Two Rivers Takes a Sharp, Painful Hit to the Gut

200 lost jobs for a city that can ill afford it.

Thermo Fisher to close Two Rivers plant, 200 jobs lost. (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, 12/14/2011)

Excerpt: Company officials said the latest decision was based on current market conditions and other factors including labor and energy costs. The factory is in an old, multistory building in downtown Two Rivers.

"We carefully considered all available options before moving forward," company officials said in a statement.

"We will do everything possible to support the employees who are affected," the statement said.

Generations of Two Rivers residents have worked at the company, which only 10 years ago employed about 1,100 people in the city.

Jeff Dawson, Director of the Lester Public Library in Two Rivers, shared this comment with me recently.

Two Rivers is facing another blow with Thermo Fisher (what was once the city mainstay - Hamilton Industries) pulling out of town and heading south. This threat has been hanging for a couple of years, in fact since I have been here - probably longer. We are hoping when Thermo leaves they take care of the manufacturing facility, i.e. clean it up, tear it down and get rid of the industrial waste (we can ill afford the Mirro mess left behind in Manitowoc). In my opinion, once Thermo is gone, we can begin to redefine our city and move forward. TR is incredibly beautiful, where else on Lake Michigan do you have the confluence of two rivers and an open public beach?

Two Rivers, my wife's hometown and, therefore, a place where I've spent a lot of time, does indeed have beauty in its corner.