Business ‘N Bagels gets sporty

With a spotlight on recreation, fitness and sporting opportunities in Sheboygan County, 51 area business people gathered at The Villager in downtown Sheboygan Falls Wednesday, May 5, for a Sheboygan Falls Chamber-Main Street Business ’N Bagels program.

Sheboygan Falls Chamber-Main Street Executive Director Nancy Verstrate opened the program by honoring Gary Thede with the Wisconsin Chamber-Main Street Foundation Volunteer of the Year Award.

She then recognized new Chamber-Main Street members Stardust Limousine (Mike Hartmann), Rocky Knoll Health Care Center (Jen Lloyd) and Falls Salon and Spa (Mary Ellen Schmidley).

She also introduced Anne Kelly of the Sheboygan Falls Boys & Girls Club and Suni McCall of Salon 511 as new faces in the local business community.

In addition, Verstrate announced Kathryn Schwark of Richardson Furniture Emporium as the newest member of the Chamber-Main Street board of directors.

Verstrate commented on the strength and resiliency of the Sheboygan Falls business community in difficult economic times.

“We are actually seeing some growth in downtown Sheboygan Falls right now,” she said. “Several businesses have reported sales increases of 15 to 18 percent so far this year.

“We also have some new businesses coming into the downtown, including M.T. Wooden Washtub, which has already opened in the former Troy Laundry building, and Broadway Popcorn, which will be opening very soon. Also, Magpies Cottage recently expanded by moving into a bigger building next door.”

Guest speaker Aaron Brault, Sheboygan County Non-Motorized Transportation Grant Pilot Program specialist, provided some background about the program.

“In 2005, Sheboygan County was one of four communities in the country to receive a federal grant of up to $25 million for non-motorized transportation projects,” he said. “We currently have projects in development in nearly every major community in the county.”

Brault provided an update on the status of various bike, pedestrian and mixed-use trail projects in Sheboygan, Cedar Grove and Sheboygan Falls.

“In Sheboygan, we have several projects in the works,” he said. “We have a bike and pedestrian trail along a 1.67-mile stretch of the former Union Pacific rail line in Sheboygan that we expect will be competed in 2012.

“We also have a multi-use path running on Taylor Drive, from the Sheboygan Kohler Memorial exit to Acuity Insurance, that is currently under construction. Both of these are very exciting projects.”

Brault described a multi-use trail in Cedar Grove that will link the city’s school with area neighborhoods, and effectively eliminate the need for bussing in some portions of the city.

He indicated the extensive plan to add multi-use bike and pedestrian paths in Sheboygan Falls has hit a bit of a roadblock.

“Due to the recent reactivation of the rail line in Falls, the start date for our project has been pushed back to 2011,” Brault said. “A few of the trails run near the rail line, so we need to wait on the engineers to complete design work on the rail line, before we can continue with the development of our plans.”

Over the past five years, Brault said the average number of bicycle riders has jumped from 4.2 percent to 6.0 percent in Sheboygan Falls.

“Any kind of increase or mode shift is very good,” he said. “It is a good start, but my ultimate goal is to see that rate go up to 10 percent.”

He pointed to Portland, Ore. and Davis, Calif. as cities with very high percentages of bike riders.

“Davis, California has a 25-percent participation rate for bike riders,” he said. “Portland is at 20 percent. Neither of those two cities is a surprise, because they have nice climates. People might be surprised to learn that one of the biggest movers is Minneapolis, Minn., which has a rapidly growing number of bike trails, even in a cold-weather climate.”

Verstrate introduced Road America Marketing Director Mary Lou Haen by praising Road America for making a major economic impact on the county each year.

“This year we have the PGA coming to our area, which is a very good event that received a lot of publicity and fanfare the last time it was here,” Verstrate said. “Sometimes Road America’s economic impact on our area goes unnoticed.

“Year in and year out, Road America has events on nearly every weekend in the summer, that draw thousands of people to our area,” she said. “Road America has been very active in promoting Sheboygan County for many years, and we are very grateful for that strong contribution and support.”

Road America opened in 1955 on 540 acres of picturesque, rolling terrain in Elkhart Lake. Over the past 55 years, Road America’s 4-mile, 14-turn road-racing course has earned a reputation as one of the top permanent road racing facilities in the world.

Haen, a Sheboygan Falls resident, said Road America has expanded its offerings in recent years to include a motorplex for go-kart and motorcycle races, along with accommodations for meetings, parties, corporate events and automobile industry galas.

“People might not realize that we host 400 events at year,” she said. “The majority of those events are private test sessions, driving schools, corporate outings and new car debuts.

“We will also be hosting a Family Fun Weekend on Saturday, May 15, which features several kids events, a big wheel race, Miss Wisconsin and SpongeBob SquarePants.”

Road America will host nine public racing events this year, including the debut appearance of the NASCAR Nationwide Series Saturday, June 19.

“The last NASCAR race at Road America was way back in 1956, so we are very excited to have that race this year,” she said. “The Nationwide series only races on road courses three times a year, so this is going to be an intriguing event for everyone involved.

“Our hope is that this will become an annual event for many years to come.”

Haen projects the NASCAR event will draw between 60,000-80,000 spectators during the course of the four-day race weekend.

“We want this to be a really big deal for Sheboygan County,” she said. “We would like to see all the motels in the county fill up and get all the fans out to support the local businesses.

“Last year, Road America had a $70 million dollar economic impact on the area. This year we hope that number will be considerably higher with the addition of the NASCAR race.”

A staff of 17 employees and approximately 500 additional workers on race weekends help keep Road America running on all cylinders throughout the year.

“We do operate all year round,” Haen said. “Some people think we are only open in the summer, but we’re not. For what we do, our staff is relatively small, but very efficient.”

She indicated Road America has been in touch with the Indy Racing League and the World Superbike Championship about hosting races in the future.

“We are always looking to improve our schedule,” Haen said. “We would love to have an IRL or World Superbike event in the future.

“Last year, we hosted the World Karting Championships, which drew a record 1,000 entries,” she said.

Haen described attending a race at Road America as a great value.

“We offer eight hours of entertainment for the price of one ticket,” she said. “Kids 12 and under are free, and all parking is free too.

“Road America is not just about racing. It is also about automobile technology, history, socializing and having fun.”

The next Sheboygan Falls Chamber-Main Street Business ’N Bagels event has been slated for Wednesday, Aug. 11, with a location and time yet to be determined.