Four advisers under one Grafton roof for Edward Jones

The new Edward Jones building formally opened with a ribbon-cutting ceremony last week, bringing the financial advisers for the company from throughout Ozaukee County under one roof.

“The point was to have the presence of all (Edward Jones advisers) in Ozaukee County in one office on one main drag of one of the cities in Ozaukee County,” financial adviser Jerry Faust said.

Faust has been with Edward Jones for 23 years, working out of the building he owned next door to the new facility.

Edward Jones decided not to renew the company’s lease of the property because it isn’t handicapped accessible, he said, so he began looking around for a new place.

He talked to the owner of the building next door, which previously housed Photography by Michael. He bought the building, which was built in 1850 and considered renovating it, but found it was “beyond rehabilitation,” Faust said.

“I tried to keep it, but it was just not possible,” he said.

Before the building was razed last year, he said, the Grafton Historical Society came through and took items it found, including negatives from the 1960s and 1970s, many of the Grafton Fire Department, and later the Fire Department did training exercises there.

Edward Jones’ home office talked to him about building an office that would fit a team, and Faust said he was receptive.

“It would be great, make us better financial advisers,” he said, noting that the opportunities for collaboration are enormous.

Working with Faust from the new building, which is being leased by Edward Jones, are Mike LaChance, who had been in Port Washington; Brian Nelson, whose office was in Cedarburg; and Mike Lefko, who worked from Thiensville.

Each brings his own staff and clients, Faust said.

The building has enough room for six advisers, one of whom will come on next year. Faust’s son Carson is graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire with a degree in finance in May.

Eventually he would like to bring in someone whose specialty is working with widows or people going through a divorce, Faust said.

Having a number of advisers under one roof is unusual, but something that’s catching on, he said, in part because of the opportunities to collaborate and share ideas but also because of the potential for economic efficiencies.

The Grafton building at 1223 12th Ave. opened its doors on Oct. 7, and Faust said so far things are going well.

“I loved the other office — it had character — but this is great,” he said.