Construction industry could catch break with proposed tax increases

June 5, 2013 2:33 pm 2 Comments

The higher taxes that some lawmakers want to impose on construction companies to pay for the state’s unemployment insurance system could be a lot worse.

Tagged with: AGC Dan Knodl DWD J.P. Cullen & Sons Jim Boullion Miron Construction unemployment

Committee wants to eliminate contractor registrations

June 5, 2013 12:03 pm Leave a comment

Certain contractors would no longer be required to pay a $115 fee every four years and register themselves with the state to work in Wisconsin under a motion adopted by the state Legislature’s budget committee on Wednesday.

Tagged with: ABC contractor registration John Mielke

DNR denies making determination on Couture site

June 4, 2013 4:52 pm Leave a comment

Developer Rick Barrett is negotiating with Milwaukee County to buy property on the Milwaukee lakefront to build The Couture (second from left), an estimated $120 million, 44-story high-rise building on the footprint of the Downtown Transit Center. Preserve Our Parks officials say the transit center was built on filled-in lakebed. If that’s the case, the group argued, The Couture could not be built on the property because it would fall under the Public Trust Doctrine, which limits the land to public use. (Rendering courtesy of Barrett Visionary and Rinka Chung Architecture)

Developer Rick Barrett has rolled with the punches thrown by Preserve Our Parks during its challenge of his proposal to build The Couture on Milwaukee’s lakefront.

Tagged with: Couture DNR Downtown Transit Center Pat Jursik Preserve our Parks Rick Barrett

Milwaukee council president Balistreri to retire in February

June 4, 2013 3:20 pm Leave a comment

Lyle Balistreri, union council president and long-time fixture in the Milwaukee construction community, will retire early next year.

Tagged with: Lyle Balistreri Milwaukee Building and Construction Trades Council

Restoration franchisee to pay for territory breach

June 4, 2013 2:03 pm Leave a comment

One Wisconsin franchise of Jacksonville, Fla.-based Paul Davis Restoration Inc. can be forced to pay $101,693.10 in fees and penalties to another branch, the Wisconsin Supreme Court has decided.

Tagged with: Paul Davis Restoration

Real Estate Report

June 4, 2013 9:54 am Leave a comment

Recent real estate transactions from around the state.

MSOE to renovate former hotel near campus

June 4, 2013 8:45 am Leave a comment

Thanks to an anonymous donor, the Milwaukee School of Engineering has a contract to purchase a former hotel in downtown Milwaukee.

Tagged with: MSOE Staybridge Suites

Committee pushes for city hall facade settlement

June 3, 2013 4:24 pm Leave a comment

Milwaukee City Hall stands against the city’s skyline in this May 31, 2012 file photo. The Milwaukee Common Council's Judiciary and Legislative Committee voted unanimously Monday to settle a lawsuit against three engineering and design firms that worked on the City Hall before terra cotta fell from the building’s facade. (File photo by Kevin Harnack)

The Milwaukee Common Council's Judiciary and Legislative Committee voted unanimously Monday to settle a lawsuit against three engineering and design firms that worked on the City Hall facade.

Tagged with: Bloom Cos. Engberg Anderson façade Milwaukee City Hall