Office Hours, Medians, Metro Transit Redesign Update and Highlights for the week of May 2, 2022

I will be hosting office hours on Wednesday (May 4) from 7:30am to 9:30am. I will be using Zoom (with video): REGISTER

Please use the registration above to get the Zoom link. When you register, you'll also get an e-mail reminder on the day of Office Hours. You can register in advance or the day of.

Note: I have set it up so I can only meet one person at a time. If I'm meeting with someone else, there will be a small waiting period in a meeting lobby. If you don't want to use Zoom, I will be answering calls (608-912-0000) during this time as long as I'm not speaking with someone else. 

If you have a question, concern, or topic of interest that you would like to discuss, but Wednesday doesn't work for you, you can e-mail me.

Alders have received a lot of feedback about a proposal to convert some of the City's traffic medians to concrete after it was discussed at a recent Finance Committee and was in the Wisconsin State Journal. The City is creating a more detailed update, but in the meantime, I wanted to link to some information. Alder Figueroa Cole has posted the City's FAQ and you read see the areas being targeted in the attachments for the legislative item.

On April 13th, Metro hosted a community meeting for District 19 residents to discuss the proposed Metro Transit Redesign. You can watch a recording of the meeting, see a presentation on the redesign and see some proposed amendments to the draft plan below. 

• WATCH MEETING
• Presentation Materials 
• Paratransit/Rider Assistance Information
• Draft Plan Proposed Amendments

Amendment 6 addresses concerns about the Route 15 service area.

6A: Replace Route 15 with Route R (Capitol Square to Old Sauk / High Point)

• Route R would run hourly through out the day. Provides continuous all-day service on Old Sauk that is more direct to downtown.
• Route R acts as extension of the BRT system weekdays during the day. It would use 60-foot articulated buses and continue to Madison via University Ave. On evenings and weekends, it may end at the Eau Claire Station.
• Route Y in Middleton would work in a similar way, and these routes may depend on each other for scheduling purposes.

6B: 

• Route R provides continuous service along Old Sauk every 30 minutes with a connection to frequent BRT service for people continuing to downtown Madison.
• Route R acts as extension of Route H, providing service between Westfield Station and Eau Claire Station.

Either 6a or 6b would accomplish the overall directive of having a route along Old Sauk that is more direct than what's shown in the draft plan, requiring riders to go south to Mineral Point and then east into downtown. Both options also accomplish the clear preference staff heard at the community meeting for Westfield to have speed humps and for bus service to be on High Point. 

Metro is holding its final public meeting on its network redesign on Thursday, May 19, at 6pm. The meeting will be held in person in Room 215 of the Madison Municipal Building (215 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd.), and it will also be streamed live. People watching from home will be able to submit questions through a button on Mediasite so that they can be answered live during the meeting. [Complete meeting details]

A public hearing on Metro's network redesign is also being set up in front of the Transportation Policy and Planning Board the Transportation Commission Thursday, May 31, at 6 pm. [Complete meeting details]

As I blogged yesterday, the 2022 property assessments are now available on the City website. Assessment notices were mailed on Friday to all property owners. The Wisconsin State Journal ran a detailed article explaining the assessments. FAQ is available in my post from yesterday.

• Public Information Session: 4-6 p.m., May 3, IN PERSON at the Best Western Plus Inntowner, Bascom Meeting Room, 2424 University Ave.

The Planning Division, in collaboration with Zoning staff, is working to implement a 2018 Comprehensive Plan call for implementation of "Transit-Oriented Development (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 and May 16 public meetings on this effort, please visit the project web page.

• 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.

• 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 here.

• Madison Parks and the Friends of Goodman Waves are partnering again to offer recreational team swimming and diving through the Goodman Waves Swim and Dive Team this summer at the Goodman Pool, 325 W. Olin Avenue. Scholarships are available. Registration is available here.

• 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

• 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. Check the website for the hours and locations of the sites.
  • Brush collection is ongoing. Learn when you should set out brush at your home for pickup here.
  • If you have questions about the Resource Recovery Special Charge, there is an FAQ page on the Streets Division website explaining it.
  • The Streets Division is 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.

• The City of Madison Crossing Guard program is recruiting for the 2022-23 school year.  As a Crossing Guard, you will help safeguard students on their way to and from school, morning and afternoon. Are you responsible, dependable, enjoy kids and the outdoors? Then it may be a perfect match! Crossing Guards work part-time, 10-15 hours per week. Starting pay is $18.09/hour (appx. $700+/month) plus regular raises and earned sick leave.  Work is Monday - Friday (NO NIGHTS, WEEKENDS, OR HOLIDAYS AND SUMMER/SCHOOL BREAKS OFF).  Flexibility is required for early release dates (including early release every Monday afternoon).  This is a great job for the retiree, grandparent, or stay-at-home parent. Beginning in late June/early July, a job description and application will be available at:  http://www.cityofmadison.com/HR/employment/JobOpenings.cfm  (search "hourly" positions for crossing guard link).  Please be sure to list on your application any experience you have directing/controlling children (including your own children or grandchildren).  Interviews will begin mid-August; employment begins approximately Wednesday, August 24, 2022.  For information, contact the City of Madison Crossing Guard Supervisors at 608-266-4703. Vacancies are located throughout the City of Madison, and offer the possibility to work just steps from your front door. Help serve your community by protecting its children!

If you have questions, comments, suggestions, etc., feel free to reach out: district19@cityofmadison.com

-Keith F