison in 1927 to learn the carpentry business, and he founded Kenneth F. Sullivan Co., a Madison-based contractor and design/builder, in 1937. … Ryan J. Bakanec, Waukesha, died April 11 of undisclosed causes. Bakanec, 23, worked at Grade A Construction Inc., Delafield, for two years as a drywall sprayer. … William C. Koenig, Marco Island, Fla., and Pewaukee, died April 5 of complications of myelodisplastic syndrome. Koenig, 78, started his career at Koenig Painting, Milwaukee. He served as president of Brant & Nielsen Painting Co. (now Hess Sweitzer Inc.) in New Berlin in the 1950s and 1960s. In 1968, Koenig founded Construction Computer Control Corp./System 5 (now Penta Technologies Inc.) in Brookfield.

Dotted Line

J.H. Findorff & Son Inc., Madison, landed a $12 million general-work contract for central campus utility improvements at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. H&H Industries Inc., Madison, won a $3.2 million mechanical contract for the job, and Westphal & Co. Inc., Janesville, won a $1 million electrical contract. … Sun Prairie Sand & Gravel, Sun Prairie, will construct the Columbus Street reconstruction in Sun Prairie after winning a $1.2 million contract for the job. … Badger Environmental & Earthworks Inc., Westby, took home a $1 million contract to replace site utilities at Camp Williams in Camp Douglas. … Calnin & Goss Inc., Appleton, won a $1.3 million contract for a concrete pavement job in Appleton. … MSI General Corp., Oconomowoc, was selected for the design, engineering and construction of a new 5,924-square-foot building for Lake Country Detailing in Hartland. MSI was also selected to design and build a 55,000-square-foot office and manufacturing addition for Daco Precision Inc. in West Bend. … De Groot Inc., Green Bay, won a $1.1 million contract for a sewer project in Green Bay. … Globe Contractors Inc., Pewaukee, took home a $3.1 million contract for a utility rehabilitation project in Sturtevant. Globe also won a $1.1 million contract for utility-rehabilitation work at Sussex Estates in Sussex. … Peters Concrete Co., Green Bay, landed a $1.1 million contract for a pavement project in Green Bay. … Staab Construction Corp., Marshfield, will upgrade the Wisconsin Dells-Lake Delton Wastewater Treatment Facility in Wisconsin Dells after winning a $10.3 million contract for the job. Staab also landed a $6 million contract to build a wastewater-treatment facility in Cross Plains. … Northeast Asphalt Inc., Greenville, won a $1.1 million contract for road and sidewalk work in Neenah. … Don Hietpas & Sons Inc., Little Chute, secured a $1.3 million contract for Little Chute's 2005 utility construction project. … Pember Companies Inc., Menomonie, will construct the 2005 curb, gutter and pavement project in Wausau after winning a $1.3 million contract for the job. … Vinton Construction Co., Manitowoc, landed a $2.1 million contract for Manitowoc's 2005 concrete reconstruction project. Vinton also won a $1.2 million contract for Kaukauna's 2005 concrete street paving project. … Super Excavators Inc., Menomonee Falls, won a $2.6 million contract to construct the northeast interceptor sewer in Waterford. … Kruczek Construction Inc., Green Bay, secured a $1.3 million contract to construct a water-transmission main in Ashwaubenon. … A-1 Excavating Inc., Bloomer, will construct sewer, water and street projects in Stratford after winning a $1.2 million contract for the work. … Van Straten Construction, Green Bay, won a $2.3 million contract for sewer and water reconstruction work in Appleton. … PTS Contractors Inc., Green Bay, secured a $1.5 million contract for sewer and water reconstruction work on various streets in Appleton. … Otis Elevator Co., Madison, won a $1.3 million elevator contract for the Winnebago County Justice Facility project in Rockford, Ill. … J.H. Hassinger Inc., Menomonee Falls, will construct expansions and renovations at Germantown High School and Rockfield Elementary School in Germantown after winning a $1.1 million contract for the work. … Mann Bros. Inc., Elkhorn, won a $1.9 million contract to construct road improvements on Geneva Street and North Shore Drive in Delavan. … Ozaukee Excavating Inc., Grafton, will construct the 2005 street and utility reconstruction in Cedarburg after winning a $1.5 million contract for the work. … Merrill Gravel & Construction Co., Merrill, won a $1 million contract for street and utility work in the area around St. Clare Hospital in Weston. … Tri-North Builders Inc., Waukesha, will rehabilitate the Racine Railroad Depot in Racine after winning a $1.3 million contract for the job. … R.J. Jurowski Construction, Whitehall, will expand and remodel a middle school in Holmen after winning a $5.4 million contract for the job. … American Sewer Services Inc., Hartford, won a $1.2 million contract for sewer and water-main work in Wauwatosa. … Payne & Dolan Inc., Verona, secured a $1.3 million contract to resurface various streets in Madison. … J.W. Schultz Construction, Edgerton, landed a $1.1 million contract to resurface various streets in Madison. … Platt Construction Inc., Franklin, will expand and renovate Lancaster School in Milwaukee after winning a $1.7 million contract for the job. Platt also won a $1.5 million contract to expand Anna Doerfler School in Milwaukee.

By design

The University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics Authority wants its University of Wisconsin Eye Clinic in Shorewood Hills to be a state-of-the-art facility serving adults and children. Bouril Design Studio LLC, Madison, is answering the call. Bouril is ready to kick off the second phase of a remodeling project that will cover 6,000 square feet on the lower level and 7,500 square feet on the second floor at the clinic on University Avenue. The second phase will include interior remodeling in the research lab, teaching area and the pediatric and adult eye-care clinic. Bids for the estimated $2 million second phase should hit the streets in July. Construction should start in late summer or early fall.

Peer review

A good listener

Buchanan takes the reins at WasteCap

There's dust everywhere.

It coats the plywood on the floors, rests on railings leading to the second floor and leaps with every hammer swing or cut of the saw. When the renovation of Lake Park Lutheran Church in Milwaukee reaches completion, the dust will be gone.

For now, it's just a part of life for Susan Buchanan as she sits at her WasteCap Wisconsin desk in an upstairs office of the church. Is it pure coincidence that a renovation job has coincided with Buchanan's taking the executive director role at WasteCap? Yes. Does it surprise Buchanan that she's once again in the middle of a building project? No.

"It seems that everywhere I go, construction follows me," she said. "I don't even hear it anymore."

But that doesn't mean she isn't listening. She's listening for the sounds in the industry that indicate a greater acceptance of construction waste recycling and the other goals of WasteCap. She likes what she hears.

"This organization has an excellent reputation, but it is definitely going to the next level," she said. "I've landed in an environmental organization that is going to be a key component in the green-building movement. It's a perfect fit for me."

Best of the web Sometimes a Web site just makes you say, "Wow." And that's a likely response from visitors to www.burj-al-arab.com. The Web site promotes the Burj Al Arab Hotel in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It's known to some as the finest hotel in the world. Standing at 321 meters, situated on a beach and curved like a sail rippling in a stiff breeze, the structure certainly strikes a fine profile. — Rick Benedict

Buchanan, who was born and raised in Whitefish Bay, always had a good ear when it came to her career. After graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 1980 with a history degree emphasizing historical preservation, she took off for Atlanta for paralegal training.

She returned to Milwaukee as one of the first paralegals in the area, but a career in law just didn't sound right to her.

"The law firms here didn't know what role a paralegal should play," Buchanan said. "I spent two years at a law firm before deciding that not only did I not want to be a paralegal, but I didn't want to be a lawyer."

So she got a real estate broker's license in 1983, targeted the budding Alexander Co. in Madison because it specialized in historic renovation and took a job there as a real estate salesperson. But the timing and commission weren't right.

"There was a recession, and interest rates were, like, 18 percent," Buchanan said. "I had to come home after two years because I was living out of my car. I loved working for the Alexander Co. I learned a lot."

She returned to Milwaukee intent on building her historic preservation experience. She went to an open house for Pfaller, Herbst & Eppstein (now known as Eppstein Uhen Architects Inc.) and walked away with a marketing and receptionist job.

That lasted until 1987, when Chuck Engberg left Kahler Slater Torphy Engberg to start his own firm (now known as Engberg Anderson Design Partnership Inc.). He asked Buchanan to join him, and she listened.

"I was on the ground floor of something that was developing," she said. "That's been a theme in my work. I like that. If you have a smooth operation with no challenges … boring."

Hot spot Boulder Venture LLC, Milwaukee, is planting an anchor for Whitefish Bay with the construction of the 5600 Lake Drive mixed-use development. The project's general contractor, The Jansen Group Inc., Milwaukee, broke ground on the 65,000-square-foot, four-story structure in April at the northeast corner of Lake and Silver Spring drives, an intersection that Boulder considers the eastern gateway to the city. The building, designed by Eppstein Uhen Architects Inc., Milwaukee, will feature underground parking, a Johnson Bank with two drive-up tellers on the first floor and 13 high-end condominiums from the second to fourth floors. Boulder expects the project to reach completion by the end of 2006.

She stayed with Engberg until 1995, when, with a new master's in urban planning from UWM, she took a job as the Business Improvement District director in Waukesha. In that role, she promoted development in downtown Waukesha, worked with the city on a master plan and created a new signage program for the area.

"I thought it was a really good use of all my skills — architecture, planning, marketing and historic preservation," she said. "I have a variety of skills that I never thought were marketable together."

After leaving Waukesha, she eventually heard about the opportunity with WasteCap. Once again, she listened.

"I've always been involved in the AEC industry, but I never thought of it as it applied to the environment," Buchanan said. "It's a good development in the respect that the whole field of environmentalism is something that is very important to me and very broadening for my career.

"I have a lot to learn. But that's a challenge, and I enjoy that."

- Chris Thompson

Off the clock

Renelvis is one of the more obscure Elvis impersonators on Bibo's Web site. Renelvis uses all of his Elvis earnings to fund the continuing health care of his daughter, who is autistic. Photo courtesy of Bill Bibo

The spice of life

Bill Bibo doesn't want to grow up.

While others age gracefully, he intends to go kicking and screaming. It's a battle that everyone eventually loses, but no one said Bibo had to go without a fight.

"I just turned 50, and I'm going to space camp," said the project architect for Flad & Associates, Madison. "I have a big poster of space camp on the wall in my office."

It's true. Bibo found out about the Huntsville, Ala., camp about 10 years ago, and he signed up, right around the time he turned 50 a few months ago, for a six-day stint in August. He'll be joining about 15 other grown-ups during the small window when the camp opens up for adults. The rest of the year, it's geared toward school children who want to learn more about astronauts and the space program.

"I've been telling people that I've wanted to throw up on the centrifuge for a long time," he said. "My wife will not be going. She says I continually surprise her."

Bibo's wife should be used to it by now. Her husband, after all, is the same man who writes children's novels, plays ukulele, builds cigar-box guitars and operates www.biboland.com, a Web site featuring around 150 autographed photos of Elvis Presley impersonators. And, if the timing is right, he might be spotted playing his ukulele with an Elvis impersonator or, more specifically, a person impersonating Marilyn Monroe impersonating Elvis. It's a long story.

Bill Bibo's dog, Rio, gives Bibo some helpful tips on how to play a cigar-box guitar. Bibo has built three cigar-box guitars. Photo courtesy of Bill Bibo

The genesis of the Web site, on the other hand, is a little easier to piece together.

"A friend gave me a CD many years ago of El Vez, who is the Latino Elvis," Bibo said. "He's an Elvis interpreter. I wrote to him and said I loved his CD, and
he sent me an autographed picture. I thought, 'This is cool.'"

The collection grew and includes photos of men, women and children from around the world. But even with such an impressive collection, it wasn't Bibo's original intention to put them on a Web site. It just kind of happened.

"I built a Web site because I wanted to learn how to build a Web site," he said. "I needed something on it, and I thought, 'Okay, I haven't seen this before.'

"I've become an expert. I helped a Minnesota morning television show locate an Elvis for their show. It's weird."

It's also weird that Bibo somehow finds the time to write children's novels. His first, "Zombies Next Door," is yet to be published. But Bibo has high hopes for the second, "Hamburger Madness," which is about a robot and human who operate an orbiting fast-food franchise.

Bibo said the writing offers him a release from the stress of his day job. It also adds to the variety that he's always looking for.

"The big thing is that I like to learn about everything," he said. "When I'm tired of architecture, writing is what I want to do. Unless there's an opening on the shuttle …"

- Chris Thompson