Month: March 2023

Meetings

• Water Utility Board: The Water Utility Board will be held in person at 119 E Olin Avenue, Room A & B, Madison, WI 53713, on Tuesday March 28, 2023. Agenda items include commending and expressing appreciation to Kelly Miess (Kelly), Water Utility Engineer, on retirement from Madison Water Utility (MWU) after nearly 13 years of service.
  • Meeting Details
  • Meeting Agenda
  • Register for public comment

• Madison Public Library Board: The Madison Public Library Board will meet in virtual format on Thursday March 30, 2023. Agenda items include approval to adopt the following policy: All Madison Public Library locations will close when City offices close due to inclement weather.
  • Meeting Details
  • Meeting Agenda
  • Written public comment

• Public Information Meeting – Kestrel Park, Monday, March 27, 2023: Madison Parks is creating a Park Development Plan for Kestrel Park. Kestrel Park is designated as a mini park acquired by Madison Parks in 2015. A mini park is described as a park with fewer than 5 acres and used to address limited, isolated, or unique recreational needs. This 2.16-acre parcel, located off Mid Town and Pleasant View roads, near Verona, is currently undeveloped. A Park Development Plan will include general locations of future park amenities based on input received from the community. In January 2023, Madison Parks staff held the first public meeting to present an overview of the Park Development Plan process, an inventory and analysis of surrounding parkland and Kestrel Park, and gather input and comments to update the draft plan. 

• Public Information Meeting – Warner Park Community Recreation Center, Monday, March 27, 2023: Madison Parks is holding a public meeting for the Warner Park Community Recreation Center expansion project. The design team and City staff will review the proposed addition’s configuration and exterior treatment and answer project questions. 

Events

• Movin’ Out Financial Literacy Series (#1 – Financial Goals & Money Mindset), Tuesday, March 28, 2023: The City of Madison, in partnership with Movin’ Out, invite South Madison residents to participate in Movin’ Out’s financial wellness series! This six-session financial literacy program covers a range of topics to provide a solid understanding of the fundamentals of personal finance. In between sessions, interested participants can work with Movin’ Out’s Counseling staff on their own financial goals toward homeownership.
• Community CPR & AED Training, Wednesday March 29, 2023: Interested in learning hands-only CPR and how to use an AED? Join Madison Fire Department EMTs and Paramedics at Fire Station 14 (3201 Dairy Drive) on Wednesday, 3/29, 8:30-10:00 AM.
• Advanced registration required! Register by emailing Captain AJ Greenlee at agreenlee@cityofmadison.com.
• Northeast Area Plan Open House, Wednesday, March 29, 2023: City staff are continuing their outreach efforts for the Northeast Area Plan. During the kick-off meetings residents shared questions and comments about a variety of topics outside the purview of our Planning team. Staff are excited to share that an Open House has been scheduled to bring together residents and staff from various City agencies. The Open House will take place on Wednesday, March 29th from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. at Madison College, Truax Main Building, 1701 Wright Street, Room D1630. 
• Public Information Meeting – Sycamore Park, Thursday, March 30, 2023: Madison Parks is updating the master plan for Sycamore Park and we want to hear from you! The update process will review existing park uses and amenities as well as identify future improvements. Master plans are dynamic long-term planning documents that provide a framework for future development and improvements. They embody community goals for the planning area and establish the general location of desired amenities. Master plans are conceptual diagrams, and the identified improvements are often implemented in phases, with each phase requiring further design development and public engagement before construction.
• Dog Park Cleanup Day 2023, Saturday, April 1, 2023: Do you love your dog park? Help us clean up your favorite city of Madison off-leash dog park. This event is suitable for ages 15 and older. Ages 5-14 may also participate when accompanied by an adult. 
• Disc Golf Volunteer Day – Elver Park, Saturday, April 1, 2023: It’s spring cleaning time for the disc golf courses! Join Madison Parks in beautifying Elver and Hiestand disc golf course with trash removal, brush cutting, and other course improvements. We’ll be working two Saturdays – April 1 at Elver Park and April 8 at Hiestand Park and both events 9am to 11am. 
• Bird & Nature Adventures – Tenney Park, Sunday, April 2, 2023: Nature-expert guided walks in Tenney Park along Lake Mendota and the Yahara River Parkway bike path through the Madison Isthmus are free, family-friendly and held the first Saturday of each month, from 2:30-4pm. The walk begins at the Tenney Beach parking lot, 1330 Sherman Avenue. No registration is required. No pets are allowed. Co-sponsored by Madison FUN Friends of Urban Nature, Madison Parks, Madison Audubon Society , Tenney-Lapham Neighborhood Association  and Friends of the Yahara River Parkway .
• Bird & Nature Adventures – Cherokee Marsh, North, Sunday, April 2, 2023: Cherokee Marsh is Madison’s largest conservation park with three units – North, South, and Mendota. Each month, year-round we explore the north unit’s beautiful trails through the woodlands, wetlands, and restored prairies along the Yahara ‘Catfish’ River. Co-sponsored by Madison Parks, Friends of Cherokee Marsh , Sierra Club and Madison Audubon Society . Follow North Sherman Ave. to the parking lot at the end of the gravel entrance road. Free, family-friendly guided nature walks at Cherokee Marsh Conservation Park – North are held on the 1st Sunday of each month, year-round 1:30-3pm. No registration is required. No pets are allowed.

Save the Date!

• Madison Parks Earth Day Challenge, Saturday, April 22, 2023- Register to Volunteer Today!: Join Madison Parks for this year’s Earth Day Challenge and volunteer to help clean up your neighborhood park on Saturday, April 22! For more than 20 years, Madison Parks has honored Earth Day by recruiting volunteers for the Earth Day Challenge. This year, Madison Parks is seeking more than 900 volunteers at 60+ parks to assist with trash pickup, raking, weeding, removing sticks, and more. All ages are welcome to participate. Advanced registration is required for anyone 10 years and older.

Announcements

• City of Madison 2023 Summer Youth Violence Prevention Funding – APPLICATONS DUE APRIL 3, 2023 by 4:30pm: The City of Madison’s Community Development Division (CDD), is seeking proposals from organizations to support violence prevention-focused summer programming for 2023. In conjunction with a public health approach, the City continues to seek models that can strengthen our approach to public safety and violence prevention for youth and young adults.
• Street Closure–Felland Road: Starting Monday, March 27, Felland Road will be fully closed for reconstruction just north of the roundabout at Tranquility Trail (see attached map).  There will be no thru traffic between Burke Road and Lien Road.  A sign
• Library Takeover Event Will Honor Migration Stories and Celebrate the Kichwa Community in Wisconsin: A small group of community members have come together to plan an event at Madison Public Library’s Central Library on April 15, 2023 from 4-9 pm as part of the Library Takeover program.
• Public Test of Election Equipment This Saturday: The City of Madison Clerk’s Office invites the public to observe its public test of election equipment this weekend.
• Badger Road Drop-off Site Permanently Closed: The drop-off site at 1501 West Badger Rd is permanently closed. The resident services office at the Badger Rd building will remain open.
• Enroll Today in the Award-Winning Master Recycler Course: Are you recycling right? Are you sure?
• City of Madison Common Council Moves to Develop a Comprehensive Response to the Crisis in Home Healthcare in Madison: (MADISON, WI) On Tuesday, March 21, 2023, the City of Madison Common Council voted to authorize moving forward to develop a comprehensive response to the crisis in home healthcare in Madison.
• The 2023 Recyclopedias Are Here!: Paper copies of the 2023 Recyclopedia are now available. City of Madison residents can pick up their copy from any City of Madison public library branch.
• Off-Duty Firefighter/EMTs Provide CPR to Man in Cardiac Arrest: Two off-duty Madison Fire Department firefighter/EMTs are credited for providing bystander CPR to a man who collapsed as a result of sudden cardiac arrest.
• Bill Sullivan Named Madison Fire Marshal: The Madison Fire Department is pleased to announce Bill Sullivan has been appointed to the position of Fire Marshal for the City of Madison. Sullivan assumed the duties on March 6, 2023.
• Set-Out Dates for Brush Collection Now Available: The Streets Division’s brush collection for 2023 will get underway in April. All residents will have five curbside collection opportunities this year.
• Street Closure–Regent Street for Tree Pruning: Three blocks of Regent Street, from N Franklin Avenue to Highland Avenue/Speedway Road, will be closed from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. for tree pruning on Monday, March 27 and Tuesday, March 28. 
• Street Closure–Regent Street: Starting at 5:00 a.m. Friday, March 24, Regent Street will be fully closed between Park Street and E Campus Mall for the erection of a tower crane. The street will be reopened by 3:00 p.m. Sunday, March 26.
• In-Person Absentee Voting Starts Tuesday in Madison: In-person absentee voting will begin Tuesday, Mar. 21, at several locations throughout the City of Madison. What will you need to bring with you if you’re voting absentee in person?

Streets Division Updates

• The Master Recycler course is back for 2023! The first session begins April 6, and if you can’t make the mid-day April session then you can sign up for the July offering that will be held in the evening.
• Brush collection will get underway in 2023.  Get the dates when you should set out your brush from www.cityofmadison.com/BrushCollection.
• The 2023 Recyclopedias are in!  Paper copies are available from your local library branch.  You can also contact the Streets Division to have one mailed to your home.
• Drop-off sites are different again in 2023!  Expanded hours do not start until April 3, 2023.  Make sure you are checking the drop-off sites webpage before loading your car so you can learn the hours and restrictions.
• Springtime yard waste collection is coming soon as well.  To get the dates when you can set out yard waste, go to www.cityofmadison.com/YardWaste.

Master Recycler Class Returns April 6

If you’ve been meaning to take the Master Recycler class from Sustain Dane & the City of Madison, now is your chance.

There will be two offerings of the class this year.

The first chance will be coming up in April.  Here’s a link to enroll in the April session.

If the timing of the April class doesn’t work, fear not, there is a July class this year as well.  Here’s the link to enroll in that session.

What is the Master Recycler class?  Its two 90-minute online classes per session that provide a deeper dive into recycling, and other sustainable materials management practices.  The ultimate goal is for you to leave trained and confident to share this recycling information with your social circles through some sort of planned outreach project.  Could be a newsletter, a presentation, a delightful viral video, lessons for the kiddos in your elementary school class – the options are practically endless.

You see, while recycling information is available, few seek it out. Instead they turn to social media threads, or work conversations, and so on, and it’s easy for misinformation, half-remembered facts, and rumors to infect those interactions that will never involve the actual official recycling guidance.  The hope is that Master Recyclers (like you, perhaps) could be the expert to pierce these information bubbles with a bit of the real information about recycling guidance.

By the way – we’re not wild about the name “Master Recycler” but we’re coming up short on solid ideas to use instead.  If you have a good one, let me know.

The 2023 Recyclopedias Are Here!

Sorry for the delay in getting these out, but the news about us being able to recycle televisions, computers, and laptops for free this year broke a little late and that caused a delay with the booklet.

The paper copies are available at your public library branches.

While you’re there, check out a book or three.  Especially for Saturday – nothing better to do on a snowy spring morning that curl up with a new book.

Copies can also be mailed to you directly.  You just have to contact the Streets Division office that services your home to have one sent out.

A digital copy can be downloaded here.

We have a digital copy of a Spanish version of the Recyclopedia on our website as well.  Paper copies of the Spanish one haven’t yet arrived from the printer, but they should be at our offices and at the libraries any day now.  Chinese and Hmong translations are still in the process of being completed.

Brush Collection Starts Soon!

Yes, brush collection gets underway in early April.

Brush is things like fallen branches, or other woody material that you have trimmed from your trees, shrubs, and bushes that measure over 18 inches in length.  This material is turned into wood mulch (which is available to the public – check our mulch website: www.cityofmadison.com/Mulch).

As we’ve done for a few years now, there is a fixed schedule for when you should set out brush to the curb.

To get those dates you just have to follow two easy steps:

1. Go to www.cityofmadison.com/BrushCollection
2. Put your address into the form

And then put the brush out for pickup on the dates shown for your home.  Crews will not be in areas early, and they do not circle back through after your pickup occurred.

The best bet is to put it out on the Sunday shown on the website, and then your brush will be collected by the end of the following work week.

Yard Waste Collection Beginning Later in April

Yard waste is different than brush.

Yard waste is the more plant-like stuff – think of it like leaves, weeds, grass clippings, and the other stuff you rake or pull from your lawn or garden. 

Yard waste pickup will get underway a little later in April than we have done in prior years.  The rationale is that it can still be kind of cold early April and folks aren’t too keen on tending to their lawns quite yet.

Everyone will get one yard waste collection opportunity in mid-April, and another one in early May.

We haven’t published a news release about this yet because the start of this service is still a few weeks away.  But if you want to learn your yard waste set out dates to put them on your calendar today, you can.

You just have to follow to very easy (and familiar) steps:

1. Go to www.cityofmadison.com/YardWaste
2. Put your address into the form

Next you will see the two spring set out dates for yard waste.  Put your yard waste out for pickup on the date shown.  Collection will occur sometime during the work week following the set out Sunday.

As always there are two collection opportunities in the spring, and then a pause through the summer months as crews are needed on other duties, and then yard waste pickup returns in the fall.

Drop-off Sites Are Different – Just Like Last Year

The Badger Rd drop-off site is permanently closed.  The resident services office at 1501 W Badger Rd will remain the same.  It’s just the drop-off site will no longer be there.

If you get your Municipal Services bill in the mail as opposed to digitally, this probably isn’t a surprise to you because we included this guide in with the bill.

The drop-off site guide explains the hours and locations for the sites this year. 

The same information is available from the drop-off site website: www.cityofmadison.com/DropOffSites.

Drop-off site hours expand on April 3, 2023. 

Check our website to be sure you know when and where to go if you are using the drop-off sites.

The Last Bit

Before we go – yes, food scraps recycling is returning in 2023 to the same farmers’ markets as last year.