Surprise at Racine's criterium: an American wins!

'Round and 'round they went. Eighty-three of the fastest cyclists in the world sped around Downtown's figure eight course in a tight peloton, competing Thursday evening in the Racine.org Criterium, a stop on the Superweek Pro Tour, a leg of the International Cycling Classic. The race was brought here, for the second year in a row, by the Racine County Convention and Visitors Bureau. RCCVB president Dave Blank said the organization paid about $17,000 to bring the race here and to stage it. "It's a great way to showcase Racine," he said.

Tomorrow, the racers go to Kenosha, and then to Milwaukee and Whitefish Bay.

The race up Main Street, down Wisconsin Avenue, with a brief circle on Lake Avenue, State and Third Streets took slightly more than two hours, as the cyclists marked off 88 laps. And when it was all over there was a big surprise: an American won! Brad Huff of Springfield, MO, who was 15th overall so far on the tour, was one of six cyclists fighting for the lead -- and sprinted to victory on the final lap.

Before today, Huff's best performances on this year's tour had been a 7th in Hales Corners on July 20; 11th in Richton Park, IL, on July 13; 23rd at Arlington Heights on July 14; and 19th in Milwaukee on July 22.

Second place today went to Ricardo Van Der Velde of the Netherlands; third place to Ronnie Strange of Houston.

Jay Thomson of South Africa won the sprint champion's red jacket; the yellow leader's jacket was retained by the overall leader in this year's event, Bernard Solzberger of Australia.

Complete results are here.
Our story and photos from this morning's race are here.

Announcer's leaderboard toward the end of the race

Racine Police Sgt. Rick Toeller aimed radar gun at the leaders; here 23 mph

Racer gets a massage in the parking lot

Dave Blank of the RCCVB, far left, with Racine's winners:

L-R, Van Der Velde, Huff, Strange, Thomson and Solzberger

Great start for Racine's criterium

For the second year in a row, Racine hosted a leg of the International Cycling Classic, the Racine.org Criterium, which is part of the Superweek Pro Tour. The three weeks of racing began in Milwaukee on July 9, and concludes in Whitefish Bay on July 26. Schedule is here.

Racine has a full day of races, which began at 10:45 this morning, culminating in a 100k race for pro men -- up to 200 of them! -- which begins at 6 p.m. tonight on Main Street. So far, racers were greeted with sunny skies (except for a brief drizzle about noon).

The one thing missing -- as it was last year -- is an appreciative audience. I estimate the "crowd" of onlookers at about 100... OK, maybe 200, tops. In other communities, spectators practically line the streets, even on a work day. Some merchants welcome the races -- Copacetic had a big "Welcome Race Fans" banner -- while other store owners grumble about the lack of parking and traffic on race day. As Chris Sklba, owner of Art Metals Studio, said to me, "I tell the complainers to spend the day getting caught up. This is a great event for Racine. " A map of the racecourse is here.

Here's what the first couple of races, for amateur cyclists, looked like:

Main Street handled the brunt of the races' .7 mile course

Here they come, up Third Street

Ben-Jamin Widoff of Woodstock, IL, winning today's 25-mile race;
all of today's results will be posted here at the end of the day

Perfect Host: Dave Blank of the RCCVB with party supplies (water)

This racer had her own rear-view mirror

One early arrest: He wandered onto the street, as racers approached,
but then wouldn't shut up after police hustled him out of harm's way

Ivanhoe tweaks the menu, plans for new beers

Ivanhoe owner Doug Nicholson poses with a $6,000 bottle of Middleton 1973 whiskey.

Ivanhoe Pub and Eatery owner Doug Nicholson is tweaking his offerings in the down economy.

Nicholson recently launched a new streamlined menu that trades high-priced items like steaks in favor of affordable fare such as jerk mahi tacos. He's also looking to add 12 to 16 new draught beers to capitalize on the popularity of seasonal brews.

"Seasonal beers are the fastest growing segment in industry," Nicholson said. "Microbrews and seasonals are what's working in this economy."

Michael Bein, Ivanhoe's new chef, is leading the menu changes. Bein, known as Chef Louie, brings 30 years of professional experience to the job, including stops at New York City's Tavern on the Green. He moved from Atlanta to work at Ivanhoe after meeting Nicholson through a mutual friend.

The new menu features a selection of old standards, like chicken pot pie, and nightly bistro-style specials cooked up by Bein. All of Ivanhoe's food are made fresh, including two daily soups. Even the mozzarella sticks are hand-battered cuts of cheese.

"I never thought I'd serve a mozzarella stick," Nicholson said, "but they're handmade."

Along with the new menu, which still has all of Ivanhoe's pub favorites, Bein overhauled the kitchen's process to speed up service, particularly during lunch. Slow turnaround times had limited the pub's lunch business in the past, Nicholson said.

Nicholson dropped steaks from the menu because they were too expensive for the tough times. The new menu's prices stretch from $6.50 to $11, a range Nicholson hopes people can afford.

"In this economy, people are looking for the experience," Nicholson said.


On the bar side, Nicholson is preparing to add 12 to 16 new beer tap lines in the next six months. The bar already has 10 lines, but pub standards like Guiness, Bottingtons and Smithwicks, along with Miller and Miller Lite, leave little room for seasonal beers. The new lines will allow for some flexibility on what's available, said Nicholson, who's still working out what new beers he'll offer in the coming months.

Ivanhoe also features over 30 different martinis and a wide selection of wines, including discounted $10 bottles of wine on Tuesday nights. But the pub's premier offering is its Irish whiskey collection, which Nicholson described as one of the largest, for sale, selections in the world.

Ivanhoe serves over 70 different whiskeys, including a $6,000 bottle of Middleton 1973 (Bottle 18) that goes for $200 an ounce. Nicholson is preparing to roll out a "whiskey passport" for customers interested in trying out Ivanhoes different varieties. The passport will include background and history about the whiskeys, and anyone who tries all 70 brands will receive a free shot of the Middleton 1973, which is stored in a locked case behind the bar.

Nicholson started Ivanhoe in December 2002 after co-owning a water purification business and working in the corporate world before that. He'd worked as a bar tender for a long time and imagined owning his own place would be fun.

He landed Ivanhoe through "persistence." The building at 231 Main St. had sat vacant for 17 years. Nicholson convinced the owner Peter Theos, who still lives upstairs, to lease him the ground floor to reopen the bar.

The bar and restaurant took off almost immediately, and Nicholson has become a community leader.

Along with running Ivanhoe, he operates a catering business, the bar at the Masonic Center and an ATM company. He's also chairman of the Racine County Convention and Visitors Bureau and helped form the popular Downtown events Party on the Pavement, Mardi-Crawl and the St. Patrick's Day Parade.

Nicholson, who is married to wife Sarah, said the hard work comes easy because he loves doing it.

"If you can get up and enjoy going to work, you've got it made," he said.

If you're looking for an affordable route to that $200 shot stop by Ivanhoe on Tuesdays between 4 and 9 p.m. Nicholson works the bar and offers a featured half-price whiskey pick from the pub's collection.



About Ivanhoe

Address: 231 Main St., Racine
Opened: 2002
Owner: Doug Nicholson
Hours: 11:30 a.m. to 2 a.m. daily
Games: Pool, parts, Golden Tee, TVs, jukebox
Drinks: Drink menu
Upcoming events: Night Golf, Friday, Aug. 15 - $30 fee includes beer, golf and a ride out and back to Raymond Heights Golf Course.

Public devours healthy foods gathering on Monument Square

Who knew Racine was this healthy?

Organizers from the new group Eat Right Racine packed Monument Square with an impressive display of healthy foods, free samples, nutritional advice, children's activities and music. Hundreds of people attended the event, which is the first of its kind in Racine.

"It's amazing," said Amanda DeSonia, one of the founders of Eat Right Racine. "This is more than we expected. It's heart-warming."

Here are some of the highlights I saw at the event:

There were lots of activities for kids: Here, sorting various beans

* It was a great group of people. Energy was high at the event, people of all ages were having a good time and the displays were effective. Eat Right Racine's biggest accomplishment was getting so many people together in one place around an important topic like healthy foods and eating. They're really on to something.

* Lizz Fabel, a gourmet chef and cooking instructor, demonstrated knife skills at her booth. Her first piece of advice: Use sharp knives. Fabel spent $7 at TJ Maxx for her paring knife, but had the knife sharpened by a professional. She also used a steel to align the metal's molecules to get a clean cut through vegetables.

"It makes cooking enjoyable," Fabel said. "Anyone who says they hate cooking probably has dull knives."

Fabel then offered this nifty trick for cutting onions. Cut the onion into quarters leaving the root end in tact so it doesn't fall apart. With each quarter, slice lengthwise and then turn the onion to its other side and slice again. Then when you cut against the lines, the onion is diced into small pieces.

* Heidi Fannin, one of the lead organizers of Eat Right Racine, had a booth showing the amount of sugar in common items like juice boxes, yogurt and granola bars. All of them had at least four packets. "It's about choices," Fannin said. "I'd rather save my sugar for cake."

Fannin also hopes people become more aware of "food miles," which is the distance food travels to get to Racine. Her hope is people will buy and grow local produce that will save energy, support the local economy and offer more nutritional choices.

A taste of Chipotle's grilled chicken went down well

* Chipotle set up a booth on the square and offered free food to participants. The corporation backed a documentary on problems in the American food industry. While a surprising move for a fast food company, a third of Chipotle's beans are organically grown and the restaurant uses healthier meats than other chains.

* Olde Madrid, on Sixth St., had a booth and was offering a chicken salad sampler.

* The Racine Urban Garden Network had a great display showing off the group's successes in creating new gardens throughout the city. This summer RUGN has 10 youth employees who are working in various gardens. For more information about RUGN and Racine's gardens, visit: www.rugn.org

* Katie Lafond, a sophomore at The Prairie School, provided music for the event.

Sister Janet Weyker's imports vs. food grown at the Eco-Justice Center here

* Here's an example of the displays, which were all really well done: Sister Janet Weyker tried to show people how far food traveled to reach Racine's grocery store. Next door, Junior League of Racine showed children how to make a healthy trail mix and Small World Montessori school and Sunshine Mountain Preschool had kids playing with beans.

"It's very impressive," said Jane Finkenbine, a volunteer with Junior League.

Mayor Dickert helps his daughter, Eleanor, choose healthy trail mix components

Eat Right Racine's next event will be its August monthly meeting. DeSonia said the group was thinking about an outing to Milwaukee to watch the "Food, Inc." documentary. Fanin is also hoping the group can focus on healthy meals and snacks for children.

For more information about Eat Right Racine, visit: www.eatrightracine.org

West Racine Farmers' Market offered a variety of local veggies

Council Notes: City gets a deal on crushed concrete

Here's a few more Odds and Ends from Tuesday's City Council meeting:

Slashed Tires

Alderman Ray DeHahn reported 55 tires were recently slashed on cars in his northwest side district. Some residents had all four tires slashed, replaced them, and had them slashed again. DeHahn called on city residents to report anything they know about the tire-slasher to Racine police.

Church request approved

Iglesia Canaan, a north side Racine church, received a discount on use of Horlick Field for a two-day conference aimed at youth. The City Council voted unanimously to give the church use of the field Aug. 21-22 for $1,271 - half the cost of a two-day rental. Read our previous story here.

Roundabout denied

The City Council dismissed studying a roundabout for the Uptown area. Alderman Greg Helding said the study would have cost $25,000 and likely would conclude there's not enough room for a roundabout. He added that the intersection of 14th Street and Washington Avenue is a state highway, which makes it difficult for the city intervene. Lastly, Helding said the state likely will study rebuilding the intersection in five or six years, at which time they'll consider a roundabout for the area. The council voted unanimously to deny the request for the roundabout study.

Crushed concrete deal

The City Council agreed to buy $100,000 worth of crushed concrete for $18,000. Helding said Globe Contractors had stored the concrete on the former Walker site believing it would have a use for the building material. But with the economic downturn the company doesn't need the concrete and agreed to sell it to the city, which does have use for the material, at a bargain. The deal was approved unanimously.

Gaslight Pointe monument

The Professional Women's Network for Service Inc. received permission to make improvements to Gaslight Pointe's Underground Railroad/Maritime Memorial. There's minimal cost to the city. See our previous story, with photos, here.

City Notes: Coe questions administrator's contract; Dickert reports on conferences

Alderman Jeff Coe said Tuesday night he was surprised that new City Administrator Tom Friedel signed a six-year contract starting at $95,000 per year.

Coe used the public comment period before Tuesday's City Council meeting to criticize the council and mayor for how they handled Friedel's contract. He said Mayor John Dickert primarily consulted with four aldermen, but did not seek input from the other 10 council members.

"Apparently there are 10 other aldermen's opinions who do not matter in some cases," Coe said.

Coe also said he would not have voted for the contract at the $95,000 salary and vowed to never vote for another contract without seeing a signed copy. He also said he would have a hard time laying off city workers based on how Friedel's contract was approved.

Hear an excerpt from Coe's speech on WRJN here.

Dickert reports on conferences

The mayor reported on his recent trips to the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the International Great Lakes Conference. Here are a few highlights Dickert mentioned:

* He used the mayor's conference to tout Ruud Lighting's energy-efficient LED street lights. Racine is using federal stimulus money to replace 20 percent of its traditional street lights with LEDs. The new lights will save the city $50,000 a year, Dickert said.

* There was talk of a high-speed rail system connecting Milwaukee, Chicago and Cleveland. The train could also stretch up to Minneapolis, Dickert said.

* Racine will work with Chicago on the Windy City's 2016 Olympic bid.

* Dickert hopes to attract a regional or national Frank Lloyd Wright conference to Racine.

Mayor Dickert honors Old-Timers Athletic Club

Jerry Jensen and Al Dandeneau of the Old Timers Athletic Club

Mayor John Dickert honored the Old-Timers Athletic Club Tuesday night for hosting its 50th annual softball tournament this summer at Horlick Field.

Jerry Jensen and Al Dandeneau attended the meeting to receive the proclamation, which noted the club has given $750,000 to local youth sports programs over the years. Jensen thanked the city for its support over the years.

This year's 16-team tournament is July 24-26. The winning team receives $1,000.

McReynolds defends Human Services, laments budget at Town Hall meeting

County Executive Bill McReynolds and County Board Supervisor Pamela Zenner-Richards.

Racine County Executive Bill McReynolds doesn't know how the county will make up the $2 million hole in its 2010 budget.

"I can't answer that question right now," McReynolds said in response to a question at a town hall meeting Tuesday at the Cesar Chavez Community Center in Racine. "I have not had the budget on my desk."

But the county executive also assured the audience of seven, including one child, that county government will be OK.

"We will get through this," he said.

It's gonna be tough. The county is losing income from its investments, drops in construction and property transfers and $2 million in delinquent property taxes this year alone. The county's total unpaid tax bill is $8.5 million.

The state didn't help with its budget, McReynolds added. The recently passed budget continues a seven-year trend of shifting state spending to local governments. Next year, Racine County will have to offset at least $1.6 million in lost aid or additional costs from the state. (Read the JT story on this here.)

McReynolds said the cuts will affect county residents with mental illness.

"I don't understand why they would go after not funding people with mental illness issues," he said.

The state did raise the cap on the county's property tax levy from a 2 percent to a 3 percent increase. But in reality the increase is barely enough to cover salaries, McReynolds said.

Less state money for the county's Human Services Department comes less than a year after the department was hit with two controversies.

In one, Racine residents were found abusing the Wisconsin Shares child care program to collect tens of thousands of dollars in state aid for services they didn't deliver. In the other, 2-year-old Brian Hawes died after four reports of abuse in the home were called into the department. The state found the department's response inadequate.

Jayne Siler, of the Racine Taxpayers Association, asked McReynolds if he considered a management change (Debbie Jossart heads the department) after the incidents. McReynolds said he hadn't.

He said the Human Services Department deals with the most at-risk people in the county, and at times tragic things will happen.

"I'm sorry we can't prevent every bad thing that happens in the county," McReynolds said.

He said the county "maybe could have done a better job" at responding to the Hawes' complaints, but also said the county can't monitor every families' actions.

"You can't be with people 24 hours a day, seven days a week," McReynolds said.

On the Wisconsin Shares program, McReynolds wondered aloud why the District Attorney's office has yet to file charges despite fraud coming to light in January. He also criticized local legislators for not introducing bills to prevent future fraud.

He also pointed out the state budget stopped money to investigate child care and welfare fraud. Racine County lost its entire budget - $58,000 - to track down people abusing state systems.

Tuesday night's Town Hall meeting. Six more people came in during the meeting.

Turnout was light at the Town Hall meeting, which McReynolds said was county's 15th since 2003. County staff and County Board supervisors easily outnumbered the audience of seven (including RacinePost). Audience members were invited to ask county officials questions about anything on their mind.

One gentleman in the crowd asked about plans to extend Highway 794 south into Racine County. McReynolds said the extension, at one time called the lake arterial, probably won't happen.

"All of the right-of-ways for the arterial were given up," he said. "I don't see it as an alternative at this point."

McReynolds added that he learned about the issue Tuesday from reading RacinePost.

However, significant road construction is planned for Highway 32 (Douglas Ave.) through Racine and Caledonia, officials said. The state highway may be rebuilt in the next two years and there's talk of two new roundabouts near the intersection of Highway 31 and Highway 32.

Further north, the timetable is longer. Register of Deeds Jim Ladwig, who owns Mulligan's mini-golf on Highway 32, said the highway between 5 Mile and 6 Mile roads is scheduled to be rebuilt in 2015.

County Board Supervisor and city Alderman Jim Kaplan, whose county district includes Douglas Avenue, threw in that there's talk of rerouting Highway 32 south to Hamilton Street and using business improvement district money to upgrade the look of the highway. "It would be beneficial to this area," Kaplan said. "We could use some assistance."

SBA offers loans, help to June storm victims

Racine County residents with property damaged by the June 18-19 storms, in which flash flooding affected several hundred homes, can apply for low interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).

Although these loans come from the Small Business Administration, they are not limited to businesses; individual homeowners and renters may also apply. Loans up to $200,000 are available to homeowners to repair or replace damaged or destroyed real estate. Homeowners and renters are eligible for loans up to $40,000 to repair or replace damaged or destroyed personal property.

Businesses and non-profits may borrow up to $2 million to repair or replace damaged real estate, machinery and equipment, inventory. Interest rates are as low as 2.4 percent for homeowners and renters, and 4 percent for businesses, with terms up to 30 years.

The SBA today opened a Disaster Loan Outreach Center to issue applications, answer questions and help individuals complete applications. The Center, at the Sturtevant Village Hall, 2801 89th St., will remain open through Friday, July 31.

Individuals unable to visit may call 1-800-659-2955 or email. Business loan applications can also be downloaded from the SBA website. The filing deadline to return applications for physical property damage is Sept. 14; the deadline to return economic injury applications is April 15, 2010.

AJWright clothing store coming to Durand Ave.

A clothing store is moving into the former Big Lots on Durand Avenue next to the Piggly Wiggly.

Construction is underway on the future AJWright at 4101 Durand Ave. The company's website says the store will open in October.

AJWright is owned by the Massachusetts-based TJX Cos., which also operates hundreds of discount clothing and furnitures stores around the U.S., including TJ Maxx and Marshalls. There are 141 AJWright stores in the U.S.

TJX, worth a reported $19 billion, recently issued $400 million in bonds to be paid back in 2015.

TJX was also recently in the news for treating customers' private credit card information "like trash." Attorneys general from 41 states investigated the company and reached a settlement, though some are questioning how meaningful that settlement is.

Loans available for flash flood victims

Racine County residents impacted by the June 18-19 storms can apply for low interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). Flash flooding in Racine County resulted in several hundred homes being affected.

Although the loans come from the Small Business Administration, they are not limited to businesses; individual homeowners and renters may also apply for them. Loans up to $200,000 are available to homeowners to repair or replace damaged or destroyed real estate. Homeowners and renters are eligible for loans up to $40,000 to repair or replace damaged or destroyed personal property.

Businesses and non-profit organizations of any size may borrow up to $2 million to repair or replace damaged or destroyed real estate, machinery and equipment, inventory, and other business assets. The SBA also provides mitigation funds to disaster victims based on 20 percent of the verified physical damage. These funds are designed to help borrowers pay for protective measures to minimize damages of the same kind in the future.

Interest rates are as low as 2.437 percent for homeowners and renters, and 4 percent for businesses, with terms up to 30 years. Loan amounts and terms are set by the SBA and are based on each applicant’s financial condition.

The SBA opened a Disaster Loan Outreach Center today to issue loan applications, answer questions about the program, explain the application process and help individuals complete applications. The Center will be located at the Sturtevant Village Hall, 2801 89th Street, Sturtevant, Wisconsin 53177.

The Center will remain open through Friday, July 31, 2009. Hours of operation are:

Tuesday – Friday, July 21-24: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Saturday, July 25: 8 a.m. to 12 noon
Sunday, July 26: Closed
Monday – Thursday, July 27-30: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Friday, July 31: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Individuals and businesses unable to visit this or another SBA Center in person may obtain information and loan applications by calling the SBA’s Customer Service Center at 1-800-659-2955 (1-800-877-8339 for the hearing impaired), Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. EDT, or by sending an email to disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.

Business loan applications can also be downloaded from the SBA website at www.sba.gov/services/disasterassistance. Completed applications should be returned to one of the Centers or mailed to: U.S. Small Business Administration, Processing and Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport Road, Fort Worth, TX 76155.

Victims may apply for disaster loans from SBA’s secure website at https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela/.

The filing deadline to return applications for physical property damage is September 14, 2009. The deadline to return economic injury applications is April 15, 2010.

'Reorganization,' 'streamlining' at CNH...

Corporate-speak from CNH this morning; feel free to read between the lines:

The objective of the re-organization, triggered by an unprecedented decline in the global construction equipment market, is to streamline internal operations and reinforce product architectures while significantly reducing the costs of managing brand networks and building brand value.

CNH's full release is here, but don't expect it to spell out how many jobs the "new structure," "headcount" reduction and "consolidating" involve.

Update, 7/22: CNH reported a second-quarter net loss of $67 million, compared with net income of $347 million a year earlier, as sales fell 32%. By year's end, CNH said in a statement issued today, it expects to have reduced staff by 10% to 12%. Through the second quarter, it has cut by 7%.

Milwaukee County Supervisor suggestsa toll road through Racine County

We're not sure we understand all the implications of this opinion piece by Milwaukee County Supervisor Patricia Jursik.

Ostensibly, it's about preserving the Hoan Bridge, but she also writes, "I have received from the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission (SEWRPC) a footprint for the extension of the 794 freeway to Ryan Road and am now calling on the Department of Transportation to discontinue studies on demolition of the bridge and instead begin to fund the completion of this South Shore asset."

But the sentence that really got my attention was this: "If the state wants to know where it can get funds to pay for the re-decking of the bridge and the extension of the 794 freeway, it can come from a toll road from the Wisconsin/Illinois state line to the county line."

Um, she's talking about a toll road through Racine County! What, it isn't enough that we're paying for the Brewers' stadium?

Jeff Warg, the reader who sent us the link to Jursik's post on the Milwaukee Business Blog, writes, "Maybe the powers that be in local government would push for an extension into Racine County since the state is considering moving Hwy 38 west next to the railroad tracks. If continued further north along those same tracks, 38 could also link to 794."

Warg, who lives in Racine, six blocks from the lake, commented on the Business Blog, "Ms Jursik should be commended for her suggestion to extend 794 to Ryan Road... We have no four-lane access roads on the north side of Racine heading west to I-94. Our two other highways heading north to Milwaukee, 32 and 38, are slow, two-lane relics from the 1950s. Hwy 31 and 32 between Kenosha and Racine are four lanes; why has the state ignored 32 and 38 heading to Milwaukee? They are a joke! All of this for a city of 81,000 people. Small town Wausau has a better freeway system than we do. 794 would give us quick access to downtown Milwaukee. The truth is, 794 should be extended into Racine County. The city of Racine has a 16% unemployment rate and is dying due to lack of freeway access."

Spangenberg on West Racine development: 'We're trying to do the right thing'

Alderman Jim Spangenberg is withholding judgment on a proposed development for the corner of Washington Ave. and West Blvd. in his district. But he does want people to know he's worked "tirelessly" for eight years to find the right project for the site.

"I don't toot my own horn," he said, "but I've worked like a dog on this."

Developer Tom Tousis wants to build a combo grocery store, restaurant, car wash and gas station on the corner lot. His plan would also preserve the Farmer's Market that's now there.

But Spangenberg said he has concerns about a gas station in West Racine. Gas stations tend to deteriorate in quality over time and leave an eye sore in the community. He also noted there's a gas station less than a mile away from the proposed site, and that the development is hardly a novel idea.

"We could have had a gas station and convenience store eight years ago," Spangenberg said.

All of this isn't to say Spangenberg is opposed to the project. He's meeting with Tousis on Tuesday to discuss plans and ask questions about how the restaurant will run and whether Tousis's proposed grocery store will really be a large convenience store. In short, Spangenberg is skeptical.

"He's not doing this out of love for the neighborhood," Spangenberg said of Tousis.

What happens at the corner of Washington and West is personal for Spangenberg. His business, Johnson Home Furnishings is just down the street from the site, and his home is just a few blocks away.

"I have a large investment here," Spangenberg said.

For that reason, he's upset to hear anyone suggest he's "doing nothing" to help the area, because he's worked non-stop for eight years to get something going.

"We're trying to do the right thing here," said Spangenberg, who gave an example with the Farmer's Market.

The market needed a sign so he convinced the business improvement district and the West Racine Business Association to buy a sign. But then they needed posts for the sign, so Spangenberg called contractors and begged them to donate the work. The sign is going up within the next week.

"I've worked tirelessly for this area," he said.

UPDATED: Bacteria outbreaks continue in local day care centers

UPDATE: Here's a map of the locations of the shigella outbreak (click for a larger version).

Michele Breheim, epidemiologist with the Racine Health Department, said the city has received a handful of reports of shigella in the past week. All day care centers and schools in the city have been notified of the outbreak, and any child found with the bacteria needs two negative stool samples before they can return to day care, Breheim said.

The above map did little help city officials concentrate efforts in one particular area because the cases have been so scattered, Breheim said. City officials tried to stop the outbreak in its first days, but cases spread outside of the day cares and schools. "It's in the community," Breheim said.

The best preventative method for the outbreak is to wash your hands, she said.

Original story:

A couple of months back we reported on outbreaks of two types of bacterias in local schools and day care centers. The outbreaks have continued, according to city health officials.

Seven new cases of campylobacter and 23 new cases of shigella were reported in June. Health officials had hoped the end of school would decrease the number of cases, but the numbers actually increased. There have been 42 cases of shigella and 17 cases of campylobacter reported in the city in the past two months.

Health officials said at the July 15 Board of Health meeting that they didn't know why the bacterias continued to spread. There didn't appear to be a connection between all of the cases, they said.

Both bacterias spread through oral-fecal contamination. Symptoms include diarrhea and vomiting.

Campylobacter is typically spread through contact with uncooked poultry, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It's rarely spread person to person, though can spread through stool to oral contamination.

Shigella is typically spread from person to person, according to the CDC. The bacteria is passed fom stool to oral contamination.

Health officials also reported at their monthly board meeting that there were 31 confirmed cases of H1N1 (swine) flu reported in the city in June. Wisconsin continues to lead the nation, by far, in H1N1 cases. The state's 6,031 cases is at least 1,300 more than Texas, the next closest state.

Local health officials are gearing up for a busy flu season. The H1N1 vaccine, likely available in August, will require two shots in addition to the normal flu vaccine. That means three times the number of shots this year at a time when budgets are already tight.

But the shots are necesssary, officials said, because the H1N1 virus could be more potent - and deadly - when it makes its second time around later this year.

Blake Becker is Spirit of Racine champion

Blake Becker runs through victory banner, held by race director

Shannon Kurek, left, and Dave Blank of the RCCVB, right

We'll give you the end of the story first, just to get it up quickly:

Blake Becker of Madison won the Spirit of Racine Half Triathlon, or half Ironman, depending on who's describing it, this morning, in a time of 3:54.04.

He was followed some six minutes later, according to the official results, in 4:00.58 by Jeff Paul of Le Clair, IA. Mike Lavery, also of Madison and like Becker a member of Team Timex came in third, in 4:03.51.

Paul, Becker and Lavery, l-r, after the finish

Becker, 30, a "professional triathlete" and coach, raced here once before -- seven years ago.

The Spirit of Racine is the main event of two days of racing that drew some 2,000 triathletes. It consists of a 1.2 mile swim, a 56 mile bike ride and a 13.1 mile run. Temperatures were a bit colder today than Saturday, especially when the race began at 7 a.m., and the water was quite a bit choppier. A total of 1,207 participants competed in Sunday's race; another 33 competed in the AquaBike division -- two of the three legs, minus the run.

Here are Sunday's complete results:

• Half Iron Age Groups
• Half Iron Overall
• AquaBike Overall

Here's what today's race looked like, in pictures.

The long march, up North Beach a mile and a half

Photographers waiting for the many division starts

And another group is off!

Like clearance day at Filene's, swimmers change into cycling attire

Running out of the transition area...

...only to face the 'big hill' up to Main Street

This is what transition area looked like without the bikes...

Patty Phillips, last one out of the water, gamely ran
into the transition area, long after everyone else was gone.
I asked Patty, 50, if she'd competed in triathlons before.
'Not enough!' she said, and then she was on her way.

Cyclists coming back down Main Street

Runners in both directions, since the course required two laps

Finally, the finish line! 4 hours for the elite, up to 8 for some

Top triathletes got plaques; everyone else got this medal

We end with a story left hanging: Did she say yes or no?
Betting was that Becca, 20, would tell Justin she's too young...
If you know what happened, please let us know!

Our story about Saturday's races is here, and complete results are at the links below:

• Women's Only Tri Age Groups
• Women's Only Tri Overall
• Blue Wave Age Groups
• Blue Wave Overall

Grocery store, restaurant planned for West Racine

Tom Tousis and his father, Gus Tousis.

When the city tore down old buildings at Washington Avenue and West Boulevard, the hope was a developer would build a grocery store or a restaurant on the site. One developer is now ready to build both.

Tom Tousis said Friday he was submitting plans to the city to build the $5 million Washington Market on the vacant lot. The development would include a specialty grocery store with wine garden, a 1950s-style diner, a bank and a gas station with a car wash. It will also preserve the West Racine farmer's market, and even provide free water and electricity for vendors on the site.

Tousis is the second developer to take a run at building at southwestern corner of Washington Ave. and West Blvd. A North Carolina-based developer sought city approval to build a $7 million, 55-unit low-income housing complex on the site. The City Council unanimously rejected the project on Feb. 3.

Hundreds of West Racine residents opposed the proposal, which would have had a difficult time getting built even with City Council approval. The low-income housing relied on state tax funds and a difficult bond market just to get money to start construction. It was also unclear if there was demand for people to live there.

Developers of the 55-unit site were criticized for publicizing their plans shortly before seeking city approval. West Racine residents said they wanted more time to review the project, and felt the developer was trying to rush it through the City Council.

Tousis is taking the opposite approach. He brought it to the residents first and now, confident that the neighborhood backs him, will seek city approval. About 120 West Racine residents have reviewed the plans and nearly all of them support the project, he said.

"I wanted to make people in the neighborhood comfortable with it," Tousis said. "I don't want to find out later that people were opposed."

Tousis added it's probably backwards to tells residents about his plans before formally introducing it to the council. But in this case, he said, it's the right way to do it.

"It's a neighborhood, not an industrial park," Tousis said. "The residents are my customers. I want to know their concerns so I can address them."

An overhead view of Tom Tousis's proposal for West Racine. Washington Ave. runs along the top of the plan. Rendering by Butterfield, Rudie & Seitz architects of Racine

County Board Supervisor and West Racine resident Van Wanggaard is backing the project, saying it will "energize" the neighborhood.

"This totally, totally makes sense," he said.

Wanggaard, who lives two blocks from the site, said the development fits with the West Racine neighborhood plan, which called for a restaurant or grocery store. He also said he was also happy Tousis was a local developer who planned to be on site running the businesses, which are already lined up to open.

"It's not some out-of-town developer building empty buildings and then filling them," Wanggaard said. "These will be built and immediately occupied."

Tousis plans to put his personal offices on the Washington Ave. site and run his local businesses, including the Better Day BP and Gus's Gyros on Douglas Ave., from West Racine. That's a big selling point, Wanggaard said.

"His family will be there everyday," Wanggaard said, adding the Tousises have an "excellent track record" in Racine.

Wanggaard said he's known Tousis's father, Gus Tousis, for 30-some years as the former owner of Andrea's, Gibson's, Athens and other local restaurants. His restaurants were always well run and never had any trouble, Wanggaard said. Many police officers ate at Andrea's in Downtown Racine because it was clos to the courthouse, he said

Wanggaard said he only recently met Tom Tousis, but was impressed with how he runs his gas station on Douglas. It's that development that Wanggaard said gives him confidence in Tousis building in West Racine.

"It's been open almost two years and it still looks brand new," Wanggaard said. "He maintains the site well."

The exterior of Tom Tousis's proposed development for West Racine.
Rendering by Butterfield, Rudie & Seitz architects of Racine

Tousis's development has unique components. Tom lights up when he talks about the restaurant, which would be called "Gus's Cafe," named after his father and long-time Racine restaurateur, Gus Tousis. Tom plans to model the 165-seat diner on the restaurants he remembers from growing up. The menu will include items like meatloaf, skirt steak, the Monte Cristo - a ham and cheese sandwich in French toast bread - and the Francheesy - a hot dog stuffed with cheese, wrapped in bacon and deep fried.

"It's not very good for you, but it tastes so good," Tousis said.

Gus's Cafe would also have a vintage soda fountain and a decor designed to take diners back in time.

"I want to do it like I remember restaurants," said Tousis, who has vivid memories of hanging out in his father's restaurant as a kid. (For those who remember Andrea's when Gus Tousis owned it, that's the feel Tom said he hopes to recreate.)

"When you bring something back, people realize they missed it," Tousis said.

View Larger Map

A map of the development site. Tousis's proposal would be built at the southwest corner
of Washington Ave. and West Blvd. Zoom in on the "A" marker for a closer view.

The grocery store will be a total of about 10,000 square feet with about 6,500 square feet in retail space on the ground floor, with additional space for storage. A second story would house Tousis's business offices.

Tousis said the "Washington Market" would be a real grocery story. It would have have its own butcher, deli and produce section. Obviously it would be smaller than a store like Pick N Save, he said (most grocery stores' parking lots are three times the size the entire vacant lot in West Racine), but it'll carry all of the basic items of a grocery store, plus specialty items like wines and cheeses. It even includes a canopied wine garden along Grove St. that will serve imported wines, Tousis said.

Gas pumps in front of the grocery store could be a sticking point with city committees, which have had problems with new gas stations in the past. But Tousis said the gas pumps serve a need in the neighborhood and create a steady stream of traffic to the site that he needs to make the development a success. The same goes for an automatic car wash, which will have three doors to minimize sound for neighbors.

Both the gas pumps and car wash may be a draw of their own. Tousis's Douglas Ave. gas station is a clean, sleek design with the world's first LED-lit canopy (designed and built by Racine's Ruud Lighting). The new gas pumps would use Ruud Lighting's second-generation LED technology, Tousis said.

The last building is a 1,000 square-foot walk-in bank with drive-thru. Tri-City Bank is already interested in the space, and Tousis said other banks have approached him, as well.

Tousis also plans to create a permanent outdoor home for the West Racine farmer's market. Plans call for 11 stalls along Washington Avenue serviced with electricity and running water. Tousis wouldn't charge for use of the site. "I just want people to be in there," he said.

When possible, Tousis sees Gus's Cafe buying ingredients from the Farmer's Market to use in that day's recipes. He envisions the whole corner working together to provide services for residents and to have each of the businesses strengthening the other. For example, there may be coupons to the restaurant for people who buy gas, or a tie-in between the grocery store and the car wash.

Parking won't be an issue on the site, Tousis said. Plans call for about 50 spots on the development and Tousis anticipates a lot of walk-up traffic to use the grocery store and restaurant. He doesn't anticipate parking spilling over into the streets or nearby parking lots.

"I don't like to use public parking," Tousis said. "A lot of small businesses in the area need that parking."

While Tousis appears to have neighborhood support, he'll now turns to the city for approval to actually build on the site. He plans to submit plans to city development soon, and that likely will trigger City Council review. The city borrowed $2 million through a tax incremental finance district to tear down old buildings and clear the lot for new development. It needs a sizable project on the site to pay back that loan.

Wanggaard said the Washington Market fits the bill. "It'll take up a nice chunk of the city's TIF," he said. "I really don't see a downside."