Bike, skateboard, and roller skates store opening on KK September 3

Bigfoot Bike and Skate, LLC is moving into the Avalon Theatre storefront at 2481 S. Kinnickinnic Avenue and opening for business September 3.

Owner Brian Curtiss said he decided to relocate to Bay View from his Shorewood location at 3470 N. Oakland Avenue in the wake of the July 22 flood that inundated his store.  He will operate the store Friday through Sunday and by appointment. Curtiss, who earned a degree in sculpture from MIAD, is employed by a company that specializes in historical architectural restoration. He hopes to make the store his full-time endeavor.

Bigfoot Bike and Skate will carry bikes, skateboards, and quad roller skates (no inline skates), plus bike and skate parts, helmets, and skating safety-gear.

Bike repair services will be part of the store’s offerings, as well as custom-built  skateboard decks and bikes. Curtiss said he loves building beach cruiser bicylces.

Bigfoot’s skateboard inventory will be limited to longboard and old-school skateboards. Curtiss said Bigfoot will complement Sky High Skateboard Shop, 2501 S. Howell Avenue, which features trick skateboards.

His bike selection will be tailored for teens and adults—BMX, cruisers, commuters, and single-speeds including Haro, Breezer, Nerve, and more.

A native of Kenosha, Curtiss said he began hanging out at the Ski & Sport Chalet store, located hear his home, when he was 12-years-old. Before long they offered him a job. He acquired a work permit and began learning to repair bikes and wait on customers after school and on weekends.

The store opens Friday, September 3. Curtiss warned that customers will find him in the process of setting up the store but that should not deter them from stopping in.

Curtiss noted that he’s “very proud to be a sponsor of the Brew City Bruisers,”  a local, women’s roller-derby team.

The store will be open Friday from 10am-7pm, and Saturday and Sunday from 10am-4pm, and by appointment. (414) 332-3479 or (312) 401-8491. brian@bigfootbikeandskate.com.

Security cameras for Kinnickinnic Avenue

Smile. You might soon be on camera.

The Kinnickinnic Avenue Business Improvement District (BID #44) has authorized its board member Bill Doyle to secure a contract of up to $40,000 for cameras and related equipment along Kinnickinnic Avenue.

The goal of the cameras is to deter crime and help police identify criminal suspects, BID board members said, ultimately improving the public perception of Bay View as a safe and desirable place to do business.

At a meeting of the BID board Aug. 23, Doyle did not specify planned camera locations and said those details were yet to be worked out. He said cameras could be moved, depending on activity at different sites, but suggested the intersection of Howell, Kinnickinnic, and Lincoln avenues was a logical place of focus, especially given the vacant Maritime Savings Bank.

Doyle is seeking competitive bids from at least five contractors, but no timeline was set for camera installation.

Of the $40,000 the BID has budgeted to address security, Doyle tentatively plans about $30,000 for cameras, installation, and associated costs, with $10,000 for equipment replacement, insurance, and other contingencies.

Doyle said he’s seeking the most competitive camera packages, and the final costs will in part determine the number of systems ultimately installed, though he tossed out a preliminary estimate of $3,000 to $3,500 per package. He said a package consists of four cameras, DVR, monitor, and installation. He hopes to get a Bay View-based electrician to handle installation.

Rachel Marek, of Excel Printing, told the board she was familiar with a $600 system including six cameras, software, and DVR.

The BID, established earlier this year, spans KK from Morgan to Becher. It derives funding from a special assessment on property owners—essentially an additional tax whose proceeds come back to benefit the specific BID district, via the BID board’s projects, rather than go more widely to the city. (BID #44 assessments.)

This summer the BID board surveyed its member property owners to get a sense of business priorities along the KK corridor. Only 51 surveys were returned as of Aug. 23, but the top three concerns cited were marketing and promotion, cleanliness and attractiveness, and then security, said BID president Jason Wedesky.

The BID board expressed hope that more people would respond to their survey, and the extended deadline for responses is Sept. 5. The complete survey results will be announced after that, according to BID secretary Joyce Parker.

On Aug. 23,  Kinnickinnic Avenue resident Michael Perveiler asked the board if adding cameras would actually deter crime and also if the cameras would drive crime from KK into the residential neighborhood.

BID board members expressed the sentiment that there was no perfect solution to deterring crime, but that cameras could only help. “We need to show Bay View residents we’re serious about deterring crime,” said Mike Marx, BID board member.

David Brazeau, of Salon Thor, said that he already operates three cameras and that police have reviewed his footage, resulting in multiple arrests. Greg Mertens, of Wild Flour Bakery, added his positive experience with Operation Impact security cameras near his W. Lincoln Avenue Wild Flour location.

For 2010, the KK BID has over $45,000, with $5,000 dedicated to graffiti removal and $40,000 to security. Wedesky said the BID must submit its 2011 budget to the city by Sept. 9. Marketing and promotion is likely to be a focus.

“Obviously, if you’re going to market the street, you’re going to need a website,” said 14th District Alderman Tony Zielinski, who, while not on the BID board, played a significant role in forming the BID and recruiting the board. He added his hope that Bay View web designers will express interest in that project.

The board consists of Bill Doyle, Michael Krolick, Debbie Leszczynski (pending final approval by the mayor’s office), Michael Marx, Greg Mertens, Joyce Parker, Ron Romero, Steve Ste. Marie, and Jason Wedesky.

The BID board’s next meeting is 6pm Monday, Oct. 11 at Joyce Parker Productions, 2685 S. Kinnickinnic Ave. The public is welcome.

Bay View Business

Waiting list for new Hide House Lofts apartments

All 60 units are spoken for. General Capital said marketing units to the creative community seems to have hit home. Occupancy begins mid-October. ~photo Katherine Keller

Carleton Grange announces it’s closing

Blames city of St. Francis and federal stimulus project

In a mass email Aug. 21, Eric Ellsworth, owner of Carleton Grange Pub, 3807 S. Packard Ave. in St. Francis, announced his restaurant will close indefinitely Monday, Sept. 6. Ellsworth opened the smokefree English-themed pub in 2006 with then-business partner Michael Rusch.

Ellsworth wrote that anticipated construction along Packard Avenue will disrupt his business and ultimately remove about 27 on-street parking spaces used by the restaurant’s clientele. He also complained that the city of St. Francis had failed to create additional public parking spaces that he said were deemed necessary for their business operations back in 2005.

“Our business will not be able to survive the short-term loss of revenue from the construction work and the long-term loss of revenue resulting from the lost parking,” Ellsworth wrote.

The road construction will involve curb cuts and the installation of decorative pavement intended to make the triangular parcel of vacant land across from Carleton Grange, formerly power company property now owned by Mandel Group, more attractive to prospective retail tenants.

In his email, Ellsworth spread the blame across several levels of government.

“It is a shame that this stimulus project will actually result in the loss of the 25 jobs we created in 2005,” Ellsworth wrote.

Ellsworth’s father, Craig Ellsworth, owns the Carleton Grange property and acquired it after selling the Avalon Theatre to Lee Barczak in 2005.

Yet Eric Ellsworth suggested the closure may not be permanent-if he gets the parking he wants.

“It is our intention to continue to try to find a solution to the parking situation,” he wrote. “We hope to be able to reopen when the project is entirely finished and the parking that was deemed necessary for our business operations in 2005 is installed.”

Ellsworth has uploaded related documents to carletongrange.com/index.php/parking-documents.

Cheryl’s Family Resale

By Kristen Cooper

Where in Bay View can you find a panini maker for $9, or a lime green book shelf for $6? Cheryl’s Family Resale, 3201 S. Howell Ave., has been supplying the Bay View community with secondhand items such as these since July 12.

A love of garage sales inspired owner Cheryl Hoffner to open the small resale boutique in the space most recently occupied by Kinetic Real Estate. After six years of teaching, Hoffner decided to be a stay-at-home mom, but had always wanted to own her own business.

“I always loved garage sales and finding good deals,” Hoffner said. “I love to shop, so it’s a good fit.”

Selling refurbished clothing, household items, collectibles, toys and games, videos, books, decorations, shoes, and more, Hoffner said Cheryl’s Family Resale caters to everyone, but she said the difference between her store and Goodwill is the quality.

Most of the items are bought from different neighborhoods around Milwaukee, but donations are accepted. She gets new items once a week, but updates the store daily.

Cheryl’s Family Resale is open Monday through Saturday, 10am-5pm. More info: (414) 727-2009 or cherylsfamilyresale.com.

Toppers Pizza coming to KK

A Toppers Pizza is planned for 2262 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., the Compass learned in early August.

Toppers has franchises in six states and is headquartered in Whitewater, Wis.

The vacant site being built out was formerly part of Schwartz Bookstore and is immediately north of Babe’s Ice Cream and south of the expanded Riviera Maya.

Drawstring Studio

By Kristen Cooper

When making her son a quilt, Bay View resident Danielle Lussier was frustrated when she couldn’t find a fabric store in Bay View. So she opened up her own. Drawstring Studio, a cozy and colorful fabric boutique, opened July 17 at 800 E. Potter Ave., just off Kinnickinnic Avenue.

Drawstring Studio specializes in unique, bright, and vibrant fabrics, as well as organic fabric.

“I like the fact that I can keep it local,” Lussier said. “I like supporting independent places so the fact that we can have one of our own in our neighborhood is great.”

She’s hoping that “local” element will attract business. She said Drawstring Studio is for everyone from new crafters who are just getting into the art to more experienced sewers and quilters in the neighborhood. Prices range from $8 to $16 per yard for fabric, with the organic fabric being the most expensive.

Carrying organic fabrics was an essential, Lussier said, because not only do they promote sustainability, but they’re also softer and easier to work with when making crafts.

Lussier’s store name was inspired by and pays homage to her deceased relative Ward, whose name spelled backwards is “Draw.”

Lussier plans to expand Drawstring Studio with more products from local crafters and to carry more fabric patterns with seasonal colors.

Drawstring Studio’s new September hours are Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday, 12-7pm; Saturday, 10am-4pm; and Sunday, 12-4pm. To see fabric patterns and additional products, visit drawstringstudio.com; (414) 482-7373.

Ping-pong club opens

SPiN Milwaukee, “Milwaukee’s Premier Ping-Pong Club,” opened Aug. 28 at 233 E. Chicago St. in the Third Ward.

The table-tennis social club features 17 tables, two private rooms, and dining space for up to 100. Table-tennis courts are $16 per hour for nonmembers before 6pm Thursday through Saturday and $32 after 6pm ($16 and $24 Sunday through Wednesday). Memberships are not required to play but members receive half-price rates and other benefits.

The 16,500-square-foot space in the former Reliable Knitting Building was designed by Engberg Anderson architects and constructed by Beyer Construction under the direction of George Beyer and Andy Klimpel.

Eric Kaye, formerly of Carnevor Steakhouse Moderne, is director of operations at SPiN Milwaukee, whose menu was created under Audrey Vandenburgh, formerly a chef at Potawatomi Bingo Casino.

“Green” design features include waterless urinals, low-flow dual-flush toilets, automatic facets, high-efficiency hand dryers, linen napkins, and LED lighting.

Co-owned by Susan Sarandon, SPiN Milwaukee is the third club in the nation, with others in New York and Hollywood. More info: spinmilwaukee.com.

Port earns pacesetter award

The federal Department of Transportation’s St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation presented the Port of Milwaukee with the Pacesetter Award Aug. 11 to recognize the significant increase in international tonnage moved through the seaway in 2009.

Last year Milwaukee accounted for the international movement of more than 318,000 metric tons of goods through the St. Lawrence Seaway-a 22-percent increase in traffic over the port’s 2008 total. Milwaukee is one of only two U.S. Great Lakes ports to receive this award for 2009. The St. Lawrence Seaway is a system of locks and canals that connects the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean and the world.

“Milwaukee has always looked to the seaway as a vital marine trade route for moving manufactured and agricultural goods to market and receiving essential imports,” Port Director Eric Reinelt said. “That was especially true in 2009 as we saw an increase in grain exports and handled an 800,000-pound transformer, the biggest piece of project cargo we’ve moved in recent years.”

This is the ninth Pacesetter earned by the Port of Milwaukee since the award program began in 1992.

Seventh Annual Sustainability and Energy Efficiency Conference Sept. 22 in Oconomowoc

Two of the nation”s leading advocates in the fields of sustainable construction and the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System™ will share their knowledge with attendees at the 7th Annual SE# (Sustainability and Energy Efficiency) Conference.

Join the Wisconsin Green Building Alliance (WGBA) on September 22nd for the Building Prosperity through Partnerships one day conference at Olympia Resort and Conference Center (1350 Royale Mile Road Oconomowoc, WI 53066).

Pre-conference activities include a free SE2 trade show — featuring green building leaders from Wisconsin on September 21st from 5:-7pm. Ms. Mary Tod Winchester from the Chesapeake Bay Foundation Save The Bay in Annapolis, MD will share her experiences in project management of the Philip Merrill Environmental Center, an international model holistic green facility. This facility was the first in the nation to be awarded the US Green Building Council’s LEED Platinum rating.

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) fights for bold and creative solutions to the pollution that plagues the Bay and its tributaries. Across the six-state Chesapeake watershed, CBF sets the agenda, serves as a watchdog and speaks out on behalf of the Chesapeake Bay to business, government and the public.

Mr. Rob Watson, aka the “father of LEED,” who from 1994 to 2005 helped LEED to become the most widespread and fastest growing standard by which green buildings are measured worldwide. Mr. Watson will share his experiences working in an international capacity with LEED certified projects in China, Russia and the US.

In 2005, China”s Ministry of Construction (MOC) recognized Mr. Watson with one of its first “Green Innovation” awards. He was the only foreigner so honored, due to his work on green buildings in China.

Conference attendees” will also learn about the partnership and coordinated efforts of WE Energies, the Milwaukee 7 and the City of Milwaukee to bring Ingeteam to the Menomonee River Valley.

Attendees” will also have the opportunity to visit local green buildings, focusing on innovative energy efficiency and conservation measures utilized.

Visit Quad/Graphics 1.7 million square foot production facility that was awarded LEED — EB (Existing Building) Silver status in 2009.

Or visit the City of Oconomowoc/Village of Summit recently constructed green built fire station # 2 at Pabst Farms.

With sustainability in mind, this year’s conference will be as “eco—friendly” as speaker’s presentations. The WGBA considers it important to reduce waste by creating an online registration process and printing all conference-marketing materials on paper that is recycled.

They will support the local economy and the Wisconsin farmer’s by sourcing all ingredients for the meals/snacks/kick off event from local producers.

To learn more about the greening of the 2010 SE2 conference please go to www.wgba.org .

There is still time to register for the “Building Prosperity through Partnerships” conference. Early bird pricing is in effect through August 20th. For questions or media passes for the conference please contact Lisa Geason—Bauer at 262.354.0341 or lisa@evolutionmarketing.biz.

Toppers Pizza coming to KK

A Toppers Pizza is planned for 2262 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., the Compass has learned.

Toppers has franchises in six states and is headquartered in Whitewater, Wis.

The vacant site being built out was formerly part of Schwartz Bookstore and is immediately north of Babe’s Ice Cream and south of the expanded Riviera Maya.

eco•batik

Artist Jennifer Doheny opened a storefront at 3385 S. Kinnickinnic Ave. for her custom line of greeting cards and batik lighting treatments in early July. She calls it eco•batik, the “eco” coming from her use of recycled kraft paper, old book pages, and soy-based wax.

The Milwaukee native moved to the West Coast in 1994, but returned this April from Portland, Ore. to be closer to family. Originally from Milwaukee’s north side but now a Bay View resident—she had friends in Bay View—Doheny made the plunge into opening a retail store after 10 years selling her cards wholesale, the past three years with a national distributor.

“It’s a funny business. It’s not what people think. The greeting card rack is prime real estate and you have to carve your space on your card racks,” she said.

She’s already carved out a national niche with her Urban Bird Designs line. Doheny has designed about 50 different greeting cards, many featuring animals in energetic colors with a New Age feel. The cards bear simple, optimistic messages like “friend sheep” by a sheep with a bird on its head or “hello friend” by a pensive chimpanzee. At her store, the cards are marked $3 each or four for $10.

Doheny combines wax and dye, colored pencil and ink, and cut paper to create designs for her printed cards.

She gains more satisfaction from her prolific work as a self-taught artist, but Doheny has learned business sense along her journey. With her move back home, she’s again handling her own wholesale distribution and plans to follow up on her 368 accounts.

Most of her retail outlets are domestic—including Powell’s Books in Portland—but a few are in Canada. She said she investigated international markets but found shipping costs to be prohibitive.

In Milwaukee, her cards are already available at Beans & Barley, Garden Room, and Outpost Natural Foods on Capitol Drive. She plans to investigate the Bay View Outpost.

Thus eco•batik is the prime retail location for Milwaukeeans to discover custom greeting cards crafted by a local artist, but it’s also home base for Doheny’s other artistic and commercial enterprise: batik.

Custom Batik

Pronounced bah-TEEK, the process involves applying wax and dye onto fabric or paper. The waxed areas resist the dyeing process, allowing for layers of different colored patterns.

Doheny uses a canting tool, a stylus used to apply hot liquid soy wax, to draw designs onto kraft paper or old book pages. She starts by dyeing the lightest color and works darker.

“The wax is unforgiving,” said Doheny, who’s been batiking for 13 years. “If you dripped, you dripped.”

Layer by layer, she “waxes out” areas to be protected from the dye and concludes by adding a layer of wax over the entire piece that seals it and adds a sheen. She then irons out the excess wax, which is soaked up into newspaper.

What were once sheets of plain brown paper are transformed into luminescent lampshades, window treatments, and light boxes imbued with floral or animal forms.

Ultimately Doheny wants to batik textiles. She envisions a line of children’s bedding, sleeping bags, and pillowcases with her designs.

She’s also interested in using her art to help people heal. To that end Doheny is pursuing large-scale commercial health-care projects.

One of her ideas is to make use of a product called Lumicor, architectural paneling made of recycled resin manufactured by a Seattle company that also supplies acrylic interior components for Boeing airplanes. She shows a sample of her batik sandwiched between two translucent Lumicor panels, which creates a hard lighting surface that can be mounted above hospital beds or around ceiling lights.

The idea is to transform sterile hospital or nursing home spaces into more lively environments conducive to healing, something Doheny said health-care providers are increasingly looking for as “evidence-based design” procedures affect the way their industry approaches the relationship between its patients and their space.

Inspiration from Life

In Portland Doheny said she was surrounded by spiritual teachers and energetic healers who nurtured her creativity.

Her favorite design is “The World Is on Your Side,” featuring a pseudo-peacock perched on an orb with feathers radiating outward. “This design best expresses my imagination and how I feel about life,” Doheny said.

“I work with animal guides,” she said, showing a deck of Tarot-like cards with different animals. On a recent day, for example, she drew four cards that she said provided her with inspiration and guidance. Each animal references something different for her—a black panther (the unknown), rabbit (fear), monkey (playfulness), and buffalo (abundance).

Her art is animated by the spirit within animal life. “I am able to draw an animal and take something spiritual and bring it down to something tangible,” she said.

Recent inspiration came in the form of an inquisitive deer that came over to eat oatmeal out of her bowl when Doheny was camping at Mt. Shasta. She snapped photos of the animal, which became source material for “Deer to Me,” a card that features a portrait of a deer.

Look closely at many of Doheny’s compositions and you may notice certain motifs repeated—shorthand squiggles, certain constellations, and also “bishy barney beetles” and “hooska doodle bugs”—cute little creatures that Doheny said hint at a connection to a fairy realm just beyond normal human perception.

Since returning to Milwaukee, Doheny has also found fascination in a local, luminous insect. “The fireflies are blowing my mind,” she said, laughing. “I’m tripping out on fireflies.”

Artistically but not commercially, Doheny wants one day to team up with an animator to make a short film based on her animal characters.

Bay View Business

Her store also sells prints of Doheny’s fine art designs.

Doheny contracted with local printer Josh Benishek at PDM Workshop, 2241 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., for printing, signage, and graphic design services.

In mid-July Doheny received a $1,250 façade grant from the city to help literally hang her shingle outside the 1,000-square-foot storefront, most recently home to Healing Balance Massage and previously studio space for artist Brad VandeVenter.

eco•batik
3385 S. Kinnickinnic Ave.
(414) 524-9198

St. Francis barber Al Budda retires

Many area men know Al Budda, who operated The Side Track barber shop, 2232 E. St. Francis Ave. in St. Francis. (And others probably know him by his work.) Budda retired last month after 45 years of service, according to longtime customer Dan Grimm, to whom Budda gave his final haircut on July 10. ~photo Jennifer Janviere

Licenses applied for

Licenses applied for

• Home Bar, 2659 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., applied for a new Instrumental Music license June 2.
• Classic Slice Pizza, 2797A S. Kinnickinnic Ave., applied for a new “Class C” Wine license June 24.

Walks with Poop coming to Bay View

Entrepreneur Kerry Dawson is walking her dogs every Sunday at 6pm starting at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and Bay Street and invites the neighborhood to join her. Dawson runs sitting dogg pet care and is seeking to establish a communal neighborhood ritual for dog and human socialization. She’s calling the outings Walks with Poop. No joke.

Bucyrus to take over Midwest office space in Oak Creek

South Milwaukee-based Bucyrus International, Inc. announced plans May 25 to acquire and move into the former Midwest Airlines Corporate Center at 6744 S. Howell Ave. in Oak Creek.

This two-building office complex is tucked away on 27 acres just south of the 42-acre Cudahy Nature Preserve, a state-designated natural area at 501 E. College Ave.

Senior management will move into the space to accommodate new employees in South Milwaukee, according to a company press release.

Bucyrus attributed the maneuver to its February 2010 acquisition of the mining division of the Connecticut-based Terex Corporation. As a result of the acquisition, the company anticipates adding about 700 local jobs over the next two to three years, according to the press release.

In April 2010, Indianapolis-based Republic Airways Holdings, Inc. announced that the Midwest Airlines brand would be absorbed into the Frontier Airlines brand, a blow for Milwaukee’s social psyche after the economic blow of thousands of staff cuts prior to the hometown carrier’s acquisition last year. Republic acquired Midwest in July 2009 and Frontier in October 2009. The consolidated carrier will be headquartered in Denver.

Said Bucyrus president and CEO Tim Sullivan in the release, “We’ve got a lot of opportunity to export our equipment from South Milwaukee to developing markets around the world. We’re still one of the fastest growing companies in the United States and we are proud to be able to provide good paying job opportunities in this particular economy.”

Bucyrus designs and manufactures mining equipment for surface and underground excavation of coal, copper, iron ore, oil sands, and other minerals. The underground equipment is mainly used for coal.

On May 28, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel called Bucyrus and Terex “the world’s largest mining equipment companies.”

Further recommended reading: In October 2009, Milwaukee Magazine ran an investigative feature, “King Coal” by John Kaufman, which explored Milwaukee’s keystone relationship to the global coal industry, including references to Bucyrus.

Unemployment task force

A proposed task force to address Milwaukee unemployment, specifically of African-American males, has assembled its members, 14th District Alderman Tony Zielinski announced May 17.

Dr. Marc Levine, founding director of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s Center for Economic Development, and Wendell Harris, first vice president of the NAACP-Milwaukee branch, have both agreed to serve the task force.

“Members of our community are eager to be a part of the solution,” Zielinski said. “The response from community leaders has been excellent and as we move forward with this resolution, it is clear a very knowledgeable and experienced group will help shape this task force.” »Read more

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