[early childhood education is] worthwhile,” he says. “People do complain about their property taxes and the cost to educate kids, but nobody argues with the idea of how important it is to educate young children and to start when they’re really young. [And] the saving of the old bank appeals to people, too, improving a downtown and a riverfront.” CMRC Board Vice President Sara Iverson Smith, who has been in the construction industry for over 20 years working for large retailers and health systems, agrees that the bank building attributes to the appeal. “It’s taking an existing building and doing adaptive re-use,” says Smith, “which I think is a phenomenal way to do construction. The exciting part is you’re taking a building that’s been empty for a number of years and giving it new life. We’re keeping the character of the original building and then just enhancing it.” The CMRC acquired the bank building from the Forward Foundation, which purchased it in 2020 to assure a suitable re-use of the property. Buying the property was a logical step for the foundation after its involvement in the Rock County 5.0 and ARISENow projects. “The Forward Foundation has been a partner from day one on this,” says Smith, “and I can’t wait for us to complete it together. They’re so passionate about making sure that this is the right decision not only for Janesville and for Forward Foundation, but [they’re] also just so easy to work with on getting things done.” And once open, both Smith and Westphal see the museum as Janesville’s personal “Field of Dreams” - if you build it, they will come. “We’re talking about year one, bringing over 100,000 visitors to downtown,” says Westphal.” And when we’re up and running and stable, year three, we’re talking 80,000 visitors a year. Bringing [that many] people to downtown Janesville is going to be transformative.” “We don’t have a facility like this and many other communities our size do,” says Smith. “We think that it’s important to Rock County because it’s going to bring in people from all over. We think it’s going to be important to families because Wisconsin is known for its cold weather and it will give them one more opportunity to go someplace with their families in the wintertime, and we think it’s important to children because it’s for fun and it’s for learning.” Hometown Pride As exciting as new companies and projects are to the local business community, one cannot underestimate the importance of keeping and growing the businesses that already call Janesville home. According to research cited by the University of Florida, up to 80 percent of net new job growth comes from existing businesses. And efforts to retain existing businesses are less costly than attracting new industries. To that end, Forward Janesville launched a Business Retention and Expansion (BRE) initiative to keep the lines of communication open and determine what local companies are planning and what they need to be a continuing presence in the city. BRE is a traditional economic activity. Forward Janesville, as a representative of the private sector, is leading this effort as part of its overall economic development strategy and the City of Janesville is a key collaborator. Since October, local businesses have been participating in a BRE survey that queries them about their needs and plans. According to Forward Janesville President and CEO Shar Hermanson, the results so far have yielded a gold mine of information. “Eightyfour percent [of the respondents] say that the current business environment enables them to grow,” Hermanson says. “And 73 percent say they plan to hire, with 58 percent planning to expand in the next 12 months.” When the surveys are complete, overarching themes will highlight positives and growth opportunities for public, private and educational stakeholders. Tanner Voss, Vice President of Commercial Banking at BMO, has been the Forward Janesville board member serving as the chair of the BRE effort. According to Voss, BRE is going to be more than a one-time survey. “We are going to continue with [the initiative] after the initial results,” Voss says. “It will be a living, breathing effort to continue to have a pulse on the community to see how we can continue to improve.” Voss says that his banking position gives him insight that is helpful in chairing the BRE initiative. “One of my key [responsibilities] is getting out and speaking with businesses, so it aligns nicely with my day-to-day operations. We’re generally pretty early in the discussion pertaining to growth and expansion.” Both Voss and Hermanson have been encouraged by the feedback received thus far. “Businesses love the work ethic here,” says Hermanson. “They love the hometown values, and that the community is built of problem solvers.” Voss commented on the “glowing results” regarding safety, vibrancy and improvement of the downtown. But the survey also identifies areas of growth for Janesville to maintain its positive momentum. “Results have been very positive,” Voss says, “but we also want to identify areas where we can improve. There has been good commentary on where we can be better.” “Housing is a number one challenge,” says Hermanson. “We need more housing at all levels.” Voss concurs. “Business owners and leaders want to see affordable housing for their workers and new workers coming into town.” And both mentioned workforce readiness as an area of focus. 8 | FORWARD JANESVILLE We’re talking about year one, bringing over 100,000 visitors to downtown. And when we’re up and running and stable, year three, we’re talking 80,000 visitors a year. Bringing [that many] people to downtown Janesville is going to be transformative. The children’s museum’s exterior will be a blend of old and new with the brick of the historic First National Bank carried through into the new design
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