Mahalo. As 2005 comes to a close, it is important to thank you and all the FOFs - "Friends of Forward Wisconsin" - for their support throughout the past year. Mahalo is a Hawaiian word and its English translation is "to express gratitude." In Hawaiian, it literally means "(May you be) in (Divine) Breath", and along with "Aloha", it is one of the two most prominent words in the language.

Why the Hawaii reference? Well, as the new National W Club President, I had the wonderful opportunity to take some vacation time late last month and travel to Hawaii to attend the final regular season Badger football game. It was my first trip to Hawaii and I enjoyed it very much, even though it did rain a fair amount and the cost of everything is 20 to 40 percent higher than in Wisconsin.

When I travel, I usually conduct a subjective poll of people I run into at various locations on my trip. After introducing myself and informing individuals that I am from Wisconsin, I ask them: "What do you know about Wisconsin?" During my time in Hawaii, I asked this of over 50 people. Some of the answers were quite predictable, but others were mildly surprising, given the fact that I mostly queried a younger than 30-year-old group.

The top answers were "beer" and "cheese" with "Laverne and Shirley" coming in a distant third. Given that "Laverne and Shirley" went off the air in 1983, it was interesting that impression of our state still exists. One I thing I rarely hear is a reference to any kind of business image of Wisconsin. Being the optimist that I am, what this tells me is that we still have a great opportunity to create a positive business image for our state in other states and countries, while playing off the best of the other images people have of Wisconsin.

Thank you again for your ongoing support and partnership. Aloha.

Wisconsin has some of the safest metro areas in the U.S. according to the 12th annual Safest City and Metropolitan Area Awards compiled by Morgan Quitno Press. The findings were released on November 21, 2005 and the analysis examined 330 U.S. metro areas. Wisconsin placed more metro areas in the top 15 than any other state.

The Wisconsin metro areas listed within the top 15 safest included: Fond du Lac (2); Appleton (4); Sheboygan (5); La Crosse (7); Oshkosh-Neenah (8); Eau Claire (11); and Wausau (14). No Wisconsin metro areas made the "Most Dangerous" list. The survey looked at six basic crime categories: murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and motor vehicle theft.

The top five "most dangerous" metro areas included: Detroit-Livonia-Dearborn, MI; New Orleans, LA; Memphis, TN-MS-AR; Sumter, SC; and Miami-Dade County, FL. Morgan Quitno Press is a Lawrence, Kansas-based publishing and research company. The Safest City and Metropolitan Area rankings are one of six Morgan Quitno Awards announced annually by the company.

SitesWI.com, a stand alone available building and sites database web site hosted by Forward Wisconsin for the past four years, will no longer exist as of January 2006. It has been replaced by the LocationOne Information System (LOIS). LOIS, a platform with more features and information fields, is accessible by visiting ForwardWI.com and clicking on "Find a Site or Building."

Nearly 200 local economic development professionals and government officials have been trained so far by Forward Wisconsin and its partners to utilize LOIS. These individuals represent over 800 Wisconsin communities that can now have data entered into the system. Currently, 12 states use LOIS as their web-based database for available buildings and sites, including Iowa, Minnesota, Illinois and Wisconsin.

LOIS has a GIS mapping feature, printable flyer, quick reference and a powerful search component. It provides community profile information and demographics, while meeting the Site Selection Data Standards developed by the International Economic Development Council. If you would like more information on how to participate in the LOIS system, please contact Forward Wisconsin's Sharon Seffrood via e-mail or call her at 608.261.2501.

Construction cranes, cement trucks, excavators and backhoes are a common sight dotting Wisconsin's landscape. Yet, as economic development professionals and business people, we often associate those scenes with industrial development.

Tourism projects, however, are a large contributor to Wisconsin's economy and an economic development force in their own right. Many of us are familiar with the annual Economic Impact of Traveler Expenditures released by the Wisconsin Department of Tourism but the Department also recently publicized some significant building projects underway and on the horizon within the industry. Yes, as our friends at Tourism like to say, Life's So Good!

Here are just a few projects highlighted by the Wisconsin Department of Tourism this past month. Two Wisconsin Dells area attractions are expanding. The Wilderness Hotel & Golf Resort has launched a $150 million expansion and Chula Vista has broken ground on a $100 million project. In addition, The Aquaplex and Centre Lakes Development, a $107 million complex in the Stevens Point area, will emerge in phases over the next two years.

There are plans to redevelop the four-star Lake Lawn Resort on Lake Delavan to the tune of $390 million. Finally, the Northern Bay Golf Resort and Marina in Adams County will be a $170 million project. And, that's just the tip of the iceberg!

Want to know more about ongoing and upcoming tourism investment? Click here to get all the highlights from the Wisconsin Department of Tourism.