Common Council

COVID-19, Warner Park Community Center Shelter, F-35 Resolution, Common Council Meetings Move Online

Community members and friends,

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed many things in our lives during these challenging times and we are going through an unprecedented time in our nation's history. As a community leader, I am committed to sharing with you the latest updates and resources available from the city and state via my District 12 blog. 

I really appreciate all the healthcare workers, community leaders and other stakeholders here in Madison who are working hard to make sure the city remains operational and making sure people who need help get available resources, including food and medical attention. 

Select city meetings are moving forward to an online platform and others are in the process of moving online.

We are in this together and together, by implementing the recommended precautions, we can overcome this. Below are precautions we need to take to beat COVID-19 in our community: 

• Wash your hands regularly for at least 20 seconds, with soap and warm water
• Cover your nose and mouth with a disposable tissue or flexed elbow when you cough or sneeze
• Practice social distancing - the practice of keeping at least six feet apart from others and avoiding direct physical contact - by staying home whenever possible, even if you are not feeling unwell
• Cease non-essential travel, business, and social interactions
• Self-isolate from others in the household if you feel unwell
• Stay at home or place of residence, with exceptions outlined in the Department of Health Emergency Safer at Home Order

As an alder, it is my priority to make sure the city does its very best to take care of our most vulnerable residents, providing reliable access to food and other resources.

If you or someone you know, needs assistance accessing food, please see and share the below information:

Food Assistance

St. Vincent De Paul Food Pantry

Mon., Tues. & Fri.: 10:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.

Thurs.: 2:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.

Sat.: 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.

Website: https://svdpmadison.org/need-help/food-pantry/

Phone: (608) 257-0919

River Food Pantry is providing curbside food pick-up of a pre-packed box of food Tuesdays through Fridays.

Website: https://www.riverfoodpantry.org/covid-19-updates/

Phone: (608) 442-8815

Mount Zion Baptist Church Food Pantry

2019 Fisher St, Madison, WI 53713

Website: http://www.mtzlife.com/index.html

Phone:  (608) 255-5270

Good Neighbor Personal Essentials Pantry at Arbor Covenant Church (2509 McDivitt Rd.)

Fridays 10-12

Third Thursdays 5:30-7:30

Website: http://www.gnpep.org/

Phone: (608) 832-6388; (608) 320-0977

New Bridge Madison provides meals and other services to seniors for a donation.

Website: https://newbridgemadison.org/get-connected/

Phone: 608-512-0000

MMSD is providing free meals for children once per day at several sites throughout Madison.

Website: https://www.madison.k12.wi.us/mmsd-covid-19-neighborhood-food-sites

Phone: 608-663-1879

YMCA of Dane County is providing free food to individuals of all ages at seven sites throughout the city.

Website: https://www.ymcadane.org/7-free-food-sites

Second Harvest Foodbank mobile food pantry is providing pre-boxed food items for pick-up at a variety of locations in Madison (schedule here). A texting service has been setup to provide updates regarding when special food distribution opportunities are coming up. To receive a text message the next time we have a special food distribution in your area, find your county below, and text the corresponding keyword to 555888:

·       Dane County - Keyword FOODDANE

Website: https://www.secondharvestmadison.org/

Phone: 608-223-9121

FoodShare Wisconsin provides a Quest card to eligible applicants be used to buy food from grocery stores.

Website: http://www.getaquestcard.org/

Phone: 1-877-366-3635

United Way 2-1-1 to find a food program near you (as well as many other services).

Website: https://www.unitedwaydanecounty.org/get-help/2-1-1/

Warner Park Community Center Shelter for Homeless Men

Under the Mayor's declared emergency, Warner Park Community Recreational Center will be used for homeless men as an overnight shelter. Men will be bussed from Beacon's facility to WPCRC in the evenings; dinner and breakfast will be provided and in the morning they will be bussed back downtown to the Beacon in the morning, where they will shelter during the daytime. Porchlight will be providing staffing for the facility. 

More details from Mayor Satya's blog: "This facility will reduce the risk of transmission by providing sufficient space to achieve social distancing-something not possible due to limited space within existing shelter facilities. The downtown shelters currently run by Porchlight at Grace Episcopal, St. John's Lutheran and First United Methodist Churches will be closed and staff assigned to them will support the Warner Park operation, which will have increased capacity. City is working on arrangements to ensure that shelter guests will have transportation services to and from the facility upon its daily opening and closing hours"

Update: Housing-Related Questions

The City has set up a Housing Helpline to offer information and referrals for renters or homeowners with questions related to housing concerns brought about by the coronavirus situation. The Tenant Resource Center (257-0006) can assist individuals with questions about tenant-landlord rights and responsibilities and provide help for those needing help with eviction prevention or rent assistance.  Please be advised, however, that, as of this time, there is only very limited financial assistance available from the Tenant Resource Center. We are hopeful that situation might change in the future with the emergence of various funding assistance packages. 

For any other housing-related questions, please call 264-0549 or e-mail housinginfo@cityofmadison.com. 

To stay up to date on COVID-19 and If you want to get updates on local resources I would encourage you to take the following steps.

1.       Text "COVID19" to 211-211 for information about county resources.

2.       Visit 211's website at https://www.unitedwaydanecounty.org/get-help/2-1-1/ to find local resources.

3.       Call 211 to speak with a call specialist. Call volume is currently very high and may lead to longer wait times than normal.

The Northside Planning Council also launched the text services to keep residents up to date during this pandemic. Please see the information they've shared below:

F-35 Resolution in Response to Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) 

On March 17th, a resolution in response to the final EIS was introduced which will be discussed and voted upon during the upcoming Common Council meeting on Tuesday, March 31st, at 6:30pm. Residents will have an opportunity to express their thoughts on the proposed F-35 bedddown. The resolution will strongly oppose the F-35 beddown of Truax. Please note, this meeting will be conducted online via Zoom meeting. I would encourage you to join the meeting via the online platform or send your comments to allalders@cityofmadison.com

Below are directions on how you can join the (remote) meeting and register your comments.

Common Council March 31st and Future Meetings 

The City of Madison is holding the Common Council meeting virtually to help protect our community from the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Below intructions are for members of the public wishing to watch a meeting, send in written comments, register to speak at a meeting and register but not speak at a meeting. 

Watching the Meeting: Members of the public wishing to view the meeting only should not call in, but should watch via livestream: 

•     Livestream on the Madison City Channel website
•     Livestream on the City of Madison YouTube Channel
•     Television: Watch live on Charter Digital 994 and AT&T U-Verse 99

Written Comments
Please send comments on agenda items to allalders@cityofmadison.com 

Register & Speak
If you wish to speak at the virtual meeting on an agenda item, you must register. To register, visit www.cityofmadison.com/comment-common-council. When you register to speak, you will be sent an email with the information you will need to join the virtual meeting. We discourage speakers from watching the live stream before or during the item on which they wish to speak because there is a 30 second delay in the live stream which can cause confusion.

Register & Do Not Speak
To register your support or opposition to an agenda item without speaking, visit www.cityofmadison.com/comment- common-council.

The City is also working with the State to find relief for small businesses as they are the backbone of our economy and our culture. This crisis is effecting everyone, particularly small businesses, and we need to do our best to help them during this time. 

Please stay safe and healthy. As always I am accessible and here to help. Please contact me at district12@cityofmadison.com or 608-572-6984.

Kind regards,

Syed