Gov. Evers Announces State Building Commission Approves $125 Million in Projects Across Wisconsin

MADISON — Gov. Tony Evers today announced the Wisconsin State Building Commission (SBC) met to approve important projects totaling approximately $125 million statewide.

“Whether it’s supporting the success of students and our state’s dedicated public servants, investing in community infrastructure to uphold public safety, or ensuring we are laying the groundwork to advance future development, these investments today will pay dividends for our state’s future,” said Gov. Evers. “We will continue to prioritize the continued development and maintenance of statewide infrastructure to best serve Wisconsinites in communities across our state.”

Highlights of the Commission’s approved projects from today’s meeting include:

• Releasing planning funds for Phase IV renovations at the Milwaukee Readiness Center, continuing the phased modernization of the Wisconsin Army National Guard’s historic training facility. This phase includes design work for a mezzanine, locker areas, and administrative space within the drill hall;
• Expanding UW-Madison’s ownership in the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery and space located beneath the new Computer, Data and Information Science building, which was made possible by a gift from the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation;
• Approving utility infrastructure upgrades at UW-Stevens Point and UW-La Crosse through the Central Plants and Utility Distribution Renovations Program. These projects will replace aging underground steam lines, chilled water systems, vaults, and electrical infrastructure to improve reliability and energy performance on both campuses;
• Approving 31 facility maintenance and repair projects for several state agencies in numerous counties across the state, including the Wisconsin Departments of Corrections, Health Services, Natural Resources, and Veterans Affairs, Wisconsin State Fair Park, and the UW System. These projects address critical needs such as HVAC replacements, exterior envelope repairs, utility upgrades, and life safety system improvements to extend the useful life of state-owned facilities and support uninterrupted service delivery; and
• Approving a request to transfer funding included in the 2023-25 budget from the Joint Committee on Finance’s (JFC) Supplemental Appropriation to the Building Trust Fund to support design work that helps agencies develop more complete scopes, schedules, and budgets for future capital project requests in upcoming biennial budgets.

The Commission’s actions today are the first since members failed to reach consensus on Gov. Evers’ 2025-27 Capital Budget recommendations in March. The governor’s Capital Budget recommendations invest $4.1 billion to support major projects in 26 counties across the state that help address the growing backlog of maintenance projects across the state’s infrastructure, invest in the future of the UW System, and modernize corrections statewide, among other key priorities.

Over the course of the past three budget cycles, due to obstruction by the Republican members of the Commission to block critical projects, the SBC has consistently failed to develop a State Building Program. In the 2019-21 biennium, the SBC reviewed state agency requests and the governor’s 2019-21 Capital Budget recommendations and, in a disappointing and unprecedented turn of events, failed to provide recommendations for any of the items submitted on the agenda. This was the first time in SBC records the Commission did not collaborate to develop a State Building Program. Unfortunately, that trend continued in the 2021-23, 2023-25, and now, 2025-27 biennia as well.

Gov. Evers’ 2025-27 Capital Budget, which represents one of the strongest investments to date for Wisconsin’s facility infrastructure and significant planning funds to prepare important construction projects for future enumerations, will now go before the Republican-controlled budget committee. Additional information on Gov. Evers 2025-27 Capital Budget plan is available here.

The Building Commission is chaired by Gov. Evers and made up of the following members:

• State Sen. Brad Pfaff;
• State Sen. Mary Felzkowski;
• State Sen. André Jacque;
• State Rep. Jill Billings;
• State Rep. Rob Swearingen;
• State Rep. Robert Wittke; and
• Citizen Member Sondy Pope.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.