Business

Economic impact study planned for La Crosse Center

Published

5 years ago

January 22, 2019

If the city of La Crosse spends $42 million to improve the La Crosse Center, what kind of economic impact will it have on downtown?

An outside study group is expected to look into that question within the next few weeks, as a final design for the civic center renovation is prepared for the city council.

Center Board president Brent Smith said the board will spend the next month reviewing design options for a west-side addition, with the goal of having the council approve a final design during its April meetings.

The board finds itself in the position of having to approve a new building design within the next five or six weeks to keep construction plans on schedule.

Smith said the project timetable hasn’t changed, it’s just that big decisions are coming up quickly.

Brad Williams

A native of Prairie du Chien, Brad graduated from UW - La Crosse and has worked in radio news for more than 30 years, mostly in the La Crosse area. He regularly covers local courts and city and county government. Brad produces the features "Yesterday in La Crosse" and "What's Buried on Brad's Desk." He also writes the website "Triviazoids," which finds odd connections between events that happen on a certain date, and he writes and performs with the local comedy group Heart of La Crosse. Brad been featured on several national TV programs because of his memory skills.