Monday, April 30, 2018
Focus on Calumet
A periodic update on economic development opportunities in Calumet County and the region for businesses, entrepreneurs, and communities.
gBETA Supports Home-Grown Calumet Business
Mike Harper makes his company pitch to the gBETA audience.
Calumet County resident and CEO, Mike Harper, has been working with his business partner, Susen Trail, for several years on their business start-up, Simple Safety Coach. Simple Safety Coach replaces the antiquated, time and labor intensive document development process with online software that eases the path to OSHA compliance. For information about this start-up, visit their website, www.simplesafetycoach.com.  

Harper and Trail’s company was accepted into the spring cohort of gBETA, a program of nationally ranked startup accelerator gener8tor . gBETA is a free accelerator for early-stage companies with local roots. Each program is capped at five teams , and requires no fees and no equity .
 
Simple Safety Coach was one of the five teams that recently completed the gBETA program, making their company pitch on April 19. 

Because gBETA is a relatively new business development service complete with funky spelling and non-traditional service delivery, it merits further exploration and explanation. Simple Safety Coach’s Harper shared his thoughts about the program, and provided an understanding of why it represents a great opportunity for other Calumet County entrepreneurs.  
Local Update
Hilbert Village-Wide Development Plan :  The Village of Hilbert received a CDBG Economic Development Planning Grant and has retained the services of Cedar Corp to help the village complete its plan. Two public input sessions have been held focusing on housing needs and downtown, commercial, and industrial development. Both sessions were well-attended, bringing several dozen professionals and members of the Hilbert community together in March and April. The plan will be completed in September, 2018, but Cedar Corp is already working with the village to begin implementing some economic development “low-hanging fruit” opportunities that have already presented themselves in the village. Stay tuned for more updates from Hilbert!
The State of Calumet County's
Agricultural Community
Agriculture has long been, and continues to be, an important economic driver in Calumet County, so farmers deserve some time and attention.  As part of updating the county’s Farmland Preservation Plan, the Calumet County Planning Department contracted with the Survey Research Center at UW-River Falls to administer a survey to capture feedback from the farming community including current industry trends and challenges, workforce needs, farm succession, ag-focused business development, and the effectiveness of current land use and zoning programs administered by the County. The response was outstanding; 271 completed surveys were returned for a response of 61%.  Survey results indicate about half of respondents feel transitioning farmland ownership is a concern, the cost of farmland is making agriculture economically unsustainable in the County, and that they can’t currently find productive/quality farmland to rent or buy in Calumet County. Finally, a majority of respondents believe an off-farm job is needed to maintain their farm operation.  The final report contains many insights to the current state of the agricultural community in Calumet County and can be viewed on the County’s website .
Happy National Small Business Week
This is National Small Business Week. Every year since 1963 the U.S. Small Business Administration has taken the opportunity to highlight the impact of outstanding entrepreneurs, small business o wners, and others from across the nation through National Small Business Week. Do your part, not only this week, but every week, to support local small businesses in your community and beyond. Small businesses are the backbone of our downtowns and our communities. Share your love – and open your wallet – to show them you care. And if you’re a small business person reading this, thank you for what you do!
New Partners
Calumet County’s economic development program extends a warm welcome to two new partners. 

Jennifer Brown was hired as the Fox Cities Regional Partnership’s Director of Business Retention Services and Innovation. Jennifer previously worked with the Kewaunee County Economic Development Corporation, and comes with experience supporting all types of businesses in a rural environment. 

Allan Mitchler is the new Manager at the Fox Valley Technical College’s Chilton Regional Center. He provides services to business and industry within the Chilton Center’s area, and is working to increase student enrollments in Chilton. Allan most recently worked as Vice President of Graduate, Adult, and Online Enrollment Services at Cardinal Stritch College.
"Wisconsin's Economy Today" Series
The WI Department of Revenue recently launched the 6 th and 7 th videos from their series Wisconsin's Economy Today with Chief Economist John Koskinen. In these videos, John discusses the state of entrepreneurship in Wisconsin domestic migration. The takeaways? Entrepreneurship is alive and well in Wisconsin, and in four of the last six years, Wisconsin has had more people moving into the state than leaving it. 
Free Business Counseling Offered
The third Tuesday of practically any month one can find a counselor with the Green Bay Small Business Development Center meeting at the Calumet County Courthouse with entrepreneurs and existing business owners. Each month, free individual business counseling sessions are held to help answer questions and put businesses and entrepreneurs in a better position to make the best decisions for themselves and their businesses. To schedule an appointment with the business counselor, contact Mary Kohrell using the information provided below. The next session will be held on May 15.
Please forward to others you think would benefit from this newsletter.
Want to get on the mailing list? Sign up here .