THOMPSON SAYS STATE WILL HAVE TO BUILD 500-BED PRISON

MILWAUKEE (AP) -- Wisconsin will have to build a 500-bed prison, Gov. Tommy
Thompson said Thursday.

Thompson asked the state Building Commission to prepare a detailed report
on a prison that would cost about $30 million.

"We're going to have to build another prison, and we still have the bonding
to do so," Thompson told the Building Commission at its meeting at State
Fair Park.

Plans for the prison will be on the agenda when the commission meets in
September, Thompson said.

In other action, the commission approved $90,000 from its trust funds for a
computer system that would track the age and condition of all 6,700
buildings owned by the state. Only the state of Washington currently uses
such a system, Thompson said.

The data could project what improvements would be needed four to eight
years from now, eliminating surprises the commission has faced in the past,
Thompson said.

The commission also approved a $38.9 million addition to the Chemistry
Building on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus. The addition was
paid for partially by grants and gifts.