What exercise routines do southeastern Wisconsin's most physically fit company leaders do to keep in top shape? How does fitness help them to be more effective leaders? Does wellness help their companies' bottom lines?

Recently, 79 local business executives put themselves to the test by agreeing to take part in the Small Business Times Fittest CEOs Competition. SBT partnered with the Wellness Center of Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Athletic Club for the competition to provide awareness of how health and wellness affect the workplace and also to promote executive health. The executives were professionally examined for endurance, strength and body makeup.

Their fitness profiles are now posted at www.biztimes.com/fit. The finalists, including the top women over 50, the top women under 50, the top men over 50 and the top men under 50, will be announced in the April 27 print edition of SBT. All of the participants are invited to attend the Expo After Hours reception during the Wisconsin Business & Technology Expo on Wednesday, May 2, when the winners will be announced.

To register to attend the reception, visit http://expo.biztimes.com/expo/events-schedule.cfm#afterhours.

Walworth County has surpassed Waukesha County as southeastern Wisconsin's wealthiest county, in terms of per-capita property value. According to the Milwaukee-based Public Policy Forum's latest property value report, Walworth County's 2006 per-capita property value is $132,391, compared with $130,348 for Waukesha County.
Walworth County's per-capita property value increased 12.8 percent from 2005 to 2006, the highest among the seven counties measured for the report.
"Walworth is an emerging story in our region and needs to be respected as one of its key players," said Jeff Browne, president of the Forum.
The county rankings of per-capita property value were:

• Walworth County, $132,391
• Waukesha County, $130,348
• Ozaukee County, $122,741
• Washington County, $101,110
• Kenosha County, $85,558
• Racine County, $76,217
• Milwaukee County, $67,894

By individual municipality in Walworth County, the Town of Linn, at $643,426, and the Village of Fontana, at $578,002, ranked the highest in per capita property value.
The highest-ranked municipalities in per capita property value in the region included: the Village of Chenequa, $923,521; and the Village of Oconomowoc Lake, $711,567. The highest-ranked community in Milwaukee County was the Village of River Hills, with $297,594.
Southeastern Wisconsin's overall property tax base grew 10.7 percent from 2005 to 2006, surpassing the state's overall rate of 9.6 percent. The City of Milwaukee, where the overall tax base increased 15.1 percent, has been the region's growth driver over the past few years.
Walworth County had the largest overall tax-base growth, 14.2 percent, in the region from 2005 to 2006. It also had the highest growth among the seven counties in residential and manufacturing tax bases.
Waukesha County, on the other hand, grew much slower last year. Its overall tax base increased only 8.9 percent, sixth among the region's seven counties.
"Apparently a certain level of wealth is reached and things tend to slow down a bit, particularly in a region that is only holding its own economically," Browne said. "Ozaukee County, another relatively wealthy county in the region, had the slowest tax-base growth in southeastern Wisconsin, at 7.3 percent."
To view the full report, visit www.publicpolicyforum.org.

Who'd have thought a left-brained, mathematically-inclined, logically meticulous economist could have a right-brained theatrical side?
Clare Zempel is largely regarded as Milwaukee's foremost economist. He founded Zempel Strategic in Fox Point after serving several years as the director of investment policy, chief investment strategist and chief economist for Robert W. Baird & Co. Inc. in Milwaukee.
However, instead of crunching numbers and examining economic trends, Zempel's latest venture is as Inspector Lablach in playwright Harry Kurnitz's "A Shot in the Dark." Zempel's character is the boss of the magistrates, the people who bring charges against criminals. His character is comparable to a district attorney.
Zempel has had a few smaller roles since 2003 with various local theaters. He has played the trumpet for years and is currently taking tap dancing lessons, but said he hasn't "inflicted" that talent upon the public just yet.
"I think I've always had a creative approach to economic research," Zempel said. "It isn't just that you're grinding away at the same numbers. One aspect of the economy is the aggregation of human behavior. The theater is human behavior."
The comedy will run April 20 through May 6 at the Boulevard Theatre in Milwaukee. For additional information, visit www.boulevardtheatre.com.

Comprehensive planning for neighborhoods of the southeast side of Milwaukee will continue with an invitation to the public to take part in the city's visual preference survey.
The public can weigh in on the direction of the southeast side of the city during public listening sessions on Monday, April 23, from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. or from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the Robert Anderson Municipal Building, 4001 S. Sixth St.
The southeast side area plan includes the Port of Milwaukee on the north and extends to General Mitchell International Airport on the south. Within the boundaries are the Kinnickinnic River industrial area and the neighborhoods of Bay View, Tippecanoe, Saveland Park, the former Town of Lake and the neighborhoods west of the airport. A separate community survey is also underway, to assist with a market study. The survey can be taken at  www.mkedcd.org/planning/plans/Southeast.
A total of 12 comprehensive area plans will be completed by 2010 to provide each area of the City of Milwaukee with a guide to future development, based on community input. To see all area plans and future area plans, visit www.mkedcd.org/planning/plans/CompPlan/Area.

Wisconsin farmers are upbeat about making a profit this year, but remain worried about their ability to obtain affordable health insurance.
According to a survey by the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation, the overwhelming majority (82 percent) say they are better off financially than they were five years ago. They say they are also strongly optimistic (87) percent about the future.
Read more in a report at WisBusiness.com, a media partner of SBT.

A Green Bay licensing committee targeting undocumented workers draws criticism. Read more in SBT's daily roundup of headlines from newspapers around the state at www.biztimes.com.

The federal tax code unfair penalizes American small businesses, according to Ray Marchiori of the U.S. Small Business Administration and author of today's Milwaukee Biz Blog.

The BizTimes Stock Index dropped 1.44 points Friday, but local stocks staged a furious rally in early morning trading today, with advancers far outnumbering decliners. The largest local advancers this morning were Actuant Corp. (up $1.04 to $51.57) and Bucyrus International Inc. (up $1.02 to $56.51). The largest local decliners this morning were Kohl's Corp. (down 38 cents to $76.86) and Marcus Corp. (down 11 cents to $212.29). The BizTimes Stock Index was created by Small Business Times and is monitored by North Shore Bank. The index, which measures the stock values of publicly held companies based in southeastern Wisconsin, is updated daily and can be viewed at www.biztimes.com.