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City Meetings and Updates Week of Nov 17

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  • City Meetings
    • Finance Committee 11/17
    • Plan Commission 11/17
    • Housing Policy Committee 11/18
    • Transportation Commission 11/19
  • Coffee With a Cop Scheduled 11/18 and 12/16
  • Changes to Winter Parking Rules & Enforcement This Year
  • Events & Announcements

City 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 Monday, November 17, at 4:30 p.m. in virtual format. Agenda items include approving the 2026 Urban Forestry and Resource Recovery special charges.

Plan Commission

The Plan Commission meeting will take place on Monday, November 17, at 5:30 p.m. in virtual format. Agenda items include development-related requests (none in District 3).

Housing Policy Committee

The Housing Policy Committee meeting will take place on Tuesday, November 18, at 4:30 p.m. in virtual format. Agenda items include the latest proposed Housing Forward zoning updates. Here’s the staff presentation to the Housing Policy Committee, here’s a City webpage with more details about the process and timeline, and here’s a recording of a recent public information meeting about the proposals. 

Map of the TOD overlay areas showing where more housing might be permitted
Image credit: City Planning
Map of the Transit Oriented Development overlay area. Orange shows properties that would allow 4-unit buildings within the TOD under Legistar 90552.
  • Updates to the TOD ordinance, see Legistar #90522.
    • Allow a 4-home structure to be built within all residential areas in the TOD overlay. For some areas, this would be an increase from allowing a 2-home structure to a 4-home structure.
    • Ensure that businesses incorporating a drive-through window don’t default to a primarily auto-centric design. This proposal would only allow drive-throughs in the TOD overlay if incorporated into a larger building – specifically a 3-story building that covers at least 60% of the lot.

    • Prohibit the creation of new car washes, auto sales and rental businesses, and standalone private surface parking lot facilities within the TOD overlay district. Surface parking lots that are not the principal use of the property, like a parking lot for a business or a residential development, would still be allowed.

      Example of a potential Cottage Court arrangement with a shared parking and garbage area. Dashed lines indicate lot lines.
      Image credit: City Planning
      Example of a potential Cottage Court arrangement with a shared parking and garbage area. 
  • Allow for the development of Cottage Courts-style housing, meaning eight or fewer detached single-family homes with common management and/or access to the site, allowing for smaller and therefore potentially more affordable homes. These could be condominiums, homes on their own lots, or on a single lot with a single owner. See Legistar #90557.
  • Change the zoning district for a handful of properties (not in District 3) within the TOD overlay to be more consistent with adopted future land use recommendations for those sites. See Legistar #90553,  Legistar #90554,  Legistar #90555, and Legistar #90556.

These items are scheduled to go to next the Plan Commission on December 1st and back to Common Council on December 9th.

Housing Policy Committee meeting info:

Transportation Commission

The Transportation Commission meeting will take place on Wednesday, November 19, at 5:00 p.m. in virtual format. Notable agenda items include: 

  • An update about Curb Management planning
  • Updates about the Madison Passenger Rail Station Study. According to the presentation, there are two remaining sites along existing railroads in Madison being considered for a passenger rail station with a 700-foot platform: Plan A is the Monona Lakefront downtown (the Monona Terrace area) and Plan B is the “Johnson Street Yard” near where Johnson Street, First Street, and Packers Ave meet. Slide 15 of the presentation lists the overall next steps, which are all notably to be led by WisDOT rather than the City of Madison. According to this plan, construction would last from 2029 through 2032 but I suppose a lot could happen to earlier phases that may move this timeline. The availability of federal funding for new service will be a major factor determining feasibility and timelines.
  • A resolution prohibiting certain auto-oriented land uses as principal uses within the Transit Oriented Development Overlay District (applies to the Downtown and along the BRT lines); see above Housing Policy Committee section for more information about Legistar #90552. 

Meeting info:

Coffee With a Cop Scheduled for Tuesday, Nov 18 and Tuesday, Dec 16

From East District MPD:

“Join officers from our East District for coffee and connection at 2 upcoming Coffee with a Cop events!

Date: November 18
Time: 1pm-3pm
Location: Pinney Branch Library (516 Cottage Grove Rd)

Date: December 16
Time: 10am-12pm
Location: Pinney Branch Library (516 Cottage Grove Rd)
Additional details: Detectives from our financial crimes unit will be present to discuss frauds”

Changes to Winter Parking Rules & Enforcement This Year 

The City is considering a more data-driven and flexible approach to winter parking restrictions with a system that leverages modern technology, clearer communication, and responsive operations that better align with real-time weather conditions.

Beginning with the 2025-2026 winter season, the City will test a delayed enforcementmodel and expand public education efforts to help residents better understand parking requirements and improve compliance.

For this winter:

  • Enforcement will begin only when the Street Superintendent declares the first general plowing operation or snow emergency.  A “general plow” is the term used when every street in the City of Madison is plowed curb-to-curb.
  • Once activated, the Alternate Side Parking requirements will remain in effect until March 15, 2026. However, ticketing for alternate side violations may be paused during prolonged periods without snow or ice.
  • The City will also evaluate enforcement timing to determine whether adjustments to the overall winter parking timeframe are appropriate in future years.

Additional Adjustments:

  • Posted weekly daytime street maintenance restrictions will be enforced after snow events to enhance curb access and facilitate more efficient cleanup. This may include towing from posted areas.
  • Priority enforcement will focus on streets with unsafe driving conditions or areas that obstruct access for emergency and public safety vehicles.

Receive Winter Parking Alerts to Stay Informed

The City of Madison offers text and email alerts to help you stay informed about winter parking rules and snow emergencies.

Subscribers will receive notifications earlier in the evening when parking restrictions are in effect and additional reminders when stricter enforcement is triggered by significant winter weather.

Sign up for winter parking alerts here.

Events & Announcements

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. Additional upcoming events can also be found on the City events calendar.

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District 3 - Alder Field

Alder Derek Field

Alder Derek Field

District 3
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