Washington County executive recommends sale of UWM–Washington County campus to Ozaukee Christian School, conservation group

The Washington County executive recommended on the board floor that the county sell the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee Washington County campus and surrounding acreage to Ozaukee Christian School and the Cedar Lake Conservation Foundation and asked the county board to authorize negotiation of the sale and an offer to the City of West Bend for its 26% ownership share.

The recommendation was delivered during a regular Washington County Board of Supervisors meeting; no vote on the sale was recorded at the meeting. The board instead voted to move into closed session on related negotiation matters, with a roll-call vote recorded as aye by members present.

County Executive (name not specified) summarized a yearlong review and a task‑force process that produced two proposals he said carried sufficient financial detail. He said one proposal — from a national charter operator referenced earlier as Excel Education — offered roughly $800,000 a year to lease about one-third of the building, while the county also had a purchase offer from Ozaukee Christian School and a related offer from Cedar Lake Conservation Foundation (CLCF).

The executive said the county’s appraisal of the property is $5,000,000 and that available and anticipated state transition funds and reimbursements — including a $2,000,000 allocation discussed in state legislation and transition funding through the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) — change the county’s fiscal position. "It is my anticipation that the state will reimburse those expenses once they happen. Therefore, the way I look at it, we have $5,000,000 coming in the door," the executive said.

The executive described the proposed transaction as two related but separable offers: purchase of the building and immediately adjacent property (including parking and a soccer field) by Ozaukee Christian School and purchase of the larger, mostly natural acreage by CLCF. He asked the board to "make a motion to authorize or direct the county executive and the county attorney to negotiate the sale as spelled out for a price not below that which we've just discussed" and to "authorize the county attorney and I ... to make an offer to the city of West Bend for 26%, which is their portion of ownership, of that total sale price."

Supervisors debated valuation, fiscal exposure and community sentiment. Supervisor Kelly said the county should support the plan as a "huge triple win," noting that Ozaukee Christian School would gain an existing campus while the conservation foundation could preserve watershed acreage. Supervisor Troutner and others described the public response as emotional, with residents and former campus users urging caution but recognizing the campus closure. A resident who identified herself as "Carol Mary online" said the county was "costing us about a thousand dollars a day just to sit there."

Supervisor Gallitz questioned the math and objected to selling at a price he described as far below appraisal. "Selling a piece of property at 60% of its appraised value, to me, is egregious," he said, while Supervisor Bosser argued that appraisal is an estimate and that a pragmatic sale now could avoid future carrying costs: "If we hold onto this building hoping for a better offer, it may be penny wise and dollar foolish."

Board members also discussed existing county commitments: the county has spent or allocated funds for building maintenance and repairs, and the executive and staff said about $1,600,000 remains associated with electrical work that has been discussed for the site. Some supervisors noted the county expects partial state reimbursement of certain costs tied to campus closure and transition funding.

Rather than vote on the sale, the board approved a motion to move into closed session to discuss negotiation items and other matters the executive said were appropriate for closed discussion. The motion carried on a roll‑call vote with members present recorded as "aye." The executive also said the county executive committee previously voted to recommend the sale and that the West Bend Common Council indicated it would follow the county’s lead but had not formally voted at that joint meeting.

The county executive emphasized the building’s original purpose, its size (about 198,000 square feet) and the 80‑acre parcel, roughly 60 acres of which he characterized as largely unbuildable. He recommended proceeding with the sale as the most practical way to preserve community uses and reduce ongoing county costs.

Next steps identified by the executive were for the county executive and county attorney to enter negotiation on terms and for the board to continue closed‑session negotiations before any final public vote or formal sale approval.

Votes at the meeting: the board voted to enter closed session (motion passed, roll call recorded as aye by members present). No formal sale motion or final approval of a sale was recorded in the open meeting.