MEETING MINUTES
Wednesday, May 14, 2014
Thompson Community Center
PROGRAM SUMMARY
“The History of Hoffman Construction”
CALL TO ORDER BY CHAIRPERSON TOM SUTTER
TOTAL ATTENDANCE: 60
OFFICERS AND BOARD MEMBERS IN ATTENDANCE:
Tom Sutter, Christine Williams, Laura Leimer, James Richter, Mark Moderson, Gwen Sargeant, Linda Muldoon, John Marx, Brian Schneider, and David Buss.
REVIEW OF UPCOMING MEETINGS AND PROGRAMS:
June 11th Sherman House and Conway Hotel by Gary Schierl
July 9th Heid Music 66 years by Paul Heid
August 13th Harry H. Long Moving and Storage since 1917 by John Long
August 17th 2 p.m. Meet the Mayors Riverside Cemetery Walk - Part 3
December 6th 9th AHS History Fair, City Center, Downtown Appleton
APPLETON HISTORICAL SOCIETY ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION:
· Officers and Committee Chairs for the organization are as follows:
A. President - Thomas Sutter
B. Vice President - Christine Williams
C. Secretary – James Richter
D. Treasurer – Laura Leimer
· Committee Chairs for the organization are as follows:
A. Mark and Karen Moderson, Principal Organizers
B. Brian Schneider, Technical Resources
C. David Buss, Research Specialist
D. Gwen Sargeant, Public Relations and Web Page
PRESIDENT SUTTER ANNOUNCEMENTS:
A.Thanks to Scott Mahnke for last month’s program titled “Appleton Then and Now”.
B. Special thanks is also extended to Gannett Publications for regular coverage in their
Bulletin paper.
C. Very sadly reports the passing of our own special AHS member Mike Broeren. He was a regular exhibitor and committee member of all of our AHS History Fairs. Mike showed a special love and dedication to local history.
D. Just a reminder that previous meeting presentations can be found on YouTube, and our Meeting Minutes with Program Summary are on our Web Page.
E. Door Prize – Two Car Wash Tokens provided by Bergstrom Automotive were initially won by our speaker Paul Hoffman, who surrendered them for the good of the cause. They were redrawn and won by Diane Warnecke.
AHS COMMUNICATIONS REPORTS:
Christine Williams, Vice President, and Public Relations Committee Member:
1. Gave a summary of upcoming AHS programs (See List Above).
2. Also reminded us that AHS will be hosting another Cemetary Walk at Riverside
Cemetary on August 17th.
3. She has received a request from Gary Scherill and asked the audience for help
on locating pictures and artifacts of the old Conway Hotel and of the Sherman
House.
4. Encouraged us to support the Outagamie Museum who is doing a “Pub Crawl” on
June 12th from 6:30 to ?
Gwen Sargeant, Board and Public Relations Committee Member:
1. Volunteers are needed next week Wednesday and Thursday from 9:00 to 4:00 to help put veterans flags on graves at Riverside Cemetary.
PROGRAM- The History of Hoffman Construction, Presenters Paul Hoffman and Miles Girouard.
Paul J. Hoffman Background:
In 1977, Paul J. Hoffman became the fourth generation of Hoffman leaders in the construction industry and had a different idea to continue the family's legacy. Paul started a new business which combined planning, design, and construction services. It created a relationship with the owner that began at the very earliest stage of a project, enhanced the competitive bid process, and provided a single source of responsibility as the owner's partner from beginning to end. Paul was president and owner of Hoffman, LLC, an Appleton-based planning, design, and construction firm for 35 years prior to selling its assets in 2012.
An accomplished author and speaker on leadership, business management, sustainability and the planning, design, and construction professions, Paul has been selected Small Business Person of the Year and Wisconsin’s Entrepreneur of the Year; was inducted into the Appleton West High School Hall of Fame; received the Walter T. Rugland Community Service Award; was one of the first business leaders chosen as a member of the Fox Cities Chamber of Commerce Business Hall of Fame.
Essentially retired Paul still is deeply involved in Real Estate with John Pfefferlee and Steve Evans.
Miles Girouard Background:
With more than 20 years of experience in architectural design and project management, Miles Girouard joined Hoffman, LLC in 2006. Serving as Hoffman’s director of architectural services, he was responsible for all aspects of the company’s design process.
A graduate of the University of Colorado (Bachelor of Science in Environmental Design) and the University of Michigan (Master of Architecture), Miles had a lifelong dream to own his own firm.
In August 2012, a Hoffman management team led by Miles formed Hoffman Planning, Design & Construction, Inc. and purchased the assets of Hoffman, LLC from Paul. Today, in its fifth generation of leadership, Hoffman continues to deliver the same innovative and superior value clients have come to appreciate since the family began its legacy.
The Hoffman Presentation:
Paul Hoffman provided opening remarks and then gave us a rolling view of Hoffman Inc. History. He proved to be an extremely engaging speaker. In preparation for the program Paul and Miles reviewed company files and artifacts. They quickly found his family had done a poor job of chronicling a very interesting history. He thanked the Appleton Historical Society for stimulating them to document their history and preserve artifacts.
(1) Some 122 years ago in 1888, Fred Hoffmann and his brother Herman founded Hoffmann Brothers Construction Company. Both came over from Germany in 1881, and both were masons.
(2) One of their first projects was the Congregational Church at the corner of Oneida and Lawrence Streets:
A. The original church was built in 1888 and came down in 1971.
B. They also built the new church on East South River Street in 1967.
C. A picture showed the church under construction. Many workers were shown in unsafe poses, on flimsy ladders and stretched scaffolding. OHSA inspectors who visited their offices recently laughed at the picture and some 100 code violations that were visible.
(3) Another early project was the Columbus Elementary School in Appleton, Wisconsin. The building was started in 1892, completed in 1893. The school was built to last, and is still fully operational today.
(4) In 1903 they built the Zion Lutheran Church and then their school in the 1930’s. This was followed by construction of their education wing and parsonage in the 1960’s.
(5) From 1920 to 1947 Paul Hoffmann and his brother Fred assumed control of and managed the company. Fred Sr. remained involved until his death in 1935. Before his departure Fred Sr. dropped the second “n” from the family and businesses name.
(6) Construction of major facilities continued with the building of Monte Alverno Retreat Center in 1922. Since then they have done 4 major projects there.
(7) In 1931 they built the Wilson Junior High School.
(8) This was followed by the construction of the Outagamie County Court House in 1940.
(9) Gerald Hoffman served as the company President from 1947-1977. Gerald was the father of our speaker Paul.
(10)In 1950 they built the new Brettschneider Funeral Home on North Oneida Street in
Appleton.
(11)In those days they operated from an office on Highway #00 where Femals Auto Body
is currently located. From there they moved to 2309 N. Oneida Street.
(12)In 1953 they built St. Therese Church on East Wisconsin Avenue.
(13)During this period they also built St. Joseph’s, Sacred Heart and Grace Lutheran
Churches.
(14)During the mid-century they built J.C. Penney, Sears-Roebuck, and Gloudemans
Department Stores as well as the First National Bank buildings on College Avenue.
(15)Their greatest accomplishment was the construction of the Valley Fair Mall in 1953:
A. On October 9, 1986, the Post Crescent reported a dispute with Southland Mall in
Minneapolis regarding who was the first Mall. Research found Valley Fair was
opened in 1954, and Southland Mall opened in 1956.
(16) For Lawrence University they built a number of their residence halls starting with
Coleman in 1955.
(17)In 1960 they built the Outagamie Hospital on Bluemound.
(18)Gerald, Carl and sister Betty were partners in Hoffman in the 1960’s.
(19)In 1974 they constructed the Appleton Post Office. Built on the City’s dump site, it
required sinking 108 caissons into the ground. The building was built on the top of the
caissons.
(20)During this period they also built a log cabin on the Franklin Elementary School
grounds. They later moved the cabin to the Bubolz Nature Preserve.
(21)During Paul’s leadership the firm built the Heritage Retirement Center.
(22)The Harbor House (Domestic Abuse Center) followed.
(23)They also built the Peabody Manor Nursing Care Facility on 6th Street. Later they
were instrumental in getting it moved to The Heritage Retirement Center.
(24) Another project that followed was the Emergency Shelter on Division Street.
(25) Paul was instrumental in moving the Neola Thompson House from North Appleton
Street to a reconstructed Kohl’s Food Store at 820 W. College Avenue in 1994.
(26)In 1994 they built Evans Title on W. College Avenue.
(27)They built the Copper Leaf Hotel and Spa in 2004.
(28)In 2010 they built the new U.S. Venture Corporate Headquarters on Hwy CE.
In Conclusion the Hoffman Co. is happy to continue to be deeply involved in Appleton and the Fox Valley. They look forward to building many more buildings in the area under
Miles Girouard’s leadership.
Respectfully, James L. Richter
AHS Secretary, 5/31/14