State Capital Budget to include $30 million for Alliant Energy Center expansion

Site staff by Site Contributor

Wisconsin’s 2019-2021 Capital Budget will include about $30 million for development and construction of the Alliant Energy Center expansion.

Gov. Tony Evers and several Dane County and Madison city leaders made the announcement at the Alliant Energy Center Wednesday.

“We couldn’t do it without the help of the state,” Dane County Executive Joe Parisi said of the investment, which he said comes at a good time for Wisconsin’s agricultural industry.

The investment will help fund the expansion of the Exhibition Hall, which will expand the capacity of existing events and attract additional events that will bring increased national prominence to Wisconsin, officials said.

.@GovEvers is joined by Madison and Dane County community leaders and lawmakers to announce that the Capital budget will include about $30 million for development and construction of an Alliant Energy Center expansion. #news3now pic.twitter.com/TCCgxOIy3J

— Rose Schmidt (@RoseSchmidtTV) March 6, 2019

The funding will be through a non-state grant program that provides state bonding support for nonprofit or local government projects that have a statewide public purpose, according to a release from the governor’s office.

Officials said the current facility does not have enough space to accommodate meetings and events, so the expansion will convert the Exhibition Hall from being a regional exposition center to a full-service convention center for all of Wisconsin and the upper Midwest.

“The expansion of the Alliant Energy Center will catalyze hundreds of millions of dollars in private development generating $1.7 million in new property taxes and boost our local economies throughout the state,” Gov. Evers said in the release. “I’m excited to see this project move forward, and I know it will add value to our entire state.”

The Alliant Energy Center Master Plan Oversight Committee completed it work on a master plan for the 164-acre campus in December.

The committee’s goal is to keep the county-owned center self-supporting to maintain a venue for world-class events.

The master plan includes improvements to the center’s facilities as well as a plan to work with a companion plan for the surrounding area. That other plan addresses needs to John Nolan Drive, Rimrock Road and the lakeshore.

Get your weather forecast from people who actually live in your community. We update with short, easy-to-use video forecasts you can watch on your phone every day. Download the iOS or Android app here.

COPYRIGHT 2020 BY CHANNEL 3000. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. THIS MATERIAL MAY NOT BE PUBLISHED, BROADCAST, REWRITTEN OR REDISTRIBUTED.