GREEN BAY (WLUK) — The replacement of the 52-year-old Cofrin Library at UW-Green Bay has been given the green light.
Next spring, ground will be broken on the Cofrin Technology and Education Center, a five-story, $101 million building that was recently approved by the state Building Commission.
The environment of the state’s fastest-growing university will change dramatically as the current eight-story library is demolished.
The Cofrin Library, opened in 1972, is still in active use.
“It’s usually used as a quiet place to study,” said Karime Galaviz, UW-Green Bay student body president. “There are private study rooms there that we use frequently.”
However, campus leaders believe the library does not meet current student needs. It also has structural issues, and a 2020 study found that replacing it would be more cost-effective than renovating it.
“It’s really a library that made perfect sense in the late 1960s and early 1970s,” said Michael Alexander, chancellor of UW-Green Bay. “It doesn’t make sense and it can’t be converted into a library that makes sense in the 21st century.”
The new library building will continue to house books, but also the Centre for First Nations Education, the Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, administration and plenty of modern technology.
It will be located between the Weidner Center and Rose Hall, where the Phoenix statue currently stands.
The opening is planned for early 2027.
The current library building will likely be demolished in 2028, according to Alexander, making way for an important feature of the university campus that is currently missing.
“If you’ve ever been to our campus, you’ll notice that we don’t have a traditional university courtyard, so you can see all of the academic buildings and students can easily find their way around,” Alexander said. “This change will allow us to do just that. It will make the Cofrin Technology and Education Center the main entrance to the university in a really clear and obvious way.”
Alexander says that’s important when half of the students are the first generation in their families to go to college.
Existing students also say they will appreciate the new layout.
“I know it will be a few years before that happens, but I will definitely check back after I graduate,” Galaviz said.
During construction, the Phoenix statue will be temporarily moved to the front of the Kress Center before returning to the new courtyard.
