Food trucks, stage, pop-up stores recommended to enliven parking lot near Shops of Grand Avenue

A 10-month study of a city-owned parking lot on West Wisconsin Avenue recommends temporary strategies to enliven the space with a stage, pop-up stores and food trucks, rather than a high-cost redevelopment.

The Wisconsin Avenue Milwaukee Development Corp., or WAM DC, has studied that parking lot at Fourth Street and Wisconsin Avenue as it looks for ways to revitalize the area around The Shops of Grand Avenue. It hired Creative Alliance Milwaukee to come up with recommendations for the city property.

A…

Duke Energy closes deals to repurchase 19.5M shares

Duke Energy closed deals today to repurchase about 19.5 million shares of its outstanding stock from Goldman Sachs & Co. & JPMorgan Chase Bank.

The $1.5 billion paid for the deals comes from Duke’s $2.8 billion sale of its interests in 11 commercial plants in the Midwest and Pennsylvania. That deal with Dynegy Inc. closed on April 2.

Under the terms of the agreements, filed Monday with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Charlotte-based Duke (NYSE:DUK) will pay each financial institution…

U.S. Bancorp puts $100 million bet on solar energy

This story is part of the Business Journal’s “Powering St. Louis: The Energy Report” focus. For more energy stories, pick up a copy of this week’s issue or go here to view it online.

The closing of U.S. Bancorp’s first renewable energy syndication earlier this month signals the bank’s readiness to bring in third-party investors to partner in its tax-equity investments.

The $100 million syndication deal with ORIX USA, a subsidiary of Tokyo-based ORIX Corp., will enable SolarCity to install…

Series of earthquakes shake Permian Basin in recent weeks

A series of three earthquakes hit the Permian Basin along the oil and natural gas-rich lands along the Pecos and Reeves county lines over the past two weeks, according to data from the U.S. Geological Survey.

USGS data shows that the first one was a 2.8-magnitude earthquake recorded off U.S. Highway 285 and Mendel Road just northwest of Fort Stockton around 1 a.m. on March 21.

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The second one was a 2.9-magnitude earthquake recorded nearby…

Dallas' Westdale vying for city incentives for Deep Ellum redevelopment

Dallas-based Westdale Real Estate Investment and Management has requested $1.6 million in city incentives for a Deep Ellum redevelopment, which includes a pedestrian courtyard and walkway through Main and Elm streets.

The redevelopment project is expected to cost more than $7.9 million, according to city documents.

The Board of Directors for the Deep Ellum TIF district has already approved the incentives for the project, but the Dallas economic development committee is expected to vote on them…