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22 I N D E V E L O P M E N T 2 0 1 8 SCEDC leading development of Innovation Community In a plan to win the worldwide battle for skilled workforce, Sheboygan County Economic Development Corp. (SCEDC) has been collaborating with the City of Sheboygan and countywide stakeholders on the development of an Innovation Community. Considered an international best practice for outcomes including stimulating workforce attraction and retention, innovation districts facilitate the creation and commercialization of new ideas and support urban economies by growing jobs in ways that leverage their distinct economic characteristics. Innovation communities build on and enhance the intrinsic qualities of cities: proximity, density, authenticity and vibrant places. "Success in this strategy will include a mix of Sheboygan County's economic, physical and networking Village of Fox Crossing is in a construction boom One of the hottest construction locations in Northeast Wisconsin is the Village of Fox Crossing. Armed with a healthy supply of available land, a nice mix of incentives and the approaching completion of U.S. Highway 10/State Highway 441 interchange, Fox Crossing has become a very attractive location for corporate headquarters, healthcare, hotel and retail development. Community First Credit Union and WOW Logistics completed construction of new home office locations in the village in 2017. SECURA Insurance is currently under construction for its new headquarters there. "We've had great successes here lately," George Dearborn, director of community development for the village, says. "We have reasonable tax Innovation District Concept Indiana Avenue, Sheboygan. Community First Credit Union opened its new home office and 25th full-service branch in Fox Crossing last October. SHEBOYGAN assets," says Jim Schuessler, SCEDC's business development manager and one of the architects of the scoping and implementation plan. "Building upon our existing resources will help us to catalyze an economic ecosystem that will both retain and draw skilled workforce that desire a live/work/play community, as well as help diversify our regional economy." Economic assets are the firms, institutions and organizations that drive, nurture or support an innovation- rich environment. Physical assets are the public and privately owned spaces — buildings, open spaces, streets and other infrastructure — designed and organized to stimulate new and higher levels of connectivity, collaboration and innovation. Networking assets are the interactions between players — such as individuals, firms and institutions — that have the potential to generate, or accelerate the progression of ideas. Together, these assets create an innovation ecosystem — the synergistic relationship between people, firms and place that facilitates idea development and commercialization. "Sheboygan County is blessed with world-class companies that are market leaders in innovation," says Chad Pelishek, Sheboygan's director of planning. "We have great colleges and universities with which to collaborate FOX CROSSING rates, some great incentives and a great location." The latest surge of construction started with Community First's plans for a new, $25 million home office at the intersection of U.S. Highway 10 and County Highway CB. The 130,000 square-foot facility is located in Fox Crossing's first TIF district. Since creating the TIF district for Community First, the village created two subsequent districts to support large development projects: WOW Logistics, which opened its new headquarters in the McMahon business park and SECURA Insurance, starting work on its new $40+ million headquarters along County Road CB. "We've got some nice tools we can use," Dearborn says. "But I do think one of the best selling points is the new interchange." The Village of Fox Crossing markets itself as the community "bridging the Fox Cities." As construction on the highway 10/441 bridge and interchange are completed, the village expects to see more industrial and commercial development. "Cobblestone Hotel is another example of a future project locating here," Dearborn says. "It makes