Month: April 2022

Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Zoning

The Planning Division, in collaboration with Zoning staff, is working to implement a 2018 Comprehensive Plan call for implementation of “TOD overlay zoning” along planned BRT and other high-frequency transit corridors to “create development intensity minimums, reduce parking requirements, and support transit use.”  For more information, and to sign up for May 11^th and May 16^th public meetings on this effort, please visit the project web page. 

Silver Lining Awards to Honor Creativity, Dedication, and Perseverance during the Pandemic

Register now to attend the Silver Lining Awards on May 12, 2022. Creativity was pushed to new lengths throughout 2020/21. Madison Arts Commission (MAC), in partnership with Garver Events and presented by Friends of Madison Arts Commission (FoMAC), will honor individuals and organizations who shifted their practices to persevere through the pandemic. With more than 100 nominations received for 80 unique nominees, there are many wonderful stories to tell.

Support a Utility Box Installation

To help grow this popular community art project citywide, Friends of Madison Arts Commission developed a program to Support a Utility Box Installation in your neighborhood. In developing this program, the Madison Arts Commission intended this program to highlight, encourage and promote local artists by giving them exposure in the public realm. Artists are compensated $500 for a license of each image used in the program. This project’s funds will be used to pay artists and cover the costs of installing the art on utility boxes. Contributions of any size are welcome, but a $2,500 contribution will fully cover the cost of a box wrap in your neighborhood and a box in a neighborhood where there aren’t as many financial resources https://www.friendsofmadisonarts.org/.

Make Music Madison – Musician Registration!

Make Music Madison is a free, citywide, outdoor day of music held annually on the summer solstice. Initiated in Madison in 2013, our festival is part of the larger Make Music Day, an international summer solstice music celebration occurring in 1,000+ cities across the globe. The 2021 event featured 312 concerts at 112 venues with over 1,000 individual musicians. Registration to perform or host a performance opens this month. Learn more at http://www.makemusicmadison.org/.

City of Madison Musician List

Are you a local musician? Do you want to be part of the city’s musician list? Please contact Angela Puerta, City of Madison Planning Division, apuerta@cityofmadison.com

Streets Division Updates

• Spring yard waste collection is now over.  Do not place yard waste at the curb for pick-up.  Curbside yard waste pickup will resume in the fall.
• You can take yard waste and other items to one of the Streets Division drop-off sites.  Here is the website for the hours and locations of the sites: www.cityofmadison.com/DropOffSites.
• Brush collection is ongoing.  To learn when you should set out brush at your home for pickup, go to www.cityofmadison.com/BrushCollection.
• If you have questions about the Resource Recovery Special Charge, there is an FAQ page on the Streets Division website explaining it. The website is www.cityofmadison.com/Recycling.
• We are hiring! If you, or someone you know, has a Class B commercial driver’s license and would like to drive our snowplows (and other heavy trucks) for a living, then apply today for the Street Machine Operator 1 position.

Covid cases are on the rise!

Please get your booster if you have not done it yet. The CDC looks at several metrics to determine these levels, including cases per 100,000 residents, new hospitalizations, and hospital bed capacity recorded over the past seven days. While several metrics are considered, Dane County’s case activity is what tipped our county into the medium level. Our case activity has been increasing since late March, with a current 7-day average of 159 cases per day. For more information visit publichealthmdc.com/coronavirus

Earth Day Challenge

• Celebrate Earth Day with neighbors and friends by volunteering to clean up your neighborhood park during the Earth Day Challenge! Assist with trash pickup, raking, weeding, removing sticks, and more. Event is on Earth Day, Saturday April 23, 2022. All ages are welcome to participate. Advanced registration is required for anyone 10 years and older: https://www.cityofmadison.com/calendar/earth-day-challenge-2022 Cleanups at most of the parks will be from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. unless otherwise noted on the registration page. Parks already full and with no volunteer openings are not listed.

Support a Utility Box Installation

• To help grow this popular community art project citywide, Friends of Madison Arts Commission developed a program to Support a Utility Box Installation in your neighborhood. In developing this program, the Madison Arts Commission intended this program to highlight, encourage and promote local artists by giving them exposure in the public realm. Artists are compensated $500 for a license of each image used in the program. This project’s funds will be used to pay artists and cover the costs of installing the art on utility boxes. Contributions of any size are welcome, but a $2,500 contribution will fully cover the cost of a box wrap in your neighborhood and a box in a neighborhood where there aren’t as many financial resources https://www.friendsofmadisonarts.org/.

Streets Division Updates

• New drop-off site hours and locations have begun!  Be sure you know which sites are open and where they are before loading your vehicle.  Get that information at www.cityofmadison.com/DropOffSites.
• Yard waste collection for the spring is wrapping up soon.  Be sure you know when you should be setting out yard waste at www.cityofmadison.com/YardWaste.
• Brush collection is ongoing.  Get the dates when you should be setting out brush at www.cityofmadison.com/BrushCollection.
• April is Earth Month! One easy way to celebrate is to be sure you’re recycling the right stuff. For example – just because it’s plastic doesn’t mean it goes into your recycling cart.  Get the rules at www.cityofmadison.com/Recycling.
• You may have seen a news story or social media posting regarding a Resource Recovery Special Charge.  This charge was part of the 2022 operating budget. It is designed to remove paying for recycling from the general fund and instead pay for that service via a special charge.  The charge was created to free up budget space in the general fund to avoid cuts to all City services that rely on the general fund.  The special charge is working its way through the Common Council process right now to create the ordinance and policy. As part of that process, a comprehensive presentation about the special charge was given to the Finance Committee on April 11.  Here is a YouTube link to that presentation  that discusses the charge so you can watch it, too.

Make Music Madison – Musician Registration!

• Make Music Madison is a free, citywide, outdoor day of music held annually on the summer solstice. Initiated in Madison in 2013, our festival is part of the larger Make Music Day, an international summer solstice music celebration occurring in 1,000+ cities across the globe. The 2021 event featured 312 concerts at 112 venues with over 1,000 individual musicians. Registration to perform or host a performance opens this month. Learn more at http://www.makemusicmadison.org/.

City of Madison Musician List

• Are you a local musician? Do you want to be part of the city’s musician list? Please contact Angela Puerta, City of Madison Planning Division, apuerta@cityofmadison.com

(to the best of our knowledge, the City of Madison has not embedded any April Fools jokes in here)

Voters are encouraged to confirm their polling place before Election Day! Many polling places in the City of Madison have changed because of redistricting. The City of Madison Clerk’s Office sent postcards to voters in areas impacted by polling place changes in early March. April 5 Election – Voters can view a sample ballot for their address on the MyVote Wisconsin website: www.MyVote.WI.gov .

City CARES Team for Mental Health Emergencies Now Answering Calls City-Wide

On September 1, 2021, the City of Madison launched its Community Alternative Response for EmergencyServices (CARES) Team to respond to nonviolent 911 calls for mental health emergencies. The City announced that CARES Teams, made up of community paramedics and crisis workers, would spend a year learning and innovating before expanding the program in future budgets.

Make Music Madison – Musician Registration Opens & Matchmaking Begins TODAY! –  Make Music Madison is a free, citywide, outdoor day of music held annually on the summer solstice. Initiated in Madison in 2013, our festival is part of the larger Make Music Day, an international summer solstice music celebration occurring in 1,000+ cities across the globe. The 2021 event featured 312 concerts at 112 venues with over 1,000 individual musicians. Registration to perform or host a performance opens this month. Learn more athttp://www.makemusicmadison.org/.

Streets Division Updates

• The Badger Road drop-off site is now closed. It will remain closed until at least the spring of 2023.
• The drop-off site at 402 South Point Rd has replaced the Badger Rd site as the west side drop-off site.
• On April 4, a special temporary drop-off site will open at 121 E. Olin Avenue for certain evenings and weekends.
• Also on April 4, the South Point Rd and 4602 Sycamore Ave. drop-off sites expand their hours.
• Yard waste collection begins April 4.  Learn when you should put out your yard waste for collection at www.cityofmadison.com/YardWaste.  You only get 2 collections in the spring, so look up the dates now so you don’t miss out.
  • Yard waste is weeds, leaves, grass clippings and similar material you have pulled or raked from your lawn or garden.
• Brush collection begins April 4.  Learn when you should put out your brush for collection at www.cityofmadison.com/BrushCollection.  You get five brush pickups a year.
  • Brush is woody material you have cut from a tree, shrub, or bush.
• There’s still time to join the April Master Recycler class with Sustain Dane & the City of Madison. Sign-ups are available at www.sustaindane.org/Better.
• Ever been curious about what happens to your recycling after it’s collected? Check out this video that shows how Pellitteri sorts the recyclables collected by the Streets Division.

Madison Police Department seeking community input on policing will host focus groups as part of strategic plan. Each one of MPD’s six patrol districts will host a meeting. The meeting will cover broad themes on topics such as community trust, the role of police, community policing, crime and safety, and police staffing.

Below is a list of dates and times for each district’s meeting. 

North District: April 4, 6:30 – 8 p.m.
East District: April 5, 6:30 – 8 p.m.
Central District: April 7, 6:30 – 8 p.m.
West District: April 11, 6:30 – 8 p.m.
Midtown District: April 12 6:30 – 8 p.m.
South District: April 13, 6:30 – 8 p.m.

Earth Day Challenge – Celebrate Earth Day with neighbors and friends by volunteering to clean up your neighborhood park during the Earth Day Challenge! Assist with trash pickup, raking, weeding, removing sticks, and more. Event is on Earth Day, Saturday April 23, 2022. All ages are welcome to participate. Advanced registration is required for anyone 10 years and older:  https://www.cityofmadison.com/calendar/earth-day-challenge-2022 Cleanups at most of the parks will be from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. unless otherwise noted on the registration page. Parks already full and with no volunteer openings are not listed.