Meetings, student move, events

Hello neighbors,

After I shared some information in last week's messaging regarding composting, one of our neighbors, Susan, wrote me to tell me about her experience composting in her yard for more than three decades! She said she has been composting all food and garden stuff, in 3 bins, with no turning of material, no pests, and fabulous compost for her gardens every year. She is willing to show any interested neighbors this compost system. If you'd like to get in touch with Susan to learn her techniques, please email her at SBMillar at gmail.com.

Upcoming meetings of interest:

• The Airport Commission will host an online community information session on August 4th at 5:30 PM regarding the PFAS remediation process at the airport. Airport, other county staff and staff from the 115th Fighter Wing will present the plans and progress on remediation. Presentations will include an update from the 115th Fighter Wing about the Remedial Investigation awarded to Truax Field by the National Guard Bureau.

• The Plan Commission will be considering the following for West High School at their meeting on August 9 at 5:30 PM:

  • Demolishing the old monuments building on the corner of Regent and Highland.

  • Consideration of a conditional use in a Campus-Institutional (CI) District without a campus master plan for additions to an existing building that exceed 4,000 square feet in floor area.

  • Consideration of a conditional use in a CI District without a campus master plan for the establishment, improvement, or modification of a secondary use occurring outside of an enclosed building.

  • The addition of a new turf football field.

Info you can use:

• Student move: The Streets department has a dedicated web page to student moving days. They will be collecting refuse and recycling every day from August 2-16. Large items will be collected during this time without use of the new online large item scheduling system. HOWEVER, any item requiring recycling, such as microwaves or televisions, MUST pay a recycling fee. And, of course, everyone is encouraged to donate whatever goods are still in usable condition.

• Water please: Urban Forestry reminds residents to water newly-planted trees.  Right now, Madison remains below our normal precipitation, and these young trees need our help.

• Bus Rapid Transit: City staff have worked to find compromises with State Street businesses to keep this state-of-the-art bus system on State Street, realizing a 30-year dream for rapid transit in Madison. This video provides background on Metro Rapid, the design and approval process, and the recent redesign of State St. stations. These stations are 60% smaller and much more transparent than before. 
• Park shelter reservations: The main Hoyt Park shelter is reserved for a Celebration of Life on August 8, and will have amplified sound from 4-10 PM.
• Football season opener: The September 4 football opener at Camp Randall will have some pyrotechnics before the game.
• Street safety: We can all contribute to Madison's Vision Zero: a vision of zero traffic-related deaths and severe injuries on Madison streets by 2030. Please do your part to drive the speed limit, and obey all other traffic laws. (On a personal note, as the parent of a student driver, we just had an experience of a driver tailgating us while my son was driving the speed limit, and then passing us across a double yellow line - in front of a school!) The City is actively seeking input on our streets, safety, and bicycle/pedestrian improvements.

Events and other fun stuff:

• MadLit events, with music, comedy, spoken word and other entertainment are being held on several upcoming Fridays downtown.

• Wisconsin Science Festival - Call for Participation: The Wisconsin Science Festival is seeking partners throughout Wisconsin to host fun, unique science events October 21-24. Anything from a brewpub demonstrating how beer is fermented to a nature center showing how bees make honey. 

• Dane Dances! kicks off the 2021 season on Friday, August 6, at 5:30pm. This free, family-friendly event takes place on the Monona Terrace rooftop every Friday evening in August.  

• The Sugar Maple Music Festival is back at Lake Farm County Park August 6-7. 

• Friends of Madison Public Library will host a warehouse clearance book sale on August 7. 

• The 6th Annual Madison Black Restaurant Week is coming up August 8-15, featuring 40 participating vendors. 

• The Latino Chamber of Commerce is hosting Carts in Parks at Penn Park on Thursdays and Sundays.

Unfortunately, the delta variant of COVID-19 has caused Public Health Madison Dane County to urge all residents, vaccinated or not, to mask up again when indoors. While those who are vaccinated benefit greatly, by being less likely to become infected by the delta variant, and less likely to become seriously ill, new data show that if a vaccinated person does become infected, they are able to spread the delta variant equivalently to someone who is not vaccinated. I know this is not the progression any of us wanted, but if we all do our parts to mask up while indoors, we can help reduce the spread of this variant, and bring us back to "normal" again more quickly. And please, if you do come in contact with someone with COVID-19 or come down with symptoms, please get tested ASAP.

Be well,

Regina Vidaver