Master plans begin for sustainability campus built on portion of Dane Co. golf course

MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) - The City of Madison and Dane County Executive Joe Parisi announced Thursday some initial planning details of the proposed Sustainability Campus.

In preparation for the less than 10 years of landfill space left at the Rodefeld Landfill, the Dane County Department of Waste and Renewables has started initial plans for a new waste campus to “redesign how the community’s waste is managed.”

Dane County Department of Waste & Renewables said its vision of the campus will boost economic development in the area and create jobs by including waste processors, recycling businesses and research and startup companies. It also said it hopes to create reusable material opportunities.

“The Dane County Department of Waste & Renewables has a long history of completing successful, innovative projects like the Renewable Natural Gas Plant and Offload Station, Construction and Demolition Recycling Facility, native prairie cover on the landfill, and the Trash Lab mobile education exhibit,” Dane County Executive Joe Parisi said.

Dane County said it hopes to include in the project, proposed to be on the east side of the Yahara Hills Golf Course, a business park as well as an organics processing facility, a waste education center and a landfill.

Dane County and the City of Madison hired SCS Engineers and Vandewalle & Associates to help with the campus development.

According to the release, the firms will work with Dane County to plan and host workshops for the community that will give the public opportunities to engage and keep them updated on the design and goals of the campus.

The firms will also work with local businesses to reduce and allocate different types of waste. Dane Co. said the firms would sum up their findings in a plan that will be considered when developing the campus.

“The Sustainability Campus is an exciting project that will greatly enhance the City’s efforts to keep materials out of the landfill, accelerate our transition to a local circular economy, and create a space for innovation and business development,” City of Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway said.

Neighbors of the planned campus have previously voiced their concerns that the development of waste facility will decrease the property value of their homes.

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