Steve Jagler, for BizTimes Media

On the Friday before the Nov. 6 election, I spoke with two prominent members of the Wisconsin Republican Party who were downright giddy about the prospects for their nominee, Mitt Romney. One even offered to bet me a dinner that Romney would easily beat President Barack Obama.

Milwaukee's commercial real estate developers are becoming increasingly frustrated by the lack of progress in the redevelopment of the Park East Corridor, which stands largely vacant on the north end of the city's downtown.

“Hard work. Dedication. And the mindset that failure is not an option.”

That is how former Green Bay Packer great Willie Davis answered a question about the secrets behind his post-football career as a successful executive in the beer distributing and radio businesses.

Educational leaders and enlightened business executives will share practical solutions for employers to bridge Wisconsin’s skills gap at the fourth annual BizTimes Get Smarter Conference.

It was a tale of two cities, a tale of two political conventions and a tale of two starkly different visions for America's future.

Editor’s note: Mary Miller, Under Secretary for Domestic Finance at the U.S. Department of the Treasury, recently provided an update about the status of federal banking reforms at the American Banker Regulatory Symposium in Arlington, Va. Her prepared remarks comprise the following Milwaukee Biz Blog.

Normally, the copy in this space is devoted to you, the readers of BizTimes. But this week, it's all about me.

For hundreds of BizTimes readers, U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan’s debut as an ardent and vocal opponent of the Obama administration came back on Jan. 20, 2010, when Ryan unveiled a video to the attendees of the Northern Trust Economic Trends Breakfast presented by BizTimes.

Imagine you have been appointed king of Milwaukee for a day. You hold all the chips, you press all the buttons and you pull all the levers. And you are a commercial real estate developer.

A smarter Milwaukee is a better Milwaukee. And a better Milwaukee is better-positioned to grow in a global economy.

One of the lasting legacies of Sue Black’s eight years on the job as director of the Milwaukee County Department of Parks, Recreation and Culture is her ability to reach out to the private sector and secure corporate partners to support the park system.

Milwaukee can be a dynamic city to host a corporate event in the summertime.