UW-Madison engineering building funds denied by State Building Commission

The State Building Commission denied a motion to allow $70 million in underspent funds to be used for a series of planned Universities of Wisconsin projects including the new engineering building at UW-Madison.

The UW system asked the Building Commission to decrease the UW-Eau Claire sciences building project by $70 million and reallocate part of the money to the UW-Madison engineering building, bringing that project’s total to $419.8 million.

The project cost has increased to add an additional story to the building, which will serve more students, according to UW.

The UW system also asked the commission to reallocate money for projects at UW-Whitewater and UW-Stout.

Republican Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu said the decision not to approve the requests was based on the UW system’s “lack of transparency,” despite the engineering building being a long-term priority for Senate Republicans.

In a letter to UW President Jay Rothman, LeMahieu said “refusing to answer questions creates an adversarial relationship between the UW and legislature.”

“The UW-System has requested nearly a billion dollars in new taxpayer resources despite shrinking enrollments and the closure of campuses,” LeMahieu said. “Taxpayers will rightfully demand transparency and candor from you and your representatives moving forward.”

Craig Thompson, vice chancellor for university Relations at UW-Madison said the decision prevents the school from moving forward on the project until it is granted authority to construct or demolish the current site.

“At least one member of the Building Commission who voted not to move forward today also said that he ‘desperately’ wants to get the Engineering Building done,” Thompson said. “So do we. This building is good for our students, good for industry, good for research, and good for the state of Wisconsin.”

Thompson said any prolonged delay will add to the cost of the building and risk its success.

In March, Gov. Tony Evers released more than $400 million in funding for the engineering building and other projects, including renovations for two academic buildings at the UW-Whitewater and system-wide utility upgrades. That funding was debated for months and  tied up in a deal that included pay raises for UW employees and diversity, equity and inclusion staffing positions.

The money continued to be nixed until it was approved in December 2023 by the UW Board of Regents.