Rogue Graphx received a favorable recommendation Oct. 30 from the Shawano Plan Commission to add a new building to the existing property at 814 Waukechon St.
Jarrett Bryzek, the owner for Rogue Graphx, is going through the process of getting a conditional use permit for the new building, which is required in any areas zoned as light industrial.
The new building is considered to be a group development under the city code, which requires a permit. The plan commission was the first hurdle for Bryzek, but the permit must still get final approval from the Shawano Common Council when it meets Nov. 13.
Bryzek said the building is needed because the business has really taken off since he purchased it in 2022, even with expanding the existing building over the winter months of 2023.
“About 10 minutes after we finished that, we outgrew it,” Bryzek said to the commission. “We’ve already got some land to the northwest that we already have that’s not being utilized at all.”
Rogue Graphx was previously B&J Graphics, which was formed in 1998. Bryzek noted that it was still a “mom and pop operation” when he purchased it, but it has exploded into a major player in graphics, listing how it does the detail work for all the fire engines and box trucks for Marion Body Works, firetrucks for Seagrave, police squads for the Oshkosh Police Department and more.
“Currently, we are traveling each day for onsite installations throughout Shawano, Clintonville and Marion,” Bryzek wrote in his overview sent to the city. “This cuts into our work time, is hard on our employees and shaves some profit from our bids. With the proposed additional building, we will be able to do approximately 90% of all installs in house with client’s delivery (of) their fleets to us.”
The proposed building will be 3,000 square feet with a wood frame and steel sided on the interior and exterior. There will be 16-foot internal height ceilings, insulation and three large overhead doors. The building will act as a staging area for large trucks and fleets that will also protect vehicles and workers from the elements.
“We’ve gotten to the point now where we’re offsite so much, whether at Marion Body, Seagrave’s or whatever, let alone municipalities — we do garbage trucks — we’ve gotten to the point now, just this week, where Oshkosh P.D. has 10 new squad cars and they had to bring them one at a time, because we can only fit so much in our building,” Bryzek said.
He added that the vehicles are already outfitted with cameras and all the other necessary equipment for law enforcement, and leaving them out in the open is not desirable.
According to Bryzek, Rogue Graphx works on 10-15 vehicles in a given week. He said that the additional capacity will allow him to immediately hire more installers to keep up with the demand.
Besides the building itself, Rogue Graphx will install a paved entrance apron of at least 20 feet via Waukechon Street into and out of the gravel road and driveway. Bryzek estimates the building could be finished by the end of the year, weather permitting.
“We don’t plan on working in that building consistently, but it will get worked in,” Bryzek said. “We’ve got a plow truck that needs to get stored. We’ve got equipment like scissor lifts and things like that we’re currently stepping over in our current space, so we need the building.”
lpulaski@newmedia-wi.com
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