Committee approves extra $2.1 million to renovate UW-L’s second-oldest building

The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse is close to getting an extra $2.1 million for renovations.

Funding for the university’s second-oldest building, Wittich Hall, was approved by a UW System Board of Regents committee. Now it goes to the state’s building commission.

Contractors for the project say there’s been a significant hike in the cost for structural steel, and the low unemployment rate has made it difficult to find cheap labor.

The new budget is a 15 percent increase to what the college previously had submitted.

The project includes a complete overhaul inside and will house the UW-L College of Business Administration.

Renovations should be complete by 2020.

Wittich Hall was constructed in 1916 and last renovated in 1931.. Plans include a complete overhaul of the interior.