Meeting at State Fair Park Wednesday during the annual state fair, the Wisconsin Building Commission approved approximately $374 million in building projects for state-owned facilities and properties.
This includes projects such as reconstructing the dam at Pattison State Park in Superior, campus improvement projects at University of Wisconsin facilities, and the sale of two underutilized buildings, known as GEF 2 and 3, located at 101 and 125 S. Webster St. in Madison.
“For eight years, this body has been hard at work to approve projects that will support generational development at our state institutions and facilities, and today’s vote was no exception,” Gov. Tony Evers said in a press release. “From our state parks to our UW System schools, these projects will help make these spaces stronger and more resilient for students, state employees, and visitors to our great state for years to come.”
The commission, comprised of state lawmakers and citizen representatives, approved the following projects:
- The sale of GEF 2 and 3, part of the Evers administration’s Vision 2030 Plan, which aims to consolidate state building space to reduce costs to taxpayers. The sale of these facilities will reduce the state’s office space by 135,334 square feet and will avoid an estimated $213 million in repairs necessary to bring the facilities up to safety and operational standards;
- hase II of the utility improvements project at Mendota Mental Health Institute, which updates the utility infrastructure for the Wisconsin Department of Health Services’ buildings and patient population;
- Replacement of the 1930s-era Fire Response Ranger Station in Crandon, better supporting the state Department of Natural Resources’ operational needs, protecting forestry and wildlife, and improving emergency response to Oneida, Florence, Marinette, Oconto and Langlade counties;
- Reconstruction of the 100-year-old Pattison State Park dam following a breach of the southern embankment due to heavy rainfall;
- Replacing the deteriorated Central Services Building at the Wisconsin Veterans Home at King with a new facility to house a modern kitchen, laundry facility, and IT center;
- Authority to construct the UW-Madison Veterinary Diagnostic Lab located in Barron County, which will modernize the facility, provide the necessary BSL-3 laboratory capabilities, and improve safety and the ability to support testing and service needs of the state;
- Two projects in the 2025-27 Instructional Space Projects program that will renovate UW-Milwaukee’s Lapham Hall into an Active Learning Classroom, as well as relocation and construction of a new Athletic Training Learning Laboratory and Cadaver Laboratory at UW-Green Bay, providing modern, instructional spaces to better support academic needs; and
- A multibuilding telecommunications cable replacement project at UW-Parkside and a multi-residence hall fire sprinkler system retrofit project at UW-La Crosse.
