Common Council

Updates October 2, 2020

1. Now until October 5: Cyclocross rink at Door Creek Park |

2. New leaf and yard waste collection schedule now available |

3. Tomorrow: Democracy in the Park |

4. Felland Road proposal re-approval at Monday's Plan Commission |

5. Prescribed burns at Broad Creek Blvd Greenway this fall |

6. North Star Dog Park open |

7. Madison Metropolitan School District: Community information sessions on the 2020 referenda |

8. COVID-19 community testing hours changing |

9. Safe voting and more on the Madison votes podcast |

10. Meeting highlights week of October 4, 2020 |

11. Food scraps recycling at drop-off sites ending October 2 |

12. Walk-tober promotes health, safety and fun |

13. Other City of Madison news |

14. COVID-19 updates and resources |

15. City meetings schedule |

Now until October 5: Cyclocross rink at Door Creek Park

This easy, approximately 1-mile trail was mowed on Tuesday this week and will be available for biking through October 5 at Door Creek Park. 

New Leaf and Yard Waste Collection Schedule Now Available

Collection begins the week of October 11, 2020

For the fall of 2020, all neighborhoods of Madison have assigned days when they should set leaves and yard waste out for curbside collection.

The leaves and yard waste collection schedule is now available at www.cityofmadison.com/yardwaste.

Go to the Streets Division's yard waste website and enter your address into the form provided to learn the dates when you should set out leaves and yard waste for pickup.

Residents without internet access can contact the Streets Division office that services their home to receive the set-out dates for their home.

Tomorrow: Democracy in the Park 

The Clerk's Office is partnering with the City of Madison Parks Division to allow City of Madison voters to return their absentee ballots to poll workers stationed in more than 200 City of Madison parks.

The Democracy in the Park event will be held 9 AM – 3 PM, tomorrow, Saturday, October 3. In the case of inclement weather, the event will be held on Sunday, October 4 instead.

In our district, this includes: Dominion Park, Door Creek Park, Galaxy Park, Heritage Heights Park, Hiestand Park, Kennedy Park, Kingston-Onyx Park, McClellan Park, McGinnis Park, North Star Park, Portland Park and Reston Heights Park.

Felland Road Development Re-Approval at October 5 Plan Commission

Simply Homes will be seeking a re-approval for their Jannah Village development at the Monday, October 5 Plan Commission meeting. They had previously received approval but due to complications in their stormwater management plans have updated and resubmitted with additional lots dedicated to stormwater. This proposal is at 754, 804, and 904 Felland Road which is just north of Commercial Avenue and on the west side of Felland Road. This subdivision would include 48 single-family lots, 4 lots for two-family twin homes (8 total units), 4 lots to be developed with up to 306 multi-family units, 2 outlots for public stormwater management, and 1 outlot for public parkland.

Prescribed burns anticipated at Broad Creek Blvd Greenway

The City of Madison Parks Division and Engineering Division will be conducting prescribed burns on areas of existing native vegetation on Broad Creek Boulevard greenway. Prescribed burns are an important management tool for Wisconsin's native plant communities. Typically these burns occur in the spring, however given uncertain conditions surrounding the pandemic this past spring, most burns were not completed as planned. The timeline for these burns to occur is between October 19 and November 30. Fall weather is difficult to predict, so burns may not occur at all if correct weather conditions do not arise.

North Star Dog Park open

The North Star Dog Park, located at 439 Milky Way, is now open. Due to the dry summer, the grass has not established within the dog park as well as hoped. However, Madison Parks staff will continue to monitor and improve the turf within the dog park and will likely reseed this fall and/or next spring. 

Madison Metropolitan School District: Community information sessions on the 2020 referenda

The Madison Metropolitan School District is holding several community information sessions during September and October to discuss the upcoming referenda that will appear on your ballot in November. The sessions will be streamed live on their Facebook page. 

October 6: Spanish session, 6:30-8pm

October 7: Teletown hall meeting, 6-7pm

COVID-19 Community Testing Hours Changing

Beginning the week of October 5, the hours for the Alliant Energy Center COVID-19 community test site will change. As of October 5:

• The test site will be closed on Sundays and Mondays. The test site will be closed on Monday, October 5.

• The hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays will be from 12:00pm to 8:00pm.

• The hours on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays will be from 8:00am to 4:00pm.

• The test site will be open until at least December 30.

This change in hours coincides with a large decrease in staffing from the Wisconsin National Guard, who have been providing the majority of the staffing at the site alongside Public Health Madison & Dane County. Public Health Madison & Dane County will staff the majority of the test site moving forward. Wait times at the testing site may see moderate increases with the decreased hours of operation. Visit Public Health Madison & Dane County for more details.

Safe voting and more on the Madison votes podcast

If you want to learn more about elections, you can now listen to tips about voting in the city of Madison.

Search for "Madison Votes" on the iTunes podcast app and in Google podcasts. You'll be able to find episodes about what precautions the City Clerk's Office is taking at the polls on Election Day and hear about the life of a ballot. If you want to know more about how to register to vote or how to request an absentee ballot, this podcast series is for you, too! There's something available for every city of Madison voter. Listen here.

Also from the City Clerk's Office, find answers to your top 10 voter ID questions.

Meeting highlights week of October 4, 2020

Electric Vehicle Ready Infrastructure

The Sustainable Madison Committee will be discussing a proposed amendment to institute EV ready and EV capable requirements for future parking structures at their meeting on October 5.

·  Find the meeting details online here

·  Find the meeting agenda online here

·  Register for public comment here

Presentations from the State Public Defender's Office, the Dane County District Attorney, and NAMI Dane County on Body-Worn Cameras

The Body-Worn Camera Feasibility Review Committee will be receiving presentations from the DA's Office, the Public Defender's Office, and NAMI of Dane County about body-worn cameras at their meeting on October 8.

·  Find the meeting details online here

·  Find the meeting agenda online here

·  Register for public comment or to observe the meeting here

Common Council to Discuss Possible Changes to Council Structure

There will be a special Committee of the Whole meeting of the Common Council on October 8, when they will discuss the recommendations of the Ad Hoc Task Force on the Structure of City Government (TFOGS) regarding the structure of the Common Council.

Find the meeting details online here

Food Scraps Recycling at Drop-off Sites Ending October 2

Program will return in 2021

Food scraps recycling at the Streets Division drop-off sites will stop for the year on Friday, October 2, 2020.

The drop-off program will restart in 2021.

Food scraps recycling at the drop-off sites began this year on May 4 and nearly 8 tons of food waste was recycled into compost and electricity instead of going to the landfill.

The food scraps received at the sites was also uniformly clean. One of the persistent challenges with previous attempts at recovering food waste was items mixed in with the food waste that could not be processed – things like plastic bags, towels, and food wrappers. However, the drop-off program did not present these problems.

The Streets Division would like to thank all of those who participated in the program this year and being diligent about recycling only the correct items.

Walk-tober Promotes Health, Safety and Fun

The City of Madison is promoting a new event, Walk-tober, to motivate people to get out and walk for transportation and for health during the month of October. 

"Walk-tober is meant to celebrate walking and encourage people to get out," said Pedestrian Bicycle Administrator Renee Callaway. "The event also intends to increase awareness of the value of walking to our residents, visitors, neighborhoods and city both as transportation and as recreation."

This new month-long event, Walk-tober, offers a handful of planned and independent opportunities:

• new walking route ideas each week

• a walking challenge

• a reading list

• a school challenge

• activities you can do on your own or with your own household

Visit Walk-tober for all the details.

Check out these nature walk ideas.

Other City of Madison news 

Clean Streets/Clean Lakes Parking Enforcement Resumes October 5

Beginning October 1 and running through the fall season, Cascade Asset Management is accepting personal electronics for recycling and secure data destruction

Be a watershed steward, try a new rain barrel, compost bin this fall

Save the Date: Metro Transit Public Hearing

Metro Transit and the City of Madison Transportation Commission will hold a virtual public hearing at 6 p.m. on October 14 to review and discuss service updates put into place on August 23.

COVID-19 updates and resources

• Madison COVID-related news and service updates, Español: COVID-19 and Hmoob: COVID-19

• Public Health Madison and Dane County COVID data and orders

• Dealing with job loss

• Childcare, food, jobs, housing and low-cost internet access 

• Community-aggregated COVID resources

• From the City's Economic Development Division: Business & Non-profit Information Covid-19, including Streatery Program

• WI Dept. of Health Services Cases by Neighborhood (Census Tract)

City meetings schedule

City weekly meeting schedule

The Mayor's meeting schedule

The County weekly meeting schedule