Mukwonago Economic Development Summit

The Village of Mukwonago held its third annual Economic Development Summit on August 14^th at Mukwonago High School. Several businesses and organizations had displays and participated in networking prior to the program, including the Waukesha County Center for Growth.

Shawn McNulty, superintendent of the Mukwonago Area School District, provided an update on the quality education being provided in Mukwonago schools at one of the lowest per capita student spending and tax rates in the region.

John Weidl, village administrator and economic development director, gave an overview of new development in the Village, including the new business park on State Highway 83, just south of Interstate 43. The new park has seen development of large industrial buildings for Banker Wire, Triple Crown Products and Super Products, Inc. The Center for Growth assisted Super Products in moving forward with their new headquarters and manufacturing facility in Mukwonago.

A panel presentation followed, which discussed the challenges and opportunities for downtown development, an area of future focus for Mukwonago. The panel included Tim Casey, director of economic development for the Center for Growth; Tina Chitwood, senior director of economic development for the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation; Zeke Jackson, administrator for the Village of Waterford; Eileen Suhm, administrator for the Village of East Troy; Jason Wamser, village trustee and member of the Mukwonago Downtown Development Committee; and Tedd Zess, owner of East Troy Brewery.

Panelists discussed their experiences in planning for and implementing a wide range of development and special events in various downtown settings over the years. The Mukwonago Downtown Development Committee is working to create a more walkable downtown with an updated streetscape. The consensus was that although there are many challenges to revitalizing a downtown and there needs to be both public and private investment, Mukwonago has significant potential to see development in and around the downtown area in the future.