Meeting and Event Highlights for the Week of January 19, 2026

Updates and Notices

Observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day: City of Madison offices are closed on Monday, January 19, 2026, in observance of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. All emergency services will be open. In case of an emergency, please call 911. For non-emergencies, please visit the holiday schedules webpage for contact information.

Reflecting on Dr. King's Revolutionary Vision

This Martin Luther King Jr. Day, I want to share some thoughts on the revolutionary we often forget. Every January, we pull out the same handful of quotes about dreams and the content of character. But that comfortable image erases who Dr. King actually was—a man whose final years were spent challenging the very foundations of American society.

Dr. King called for a revolution of values—a fundamental restructuring of American priorities. He argued that America needed to shift from being a thing-oriented society to a person-oriented society. When profits and property rights matter more than people, he warned, we cannot conquer what he called the giant triplets of racism, materialism, and militarism. These weren't separate problems to him—they were interconnected evils requiring interconnected solutions.

The man we commemorate each January asked uncomfortable questions that remain relevant today: Why are there millions of people experiencing poverty in America? He wasn't satisfied with charity or surface-level reforms. True compassion, he wrote, means understanding that the systems producing poverty need restructuring.

King proposed solutions that would be considered radical even today: a guaranteed income to address poverty directly, economic justice that went beyond civil rights legislation, and a redistribution of political and economic power. He was clear that voting rights and desegregation, while necessary victories, were only the beginning.

At the time of his assassination, Dr. King was organizing the Poor People's Campaign—an effort to unite people experiencing poverty across racial lines. He understood that racism, poverty, and militarism were woven together. A nation spending more on military defense than on social uplift, he declared, was approaching spiritual death.

Yet even as he issued these challenges, King maintained what he called audacious faith in the future. Nearly sixty years later, his question remains: Where do we go from here—chaos or community? The giant triplets he named still tower over us. Wealth inequality has grown. Militarism persists. Racism adapts and endures. The revolution of values he called for remains unfinished business.

This King Holiday, we can honor him differently. Instead of comfortable quotes about dreams, we might sit with his uncomfortable questions. Instead of celebrating how far we've come, we might honestly assess how far we still need to go. Instead of reducing him to a symbol of peaceful coexistence, we might embrace him as the revolutionary he was—one who loved America enough to demand it become what it promised to be.

For a fuller reflection on Dr. King's revolutionary vision, I encourage you to read my essay "The Revolutionary We Forgot" in The Capital City Hues.

Boards, Commissions, and Committee Meetings

Note: This is not a complete list of meetings for this upcoming week. All meetings and their details can be found at the Meeting Schedule page.

Finance Committee: The Finance Committee meeting will take place on Tuesday, January 20, at 4:30 p.m. in virtual format. Agenda items include executing a cost sharing agreement for the construction of the Madison Lakeway Community Causeway improvements.

Meeting Details

Meeting Agenda

Register for Public Comment

Watch Online

If you would like more information about becoming a member of a City board, commission, or committee, please visit the page linked here.

Public Information Meetings

Virginia Terrace, Norwood Place, Rugby Row, Hillington Way, Wednesday, January 21: The City is planning a construction project on Virginia Terr (Virginia Terr cul-de-sac to Regent St), Norwood Pl (Virginia Ter to Hillington Way), Rugby Row (Virginia Terr to Hillington Way), and Hillington Way (Norwood Pl to Southwest Commuter Path). A public information meeting is scheduled for 5:30 p.m., Jan. 21, 2026, via Zoom. Registration prior is required. More information.

Announcements and News Releases

City of Madison Strengthens Commitment to Sustainable Building Standards: The City of Madison has raised its green building requirements for all City-owned facilities. [posted January 15, 2026]

MPD seeking to learn lessons from ALCS shooting response: The Madison Police Department has requested a formal review of its response to the deadly shooting at Abundant Life Christian School. The request comes with the utmost respect for the victims, survivors, their families and all those affected. [posted January 14, 2026]

Prevent Lung Cancer by Testing Your Home for Radon: A cancer-causing element known as radon can be found at high levels in roughly half of the homes tested over the past five years in Dane County. [posted January 12, 2026]

The Office of the Common Council Launches Its First Resident Newsletter: The "Common Council in Focus" newsletter, a new initiative from the Office of the Common Council, launched on Wednesday, January 14, 2026. This publication aims to keep residents informed about topics being considered by the Common Council. [posted January 12, 2026]

Martin Luther King Jr. Day Service: Due to the holiday, Metro will operate Saturday schedules on Monday, January 19. [posted January 12, 2026]

Please visit the City news webpage to find additional news and announcements and to subscribe to receive notification of news releases as they are posted.

Events

Groove & Glide | Rennebohm, Friday, January 23: Experience the fun and beauty of ice skating under the stars and lights with music and games. All ages and experience levels are welcome. Groove & Glide events are free to attend and no registration is needed.

Bird & Nature Adventures | Edna Taylor, Saturday, January 24: Critter Tracks - Join Naturalist Paul Noeldner for a free, fun, family and kid friendly guided walk to explore Aldo Leopold Nature Center and Edna Taylor Conservation Park. We will look for bird and animal tracks and signs!

Door Creek Park Ribbon Cutting & Winter Celebration, Saturday, January 24: Join City leaders, partners, and friends for a ribbon-cutting and winter celebration at Door Creek Park!

Learn to Cross-Country Ski, Saturday, January 24: Join us for a free cross-country ski workshop at Door Creek Park, hosted by Madison Nordic Ski Club (MadNorSki)! This requires advanced registration, is free to attend and part of the Ribbon-Cutting and Winter Celebration.

Kiddie Basketball Clinic, Saturday, January 24: This basketball clinic is designed for boys and girls in kindergarten through 3rd grade. Kids will learn the fundamentals of dribbling, shooting, passing and game-play. (This event occurs on multiple dates)

Sound and Sense Immersion, Sunday, January 25: Sound and Sense Immersion is a 2-hour gentle and restorative meditation, light, aromatherapy and sound bath journey through the elements.

Additional upcoming events can also be found on