WAUPUN — The Waupun Business Alliance held their fourth annual banquet Tuesday evening, celebrating the development in Waupun over the last year and the business leaders that made it possible.
The Waupun Business Alliance is affiliated with Envision Greater Fond du Lac, a business development organization that serves Fond du Lac County businesses and entrepreneurs to help local businesses succeed.
Over 200 members of the Waupun business community attended the banquet, held at The Rock Golf Club, Tuesday, March 10, from 6PM to about 8:00PM. Speeches began at about 6:45PM.
Envision vice president Joe Venhuizen introduced the event by thanking the event sponsors, National Exchange Bank & Trust and SSM Health. Chocolate covered strawberries for the event were also provided by Guth’s Candy.
Venhuizen then invited Envision president and CEO Sadie Howell to the podium to speak.
“It’s really great to be here tonight and to be able to spend time with so many businesses and members of Envision Greater Fond du Lac,” she said. “We’ve been working really hard to shift the conversation away from transactional membership and towards true investment in our community’s future.”
“The work we do is funded by members like all of you in this room who believe in Waupun’s future and Fond du Lac County. When organizations and businesses invest in a shared vision, progress happens faster, and Waupun is a great example of what partnership can accomplish.”
Howell then explained how Envision has created a strategic plan to determine what Fond du Lac County needs to remain competitive with businesses and support new and existing businesses. In this, they determined three major themes: workforce housing, talent attraction, and helping entrepreneurs and existing businesses. In this, Envision is starting initiatives to address these priorities and support businesses.
“At the end of the day, economic development isn’t about program reports or numbers, it’s about people,” she said. “It’s about making sure that all of you have the support you need and the tools you need, and for the next generation to see the opportunity right here.”
“Waupun has always been a community that values entrepreneurship, strong employers, and people willing to invest in their hometown. That spirit is exactly what will keep all of us moving forward,” she continued.
“I recently attended a conference, and the question was posed to the dozens of economic developers in the room, ‘is your community red tape, or red carpet?’” Howell said. “It’s a competitive environment out there for business attraction and retention. The speaker stressed the importance of easy permitting, short followup times, and the speed to market.”
“I can confidently say that Waupun is a ‘red carpet community.’ Mayor Rohn Bishop, City Administrator Kathy Schlieve, and all of their departments are easy to work with. They pick up the phone when you call them, and they always get the job done to attract and keep all of the businesses here. That’s something that all of us should take an incredible amount of pride in.”
“We look forward to continuing our partnerships with the Waupun Business Alliance, the City of Waupun, and all of you in this room as we work to strengthen this entire region,” Howell concluded.
City Administrator Kathy Schlieve was then invited to speak.
“When people talk about growth, they often point to what’s visible: ribbon cuttings, new buildings, the headlines that celebrate progress,” Schlieve said, “But anyone who has ever built anything from scratch knows that success starts from a solid foundation.”
Schlieve noted that 2025 was the lowest year for new construction in recent memory, but stated that much work has been done behind the scenes to lay the foundation for the future of the community.
“Being future-ready means being focused on what a community needs to have people want to live here and invest here, and tonight I’d like to reflect on some of the accomplishments we’ve had over the last year,” she said.
Schlieve discussed increased business diversification, specifically the recent developments in the Waupun Industrial Park of the recently completed United Co-op facility and the start of a new Eagle Flexible Packaging facility which was announced last year.
“These investments represent confidence in our community and create valuable local jobs,” she said. “They also bring a new reality into focus: our industrial park is running out of buildable land. So our planning has to start to shift to where does our growth happen next, and that will be a primary focus for 2026 and beyond—it’s not a simple problem to solve.”
She then discussed the “Ignite Rural” entrepreneurship program which was hosted in Waupun as a workshop for regional entrepreneurs, which culminated in the business pitch competition held at City Hall last November.
Additionally, downtown Waupun has seen significant movement. Over the last year, the City worked to join the Wisconsin Mainstreet Community Cohort through WEDC, which will help bring leadership back to Waupun’s downtown.
One downtown business, Blue Heron Antiques, had applied for Wisconsin Main Street Makeover Contest through that program, where a Wisconsin downtown business would be chosen for a complete facade makeover. Just last week, Blue Heron was announced as one of three finalists.
Schlieve announced that Blue Heron had been chosen as the first place winner of the competition, congratulating Melanie Williams, owner of Blue Heron, for professional design services and winning funds of $10,000 from WEDC for the project.
Next, Schlieve spoke on infrastructure and housing development. A project that was recently announced was the connection of Shaler Drive along Highway 151, and new housing projects planned along the road. Waupun also received a grant from Dodge County for the project.
Schlieve then spoke on the recent changes to Waupun Emergency Services run by Fire Chief BJ DeMaa, the strengthening of the volunteer force, the merging of the shared services between the City of Waupun and surrounding townships, and the recent approval of a City-run transport ambulance.
She also congratulated the Waupun Hockey Association for raising the funds to replace the flooring in the Waupun Ice Arena, which was completed last summer.
“Every one of these moments tells the same story: we accomplish the biggest goals when we work together,” Schlieve said. “As we move into 2026, I encourage every one of you to keep showing up, volunteering, supporting local initiatives, and investing in the future of our community. Every effort matters, and together we make Waupun stronger.”
Following the speeches, awards were presented to several Waupun businesses, organizations, and community leaders who had outstanding achievements over the last year.
These included:
Best New Business — Hoyahophousebrewing
Best Redevelopment — Jud’s Bowling & Bar
Special Recognition — SSM Health Greater Fond du Lac
Special Recognition — Ignite Small Business and Startup Support for Igite Rural
Community Impact Award — Jeff Collien
Community Impact Award — Waupun Hockey Association
Business Legacy Award — Ballweg Implement Co., Inc.
Each received an award from the Waupun Business Alliance and a letter of commendation from Congressman Glenn Grothman.
Mayor of Waupun Rohn Bishop presented the awards to the winners as they came up to the podium. Fond du Lac County Executive Sam Kaufman, County Supervisor Jon Venhuizen, City Council president Dan Siebers, and Alderman Pete Kaczmarski were also in attendance.
