The former University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point at Wausau campus is sitting mostly empty, and a new proposal would put one of its best-known buildings back to work.
Under the proposal, an arts group would lease the former campus theater building for $1 in 2027. The arrangement would delay a sale of the building until 2028, and Marathon County would keep paying for major repairs on the building during the lease year.
The building is the Center for Civic Engagement, a 33,356-square-foot facility at 625 Stewart Ave. that contains the James F. Veninga Theater. The proposal for it came from Community Ambassadors through Music Inc., a component fund of the Community Foundation of North Central Wisconsin, and ownership would later transfer to a newly formed corporation, Marathon Center for Arts and Culture, to operate the facility.
The campus, at 518 S. Seventh Ave., is owned by Marathon County. UWSP reached an agreement to share space on Northcentral Technical College's campus, with UWSP at Wausau students pursuing degrees there beginning in fall 2026 and the university set to exit the old campus by Dec. 31, 2026.
Most of the rest of the campus is still looking for a future. Marathon County released a second round of requests for proposals in May for six of the seven campus buildings, and the county becomes solely responsible for the property in January 2027 if no agreements are reached before then.
