Concordia University Wisconsin is proposing a new four-story academic building on its Mequon campus that would house the business, education, hospitality and event management, and health professions programs.
The 85,311-square-foot facility would be located to the east of the School of Pharmacy building and its front would face towards Lake Michigan. The design calls for the front to have an abundance of glass, providing occupants views of the lake.
The Mequon Plan Commission is set to review the proposal on Monday. The project revives plans the university had in 2013 to construct a 50,000-square-foot center for the business school.
The building will predominately be used for the busiensses program, although it will also incorporate other departments and room for collaboration, said Daniel Sem, dean of the Batterman School of Business.
He noted the business program has tripled in size since 2006, but no additional space has been added.
The goal is to begin construction next year. He declined to provide an exact dollar figure for the project, but said it was in the range of a $24 million project Carroll University just completed.
The designs call for a fully functional physical and occupational therapy and speech pathology facility on the lower level and half of the first floor to give students immersive experiences.
A large collaboration space on the first floor would make room for students to have group study sessions, brainstorm and develop ideas. There would also be private offices for marketing, graphic design, 3D prototyping, computer studies.
The facility would include a two-story 6,000-square-foot multi-purpose classroom to be used as a large group conference and presentation space. The room could also be divided into smaller classroom spaces using floor-to-ceiling wall partitions.
The plan also calls for research labs and industry specific spaces including space for forensic food and drug analysis, a crime scene lab, a mock courtroom, a mock trading room and other business related spaces.
Concordia would also add 65 parking spaces, giving the campus a total of 2,275. The plans also identify locations for additional parking in the future.
The university also announced Thursday it would rename its School of Business Administration as the Batterman School of Business. The name change recognizes Theodor Batterman, the retired president and chief executive officer of Spacesaver Corp. Batterman founded the company in 1972 in Fort Atkinson.
Batterman served three terms on the Concordia Board of Regents and is currently on the CUW Foundation board.
Rev. Partrick Ferry, Concordia president, said Baterman was one of the early supporters in the university’s fundraising campaign for the new building.
“For that reason, and to recognize Ted’s lifetime of giving to Concordia, we are delighted to rename our school the Batterman School of Business. His impact on students, through the building he is helping us to create, and through his example, will be felt for generations to come,” Perry said.
The new building will have “Wisconsin Entrepreneurs” as its theme. Mayor Wisconsin companies will be profiled to tell the stories of their founders as a way to inspire future entrepreneurs.
Sem said the university plans to profile all of Wisconsin’s recognizable companies in a kiosk in the facility. About 20 companies that support the building financially will be profiled in the building’s hallways.
