The Joint Southeast Campus Area Committee met at the Madison Municipal Building Monday to discuss new building projects across campus.
The committee approved a plan to to build a new physical plant building at 30 N. Mills St. and discussed the Charter Street heating plant project.
Gary Brown, director of Planning and Landscape Architecture for UW-Madison, explained the details of the new physical plant building.
The new brick structure is to be built on what is currently a parking lot and will mainly be used for storage.
Alan Fish, associate vice chancellor for facilities planning and management at UW-Madison, also updated the Committee on the plans and schedule for the proposed update of the Charter Street heating plant.
According to Fish, the current plant relies on coal, paper pellets, tires, gas and oil to generate electricity for the UW-Madison campus.
The plant has historically burned as much as 135,000 tons of coal per year, though in recent years the plant has been voluntarily reducing the use of coal.
After the renovation, the plant will completely eliminate the use of coal and instead implement flexible fuel capability to use other sources of energy including biomass, natural gas and fuel oil.
The proposed change also includes demolition of the physical plant retail building at 115 N. Mills Street and expansion into the parking lot nearby.
Officials expect to break ground next year and complete the upgrade by summer 2013.
""This is a big win for the community,"" Fish said, citing reduced emissions and elimination of coal as benefits that Madison residents can expect from the completed project.
