Stories you might have missed from around Wisconsin.
Whitefish Bay: City to consider $7.5 million plan for Fox Bay Theater.
The once-vibrant Whitefish Bay mainstay, the Fox bay Theater has loomed dark and empty since 2020 might finally be revitalized in 2025. The theater has a new tenant, an entertainment and venue operation company called Argo. According to the Journal Sentinel and the agenda of the Village Board meeting, Argo’s estimated $7.53 million proposal would transform the Fox Bay Cinema and Grill, into a mid-sized entertainment venue for live acts and occasional movie nights. The plan calls for the first floor to be a full-service food and beverage operation. The second floor would be converted into an event space that could accommodate both “weddings and meetings.” If approved, the project could fill roughly 18,400 square feet of space that has been vacant since September of 2020. If the plan is approved, the new space could open by this fall. Full Story
Wauwatosa: City to receive $1 million to make railroad crossing safer.
We can add railroad crossing safety to the list of things everyone can agree on. In Wauwatosa, one crossing in particular is being targeted for improvement and the federal government is going to help. A $1 million federal grant will help Wauwatosa staff determine how to turn a steep, city-owned railroad crossing near Highway 100 into a through street underneath the rail line with bike and pedestrian access in the coming years. The city will receive the funds from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration in order to conduct a preliminary engineering study on how to improve the crossing, including plans to eliminate the at-grade crossing to divert vehicles from crossing in any train’s path, according to a news release from the city and reported in the Journal Sentinel. A through street under the railroad would bring about 3,200 vehicles per day to Walnut Road and save travelers approximately 1.4 miles in travel. The new crossing would also cut down response times for members of the Wauwatosa Police Department. Since 1988, five vehicle-train crashes have occurred at the crossing. Full Story
Menasha: Plastic molding plant to close, 109 people to lose their jobs.
More than 100 workers in the Fox Valley will lose jobs when a plastic injection molding plant in Menasha closes later this year. ORBIS Corp. plans to move production from its facility in Menasha to a new plant in Texas, according to a layoff notice filed with the state this week. the layoffs will be permanent and will begin around March 16. WPR quoted the layoff notice, “The terminations will likely occur in phases, depending upon the needs of the business as the work at the Menasha facility winds down. Some employees impacted by the closure of the Menasha facility may be offered positions for which they are qualified at facilities located in the Fox Valley region of Wisconsin.” The jobs lost range from the plant manager to production operators, according to the notice. The employees are not represented by a union. Full Story
