Entertainment
Debate over War Eagle mural on the La Crosse Center, concerts vs. conventions and building’s changing identity
La Crosse Center Board president Brent Smith was on La Crosse Talk PM on Wednesday, discussing the consideration of putting a War Eagle steamboat mural on the outside of the Civic Center, concerts or conventions and the building’s changed leadership role.
If you would like to hear about the history of the War Eagle sinking just south of Riverside Park in the Mississippi River, UW-L archivist Laura Godden was on last week telling that story.
La Crosse Talk PM airs weekdays at 5:06 p.m. Listen on the WIZM app, online here, or on 92.3 FM / 1410 AM / 106.7 FM (north of Onalaska). Find all the podcasts here or subscribe to La Crosse Talk PM wherever you get your podcasts.
Smith has been on the board for over three decades. Along with the mural consideration, we talked about the changing identity of the Civic Center, a few years removed from a $42 million renovation/expansion.
We also discussed the age-old question: Why aren’t there more concerts?
One other thing we talked about was the decision by the board to continue having the Civic Center be run by Jay Odegaard, director of the La Crosse Parks, Recreation and Forestry department over having a private company handle day-to-day operations.
