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New Facility Reflects Bar's
National Reputation of Service

Moving on

Expanding the current building laterally had to be ruled out because of neighborhood zoning restrictions, and growing upward by adding yet another full floor proved impossible due to structural inadequacies of the older part of the building. After evaluating existing facilities available for purchase and other sites for new construction, the committee recommended and the Board of Governors approved the American Center site earlier this year. (For a more complete account of events leading up to the final decision, see articles in the December 1997 Wisconsin Lawyer and the May 1998 Newsletter.)

Still, some have voiced concern about the Bar moving so far away from the political heart of Madison, the Capitol building. Will the Bar's influence in governmental affairs wane? Smay doesn't believe so, any more than being located at more remote sites has lessened the political clout of other organizations, such as the Wisconsin Education Association Council or the Wisconsin Realtors® Association.

"We are going to have a presence downtown, no question about that," Smay explains, noting that renting a small office has been figured into the expansion project budget. The office will be for occasional use by staff lobbyists and others who have business downtown. "We're not banishing anybody to a satellite office," Smay adds, "and we're not splitting up staff. We're simply going to provide some desk space for people who are downtown for whatever reason, where they can work while waiting for their next appointment. It's not going to be anybody's assignment to be downtown on a full-time basis."

At double the size of the West Wilson Street building, the new facility will relieve the "rabbit warren" atmosphere of the current offices, says State Bar President Susan Steingass. Not only will staff gain the elbow room they need to better perform member services, Steingass notes, but for members themselves the additional space means room for CLE programs, meetings, conferences, social events - and plenty of available parking. Being close to Interstate 90/94 and Highway 151 provides easier access to the Bar Center for out-of-town members. Rooms also will be set aside for out-of-town attorneys who wish to work or conduct depositions while they're in Madison. And a computer training lab will give members a hands-on environment in which to learn about new technology.

"We want to make this a place that's far more usable in terms of space, in terms of location, and in terms of the nature of the facility - for everybody," Steingass says. "I really think the new Bar Center is a move toward inclusiveness. There's more space for everyone, more room to grow. It's good for all of us."

The names of contributors pledging at the Founders Club level of $10,000 or more will be engraved on the second floor galleria. Additional recognition includes naming opportunities and an honor roll book, the Recognition Wall, and the 100 % Club. Recognition opportunities abound to thank contributors who help fund the new Center. The names of those pledging $500 or more will appear on the Recognition Wall located outside the Assembly Halls in the main floor rotunda. The names of 100% Club participants also will be engraved on a wall on the main level to recognize all entities pledging at least $300 per attorney.

Design highlights

Creating a building design that works for all user groups - including Bar members, other visitors, and staff - was the task set before Milwaukee architect Louis Wasserman, who previously won a design competition for his conversion of the old Skylight Opera into new headquarters for the Milwaukee Bar Association.

The new State Bar Center will have two stories, plus a lower level. The main floor's north wing will have CLE classrooms, with offices in the south wing. The second floor will contain additional offices and meeting rooms. The floor plan will combine open work space and enclosed offices, allowing flexibility to adapt to future needs. The lower level will house one administrative department, plus a printing facility, mail room, order-fulfillment area, exercise room, and commons area. Although the lower level is the building's basement, it will be raised sufficiently to allow in plenty of daylight.

Natural lighting will be a key feature in the building, especially in the reception area, which is a two-story atrium topped with a 26-foot-diameter dome made of translucent glass. Combining aesthetics and practicality, the sky-lit atrium will let in more natural light to help reduce the need for artificial lighting, and thus reduce energy costs. Wasserman's architectural fees are funded in part by a $15,000 "Daylighting in the Workplace" grant obtained from the state.

Overall, the new Center is "modeled after a county courthouse," Wasserman explains. Stone columns in the atrium and outside the main entrance fortify that impression. "We've woven the various elements of the site together with the building," Wasserman adds. "We've provided a tree-planting design that creates a major pedestrian median lined with 'columns' of trees. So, the geometry of the landscape reinforces the geometry of the architecture."

Cost of the facility is projected to be $4.65 million, which will be financed through the sale of the West Wilson Street building, liquidation of some intermediate- and short-term investments, and a fund-raising campaign (please see the accompanying article). A bank loan is available to be drawn on as needed.

Fund raising will reduce the amount of debt the Bar needs to assume. "But the fund-raising effort is not just a way to avoid the high cost of money and the long-term expenditures," Steingass says. "It also gets people involved. The services the Bar offers are for all of us, and as volunteers we can give in a way we can afford. So, the campaign is both to make the Center less expensive in the short and long run, and to involve members to the extent they're able. We want people to know and feel that this is a building for everybody."

Dianne Molvig operates Access Information Service, a Madison research, writing, and editing service, She is a frequent contributor to area publications.