Speakers

Elijah Adams

Elijah Adams is the owner of Whispering Pines Custom Builders LLC (also known as W.P. Custom Builders), a family-owned general contracting and custom home builder located in Richland Center, Wisconsin. Elijah got his start in construction at 16 building wooden lawn furniture and working with landscape architects on permanent fixtures like raised beds, pergolas, and boardwalks. He eventually began working with a log home company learning various construction types, including working with logs, entry-level timber framing, and conventional stick framing. He continued this pattern for nearly 25 years, subbing for various contractors until 2021, when he took the leap into full-time residential construction by purchasing a company and receiving his general contractor’s license. Today he focuses on all types of residential construction including new, remodels and additions. Along with general carpentry, he also does 2D architectural drafting, 3D architectural modeling (including VR walkthrough capabilities), operates a closed cell spray foam rig offering a high efficiency insulation, and seamless gutters.

Everett Black

Everett Black is an Emerging Rural Development Fellow with Prosperity Southwest, where he is working to expand housing and economic development capacity in the region. With experience in community engagement, data science, and urban design, he has supported planning and design projects as a consultant and researcher across the country. He is excited to return to his home state of Wisconsin to build a career as a creative practitioner in the Upper Midwest.

Amy Bliss

Amy Bliss is the Executive Director of Wisconsin Housing Alliance and has served the manufactured and modular housing industry for 36 years.  Her work focuses on government relations, education for the industry and public relations.  She is a tireless advocate for housing that is attainable for all, without compromising quality.  In addition to the Wisconsin Housing Alliance, she is the Board Chair for their affiliated non-profit, Tomorrow’s Home Foundation, which assists lower income manufactured homeowners with critical home repairs.  She has a degree in Business Management and Communications from Concordia University. 

Hetti Brown

Hetti Brown is the Executive Director of Couleecap Community Action Agency where the mission is to fight poverty and create economic and social mobility so that all people succeed in thriving communities. Couleecap is an affordable housing developer, energy services provider, and administers food, housing, education, and transportation programs. Hetti serves as President of the Wisconsin Community Action Program (WISCAP), and on the La Crosse Area Family Policy Board, Scenic Bluffs Community Health Center Board of Directors, the Vernon Economic Development Association Board of Directors, and various other community committees.

Paul Gerrard

Paul Gerrard is the Vice President at Gerrard Corporation and a second-generation leader of the real estate development, management, and construction business for 30 years and co-founder of Gerrard Corporation/Gerrard Companies. Paul works seamlessly on-site selection, syndication, financing, and pre-development in various markets throughout the Midwest.

Tyler Hughes

Tyler Hughes is a member of the senior leadership team at Bank CMG, where he oversees relationship management and business development across the bank’s growing footprint, with a focus on strengthening existing client relationships and cultivating new strategic partnerships. Prior to joining Bank CMG, Tyler was recognized as one of the Top 100 Mortgage Loan Originators in the United States and led CMG Home Loans’ largest market segment. His extensive background in mortgage lending, business development, and financial services provides a unique perspective on the intersection of community banking, housing finance, and economic growth.

Kimberly Jacobson

Kimberly Jacobson is the Executive Director for Family Promise of Grant County, where she has led the organization for nearly six years. She works directly with families experiencing homelessness and oversees FPGC’s rotational shelter program, while also working to develop future opportunities for static shelter and transitional housing in Grant County.

Michael Kuchta

Michael Kuchta is city administrator in Lancaster (the Grant County seat). He held a similar role on Madeline Island, in Lake Superior, where he first began taking on the challenge of building attainable housing in rural communities. In comparison, bicycling the hills of the Driftless is easy.

Kelly Maynard

Kelly Maynard is part of the team of Cooperative Development Specialists at the UW Center for Cooperatives, focusing her work on supporting food and agricultural enterprises in rural communities.  She enjoys working with diverse groups as they refine their cooperative business proposition and she prioritizes facilitation and learning about group process and governance in the early stages of cooperative development. Kelly also develops workshops and resources in collaboration with outside partners to broaden understanding about the cooperative model and explore innovative applications that address challenges like farm ownership transitions, farm labor shortages, and beginning farmer land access.  Kelly’s four years of experience working as an education coordinator and general manager of an immigrant-owned farmers’ cooperative and her two years as an agroforestry volunteer with the Peace Corps in Paraguay shape her approach and methods. She earned a Master’s in Agroecology from UW- Madison in 2010. In her free time she enjoys growing flowers, biking, kayaking and exploring the wild outdoors with her family. 

Kurt Paulsen

Kurt Paulsen is a professor of urban planning in the Department of Planning and Landscape Architecture at the University of Wisconsin – Madison. His teaching, research, and public engagement focuses on housing, affordable housing finance and policy, land use, and municipal finance.  He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP). Professor Paulsen regularly speaks to and consults with local and state groups on housing issues, consistent with the Wisconsin Idea. He currently serves on the City of Middleton Plan Commission.

Jeremy Pickard

Dr. Jeremy Pickard serves as President of Southwest Wisconsin Technical College, bringing more than 25 years of experience in higher education and workforce development to his leadership of the College. As president, he is focused on expanding access to education, improving student completion, and ensuring strong outcomes after college. His leadership emphasizes clear educational and career pathways, strong partnerships with business and industry, K-12 schools, higher education, and the communities Southwest Tech serves. Dr. Pickard believes student success, workforce needs, and community prosperity are closely connected. He is committed to building on Southwest Tech’s strengths while creating new opportunities for our students and the region.

Jake Robertson

Couleecap’s technical expert on all things Energy for over 17 years, Jake Robertson is an accomplished speaker, trainer and client advocate.  He helped lead the way for heat pump technology and solar electricity to be approved measures in Wisconsin’s statewide weatherization program.  He currently runs Couleecap’s IRA Rebate Program, supervises their energy auditors and is always looking for more ways to reduce energy usage and help those most in need.

Natalie Strait

Regional Planner with the Southwestern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission (SWWRPC). Originally from the Madison Area, Natalie lives and works in the Driftless Area as a Regional Planner. Her work focuses on supporting rural communities and fostering connections in planning and economic development across the five-county SWWRPC region. Natalie previously worked as a consultant planner in the Twin Cities, guiding communities through the planning process for comprehensive plans, park and trail plans, master plans, and zoning updates.

Jeffrey A. Towne

Jeff Towne has over 25 years of city planning, economic development, and affordable housing development experience at the local and state levels. His current role at The Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA) is as the Community and Economic Development Officer serving the southern region of Wisconsin. He has worked as a Planner for the City of Rockford, IL and Principal Planner for the City of Appleton, WI. He has also served as the Economic Development Specialist for the City of Racine, WI. His background includes extensive experience in community engagement, development review and approval processes, policy and ordinance development, tourism and small business support, and strengthening regional partnerships.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and a master’s degree in Sustainable Tourism from Arizona State University. He has attained AICP certification status from the American Institute of Certified Planners and is a member of the American Planning Association (APA). He has served on multiple boards and committees including the Visit Racine County Board of Directors, the Milwaukee Community Development Alliance Program Committee and the Kenosha County Housing Task Force.

Craig Woodhouse

Craig Woodhouse is the Program Director for Neighborhood Housing Services of Southwestern Wisconsin Community Action Programs (SWCAP).  He has 15 years of non-profit leadership experience in education, community development, workforce development, and housing.  Craig worked more than 10 years within the Wisconsin Technical College System and continues to teach as an adjunct instructor at Blackhawk Technical College.  Craig is the founder and President of the Greater Richland Area Chamber of Commerce, has served as a Richland County Supervisor and is active in several community organizations.