State approves $125 million in projects, capital budget headed to committee

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The commission on state projects greenlit roughly $125 million for various jobs across Wisconsin.

Gov. Tony Evers on Thursday announced the State Building Commission approved the sum, which will go to different projects such as the Milwaukee Readiness Center, a research institute at University of Wisconsin – Madison and maintenance for other UW-System and state buildings.

“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,” Evers said in a statement. “We will continue to prioritize the continued development and maintenance of statewide infrastructure to best serve Wisconsinites in communities across our state,” he added.
Included in the list of approved projects were:

• Planning funds for the fourth phase of renovations at the Milwaukee Readiness Center and modernization of the Wisconsin Army National Guard’s training facility, including a mezzanine, locker areas and administrative space in the drill hall.
• Expanding UW-Madison‘s ownership in the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery and space below the Computer, Data and Information Science Building, which was made possible by a gift from the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation.
• Utility infrastructure upgrades at UW – Stevens Point and UW – La Crosse. Upgrades are made through the Central Plants and Utility Distribution Renovations Program.
• A total of 31 facility and maintenance repairs for state agencies in different counties, including four Wisconsin departments, Wisconsin State Fair Park and the UW System.
• A request to transfer funding in the 2023-25 budget from the Joint Committee on Finance’s Supplemental Appropriation to the Building Trust Fund, which helps design works that help agencies develop more complete scopes, schedules and budgets in future projects.

This was the first commission meeting since March, when members voted down $4.1 billion in the governor’s capital budget recommendations. The governor’s office said the investment will help address a growing backlog of maintenance projects, but Republican legislators in the committee said they wanted more discussion over how much money will be invested.

The governor’s office said obstruction by Republican members of the commission led to the SBC failing to create a State Building Program the last three budget cycles. The SBC has opted out of recommending the program since it was introduced in 2019, the governor’s officials added.

The 2025-27 capital budget which includes the governor’s recommendations will go before the Joint Finance Committee. The committee was scheduled on Thursday to hold its executive session.