Sun Prairie, Wisconsin

SUN PRA I R I E , WI SCONS IN buildings and one of our firefighters lost his life. It was devastating to the community. I live a half mile away, and when it happened I thought a car had gone off the road and hit my house. That’s what it felt like. Since then, we’ve undertaken a major redevelopment project for that area. The planning process is finished and now we’re working on getting some redevelopment started on that site. It’s obviously a huge focus for us. We engaged a consulting planner to work with the community and talk to the stakeholders and property owners to see what they’d like to see down there.” The redevelopment plan is being regarded as a 100 to 150 year decision – whatever is rebuilt there will remain for a long time. The site is a prominent intersection, with a few key property owners in the area. According to Stechschulte, “The explosion happened right across the street from our old city hall, which is on the National Register of Historic Places. The blast knocked the roof off center and there was a lot of external damage to the building. The owner had just bought it a month before the explosion. He’s now kicking off a huge restoration project and we’re evaluating a request that will help restore it to the way it looked in 1912. We’re excited about that, it’s a landmark on that corner. The plan, called ‘Sun Prairie Stronger,’ drives much of the building scaling and the architecture around that historic building and how tall it will be. And we hope it sets the tone for the rest of the area.” The full redevelopment plan was created with input from the current property owners, and they are encouraged to bring forward a project that matches what is in the document: increased density, more mixed-use, somewhat taller structures – the corner is at the main intersection where the state highway turns and comes right through the downtown. With its location on a highly visible, high-traffic route, the project will be a top community priority for the next several years. Sun Prairie has also been busy in other avenues.