Transformed Spaces: WI. Cos. Convert Closed UW Campuses into K-12 Classrooms, Housing, and Event Venues | Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Wisconsin counties with shuttered University of Wisconsin branch campuses are reimagining the properties to serve a range of purposes including senior housing, K-12 classroom space, even a wedding venue.
The transformations of these sites come after years of declining enrollment and financial pressures at the two-year campuses previously known as UW Colleges. A 2018 merger placed these branch campuses under the oversight of various four-year UW institutions. But the hemorrhaging of students continued amid demographic challenges and competition with nearby technical colleges.
The transformations of these sites come after years of declining enrollment and financial pressures at the two-year campuses previously known as UW Colleges. A 2018 merger placed these branch campuses under the oversight of various four-year UW institutions. But the hemorrhaging of students continued amid demographic challenges and competition with nearby technical colleges.
Since 2023, five branch campuses have closed or will close by the end of this school year. A sixth campus has ended in-person instruction. Unlike four-year institutions that are considered state property, the branch campuses are owned by the counties where they are located.
A bill signed into state law earlier this year offered up to $2 million in grant money to help counties redevelop their campuses. A total of $20 million is available from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation. No counties have received the money to date, but one is nearing a final contract and four have secured application materials.
Here’s what to know about redevelopment plans for your local UW branch campus:
UW-Milwaukee at Waukesha to be demolished
Waukesha County plans to demolish the campus after it closes in June and transform the site into hundreds of homes.
The city of Waukesha Plan Commission in late November postponed a vote to change the land use of the site from institutional to residential. The delay was procedural and doesn’t change the county’s timeline to approve the mixed residential development plan in January, Waukesha County Parks and Land Use Director Dale Shaver said.
The redevelopment will place valuable land back on the tax roll, he said. The county has already released marketing materials to attract interested developers and anticipates putting out a request for proposals in February.
Waukesha County anticipates using the grant money on demolition costs, county spokeswoman Hillary Mintz said.
Local school district expresses interest in UW-Oshkosh Fox Cities
What will come of UW-Oshkosh Fox Cities after it ends in-person classes next June is less clear.
Winnebago County and Outagamie County jointly own the land and facilities of the Menasha campus, including the Barlow Planetarium, Communication Arts Center, University Children’s Center, Weis Earth Science Museum and a field house.
The counties are working on a plan for the Menasha School District and an outside partner to use the buildings for educational purposes. Details are still being hammered out, but those involved were optimistic.
” (There’s) a whole bunch of inside baseball right now that we’re trying to get lined up,” Winnebago County Executive Jon Doemel said, noting the plan would need approval from two county boards, a school board and potentially others as well.
If it falls through, Doemel estimated the cost to maintain the buildings could be as much as $800,000 annually.
A community awareness meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m Dec. 12 at the Barlow Planetarium, 1478 Midway Road, Menasha.
UW-Milwaukee at Washington County also getting interest from school districts
The West Bend campus closed last June, and Washington County is working on a plan for the campus to continue serving an educational purpose.
The West Bend School District has expressed interest in using 10% to 15% of the campus space for its alternative education programming, Washington County Executive Josh Schoemann said. Separately, K-12 superintendents across the county sent a formal letter of interest about using some space for special needs services in partnership with the region’s Cooperative Educational Service Agency.
The districts may become “anchor tenants” of the space and cover the operational costs of the facility, which are estimated to be $500,000 and $750,000 annually, he said. Lease and operating agreements are expected be formalized next year.
The county is mulling a senior community center, child care center and some other options for the rest of the campus. Schoemann said partnering with outside organizations, such as the local YMCA or a school district, will be key to maintaining some of what the campus provided the commuity, like theater and recreational opportunities.
“We want to get those things back in there, but that is just not something county government does,” he said.
Washington County has not yet applied for the grant money but anticipates doing so when plans firm up, he said.
Fond du Lac County sees UW-Oshkosh Fond du Lac campus as revenue generator
At the former UW-Oshkosh Fond du Lac campus, wedding bells are replacing school bells.
The county is turning the art building into a law enforcement training center, Boyenga said. Renovations are underway to build a “mock jail.” The pond on the property is deep enough to do dive trainings for officers. This could create a revenue stream from out-of-county police departments.
Over the next few months, the county is moving its human services department to the campus, he said. That will pair well with the county’s plan to sell the land surrounding the campus buildings and turn it into senior housing.
“We’re pretty far in the process of redeveloping it,” Boyenga said of the campus’ transformation. “It was all about what can we do to make this not a taxpayer burden?”
Richland County faces tough decisions on UW-Platteville Richland campus
Richland County was the first to see its campus close and it is furthest behind in redevelopment.
“We’re grappling with significant decisions,” Richland County administrator Candace Pesch said. “We’re a rural community. We don’t have the economic development opportunities that these larger cities do. Nobody’s come forward to say ‘we’d love to take this off your hands.'”
A viability study put a $20 million price tag on renovating all campus buildings, she said. Building new would cost even more. The theater and student center, for example, need significant repairs, but the community theater group doesn’t have funding to sustain a project of that scale.
“Is there anyone that’s going to want to come in and put $4 million into a 60-year old building?” Pesch asked. “That’s what (the county board is) wrestling with. Is there an opportunity for future use?”
“This has been such an emotional time,” Pesch said. “It’s such a trememdous loss for the community, and it’s been very difficult for them to come to terms with where we’re at. The board is doing the best they can to make data-driven decisions and spend taxpayer money in the most responsible way they can.”
UW-Green Bay takes different approach with Marinette campus
UW-Green Bay Marinette ended in-person classes last June but continues to have a presence on the campus, running the theater, maintaining the buildings and offering a handful of online classes.
“UW-Green Bay remains under the obligations of the current lease and will do so in a fashion that meets its operational strategy at the campus,” university spokesperson Kristin Bouchard said.
Marinette County administrator John Lefebvre said the one exception is the fieldhouse, which the county took control of about a year and a half ago. The county provides the space to a community pool association rent free on the condition the nonprofit covers the operational costs.
Bouchard said UW-Green Bay has no plans to end its current operation of the campus and will continue to maintain campus buildings. The university is open to assessing ideas for alternative uses for the space if an opportunity arose and the county supported it.
Seven branch campuses remain open with no closure plans announced: UW-Baraboo/Sauk County, UW-Whitewater Rock County, UW-Green Bay Sheboygan, UW-Green Bay Manitowoc, UW-Eau Claire Barron County, UW-Stevens Point Marshfield and UW-Stevens Point Wausau.
Enrollment at three of these campuses — Baraboo/Sauk County, Marshfield and Wausau — fell this fall from the previous year, while the others saw increases. UW System President Jay Rothman has pledged to keep them open if the state approves his request for an $855 million budget increase over the next two years.
Kelly Meyerhofer covers higher education in Wisconsin. Contact her at kmeyerhofer@gannett.com or 414-223-5168. Follow her on X (Twitter) at @KellyMeyerhofer.
