Milwaukee Bucks give back with ‘Engineer the Future’ event as students build arena replicas
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In an effort to inspire Milwaukee students to learn about and pursue opportunities in STEM fields, the Milwaukee Bucks participated in the first “Engineer the Future” event at North Division High School last week where students had the chance to build a replica scale of the new Bucks arena.
In some ways, this was just another piece of NBA community service but, in other ways, the Bucks owed this to their community.
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When Bucks owners Marc Lasry and Wes Edens bought the team roughly two years ago, the sale was contingent upon the construction of a new arena. After extensive negations, the Bucks and the local government finally reached an agreement on a public financing deal that will subsidize $250 million of the $524 million project.
The “Engineer the Future” partnership is a way for the Bucks to give back to the city that helped fund their new home. More than 150 Milwaukee Public Schools students in ninth to 12th grade participated in the event. Boys and girls had to opportunity to engage in hands-on building activities.
“Our objective is to show the kids what life can be like, what opportunities await them if they have any interest in engineering and the building trades,” Prism Technical CEO Randy Crump told CBS 58.
Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett and Bucks President Peter Feigin all attended the event, according to Milwaukee Business Journal.
After breaking ground in June, the arena is expected to be complete in time for the 2018-19 season. A new practice facility, parking structure and medical clinic are all included in the project.
