D6 Items of Interest Week of October 23, 2023

Last week the City and the County both amended their 2023 Capital budgets to push the Madison Public Market over the finish line. On Tuesday, the Council voted 15-3 to borrow an additional $1.64M and the County Board added an additional $1M last Thursday. Two of the MPM vendors showed up at the Council meeting and provided strong testimony urging the Council to help them ‘catch the dream’. Sending my gratitude and thanks to everyone who worked so hard on this project. The low bid will be accepted. Onward!

At the last Council meeting, I was able to push out the introduction and referral of 80307 Amending the map in MGO Section 28.071(2)(a) related to downtown height limits to update the Downtown Height Map for the Brayton Lot (Block 113). The sponsors propose to make the entire block 10 stories, currently a portion of the block facing E Main and S Hancock is 4 stories. The map amendment will be at Plan Commission on Monday November 13 and back to Council on Tuesday November 21.

Please hold the date: I am working with adjacent alders, city staff, and CNI to hold a hybrid Brayton Lot neighborhood meeting on Monday November 6 at 6:30p at St. John’s Lutheran Church in the Gathering Center, 322 E. Washington Avenue to discuss the proposed height changes. Postcards will be mailed to nearby neighbors later this week.

On Monday, the Finance Committee takes up a purchase and sale agreement between the City and Core Spaces LLC that will include a land use restriction agreement to support student affordable housing, amends the contract between the City and Sasaki Associates for consultant services for the Lake Monona Waterfront, and then we dive into 18 amendments to the 2024 Executive Operating Budget. I discuss the amendments I am sponsoring below. On Tuesday, there is a status report at the Water Utility Board meeting regarding the PFAS settlements by 3M and DuPont for all public water suppliers that totals in the billions of dollars which will cover a portion of what Madison will be spending on treatment. Finally, on Thursday, the Transportation Commission will start to discuss the North-South BRT and the public engagement process.  There will be an in-person meeting on the N-S BRT at Warner Park Community Center on Thursday November 2 at 5:30p and a virtual meeting on Wednesday November 8 at 6:30p. More details and registration info below.

Monday October 23 – Finance Committee – 4:30p FC Agenda 10.23.23

2. 80333 Amending Sections 3.32(6)(a), 3.54(15)(d), and 3.54(20) of the Madison General Ordinances to reflect meet and confer agreements with the City’s employee associations.

3. 80305 Adopting and confirming modifications to the Employee Benefits Handbooks for the General Municipal Employees, the Madison City Attorneys’ Association (MCAA) and the Madison Professional and Supervisory Employee Association (MPSEA) for the period January 1, 2024 through December 31, 2024.

Items 2 and 3 reflect how the city and city employees adapted to Wisconsin Act 10 in 2011 when the state removed bargaining rights for general municipal employees formerly represented by AFSCME. The city and employee representatives engage in an annual “meet and confer" process to update the Employee Benefits Handbook.

10. 80423 Authorizing the inclusion of a Land Use Restriction Agreement as an exhibit to the Purchase and Sale Agreement between Core Spaces, LLC (“Purchaser”) and the City of Madison for the Purchaser’s acquisition of the property located at 405 W. Gorham Street (District 4)

Fiscal Note The proposed resolution authorizes the inclusion of a Land Use Restriction Agreement to the Purchase and Sale Agreement authorized by Leg file 79643 (RES-23-00579). If the Purchaser fails to comply with the Agreement, the City would be eligible for compensation, and the Economic Development Division’s budget would be amended in that instance. No additional City appropriation is required with the approval of the proposed resolution.

The city will sell 405 W Gorham to Core Spaces LLC for $1 to support affordable student housing in the proposed development (covering Broom/Johnson/Gorham). The LURA agreement is part of a new model the city adopted last year in the downtown that allows for buildings within the Downtown Height Map to exceed the maximum number of stories if the development or redevelopment receives City of Madison funding to support affordable units (MGO Section 28.071). Since the usual benchmark of area median income/AMI to determine affordability ranges does not neatly apply to student income, this new model for student housing offers affordable units at 40% less than the market rate.

 The city, the developer and the UW will enter into a mutual agreement: For 40 years, the project owner should provide “10% of the Building’s total beds (approximately one hundred sixty-five [165] beds) in two (2) bedroom dwelling units being leased to four (4) individuals (the “Low-Cost Beds”). The Low-Cost Beds shall be leased to Eligible Students (defined below), at a lease rate that is forty-percent (40%) less (the “Student Discount”) than the market rate charged for a bed in a comparable bed in the Building...”.

The UW’s Office of Student Financial Aid and the building owner will agree on a Memorandum of Understanding to apply UW guidelines to determine student eligibility.

11. 80348 Authorizing the Mayor and City Clerk to amend the 2023 Capital Budget and execute Amendment No. 1 to the existing Purchase of Services contract between the City of Madison and Sasaki for consultant services for the Lake Monona Waterfront (District 4, District 6, District 13, District 14).

Fiscal Note: The proposed resolution amends the 2023 Parks Division Adopted Capital Budget and authorizes Amendment 1 and extends the contract term to April 30, 2024 for the existing consultant services contract with Sasaki Associates for the Lake Monona Waterfront project. Amendment 1 is for additional design, exploration, and project management associated with the proposed John Nolen Drive underpass and shoreline improvements. The proposed budget amendment adds $200,000 in funding authority to the Parks Division’s 2023 Capital Budget for the Lake Monona Waterfront project (MUNIS #17362). The funding sources are $100,000 in new City-issued General Obligation borrowing, $90,000 in City-wide Park Impact Fee funding, and $10,000 in private donation support. The new contract total, including Amendment 1, totals $385,150.

The Lake Monona Waterfront process was underway before I elected alder in April. The outcome of the robust community engagement process during the Waterfont Design Challenge was to select Sasaki Associates as consultant to lead the effort. Now we are entering the next phase of updating the master plan.

Please share your thoughts about Lake Monona Waterfront Master Plan draft with me or the Lake Monona Waterfront Ad Hoc Committee at LMWCommittee@cityofmadison.com. The Ad Hoc Committee is also holding an in-person meeting on Tuesday, see below for details.

14. 79918 2024 Executive Operating Budget

2024 Executive Operating Budget Mayor’s proposed budget and overview, agency presentations, FC amendments, all the details.

FC Proposed Operating Budget Amendments

There are eighteen proposed amendments to the draft 2024 Executive Operating Budget, which includes salaries, benefits, purchased services, supplies, and contracted services.

State law limits the city’s maximum allowable increase in the property tax levy (“levy limit”). The allowable increase is based on the percentage of the total property values associated with net new construction (and other adjustments). Debt service on general obligation debt (“GO borrowing”) is excluded from the levy limit calculation.

Mayor Satya’s 2024 Executive Operating Budget proposes expenditures of $286,273,456 which is $224,243 under the levy limit. The 18 proposed amendments before the Finance Committee total $719,837 which exceeds our levy capacity by $495,594.

The first five amendments are technical and have no impact on the levy limit.  The remaining thirteen are more substantive and include changes to City department budgets. Seven amendments propose to create new positions. Three of the new positions are in Public Health, which must also be approved by the County Board since PHMDC is a joint city and county agency. There is a budget amendment to add a new Civil Rights Investigator position, the position was turned down last year and the agency has seen a 75% increase in complaints. 

I serve on the Finance Committee and offered to sponsor two amendments for alders who are not members of Finance, as a courtesy, in addition to signing on to several amendments put forward by my Finance Committee colleagues.

I am sponsoring with Alder Derek Field the proposal for the addition of a Traffic Signal Electrician in Traffic Engineering (#18). The position will help install and maintain the rapidly growing number of field devices installed by traffic safety programs such as Safe Streets Madison. This amendment creates a 1.0 FTE Traffic Signal Electrician 2 position within Traffic Engineering. Personnel costs for the position are $89,200 plus an additional $2,000 to purchase a laptop. Rectangular flashing beacons (RRFBs) and driver feedback boards (DFBs) are effective and popular tools requested by residents all over the city. These devices can enhance safety by reducing crashes between vehicles and vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and bicycles. The deployment of these devices have increased exponentially and the demand is only growing. According to staff, the number of RRFBs in the City has grown 660% percent. On top of that, staff are currently reviewing 86 resident/alder requests for new RRFBs, with an expected growth rate about 15 locations per year. I hear from constituents on a regular basis about improving neighborhood traffic safety.

I am also sponsoring with Alder Kristi Slack an expansion of the rain garden program. The proposed amendment allocates $80,000 to fund a rebate program for Madison property owners to install green infrastructure (e.g. rain gardens) on their property (#11). The intent of the amendment is to establish the first year of funding for a 5-year program; funding would be $80,000 annually, for a total 5-year cost not to exceed $400,000. The Engineering Division will establish criteria for reimbursements and an application process. Reimbursements will be awarded on a first come, first serve basis. There will be a sliding scale for reimbursements, with the maximum amount per parcel of $2,000. Approval will be contingent on appropriate siting of green infrastructure and other criteria. Currently when streets are proposed for reconstruction, property owners can opt for rain gardens with the city paying a portion of the cost, this pilot program expand the options for all residents.

The third amendment I am a co-sponsor of (along with most of the Finance Committee) adds $73,000 to further support the community agency contracts in each of the following areas: Early Childcare, School-Age Youth, and Older Adults Services (#8). This funding would augment the Executive Budget's 5% funding increase for community agency contracts. With this amendment, the total increase would be 7.5%. Funding for these program areas has not been increased in at least 5 years.

Finally, I am co-sponsoring an amendment to fully fund our membership in the League of Wisconsin Municipalities (#9). The 2024 Executive Budget included $49,920 for the League of Wisconsin Municipalities membership. This amount was based on prior year membership costs. The amendment would add $7,404 to fully fund the 2024 membership cost.

Without making additional cuts in the Executive Operating Budget, we can’t fund all the proposals.

If you would like to share comments on specific amendments or anything else on the Finance Committee agenda, please send them to financecommittee@cityofmadison.com.

Tuesday October 24 - Water Utility Board – 4:30p WUB Agenda 10.24.23

4. 80486 Status Report on PFAS Settlements

Staff memo “All pending civil cases by drinking water suppliers against PFAS manufacturers in the United States have been consolidated into a multi-district litigation (MDL), overseen by a federal court in South Carolina. The MDL identified some “bell-weather” cases that were to set the stage for such actions moving forward. On the eve of the first of these trials, a settlement was reached with the two largest manufacturers: 3M and DuPont. 3M is by far the largest producer of the product, with the most potential liability.

Under the proposed settlements, all public water suppliers would be potential class members. 3M will pay between $10.5B and $12.5B in damages, and DuPont will pay $1.185B in damages. Actual damages are unknown and will depend on how many members remain in the class and the extent of the existing or future PFAS contamination. Damages are meant to reimburse water providers from the costs incurred, or that will be expended, to treat the water supply so that it meets drinking water standards.

The City has until December 4, 2023 to opt out of the DuPont settlement, and December 11, 2023 to opt out of the 3M settlement. If the City remains in the class, it will have to file specific claims based upon the Utility’s PFAS testing results.

No formal action is required by the Water Utility Board or the Common Council for the City to remain in the class. Formal action would be required to opt-out of the class however.

The settlement amount would be used to offset the costs of the soon-to-be-constructed Well 15 PFAS treatment facility project. That way, the settlement amount would cover a portion of the cost of actual PFAS contamination in Madison’s drinking water.”

Tuesday October 24 –Lake Monona Waterfront Ad Hoc Committee – 6p Lake Monona Waterfront Ad Hoc Committee Agenda 10.24.23  @330 E Lakeside St

5 80453 Review and Discussion of Draft Master Plan Report

DISCUSSION AND POTENTIAL ACTION

Lake Monona Waterfront Master Plan draft

Wednesday October 25 – Transportation Commission – 5p TC Agenda 10.25.23

2. 80494 North/South Bus Rapid Transit

3. 80495 North/South Bus Rapid Transit Public Involvement Plan

Public involvement for the Design and Environmental Review phase of the project will tentatively include two rounds of in-person and virtual public involvement, in addition to meeting with alders, key stakeholders, and providing opportunity for the public to provide feedback throughout the process.

Round 1 – October/November 2023 (prior to 10% Design)

Round 2 – January/February 2024 (prior to adopting Locally Preferred Alternative / 30% Design)

Upcoming N-S BRT meetings  There is an in-person meeting on the N-S BRT at Warner Park Community Center on Thursday November 2 at 5:30p and a virtual meeting on Wednesday November 8 at 6:30p. There are also in-person meetings on the South Side and in Fitchburg. Registration info is in the link.