This Just In ...

Friday night means InterCHANGE

Posted by Kevin Fischer on Feb. 19, 2010

Here are the topics up for discussion Friday night on InterCHANGE at 6:30 on Milwaukee Public Television Channel 10 with a repeat Sunday morning at 11:00:


1 – MENOMONEE VALLEY WIND TURBINE COMPANY.

A Spanish wind turbine company will build a $15 million 100,000 square foot engine and generator manufacturing plant on about eight acres in the Menomonee Valley.  They expect to employ 275 people by 2015.  Is this really a big deal?  Will it even happen?  Is this a huge success for Mayor Tom Barrett and the Milwaukee-7 group.  If it makes such sense, why haven’t we been able to attract any American companies that build wind turbines to build here?  Will Milwaukee allow a wind turbine company to install a bunch of wind turbines in the valley, or will that look to odd? The company says it consider 8o sites before selecting Milwaukee.


2 – La Crosse Drownings.

For the 9^th time in 13 years the body of a male college student that had been drinking heavily is pulled out of the Mississippi River in La Crosse. Again, authorities say there is no evidence of foul play.  Again, there is a great deal of chatter amongst the conspiracy theorists that there is a serial killer preying on drunken males.  How can one not have questions?  There is certainly a great deal of binge drinking taking place in Milwaukee and Madison, yet they don’t keep pulling bodies out of the lakes and rivers in these two cities.  Does the talk about a serial killer take away from the real issue that must be addressed, which is binge drinking on college campuses?


3 – U.W.M. ARENA.


U.W.M. says it wants to either expand its current Klotsche Center athletic facility, or build a new sports arena somewhere on campus.  Is this a good idea?  Will residents hate it?  Where could they build it?  At the Columbia Hospital property?  Where will fans park?  Are there enough entertainment venues around U.W.M to draw a citywide fan base?  Why did they originally move to the Arena downtown?  U.W.M. says it can build this thing without tax dollars.  Is that possible?  How will U.W.M. raise the tens of millions of dollars needed to build this thing?  Will this be another facility built in the same way they constructed their recent dorm facilities?  That is, through private developers, no-bid, through the foundation arm of the university?  If U.W.M. leaves the arena, what happens to that building?


4 – Tiger Woods.


Mr. Woods will be making his first appearance before a small group of media Friday to let the world know what his plans are.  No questions allowed from the reporters.  Is this all a little too orchestrated?  Will advertisers accept him back?  Will fans accept him back?  Will his wife accept him back?