Alliant Energy Center Master Plan
Just south across John Nolen Drive from Olin and Turville Parks sits the 164 acre Alliant Energy Center (AEC), more familiarly known as the Dane County fair grounds or the Coliseum. This large publicly-owned tract has been the target of multiple private and public planning efforts since 2010. The latest iteration of these efforts started with a 2024 updated Market Analysis by Hunden Partners and Perkins & Will - the same nationally-recognized consultant team that created the 2018 campus master plan. The update process was overseen by a County-appointed 12-member AEC Redevelopment Committee. The updated Hunden study was accompanied by an slightly revised design and cost estimate for the 2018 plan's Phase I which focused on expansion of the Expo Center. From these revised plans, the AEC Redevelopment Committee suggested a set of priority investments that will be forwarded to the Dane County Board in late 2024.
The 2018 planning process also created a "Destination District" plan in parallel with the AEC Master Plan, with a focus on future development strategies for properties in close proximity to the AEC site. In concert, these two plans call for significant new development, including residential, on and surrounding the AEC site. This will eventually result in a greatly expanded local user base for Olin & Turville parks, likely placing new demands on the two parks' resources. So we provide a link here to the County's Alliant Energy Center Campus Master Plan as well as the Destination District Vision & Strategy to familiarize our friends with the future vision for the areas neighboring Olin & Turville Parks. We also provide a link to the entire AEC Master Plan Website, where the latest Market Analysis and numerous other supporting and historical AEC planning documents are archived and available.