UW-Eau Claire gets $10M donation for 7,500-seat event center from Volume One A $10 million donation from a pair of UW-Eau Claire alumni will be a literal and figurative game-changer for the university and the community, providing a location for a privately funded 7,500-seat multipurpose venue that will eventually replace the aging, undersized Zorn Arena. The university announced Aug. 5 that John and Carolyn Sonnentag, owners of County Materials Corp., are donating approximately $10 million in property and funds to the UWEC Foundation. The gift – the largest in the UWEC Foundation’s 60-year history – includes 21 acres on Menomonie Street in Eau Claire where County Materials’ concrete manufacturing facility now stands. The property, 1111 Menomonie St., lies on the south side of Menomonie Street along the tree-lined bank of the Chippewa River. The Chippewa River State Trail wraps around its southern and western boundary, and to the east is Student Transit-Eau Claire’s bus facility. The university says that the property will be used for new fitness, recreational, and athletic facilities for the campus, and possibly the community: A joint-use agreement with the Eau Claire YMCA, which has sought for years to built a new facility, is under discussion. “Carolyn and I feel that the UW-Eau Claire and the Eau Claire communities have made such a great contribution to our lives, that we want to give back in whatever capacity we can,” said John Sonnentag, who now lives with his wife in Florida. “We are very pleased to help make this project happen.”
Posted on: Tue, 05 Aug 2014 16:37:11 +0000