Janesville
Page 32
They are staying at a La Quinta Inn in Gurnee, Illinois: Tim Cullen, Ringside Seat: Wisconsin’s Politics, the 1970s to Scott Walker (Mineral Point, WI: Little Creek Press, 2015), 191–92.
On the next Sunday, Day No. 13: Ibid., 193–94.
On March 6, Day No. 20: Ibid., 195–97.
On Day No. 23, the Senate Republicans employ a parliamentary trick: Mary Spicuzza and Clay Barbour, “Budget Repair Bill Passes Senate, Thursday Vote Set in Assembly,” Wisconsin State Journal, March 10, 2011.
And, on Day No. 25 of what is: Jason Stein, Don Walker, and Patrick Marley, “Walker Signs Budget Bill, Legal Challenges Mount,” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, March 11, 2011.
The day that the Democratic senators left for Illinois, Paul gave an interview: Video from interview with Paul Ryan, Morning Joe, MSNBC, Feb. 17, 2011.
The timing of this swelling resentment against public workers: Frank J. Schultz, “Janesville School Board Votes to Cut Teachers,” Janesville Gazette, April 7, 2011.
Chapter 31: On Janesville Time
The imported workers came from: Figures from human resources department, Fort Wayne Assembly Plant, General Motors.
Chapter 32: Pride and Fear
He will tell a Gazette reporter: Neil Johnson, “Blackhawk Technical College Graduates Pack Commencement,” Janesville Gazette, May 14, 2011.
Last year, when he started at Blackhawk: TAA Statistics, Trade Activity Participant Report Data for FY 2010 for United States Total, Employment and Training Administration, U.S. Department of Labor; Trade Adjustment Assistance for Workers, Report to the Committee on Finance of the Senate and Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives, Employment and Training Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, December 2010.
Nationally, nearly half the trainees: FY2010 TAA Statistics; National TAA Program Statistics, Trade Activity Participant Report Data for FY 2011 for United States Total, Employment and Training Administration, U.S. Department of Labor.
Chapter 33: Labor Fest 2011
The Wisconsin State Journal in Madison: Clay Barbour, “Two Sides on One Mission; Dale Schultz, Tim Cullen Are Out to Show State Residents That Politicians Can Work Together, Bipartisan Barnstorming,” Wisconsin State Journal, July 29, 2011; Frank J. Schultz, “Democratic, Republican Senators Work to Forge Relationship,” Janesville Gazette, Aug. 19, 2011.
The anger arrives in the form of a young man: “Paul Ryan Labor Day Confrontation,” YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YD0lh1Zj81I.
Stoner does not mention that unemployment: Unemployment rate and employment, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, Janesville-Beloit, Wisconsin, metropolitan statistical area, Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor.
General Motors announces that the new contract: Nick Bunkley, “G.M. Contract Approved, with Bonus for Workers,” New York Times, Sept. 29, 2011.
If Spring Hill is going to reopen, a newspaper article reasons: Jim Leute, “Auto Recovery Would Bode Well for Janesville GM Facility,” Janesville Gazette, Sept. 22, 2011.
Chapter 34: Discovering the Closet
Since she started at Parker, she has been helping: Figures from Parker High School.
Part Five: 2012
Chapter 37: SHINE
But now, with the government encouraging them both: Fact sheet, “NNSA Works to Establish a Reliable Supply of Mo-99 Produced Without Highly Enriched Uranium,” National Nuclear Security Administration, U.S. Department of Energy, Oct. 29, 2014.
Two years ago, a Madison business journal: “2010’s 40 Executives Under 40,” Business Madison, March 2010.
Finally, not quite three weeks ago, Piefer announced: News release, “SHINE Medical Technologies to Site New Manufacturing Plant in Janesville,” SHINE Medical Technologies, Inc., Jan. 24, 2012.
A Janesville Gazette story, saying that SHINE had chosen Janesville: James P. Leute, “Janesville Working with Medical Isotope Maker on Incentive Agreement,” Janesville Gazette, Jan. 25, 2012.
As part of its economic incentives to get SHINE: Vic Grassman, Economic Development Director, Economic Development Department Memorandum to Janesville City Council, “Action on a Proposed Resolution Authorizing the City Manager to Enter into a T.I.F. Agreement with SHINE Medical Technologies,” Feb. 13, 2012.
This future business park and a smaller site in Beloit: Jim Leute, “Business Park Deemed Shovel-Ready,” Janesville Gazette, July 25, 2012.
But to put in perspective just how big: 2012 annual budget, City of Janesville, 1.
And this question of incentives: Ibid., 13.
For tonight’s meeting, the city’s economic development director has prepared: Vic Grassman, Economic Development Director, Economic Development Department Memorandum to Janesville City Council, Action on a Proposed Resolution Authorizing the City Manager to Enter into a T.I.F. Agreement with SHINE Medical Technologies, Feb. 13, 2012.
Still . . . as ten citizens take turns speaking: Video, meeting of the Janesville City Council, Feb. 13, 2012.
Nearly an hour into the meeting, Piefer moves: Ibid.
One speech is by Russ Steeber: Ibid.
He already was a Council member four years ago when a man in town was arrested: Ted Sullivan, “Prison Time Ordered in Contract Killing Case,” Janesville Gazette, April 19, 2009.
The core of Yuri’s soliloquy: Video, meeting of the Janesville City Council, Feb. 13, 2012.
By the time the Council members vote: Ibid.
Chapter 39: A Charity Gap
This is no longer the same Janesville in which Joseph A. Craig: Obituary, “J. A. Craig Dies at 91, Leader in Many Fields,” Janesville Gazette, Dec. 31, 1958.
Where is today’s George S. Parker: Obituary, “George W. Parker Dies in Chicago. Famous Pen Manufacturer Stricken at 73. Was Most Widely Known Janesville Citizen,” Janesville Gazette, July 19, 1937.
Chapter 41: Recall
The recall fight is venomous, backed by twice as much campaign spending: “Recall Race for Governor Cost $81 Million,” Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, July 25, 2012.
Last winter, a manufacturing association that supports him: Frank J. Schultz, “Billboard Near Shuttered GM Plant Causes Stir,” Janesville Gazette, Jan. 12, 2012.
For decades, Rock County’s Republicans: “Recall Race for Governor Cost $81 Million,” Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, July 25, 2012.
As of a few weeks ago, Walker and Barrett were within one percentage point: News releases, Marquette University Law School Poll, May 2, 2012, May 30, 2012.
Rock County 5.0 is nonpartisan: Tom Kertscher, “A Closer Look at Recall Donations,” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, May 17, 2012.
On the stage of the Waukesha County Expo Center: Governor Scott Walker victory speech, C-SPAN, June 5, 2012.
Statewide, the governor may have won: Statewide percentage results, 2012 Recall Election for Governor, Wisconsin Elections Commission.
Rock is one of just twelve of Wisconsin’s seventy-two counties: County by county report, 2012 Recall Election for Governor, Wisconsin Elections Commission.
Chapter 43: The Candidate
At 9:28 a.m., swelling, majestic music: Mitt Romney VP announcement with Rep. Paul Ryan, C-SPAN, Aug. 11, 2012.
“Paul Ryan works in Washington, but his beliefs”: Ibid.
Paul was, in fact, home as recently as yesterday afternoon: Rachel Streitfeld, “Ryan’s Clandestine Journey to Romney’s Ticket Went from ‘Surreal to Real,’ ” CNN, Aug. 12, 2012.
Less than a month ago, he quit the caucus: Patrick Marley, “Cullen Returns to Caucus Fold; Senator Had Quit over Assignments,” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, July 29, 2012.
After fourteen years as a congressman: Mitt Romney VP announcement with Rep. Paul Ryan, C-SPAN, Aug. 11, 2012.
It is an emotional scene: Romney-Ryan bus tour rally in Waukesha, Wisconsin, Waukesha County Expo Center, C-SPAN, Aug. 12, 2012.
Two weeks from now: Paul Ryan send-off rally in Janesville, Wisconsin, JATV, Aug. 27, 2012.
Chap
ter 44: Labor Fest 2012
Three years ago, the first Labor Fest: Gina R. Heine, “Janesville Labor Fest Run by the Community, for the Community,” Janesville Gazette, Sept. 4, 2009.
Chapter 45: Pill Bottles
When he steps in, she is wearing: Report of preliminary death investigation, Kristi Beyer, Rock County Coroner.
She is on her left side: Ibid. Ambulance report in records of Rock County Coroner on death of Kristi Beyer.
That day, a sixty-year-old worker: Sara Jerving, “Suicide Crisis Centers Report Increase in Calls. Is the Economy to Blame?,” Janesville Gazette, Feb. 21, 2010.
Since then, suicides in Rock County: Data from Rock County Coroner.
Across the United States, the suicide rate: Aaron Reeves, David Stuckler, Martin McKee, David Gunnell, Shu-Sen Chang, and Sanjay Basu, “Increase in State Suicide Rates in the USA During Economic Recession,” The Lancet, Nov. 6, 2012.
A medical team tries to revive: Mercy Hospital report in records of Rock County Coroner on death of Kristi Beyer.
At 6:32 a.m., the team: Ibid.
The coroner’s autopsy finds that Kristi died: Autopsy report on death of Kristi Beyer, Rock County Coroner.
Chapter 46: Circle of Women
Four weekends ago, the signs on all of M&I’s banks: Jim Leute, “Bank Makes Name Change Official,” Janesville Gazette, Oct. 6, 2012.
Last year, BMO took over M&I: Paul Gores, “M&I Absorbed into Harris Bank; Former ‘Crown Jewel’ of Banks Had Been Slumping for Years,” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, July 6, 2011.
When BMO took it over, M&I still owed: John McCrank, “Canada’s BMO Buying U.S. M&I Bank for $4.1 Billion,” Reuters, Dec. 17, 2010.
Chapter 47: First Vote
He is heading to Cleveland: “On the Trail: November 6, 2012,” “Political Ticker” blog, CNN.
Still, Wisconsin is one of nine swing states: Chris Cilizza, “The 9 Swing States of 2012,” Washington Post, April 16, 2012; Attendance figure from a White House pool report, Nov. 5, 2012.
Six out of ten have voted: County by county report, 2012 Fall General Election, Wisconsin Elections Commission.
Even in his own ward: Precinct details, 2012 General Election, Rock County Clerk.
Chapter 48: HealthNet
Except that BadgerCare Plus Core opened in July 2009: Thomas DeLeire et al., “Evaluation of Wisconsin’s BadgerCare Plus Core Plan for Adults Without Dependent Children,” Report #1, University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute, 1.
Chapter 49: Out of a Job Again
It’s down to one, even though nearly half of the 1,400 kids: “Percent of Children Living in Low-Income Household,” School District of Janesville Demographic and Student Membership Report, 2016, 7.
The school system has exceeded its target: Blog post by Karen Schulte, superintendent of schools, “What’s Right in the School District of Janesville: Delivering Bags of Hope,” Dec. 27, 2012.
Part Six: 2013
Chapter 50: Two Janesvilles
Premier banking is offered to BMO Harris customers: Marketing material, BMO Harris bank.
Leaving aside GM’s 4.8 million square feet: Jim Leute, “Marketing Tightening for Industrial Real Estate,” Janesville Gazette, Jan. 28, 2013.
Toward the end of January, Mary attends: Posted on Facebook, Mary Willmer, Jan. 24, 2013.
“Couldn’t be happier”: Posted on Facebook, Mary Willmer, May 19, 2013.
This year, 41,000 families in Rock County: FoodShare Wisconsin caseload data, Wisconsin Department of Health, 2007, 2013.
Chapter 51: Night Drive
Now its population of 78,000: Indiana City/Town Census Counts, 1900 to 2010, and Population Estimates for Indiana’s Incorporated Places, U.S. Census Bureau data compiled by STATS Indiana, Indiana Business Research Center, Indiana University.
Four in ten of the people: Gary, Indiana, QuickFacts, U.S. Census Bureau.
The Dan Ryan is easy to cruise along tonight: Carl Sandburg, “Chicago.”
Chapter 52: The Ebb and Flow of Work
The 1.1-million-square-foot processing plant: Jim Leute, “Janesville Plant Is Key for Seneca Foods, Company Says,” Janesville Gazette, June 20, 2013.
Chapter 54: Glass More than Half Full
Nearly two thousand new jobs are not trivial: Employment statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, Janesville-Beloit, Wisconsin, metropolitan statistical area, Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, June 2008 and April 2013.
Chapter 55: Graduation Weekend
The school choir sings: Garth Brooks, “The River.”
The stadium has stood since 1931: Carol Lohry Cartwright, Scott Shaffer, and Randal Waller, City on the Rock River: Chapters in Janesville’s History (Janesville Historic Commission, 1998), 186.
All very nice as far as it goes: Average cost, Wisconsin resident, 2013–14 cost chart, University of Wisconsin–Platteville.
Epilogue
“It’s Over”: Elliot Hughes and Neil Johnson, “ ‘It’s over’: Janesville GM Plant Identified in UAW Contract as Closing,” Janesville Gazette, Oct. 28, 2015.
Fifty-two percent of Rock County’s voters: 2016 Fall General Election Results, Wisconsin Elections Commission.
That was nearly 10 percentage points: Ibid.
By the most recent count, unemployment in Rock County: Local Area Unemployment Statistics, Janesville-Beloit, Wisconsin, metropolitan statistical area, Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, October 2016.
As many people are working now: State and Area Employment Statistics, Janesville-Beloit, Wisconsin, metropolitan statistical area, Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, October 2016.
Beloit plants such as ones for Frito-Lay: Job listings and job fair announcements, Rock County Job Center.
And while factory jobs have been appearing: Ted Mellnik and Chris Alcantara, “Manufacturing Jobs Are Returning to Some Places. But These Jobs Are Different,” Washington Post, Dec. 14, 2016, based on analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics quarterly employment and wages data.
As for the results of Janesville’s vigorous economic development efforts: Memorandum and order (authorizing issuance of construction permit) in the matter of SHINE Medical Technologies Inc., U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Feb. 25, 2016.
Yet in a tangible step, SHINE: Neil Johnson, “SHINE Confirms Move to Downtown Janesville,” Janesville Gazette, Sept. 21, 2016.
In a sign of a lingering hunger for work: Catherine W. Idzerda, “Thousands Attend Dollar General Job Fair,” Janesville Gazette, Sept. 18, 2016.
The next year, it was canceled: Dave Delozier, “Labor Fest Likely Victim of GM Closure in Janesville,” WISC-TV News 3, Sept. 7, 2015.
Early in 2016, Janesville’s city manager: Elliot Hughes, “Janesville Asks GM to Create $25 Million ‘Legacy Fund,’ ” Janesville Gazette, March 8, 2016.
GM has identified as potential buyers: Elliot Hughes, “Four ‘Qualified Parties’ Identified for GM Property Sale,” Janesville Gazette, June 20, 2016.
He was reelected in 2014: James B. Nelson, “Economists Say Time Has Run Out on Top Campaign Promise,” PolitiFact, Sept. 18, 2014.
She gave $1.9 million: Federal Election Commission data; Reform America Fund, contributors 2016 cycle, OpenSecrets.org
Further Reading
Beyond the sources mentioned above, here are some other books that helped shape my thinking, as well as articles and reports that helped ground me in recent research into recession effects.
Books
Bartlett, Donald L., and James B. Steele. The Betrayal of the American Dream. New York: PublicAffairs, 2012.
Ehrenreich, Barbara. Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America. New York: Henry Holt, 2001.
Garson, Barbara. Down the Up Escalator: American Lives in the Great Recession. New York: Doubleday, 2013.
Greenhouse, Steven. The Big Squeeze: Tough Times for the American Worker. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2008.
Gr
unwald, Michael. The New New Deal: The Hidden Story of Change in the Obama Era. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2012.
Grusky, David B., Bruce Western, and Christopher Wimer, eds. The Great Recession. New York: Russell Sage Foundation, 2011.
Kennedy, Sharon A. Classroom at the End of the “Line”: Assembly Line Workers at Midwest Community and Technical Colleges. North Charleston, SC: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2013.
Linkon, Sherry Lee, and John Russo. Steeltown U.S.A.: Work and Memory in Youngstown. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2002.
Milkman, Ruth. Farewell to the Factory: Auto Workers in the Late Twentieth Century. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1997.
Osterman, Paul, and Beth Shulman. Good Jobs America: Making Work Better for Everyone. New York: Russell Sage Foundation, 2011.
Packer, George. The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2013.
Peck, Don. Pinched: How the Great Recession Has Narrowed Our Futures and What We Can Do About It. New York: Crown, 2011.
Putnam, Robert D. Our Kids: The American Dream in Crisis. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2015.
Smith, Hedrick. Who Stole the American Dream? New York: Random House, 2012.
Van Horn, Carl E. Working Scared (or Not at All): The Lost Decade, Great Recession, and Restoring the Shattered American Dream. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2013.