Dotted Line

Henshue Construction Inc., Madison, will construct the second phase of the Willow Creek storm box relief sewer after winning a $1 million contract for the job. … Market & Johnson Inc., La Crosse, won an $8.3 million contract to renovate Pasteur Hall at Winona State University in Winona, Minn. … Olympic Builders General Contractors, Holmen, landed a $5.4 million contract to expand and remodel Albin Elementary School and Lansing Kee High School in Lansing, Iowa. … Staab Construction Corp., Marshfield, won a $2.9 million contract for the 2005 wastewater-treatment facility upgrade in Warrens. Staab also will upgrade the wastewater-treatment facility in Plainfield after winning a $2.9 million contract for the work. Badger Environmental & Earthworks Inc., Westby, won a $1.4 million contract to extend utilities at the same Plainfield facility. … Earth Inc., Arpin, secured a $1.8 million contract for the Galvin Street reconstruction in Marshfield. … Altmann Construction Co. Inc., Wisconsin Rapids, will replace the squadron operations facility at Volk Field in Camp Douglas after winning a $3.2 million contract for the job. Altmann also won a $2.6 million contract to construct an office building and shop for Monson Trucking Inc., Mauston. … American Asphalt of Wisconsin, Wausau, took home a $2.1 million contract for asphalt surfacing work in Marathon County. American Asphalt also won a $1.4 million contract for road improvements in Plover. … Miron Construction Co. Inc., Neenah, will construct the new East District Police Station on Thompson Drive in Madison after winning a $2.7 million contract for the job. Miron also won a $2.1 million contract for a well reservoir and pumping station project in Madison. Miron also won a $1.2 million contract for maintenance and repair projects for heating plants in multiple buildings on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus. … Fowler & Hammer Inc., La Crosse, will construct the Family YMCA North in Onalaska after winning a $7.2 million contract for the job. … Super Excavators Inc., Menomonee Falls, landed a $21.4 million contract for the Hart Park project in Wauwatosa. … Advance Construction Inc., Green Bay, won a $1.1 million contract for the Water and Wisconsin streets reconstruction in West Bend. Advance also won a $2.6 million contract for sewer and water work in the Green Meadows subdivision in Sheboygan. … Fischl Construction Corp., Madison, secured a $3.8 million contract to build a new public library in Verona. … Roen Salvage Co., Sturgeon Bay, will repair the south revetment on the shore of Lake Superior in Superior after winning a $2.6 million contract for the job. Roen also won a $1.4 million contract for harbor maintenance dredging in Green Bay. … Phenco Inc., Neenah, will construct site work at the Olde Stone Quarry County Park Boat Launch Harbor of Refuge in Sturgeon Bay after winning a $3.2 million contract for the work. … KBK Services Inc., Ashland, landed a $1.3 million contract to restore the Raspberry Island Historic Light Station at Apostle Islands National Lakeshore in Bayfield County. … C.D. Smith Construction Co., Fond du Lac, will expand the La Crosse Center parking ramp after winning a $4.8 million contract for the job. … A-1 Excavating Inc., Bloomer, won a $1 million contract for the 2005 street reconstruction project in Wausau. … MSI General Corp., Oconomowoc, was selected by General Finishes, New Berlin, to design and construct the company's 30,000-square-foot office and manufacturing facility in East Troy. … WB Corp., West Bend, won a $3.4 million contract to expand and renovate city buildings in Port Washington. … Magill Construction Co. Inc., Elkhorn, won contracts to build a new office building for Independence Place, New Berlin, and a new store for Walgreens in Delavan. Magill also won a roof-replacement contract for Emmanuel Community UMC, Menomonee Falls, and a boiler-replacement contract for Rock Haven Nursing Home in Janesville. Magill also won a contract to build a new school for Peace Evangelical Lutheran Church in Sun Prairie. … J.F. Brennan Co. Inc./Civil Constructors Co. Inc., La Crosse, landed a $26.9 million contract to rehabilitate locks and dams along the Mississippi River. … Riley Construction Co. Inc., Kenosha, will construct the Sturtevant Passenger Rail Station after winning a $2.8 million contract for the job. … Mashuda Contractors Inc., Princeton, won a $1.7 million contract to reconstruct a portion of county Highway S in Dodge County. … Feaker & Sons Co. Inc., De Pere, secured a $3.3 million contract for utility and street work in Allouez. … Gauthier & Sons Inc., Green Bay, took home a $1.3 million contract to construct four regional storm-water detention ponds in Allouez.

Giving back

Engineered Construction Inc., Verona, is working with Bethel Lutheran Church and Habitat for Humanity to construct a new home in Madison's Twin Oaks neighborhood. Engineered was joined in donating work for the project by Madison subcontractors Academy Electric, Benjamin Plumbing, Air Temperature Service Inc. and Bill Volkman Contracting LLC.

By design

Business is good for Kaukauna Utilities. The company is growing, and with that growth comes a need for more space. So the utility has teamed up with Berners-Schober Associates Inc., Green Bay, to create a 20,000-square-foot warehouse that includes 2,000 square feet of office space, a vehicle washing area and two mechanics garages in Kaukauna. Once the warehouse project is complete, the utility will move some of its functions to the new facility, while Berners-Schober moves on to the second phase of the job. That phase will cover remodeling and expansion work at the utility's original building in Kaukauna. Berners-Schober, which is providing architectural, plumbing, HVAC, electrical and structural services for the job, expects bids for the first phase to hit the streets in the first week of October. Construction of the first phase should start at the end of October and reach completion by June or July.

Rendering courtesy of Berners-Schober Associates Inc.

On the horizon

Eckrose/Green, a division of Applied Research Associates, Madison, is providing consultant services for an improvement project at Shell Lake Municipal Airport in Shell Lake. … Form and Fitness Health Club Inc., Grafton, is planning the construction of an estimated $2.6 million health club on Cheyenne Court in Grafton. … Barrientos Design & Consulting LLC, Milwaukee, recently completed a facilities study of the old Ozaukee County Jail in Port Washington that could lead to an estimated $3 million conversion of the first floor into meeting rooms and an auditorium or an estimated $2.4 million redevelopment of the jail. … Eppstein Uhen Architects Inc., Milwaukee, is working with St. Paul Catholic Church on plans for a 30,000-square-foot worship facility on Highway D in Genesee Depot. … The Milwaukee School of Engineering has purchased the former Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago building in downtown Milwaukee and plans to renovate it into offices, classrooms and an art museum. … MSA Professional Services, Madison, is working with the Washington Island Airport on improvement plans for the facility. … The Library Board for the Town Hall Library in Merton is trying to raise $1.5 million for an expansion and renovation of the library. … The Kubala Washatko Architects Inc., Cedarburg, is working with the Congregation Sinai, Fox Point, on an estimated $4.5 million renovation and expansion of the congregation's Port Washington Road synagogue. … Developer Summit Place LLC, Milwaukee, is planning to redevelop two lots near State Fair Park in Milwaukee from vacant warehouses into light industrial space. … Berners-Schober Associates Inc., Green Bay, will provide architectural and engineering services for the estimated $2.3 million Camp Randall Stadium Heritage Hall project on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus. … Affiliated Engineers Inc., Madison, will offer architectural and engineering services for an estimated $1.5 million boiler controls upgrade at the Waupun Central Generating Plant.

In Memoriam

Richard James, Fennimore, died July 26 when his plane crashed about 20 miles south of Oshkosh while he was en route to the Experimental Aircraft Association's annual AirVenture fly-in in Oshkosh. James, 67, was the president of H. James and Sons Inc., a heavy and highway construction company in Fennimore that he helped found with his father and brother in 1963.

Peer Review

Politically correct

Mielke has an opinion to share

John Mielke saw both sides of the pot-belly pig issue.

The Fort Atkinson pet ordinance clearly stated that livestock, including swine, could not be kept as pets in the city. On the other hand, pot-belly pigs are pretty pet-like swine. It seems reasonable to assume that a pot-belly pig owner would be more interested in companionship than bacon.

It’s a debate that Mielke, the director of government relations for the Associated Builders and Contractors of Wisconsin, might not have envisioned when he was elected to the Fort Atkinson City Council in April 2004. But he also knows that politics can take some strange turns.

“It was interesting because we had a big brouhaha on a local Catholic school and if it could use industrial revenue bonds for a project,” he said. “I did think the pot-belly/swine issue was in stark contrast to the church vs. state issue. It’s interesting how short that journey is.”

It’s also interesting to Mielke that someone who gets paid to express his opinion to state legislators should find himself on the receiving end of such efforts.

“It’s given me a unique perspective on lobbying,” he said. “As a lobbyist, you expect that your argument is the most persuasive argument available. If it wasn’t infallible, you wouldn’t be promoting it. I’ve come to think that maybe that’s not true.”

What is true is that Mielke has found a way to stay close to his roots in Fort Atkinson while plying his trade at the Capitol. He serves on the same City Council his father once did, and he lives in the same house his parents once owned.

“When my parents were selling the house, I said to my wife that we should buy it,” he said. “My daughter has my old bedroom, although it wasn’t pink when I had it.”

He chose to follow his father’s footsteps because he wanted to help his hometown.

“I thought it was a way to give back to the community in an area that I know something about,” he said.

He started to learn something about politics at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. He was a member of the College Republicans, executive director of the student government association and, even before he graduated with a degree in political science, fielded a call from a state senator asking if Mielke would run for state Assembly.

He declined the offer and quickly learned that sometimes, especially in a losing cause, a live body is just as good as a serious candidate.

“I thought, ‘Boy, I must be making a name for myself in Stevens Point,’” he said. “Of all the names, mine perco-lated to the top. I turned him down, and the very next question out of his mouth was, ‘Do you know anybody who would run?’”

The experience didn’t stop Mielke from heading to Madison in 1990 after graduation. He managed a state Assembly campaign and spent two years with the Public Expenditure Survey, which was a government-spending watchdog group.

And then, in 1992, he heard that ABC was looking for someone to help with its apprenticeship program. His work with the program eventually led him to the Capitol, where he provided subject matter expertise during debates over ABC’s program.

“After a certain amount of contacts with legislators, ethics laws require you to register as a lobbyist,” he said. “I had met that threshold.”

While first focusing on apprenticeships, Mielke’s lobbying slowly drifted into other topics until, in 1998, he took over as director of government relations.

“It goes back to politics, to have an idea and be able to articulate and support that idea in the marketplace of ideas,” he said. “It’s gonna stick or sink based on its merits. I think that’s cool. I like that challenge.

“I get paid to tell people my opinion. That seems like a pretty good gig.”

- Chris Thompson

Hot Spot

Heartland Development Group Ltd. sees an opportunity in Germantown. The Milwaukee developer and general contractor is nearing construction of an 11,000-square-foot, multitenant retail center on the corner of Appleton and Maple avenues in the village. Heartland chose the site, which is on an out-lot of a new Menards store, because Germantown is growing, retail development is growing along Appleton Avenue to match demand, and a new Super Wal-Mart is scheduled to go up across the street. The new retail center, designed by Torke Wirth Pujara Ltd., Wauwatosa, will probably house eight tenants in spaces ranging from 1,200 square feet to 2,000 square feet. With 40 percent of the center pre-leased, Heartland plans to start construction in early October and reach completion in February. Heartland is still accepting subcontractor bids for the project.

Off the clock

Melvin Timm (right) joins Karl Rove, President Bush's political advisor, during Bush's recent Social Security speech at the Milwaukee Art Museum. Photos courtesy of Melvin Timm

Safe and secure

Melvin Timm rolls into town the night before the event.

He picks out a nice place to stay, tunes up his bullhorn and then heads over to the event site for a walk-through. He figures out where to put the barricades and security scanners and where to stage thousands of people the next day. He meets the 20 to 25 volunteers that will be working for him and gets a general feel for where he wants people stationed.

He’s up no later than 5 a.m. the next day searching out the best greasy spoon and the strongest coffee he can find because he knows he won’t get a break for 12 to 14 hours. He goes back to the event site before Secret Service does its sweep and waits as the area gets shut down and the public starts to arrive. Then, as people are staged near the front gate, Timm pulls out his bullhorn and gets to work.

“I start dancing on tables and telling jokes through the bullhorn,” said Timm, the president of M.R. Teas Inc., a general contractor in Neenah. “I try to lighten the mood of the crowd.”

Timm (left) and former Gov. Tommy Thompson pause for a moment at the Republican convention in La Crosse in 2003. Photos courtesy of Melvin Timm

Such is the life of the head of volunteer security for Republican events in Wisconsin. Security volunteers are unarmed, and their job consists of walking people through scanners and collecting items, from pocket knives to Subway sandwiches, that aren’t allowed at the speeches. Timm said his group keeps things running smoothly as people wait to get in.

“I had run security for concerts in the past,” Timm said. “I use the same techniques. I develop a personal relationship with the early people, and they help to train the crowd.”

Timm said he first volunteered for security at President Bush’s campaign speech in La Crosse more than a year ago. He was a general volunteer for local events but headed to La Crosse when he saw that organizers needed help.

“I showed up early at the event, and when they found out that I had traveled so far and that I owned my own company, they put me with the head volunteers,” he said.

“One of the Republican Party of Wisconsin representatives spotted me and asked if I could do other events in Wisconsin.”

Timm has now worked 15 events ranging from that first day in La Crosse to Bush’s Social Security presentation at the Milwaukee Art Museum a few months ago. And while it’s a lot of work and a lot of travel, Timm said it’s worth it.

“I watched the political process from afar for too many years,” he said. “I volunteered six years ago because I felt that if I could be a part of the process, I could have influence on the process.”

Best of the web

The New London Architecture Web site at www.newlondonarchitecture.org showcases what's happening in architecture, planning and development in London. It includes photos, renderings and other information about current, future and past projects in and around the city.

www.newlondonarchitecture.org

Your honor

Tim Just, vice president of field operations for CG Schmidt Inc., Milwaukee, won the Gil Czaplewski Award from the Associated General Contractors of Greater Milwaukee board of directors for his dedication to the improvement and betterment of the AGC and the construction industry. … Don Moen, safety director for the Associated Builders and Contractors of Wisconsin, won the 2005 BuildersEdge Award from the BuildersEdge Program, a nonprofit Wisconsin construction industry organization, for his involvement in the University of Wisconsin-Platteville community.

Milestones

Tweet/Garot Mechanical Inc., Green Bay, recently reached its greatest safety milestone. The company worked 2 million safe hours without a lost-time accident. Tweet/Garot hit the milestone on June 27. The streak started in June 2003.

Closing shop

Westra Construction Inc., Waupun, permanently shut down its operations on July 8 citing an impasse with its bank lenders. The general contractor was founded as a masonry contractor in 1948 by William and Dewey Westra.