Campus, County, City Move Forward with UW-BSC Residence Hall

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: 

Keri Olson, Administrative Analyst LTE

Office of the Administrative Coordinator

Sauk County West Square Building

505 Broadway

Baraboo, WI  53913

Phone:  (608) 355-3274

Email: kolson@co.sauk.wi.us

CAMPUS, COUNTY, CITY MOVE FORWARD WITH UW-BSC RESIDENCE HALL

     BARABOO, WISCONSIN; July 25, 2013 – University of Wisconsin-Baraboo/Sauk County students are closer to having an on-campus housing option after a UW-BSC Campus Commission sub-committee finalized a request for proposal and project timeline on July 23 for a new campus residence hall.

     Proposals are being sought from qualified firms to provide comprehensive turnkey services for student residential facilities and programming on a site provided by UW-BSC.  The goal is to open a 100-bed facility by August 2015 that would offer quality housing and residence life programming to students at a reasonable price. 

     “The campus is seeking a partner to enter into a comprehensive development agreement for planning, design, financing, construction, management and program operation of a student residence life facility,” explained Phil Wedekind, Campus Commission Chairperson. “No tax dollars will fund this project. Instead, in a unique arrangement, our local governmental entities and the campus will work with a private partner to bring the residence hall to fruition.”

     According to a study conducted earlier this year by Baker Tilly Virchow Krause LLP, UW-BSC on-campus enrollment has grown 5.5 percent over the past 10 years, from 566 students in the 2003-2004 academic year to 597 students in the 2012-2013 academic year. 

     Currently, the campus does not offer on-site housing for its students. Since UW-BSC’s opening in 1968, students have lived off-campus with their families or competed with other renters for limited affordable, multi-family housing in Baraboo.

     “On-campus housing will be attractive to UW-BSC students from Sauk County and beyond, including international students,” said UW-BSC CEO and Dean Thomas Pleger. “It will also allow for enhanced summer programming through our Continuing Education department and for UW-BSC to offer overnight conferences on campus."

     The University of Wisconsin-Baraboo/Sauk County is a three-way partnership between the University of Wisconsin System, the City of Baraboo and Sauk County, with the grounds and facilities jointly owned by the city and county, and staffing, programming and equipment provided by the University of Wisconsin Colleges and UW System.

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