LACROSSE, Wis. –A $500,000 gift to the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse means full steam ahead for a river research vessel. The gift is from the estate of Paul Fleckenstein who died in 2011 at age 47. The vessel, to be named Prairie Springs, will propel LaCrosse as a hub for river studies, said Roger Haro, director of the UW-L River Studies Center. The state-of-the-art vessel will expand Upper Mississippi River research while training the next generation of water professionals in science, technology, engineering and math, Haro said. The vessel will be christened Prairie Springs. the name also of the new 190,000-square foot UW-L science facility.
For river research. The LaCrosse harbor management company J.F. Brennan is outfitting the vessel and will store, moor and maintain it.