A popular spot on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus is about to change. Earlier this month, the university announced it would establish a new sustainable visitor and education center at Lakeshore Nature Preserve/Picnic Point.
MADISON (WKOW) — A popular spot on the University of California, Madison campus is about to change. Earlier this month, the university announced it would establish a new sustainable visitor and education center at Lakeshore Nature Preserve/Picnic Point.
Will Vuyk is the president of the Friends of the Lakeshore Conservancy. He said that for most of his life, the preserve had been a place of rest.
“When I was a kid, we'd come out here on Sundays and go hiking and sit by the beach,” he said. “And now that I've graduated from college and become part of the community, I still love this place.”
Vuik said the reserve occupied an “interesting niche” because it is both university property and a community interface. He said thousands of people visit the area every day.
“Some people think this is just a city park or some other public land, and that's great, but it's important to understand how much of a presence this place has and how important a part this place is to the Madison community. I think it's telling,” Buik said. He said. “This belies the fact that this is a research and education facility as well as an arboretum.”
Therefore, the university is planning to build a new center to establish itself as a research and education facility. Missy Nagaard, the university's sustainability director, said the building will be smaller due to its footprint. Still, it's plenty of space for visitors and students to learn more about the preserve.
“This will be the first net-zero building on campus and will be subject to Wisconsin's first Living Building Challenge (building performance standards), so it's completely new for the state of Wisconsin,” Nagaard said.
And this center is expected to offer a variety of opportunities.
“We just recently became stewards of this land, so it's going to be extraordinary to take that opportunity and really dig into the Ho-Chunk,” she said. “And the outdoors isn't necessarily a place that everyone is comfortable with or that everyone has access to. So we need to create a kind of transitional space where people can connect with nature and get used to nature.”
This space also displays student works.
Vuyk and Nergard aren't ignoring concerns from the community.
“There's always confusion. Part of the project is to actually move the road. It's actually going to be on this site a little bit above the building,” Nagaard said.
“As a resident of Madison, I look at the city here from Picnic Point and there are tons of construction cranes and the city is growing rapidly. I think people who have lived here for a while look at their city. I know you have a lot of concerns. It's changing and growing in different ways,” Vuik said.
He added that development was putting more pressure on natural areas, but said the center insisted the land needed to be preserved.
“We are a strong advocate for this reserve to be preserved as it is, and this center will future-proof this place as the city continues to grow,” Vuik said. said.
This project took several years. It was a recent donation by Jerry Frautsky and his family that moved the plans and schedule forward. Vuik said the university is considering breaking ground in 2025 and opening in 2026.
