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PUBLIC NOTICE

Availability of Draft Environmental Impact Statement and Notice of Meeting New Residence Hall

UW Oshkosh, DSF Project #08K3J

The State of Wisconsin’s Department of Administration, Division of State Facilities has retained GRAEF to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the proposed construction of a new residence hall on the UW Oshkosh campus in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. This is in accordance with Sec. 1.11 Wis. Stats. related to the Wisconsin Environmental Policy ACT (WEPA) and UW System WEPA Guidelines.

A public meeting to present the Draft EIS for the proposed project will be held at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday Feb. 3, 2010, for the proposed New Residence Hall project. The meeting will occur in Room 214 of the Reeve Memorial Union, which is located at 748 Algoma Blvd. on the UW Oshkosh campus. Free parking is available across Algoma Boulevard in Parking Lot #15 after 5 p.m. The project scope will be presented, potential impacts will be identified, and attendees will be provided a reasonable opportunity to identify, both orally and in writing, any issues or comments that should be addressed in the EIS process.

The proposed project will construct a new 340 bed, five-story residence hall of approximately 165,000 GSF. The new facility will be located at the intersection of Algoma Boulevard and Elmwood Avenue, on the site of the current Breese, Nelson and Clemans residence halls. The Breese, Nelson and Clemans residence halls will be demolished as part of the project. Deconstruction is targeted to start in May 2010 followed by construction of the new residence hall, starting in October 2010, with substantial completion planned for July 2012. The estimated total project cost is $31.5 million that will be funded using Program Revenue Supported Borrowing.

The three existing traditional double occupancy room residence halls that will be deconstructed have a current total capacity of 698. The campus has experienced a surplus of beds for many years. With demolition of the three residence halls and construction of the new residence hall, overall campus housing capacity will be reduced to a level that is more consistent with anticipated demand. The new facility will be the first suite-style residence hall on the campus. Construction of the new residence hall will provide a variety of on-campus housing choices that are more in line with student demands, and will serve as a tool for attracting and retaining upper-division and graduate students in the residence halls.

The Draft EIS is available for public review beginning on Jan. 19, 2010, at the circulation desk of the UW Oshkosh Forrest R. Polk Library located at 800 Algoma Blvd. in the City of Oshkosh, the circulation desk of the City of Oshkosh Public Library located at 106 Washington Ave. in the City of Oshkosh, the Capital Planning and Budget office located at 780 Regent St., Suite 210, in the City of Madison, and online beginning Jan. 19, 2010, at: www.graef-usa.com/events/uwoshkosh.

Opportunities for both written and oral comments will be provided at the meeting. Comments received at the public meeting and during the 45-day public review period will be considered in preparation of the Final EIS. Written comments related to the proposed project can be submitted at the public meeting, by mail, or by e-mail. For consideration in the Final EIS report, comments must be received by Friday, March 5, 2010, and should be sent to:

Travis Haas, GRAEF
125 South 84th Street, Suite 401
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 53214

E-mail address: Travis.Haas@graef-usa.com

www.graef-usa.com

As part of the WEPA process, an additional opportunity for input will be provided. The Final EIS will be available for a 30-day review period in April with a public hearing planned for early May. It is anticipated that the Record of Decision will be completed in May 2010.

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