Maple & Main

 "I'm Sam Walton and I approve this message."

You can all breathe a sigh of relief now- the overprotected and semi-threatened Butler’s Garter Snakes living in the grass lands at the corner of Hwy. 59 and West Avenue are going to have a new home soon, and it’s going to look a lot like this…

This is the latest and greatest rendering of what the proposed Waukesha WalMart will look like, and it is nothing at all like the one they proposed a number of months ago (which I think is good).

Evidently snakes are picky about their WalMarts.

The updated design includes plenty of windows along the front of the store to let in large amounts of natural light because snakes like to bask in the sun. I hear the rest rooms will all be snake assessable as well. The cafeteria will feature Garter Snake salads, Butler Burgers, and snake snack cakes.

While looking at these plans, however, I can’t help but think that I have seen a design similar to this somewhere before…

And if you hadn’t noticed yet, it appears that WalMart is changing their logo as well.

It seems to have a much softer appeal to it. Personally, I thought the old logo was much more appropriate for world domination.

But what do I know…?

EDITOR’S NOTE: NO SNAKES WERE HARMED IN THE MAKING OF THIS BLOG.

Six million Harleys and 80 billion people descended on our little town for Harley fest a few weeks ago, and it was enough to make me (and the blog) go on a little hiatus for a while.

The cabin you see here is a twenty minute flight by sea plane from Minaki, Canada and once there, you feel like you are a million miles from anything. There is no phone, no internet, and no TV. The cabin electricity is powered by solar panels; heat and hot water come courtesy of propane.

The silence of the day may be interrupted by a gentle breeze blowing across the cool Canadian waters, and the eerie quiet of the night is sometimes shattered by the lone cry of a Common Loon.

It is the perfect place to recharge your personal batteries.

But one can sit and enjoy the tranquility only so long before getting the itch to hit the water in search of a trophy fish- or at least something to grace your plate for dinner.

Here are some prime examples of the fish we caught.

It’s obvious who the real fisherman of the family is. My eldest brother (who is going to kill me for posting this picture) seemed to come up a little short in the size and weight category this year. Better luck next time.

But now I am back in Waukesha, back to work, and back to business.

And it didn’t take long for a blog to present itself, so hang in there.

In the mean time, please enjoy some of the more scenic pictures of our trip.

 

Get your motor runnin'
Head out on the highway
Lookin' for adventure
And whatever comes our way
Yeah Darlin' go make it happen
Take the world in a love embrace
Fire all of your guns at once
And explode into space

I like smoke and lightning
Heavy metal thunder
Racin' with the wind
And the feelin' that I'm under
Yeah Darlin' go make it happen
Take the world in a love embrace
Fire all of your guns at once
And explode into space
 
Like a true nature's child
We were born, born to be wild
We can climb so high
I never wanna die
 
Born to be wild!
Born to be wild!

Over the past few months, added pressure has been fueling the deadline fire here in downtown Waukesha.

I am talking about the pressure many new business developments are feeling to get their businesses up and running before the Harley Festival.

And while many of them really gave it the old college try, only one is going to comfortably make the deadline.

You may be surprised by who it is… or maybe you won’t be.

The new Clarke Hotel will definitely not be ready for the Harley Fest. Nor will Bodway’s Live Music Grill. Taylor’s People’s Park might miss the date as well, and the new Katydids will not be open. Ray’s on South might be open, but I am not sure yet.

And in their defense, I want to assure you that it is not that they didn’t want to be open. It is because these people recognize that quality takes a little longer to pull off sometimes.

Like a fine wine, you can’t rush a good thing.

And they will all be worth the wait.

However, one very special business is going to make the deadline- and I think they deserve a very special happy dance of joy because of it.

Situated at the far end of West Main Street, downtown Waukesha’s very own Wisconsin House is up and running, with clean and quiet rooms for rent by the week or month.

Fantastic!

And to think that only a few short months ago, the Wisconsin House was the scene of a raging fire that destroyed the top floor and sent its residents fleeing into the cold night air.

Then, just months later, it was flooded by sewage during the Great Waukesha Flood of 2008.

(Makes you wonder when the locusts are going to show up.)

But through it all, business tycoon Ron Becker showed no signs of defeat. He tore out drywall, pumped sewage into the streets, and breathed new life into what seemed to be a cursed building.

And now, weeks before the big Festival de Harley, Ron is enjoying the fruits of his labor.

There are even some great new features that have been added during the rehab. One in particular is the fresh new layer of gravel that has been added to the parking lot.

But, by far, my very favorite addition has to be the new deck.

Situated on the west end of this historic brick square is a quaint wood deck that overlooks the parking lot and offers unobstructed views of the intersection of West Avenue and West Main Street.

It’s a great place to enjoy a satisfying cigarette, lounge with your friends, grab a few rays for a golden tan, or throw a little get together. And it really adds to the overall design element of the building.

It’s extras like these that really push the envelope and take a once boring old rooming house and transform it into something very special.

And it is dedication like Mr. Becker’s that ensures that it is done just in time to be showcased during one of downtown Waukesha’s biggest events.

As a matter of fact, since the Clarke Hotel won’t be guest-ready by the fest, perhaps Harley riders would be interested in staying in one of the weekly rental rooms available at the Wisconsin House.

For more information, start here.

Where you go from there is completely up to you…

 

While the rest of the city toils over train whistles, hotel construction, baseball fields, and what the mayor is wearing, something very worthwhile is being overlooked.

There is a new addition coming to downtown- an addition that has been long overdue.

It’s hard to believe that in a downtown full of artists, no one had come up with this idea sooner- or maybe they did and just didn’t have the ambition.

Nevertheless, at 9AM on August 16^th, Masterpiece Art Supply will open its doors at 375 W. Main Street, right next to Couri Insurance and just kiddy corner of Otto’s Fine Art Academy.

Downtown Waukesha is finally going to have an art supply store.

Ever since Main Street Art Supply (located in what will now be the Clarke Hotel) closed its doors back in 2004, artists down here have had to travel to the furthest edges of town and beyond to find any sort of art supply selection.

Masterpiece Art Supply is going to fill a much needed void.

Along with this new addition, rumors of more new developments are spreading like wildfire down here.

Sushi on Broadway? A purse store on Main? A café and lunch spot near the Five Points?

All of these are in their very early stages, but it’s exciting none the less.

Makes you wonder what could possibly happen next?

I have lived in downtown Waukesha for four years now and let me tell you, it is far from a quiet environment.

This city bustles with noise 24 hours a day.

It begins just before sunrise with the hum of the street sweeper.

Next, the delivery trucks rumble through town, their airbrakes and rolling doors piercing the early morning air just as the sun begins to rise.

The third shift bars then open their doors around 6:30 AM.

Around 7 or 8 AM, construction starts. This includes cranes, trucks, nail guns, drills, back up beepers, and the like.

Next, like clockwork, I can hear the usual groups of joggers go by, discussing world events and local gossip.

As the day continues, the fire department goes out occasionally, the police buzz down Main Street, and the city buses run their routes.

Kids frolic in the streets and parks, people hustle by, and cars cruise up and down the streets- with the occasional stereo turned up loud enough to rattle your fillings.

And just as the business day winds down and evening approaches, people descend on our little downtown to unwind.

The bars open their doors and warm up their bands. Groups of folks stroll the streets with coffees or hop from bar to bar enjoying libations.

Included in that last group are those who over enjoy. They can be heard hooting and hollering up and down Main Street at all hours of the night.

Bar time can bring chaos as drunken fools flood into the streets, singing songs, slamming car doors, and arguing with each other about who is sober enough to drive home.

And just as the city settles in for the evening, the silence is broken again by the street sweeper- and the cycle continues.

Downtown is noisy, but so is every urban setting. Most of the noise is to be expected, and some of it is unnecessary.

It can wear on you after a while, especially the noise that disrupts your sleep.

But if you bring it up for discussion, you hear the same response every time: “that’s what you get for living downtown. If you don’t like it, then you should move!”

Thanks. I’ll consider it.

I just thought that maybe I had the same rights to some peace and quiet after 10PM as other folks in this city do. 

And then, a few weeks ago, the train horn ordinance expired and it became obvious to me that the rest of the city doesn’t have the right to a peaceful night sleep either.

So we are all in the same boat now.

Sweet!

That’s what you get for living in a city full of railroads. If you don’t like it…

To be quite honest with you, I like the train horns at this volume. It drowns out all the other noises that disturb my sleep at night.

I can handle a haunting train whistle blaring through the night air over the drunks, the car stereos, the hoodlums up the street, and the dull beat of the bar music.

Wooooo, woooooo. Chugga, chugga.

So I guess this point you may be wondering how we get any sleep down here.

Well, here’s how.

And what’s great about these is they come in a handy dispenser that can be mounted by your bedside. They also come in fun fashion colors that can be coordinated with your nightwear, or with the décor of your bedroom.

Who knew that eleven cents of foam could be so beneficial to one’s health and well being?

And you might as well get used to it because polluting things is something we do very well here in Waukesha.

We’ve polluted our water.

We’ve polluted our air.

We’ve polluted our silence.

And just when you thought we had done it all, we’re about to pollute our night sky as well…

Here it is, folks.

This is your first look at Cutler Park, Bethesda Park, and Frame Park during Labor Day weekend.

You know what this downtown needs?

A nice hotel...

It had the potential to be a great day…

My wife and I arrived at the Minooka Dog Park early Sunday morning with donuts, hot coffee, and a dog in desperate need of exercise.

Eddie, our 5 year old Fox Terrier, had been cooped up in the house all week and was raring to go. He could barley contain himself in the car on the ride over.

Once inside the park, he paused to lighten his load a bit, and then tore down the hill toward the pond where he met up with a pack of muddy dogs.

It was absolute melee from there.

Muddy dogs were running in all directions and as Ed made his third pass through the pond, I swore I saw what seemed to be a huge smile on his furry little face.

As all seemed well in the world of Ed, I relaxed and sipped my coffee.

However, my contentment was soon disrupted when I heard cries from a dog in pain.

The pack had stopped running now, and they all had gathered around the wounded dog as if concerned over his well being. As we approached the group, I was devastated to see that it was Ed that was crying.

A brief inspection revealed a viscous bite on Eddie’s right side, just past his shoulder.

Someone in the pack didn’t know how to play well with others.

Ed winced in pain as I picked him up and carried him to the car. We wrapped him in a towel and took him to the 24 hour emergency vet.

One could now say that our beautiful Sunday morning had taken a horrible turn for the worse. After all, my best friend had a quarter size hole in his side and was trembling on my lap, complements of a dog that doesn’t belong at a dog park.

And believe me, I was less than pleased upon our arrival to the vet, knowing that someone else’s irresponsibility not only put my dog’s life at risk, but was also going to put a major dent in my wallet as well.

This was my third time at the Waukesha Emergency Vet in the four years we have lived here. It was Eddie’s first. And I have to say that they are the nicest people there- always friendly, always caring.

They saw to Ed’s wound quickly and we found ourselves a seat in the lobby.

A horrible Sunday?

Hardly.

As I looked around the waiting area, I didn’t see many happy faces.

Eventually the silence in the room was broken by a couple sitting across from us. They asked about Ed’s injury and then we briefly discussed their reasons for being at the vet.

Turns out their dog had lost use of his back legs.

Another woman came in with a little terrier who was acting lethargic (a lethargic terrier is a rare sight indeed). After a brief check up, it was determined he had eaten rat poison.

We then spoke with a lady whose dog may have contracted Lyme’s disease.

Following that, another couple came in to check on the status of their dog. While my wife and I were outside getting a breath of fresh air, we saw them leaving- without their dog.

Before entering their car, they broke down in tears.

Our Sunday morning was not nearly as tragic as these folk’s.

And after an agonizing hour in the waiting room, I heard the sound of Ed’s collar as he walked down the hallway.

It was music to my ears!

He had six stitches, a drain tube, and was a little woozy from the sedative, but he was going home with us, with a healthy prognosis from the doctor.

In seven to ten days, he should be as good as new.

We said our goodbyes to the others in the waiting room, and as we walked out, we passed a golden retriever on the way in.

He had a fishing line hanging out his mouth. I’m sure I don’t have to tell you where the fishing lure was.

It looked like it was going to be a busy Sunday at the Waukesha Emergency Vet.

I know we are all going to be inundated with flood photos and stories, but I really wanted to share these with you and my friends and family here and in California.

For the past 24 hours, downtown has been swarming with onlookers, police, reporters, and the like.

As a matter of fact, it has been so busy here that many of the store owners downtown are considering flooding the river at least once a month to help stimulate sales.

Don’t quote me on that.

So if you can’t get down here to see it for yourself, just sit back, relax, and enjoy the photos from the comfort of your home.

In the mean time, we will be gathering two of every animal down here and will be putting them in the ark I have Mrs. Otto building out behind the studio.

    The Bear Statues.

    The bridge behind Main Street Plaza.

   The dam is completely under water.

    The river at the West end of Main Street.   

 The corner of West Main Steet and West Avenue

  Looking down West Main.

  Couri Insurance is taking no chances.

I know, I know…I haven’t written a blog in a very long time- and I apologize.

However, I am not to blame for the lack of blogging this time around.

It’s the President’s fault. He sent me one of those economic stimulus checks the other day, suggesting that I spend it on whatever I wanted in hopes of giving the United States economy a little shot in arm.

Well folks, as of this morning, I fulfilled my duty to this fine country.

I am expecting the U.S. economy should rebound any minute now.

I started my stimulus right here in the great city of Waukesha. I mean really, why not give back to my own city first.

And for my very first economic stimulus venture, I paid my tab at Sprizzo Café.

Next, I was off to DadyOh’s for breakfast, then on to the Little Swiss Clock Shop for a quick watch band repair, down to Krumrich Jewelers for a necklace repair, and over to the new Allo Chcocolate to pick up snacks for later.

Stimulus was definitely in full swing.

Next, I headed to Rochester Deli for lunch, followed by a stop at Divino Gelato for dessert.

I popped my head into The Black Dragon for a tattoo consultation, and finished my stimulus with a latte from the Steaming Cup.

And with my Downtown stimulus complete, I headed for home.

Later, I had the urge to stimulus again, so, after class, I snuck down to Neighbors Social Club for a Peroni, then over to the Nice Ash for a Hacker Pschorr, and concluded my stimulus with a pint of Franziskaner at The House of Guinness.

I hope tips were supposed to come out of my economic stimulus as well.

But a day in downtown Waukesha hardly put a dent in my stimulus, and it really just wet my whistle for more stimulus. After all, the President of the United States of America did give me a job to do, and I wasn’t about to let him down!

As I stared at the left over stimulus dollars sitting in front of me, an idea of great magnitude filled my brain with a rush and sent a trickle of sweat down my forehead.

I was going to stimulate the ever loving goodness out of our economy-

And I was going to do it in Las Vegas.

Mr. Bush, if you are reading this, I just want you to know that if they are going to give out purple hearts to those almost killed in action while spending their stimulus checks, I will be waiting for mine in the mail.

And so will the blonde girl with the big sunglasses, wearing the “spring break 2008” t-shirt, and holding an almost empty “mug-o-rita” glass in her hand, sitting at the craps table that I strolled by on the way to the pool of the Tropicana Hotel while in Vegas.

Her last words (in a cute Georgia accent) as she rolled the dice- “c’mon stimulus, momma needs a new Cadillac for college.”

Judging from the reaction to her dice roll, looks like “momma” is taking the bus to college this year.

And after a long and late flight home, I woke up this morning, turned on the news, and expected Mr. Bush to announce that everything was going to be O.K. in America again.

However, that is not what I heard.

I heard the price of gas was going to be at $5 by summer’s end. I heard that the foreclosure market is doing fabulous. I heard that the Iraq war was still going strong, SUVs are losing their value, and that more U.S. auto workers were going to be out of work soon.

There was more, but I tuned it out. I figured I had heard enough.

I ate breakfast at home this morning and took my last 50 cents of stimulus down to the corner for a newspaper.

The machine took my money, but wouldn’t open.

Hey Mr. Bush, can I borrow 50 cents?

Pulling one over one you guys is not an easy task…although I did receive a share of phone calls, emails, and comments on the street from folks who were excited (and concerned) about the last blog.

But in truth, if you don’t know it by now, the fabled coffee empire I said was coming to our fair downtown was nothing more than a lot of hot air (for now).

However, I didn’t go through all that trouble just to dupe you. I was actually hoping to generate a little conversation among folks regarding the issue.

What everyone keeps telling us is that Harley Fest is going to be the greatest thing to happen to downtown Waukesha in the world ever.

And let’s face it, holding a sizeable event such as Harley Fest in our downtown is going to be something unlike we have ever seen before. It’s exciting and it’s groundbreaking.

In addition, having only six months to prepare for it makes the whole thing all that more interesting.

If 120,000 people come downtown over Labor Day weekend, many of the businesses here are going to have a great three days.

Coffee shops will burst at their seams. Bars will be pouring brews well into the evenings. Restaurants will serve thousands of dishes. And when it is all over, they will sit back, relax, and enjoy the fruits of their labor.

Perhaps a few Harley riders will return in the future, with friends even, and enjoy Waukesha on a regular basis.

That’s a good thing too.

On the grand scale of things, Waukesha is going to finally get its “15 minutes” that weekend.

What I was trying to accomplish with that blog was to make people slow down and take a good, hard look past those 15 minutes.

What if Harley Fest spawns the rebirth of big business in downtown Waukesha?

Are the current downtown based businesses ready to compete with a Starbucks, or an Outback Steak House, or a Mo’s Irish Pub, or a Borders Bookstore?

What we have down here now is quaint. And with a little effort, it could become trendy.

But if it sways too far, it could quite possibly become another Bayshore. Soon after that, the little guys are gone and we are left with what will amount to nothing more than a mall.

I’ve always wanted to live in a mall. I hope they put in nice bathrooms.

If you don’t know it by now, downtown Waukesha is going to host what is rumored to be the biggest event of its history this summer- the “Weekend in Waukesha” (which is really nothing more than an upmarket name for Harley Fest).

And when asked how Harley Fest was going to benefit our beautiful little downtown, supporters of the event were quick to say that it will put the city in the limelight and grab national attention.

And I’ll be darned- it has done just that.

News of the event has traveled quite a ways already, and the excitement over the big bash has attracted the attention of one of this country’s largest businesses.

I’ve been gagged for the time being on saying the exact name of this business- but there are no restrictions on my delving out the details of what they do.

A certain rainy state based coffee house, known by most small coffee shops as the “Wal-Mart” of brew houses, has whispered to some that they are interested in finding a location in downtown Waukesha suitable for their world-famous brew.

It seems that all the recent press over Harley Fest has grabbed the attention of the coffee giant and now downtown Waukesha has been sighted for their next venture.

Still reeling from the wild success of their new Moreland Road location, sources for the espresso entrepreneurs say downtown seems like the next logical step.

Evidently, Main Street has been on and off the radar for some time, but with recent developments such as the boutique hotel, new restaurants and pubs, and the addition of more living spaces, the big-shot baristas now see downtown as the kind of market they seek.

It wasn’t until all the hype over this summer’s Hog Fest that they took a good second look at what is happening in the changing landscape of downtown Waukesha and decided it was the place to be.

When asked if they would take place in many of the exciting events that draw people to the downtown, such as The Art Crawl or Friday Night Live, officials for the java giant seemed rather uninterested.

They simply stated that their coffee alone is enough to attract people to their business.

“When you have a product as good as ours, people will come to you no matter where you put your business. We could put one of these on the moon and we would have a line out the door.”

Boy… brew a good cup of coffee and you get a little cocky I guess.

As for an opening date, officials say they are hoping to have a location locked in by May. They would not give a specific address yet; only that Main Street was a preference.

Supposedly a location along the Fox River walk was also a consideration, especially considering the parking crunch that Main Street might see should they decide to locate on the strip.

“The last thing we want to do is take parking spots away from the business owners who like to park in them.”

(Warning- too much caffeine evidently makes you arrogant.)

So it looks like the Harley Fest really is going to put Waukesha on the map.

And with the addition of this mochaccino mogul to the scene, there is no telling what could happen next.

Perhaps there will be a sudden push for the City of Waukesha to go smoke free before the big event so we can show the 120,000 Harley visitors that Waukesha is a progressive city with a bright future!

Aw, c’mon now. That’ll never happen.

If sitting in the dark for a couple of hours with no heat on a brutally cold winter night isn’t enough excitement for downtown Waukesha, then almost being blown to bits by a gas leak may do the trick.

Last Friday, around 5PM or so, a small section of downtown near Clinton and Main was evacuated for a short time until the fire department, along with help from WE Energies, was able to quell a hissing gas main.

I don’t exactly know which building on the 300 block of Main it was, but locals were saying you could smell gas for quite a distance.

I have included an artist’s rendering of what the scene could have looked like had the leak gone undetected too much longer.

On a lighter note, I have been sworn to secrecy about what is happening in the building across the street from our Art Academy- that is until I heard all about it this weekend from just about everybody else downtown.

However, I am not actually going to let the cat out of the bag just yet.

Since the veil of secrecy has not yet been officially lifted, I will just say this… one of downtown Waukesha’s favorite stores is going to reinvent itself this year- and they have chosen the building across from us to do it in.

We couldn’t be more excited.

With our new neighbor across the street and the soon-to-be-open Live Music Studio next door to us, the once quite end of West Main Street is suddenly becoming a very trendy destination.

Hope East Main doesn’t get jealous.

And if you are still trying to guess who is moving in across the street, I will give you this hint- but you will be sworn to secrecy as well…

Got it yet?

Looking East Looking West

The fire that raged through downtown Waukesha’s infamous bed and breakfast, the Wisconsin House, has ignited many a question regarding its future in our fair city.

And as we all try to sort through the ashes of information surrounding the incident, it seems as if more questions arise than answers.

New facts have come available in recent days regarding the events of that fateful evening and it is this one in particular that has grabbed my attention…

“Before he started the fire, (the suspect) spent two hours drinking 12 beers and a shot at a local bar.”

Two hours. Twelve beers. One shot. Local bar.

Nice job.

Let’s be sure to renew that liquor license this summer.

On a lighter note, rumor has it that Wisconsin House owner Ron Becker is planning on making a few upgrades to the property during its rehab.

I was able to get my hands on this rough draft of an idea- seems he may go for a design more befitting of the historic neighborhood.

I know I’m excited.

At 1:15 AM this morning, I was awaken by the sound of sirens descending on our downtown.

As I rushed to the window to see what was happening, a squad pulled up in front of our building and blocked off the street.

I leaned out the window to get a better look up the east end of Main Street and that’s when I heard the sound of breaking glass- to the west.

As I turned my gaze toward the far west end of Main my eyes began to focus and I couldn’t believe what I saw-

-the Wisconsin House on the 400 block of West Main was spewing heavy black smoke from the top floor.

I clambered onto our roof for a better perspective and as I looked on, the smoke began to increase.

By 1:25AM, the building looked like it was in serious trouble.