The Week Ahead: July 30 - Aug 4 - Take Two!

Ah, that's better, a whole bunch of meetings I had in my calendar finally popped up on the Weekly Schedule. So, try again. Here's what's going on this week and what went wrong with public notices this week!

Monday, July 30, 2007
Board of Estimates 4:30 PM Room 260 Madison Municipal Building
Halloween
- accepting donations for Halloween costs and authorizing fencing
- increasing budget for police, parks, streets and engineering for Halloween
- glass ban
$2.7 in TIF for Arbor Gate in 2008
Tenney-Lapham Neighborhood Plan
Borrowing to create affordable rental housing

Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Community Services Commission 5:35 PM Room 300 Madison Municipal Building
Cuts to agencies due to Mayor's request to departments to cut 3%
Another special last-minute Water Board meeting on another contract. 4:30 at the Water Utility

Wednesday, August 1, 2007
Economic Development Commission Room 120 Municipal Building 5:00

I'd also check out the public input and access improvments we're making to Chapter 2 this morning and tomorrow morning. You might also be interested in more problems we're having with consultants hired under contracts with the city which is the IZ meeting today and Thursday.

PROBLEMS THIS WEEK

1. The following meetings showed up in Legistar, many without agendas - but they do not appear on the Clerk's Weekly Schedule and therefore, likely are not properly noticed or something else is going on.

08/01/2007 Wed 5:00 PM Housing Committee (Canceled)
08/02/2007 Thu 1:00 PM Inclusionary Zoning Advisory Oversight Committee (No agenda yet, will be developed at today's meeting)
08/02/2007 Thu 4:45 PM Solid Waste Advisory Committee (In Legistar 5 times)
08/02/2007 Thu 6:30 PM Common Council
08/03/2007 Fri 8:00 AM Inclusionary Zoning Advisory Oversight Committee (Canceled)

2. These meetings show up on the City Clerk's Weekly Schedule, but you can't find any agendas on line (Legistar or list of additional meetings) so that you can determine if you want to attend or not.

Monday, July 30, 2007
8:00 AM MADISON METROPOLITAN SEWERAGE DISTRICT 1610 MOORLAND ROAD
9:00 AM MADISON BOARD OF POLICE AND FIRE COMMISSOINERS EVIDENTIARY HEARING MAY CONVENE INTO CLOSED SESSION ROOM 300 MMB

Tuesday, July 31, 2007
9:00 AM MADISON BOARD OF POLICE AND FIRE COMMISSIONERS EVIDENTIARY HEARING MAY CONVENE INTO CLOSED SESSION ROOM 260 MMB

Wednesday, August 1, 2007
8:30 AM CHAPTER 2 SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMON COUNCIL ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITTEE ROOM 417 CCB
9:00 AM MADISON BOARD OF POLICE AND FIRE COMMISSIONERS EVIDENTIARY HEARING MAY CONVENE INTO CLOSED SESSION ROOM 300 MMB

Thursday, August 2, 2007
9:00 AM MADISON BOARD OF POLICE AND FIRE COMMISSIONERS EVIDENTIARY HEARING MAY CONVENE INTO CLOSED SESSION ROM 300 MMB
12:00 PM MADISON CENTRAL BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRCT BOARD OF DIRECTORS MAY CONVENE INTO CLOSED SESSION 615 E. WASHINGTON AVENUE, 2ND FLOOR BOARD ROOM

Friday, August 3, 2007
9:00 AM MADISON BOARD OF POLICE AND FIRE COMMISSIONERS EVIDENTIARY HEARING MAY CONVENE INTO CLOSED SESSION ROOM 300 MMB
1:30 PM BOARD OF PUBLIC WORKS BID OPENING 1602 EMIL STREET

3. Then, there's the problems where the agendas appear, but there are no links to the documents that you need to truly participate in the meetings. But that will have to wait for another day as it is just too much information to wade through this morning.

4. There are some agendas that are there but you have no idea what they will be discussion. That too, will have to wait for another day, when we can play "What is this meeting about?"

Bottom line is, you shouldn't have to look in three different places and end up with conflicting or missing information. That is not good public notice.
Read more!

The Mayor's Two Favorite Sayings

1. We can disagree without being disagreeable.
2. There is no limit to what we can accomplish if we don't care who gets the credit.

Unfortunately, he repeats the sayings, but doesn't practice them. (Yes, unfortunately, this is another posting about the Mayor and me. But please read it, because important policy decisions are suffering because of his personal dislike of me.)

It's no secret, the Mayor dislikes me. And, he takes quite a few opportunities to express that dislike, in what he says about me to others and in his actions. People notice and then people ask me about it. The hardest question I have to answer is when people ask me "Why?" The question is hard to answer first of all, because I don't think there is just one reason. Second of all, because anything I say makes the Mayor look petty, vindictive, egotistical and well, disagreeable and if I say those things that make the Mayor look bad, it makes me look bad in the process as well. So, my answer to most people for the last 6 months or so has been to smile, shrug, bite my tongue and try not to stoop to his level, then tell people that they'll have to ask the Mayor why he doesn't like me. It's true, we have our differences, but he's right, we don't need to be so disagreeable and I've tried my best to rise above it.

However, it is difficult. Especially when he takes out his frustrations with me on my district (Gorman/Don Miller Project, James Madison Park, Breese Stevens Field funding, the East Washington BUILD, Tenney-Lapham Neighborhood Plan) and on good policy initiatives. (That list is even longer and you can find many of them in previous postings to my blog.). So, what happened to make me bring this up all over again. Really, there are two things.

The first is the inability to work together on the East Washington BUILD and the Tenney-Lapham Neighborhood plan. For some reason, Downtown Madison Inc, Tenney-Lapham Neighborhood Association, Marquette Neighborhood Association, Alder Marsha Rummel and myself are all on the same page about what we need to have happen and the Mayor is on the other side. And he won't listen. Essentially, it kind of boils down to this in my mind: If we're going to increase density in the downtown, we should be thoughtful about it. Part of being thoughtful about it is having not only good land use plans, but having good transportation plans that work with and are integrated into the land use plans. Seems simple enough doesn't it?

Apparently, the Mayor is against the transportation planning that we are requesting. At one point he offered Ald. Olson $200,000 for the transportation planning, but that offer has disappeared. Sad thing is, he could be the hero. He could call us all into his office and help us work out a compromise, but instead, he's being an obstacle. The Tenney-Lapham Plan has been done for over a year, and the East Washington BUILD committee had its last meeting last October, and yet neither plan is adopted because we're in a stalemate. Over what? Ego? Who gets the credit? Retribution? I don't know, and it doesn't make any sense.

The second reason, was tonight's Board of Estimates meeting. Oddly enough, the Mayor wasn't even there, but he did as much damage as he could via memo and mysterious staff requests. And instead was taking care of other important things . . . i.e. golfing?

MAYOR CIESLEWICZ WEEKLY SCHEDULE
Monday, July 30, 2007
7:45 a.m. Welcome at Wisconsin State Police Chiefs Association (Monona Terrace)
10:00 a.m. Policy staff meeting
12:00 noon 100 Black Men golf tournament (Bergamont Golf Club, Oregon)

The two items at the Board of Estimates meeting that were both referred were:

13. 06831 Creating Sec. 4.20(3)(d) of the Madison General Ordinances to prohibit proportional calculation of wages to employees performing both City and non-City work.

14. 06939 That the City of Madison should establish a capital borrowing program for affordable rental housing.

The first item, is really a housekeeping item that has been in legistar since June 26th. Several years ago, when I was Council President and on the Board of Estimates (2004-2005), we discovered that while the non-profits were held to one standard with calculating the living wage, the for-profits were held to a much more lax standard and in fact were not paying their employees a living wage while the employees were performing City contract work. It only affected two companies, Cintas and Octopus Car Wash. Apparently, they were incapable of doing what all non-profits are required to do, that is, figure out how to account for paying a living wage during the time that their employees are performing work under the City contract. What makes this really a housekeeping item is that we no longer have contracts with either of them. So, all the ordinance change does is make sure that in the future, if we contract with any for-profits that are not paying the living wage, that they are held to the same strict standard as the non-profits. Simple enough. A housekeeping measure.

Well, apparently, there was a request from "staff" to have this referred. Funny, the only staff that talked to me were the city attorney and the comptrollers staff and they were both fine with it. So, I explained to the Board of Estimates that this was merely a housekeeping item and asked what the issue was. Then, it came out, it was the "mayor's staff" that had requested the referral. Why? I don't know. You think they'll communicate with me about it between now and the next Board of Estimates meeting? I doubt it. And if they had issues with it, why didn't they mention it during the last month that it has been available? Looks like I have to write another memo. I can't wait to find out what the issue is.

The second item, is even more disturbing. Ever since the rental portion of the inclusionary zoning ordinance was struck down in the courts, I've been trying to figure out a way to provide incentives to developers to provide affordable rental housing, since we can't require it under state law due to the "rent control" provision in the state statutes. I talked to a lobbyist for several developers, a for-profit developer, a few non-profit developers, some city staff and I came up with an idea - based on all of their input. I wrote the resolution, and its been available since July 9th. I hadn't heard a word from the Mayor's office in the last few weeks. Not that that is unusual.

What was unusual was that the Board of Estimates members all had a memo, hard copy (not available electronically), placed at their desks when they got to the meeting. There was no copy of the memo for me and I wouldn't have even known about it, except that 2 different alders made sure that I saw it. One was kind enough to give me their copy. The memo boiled down to this: the Mayor didn't understand the proposal and he was asking people to vote it down.

Why? Well, I won't speculate, but the memo showed he didn't understand

• the program as proposed
• the Affordable Housing Trust Fund
  
• or even Inclusionary Zoning funding.
  

He made several assumptions that were erroneous. So, in deference to the Mayor, we referred the item. However, Ald. Bruer made the Mayor's office make a public commitment to work with me on this between now and the next Board of Estimates meeting. That ought to be fun.

Why am I writing all of this, mostly because I just can't tolerate bullshit. And the bullshit from the Mayor's office just keeps piling up. These are just a few more instances in a long line of examples that I could trot out. It's a pattern, not just a few minor incidents. I don't care if he doesn't like me. I don't care if his key staff people don't like me. I don't care if he's disagreeable to me. I don't care if he takes the credit for things that I do. But, I do care, when he uses his personal dislike of me to prevent good things from happening. Good neighborhood planning and creating affordable housing should not be the casualties of the Mayor's petty dislike of one of twenty alders.

Too bad the Mayor can't practice what he preaches, cuz he sure can be disagreeable, and sadly, I don't even think we disagree about the underlying issues. I think the whole City suffers when we have a Mayor that has knee-jerk responses to something simply because of who proposes it, instead of discussing issues openly and fairly based on their merits. I think the City deserves better from its elected officials and I hate being a part of this mess. This is politics at its worst. For my part, I've tried to reach out and figure out how to put this behind us, but I've been told in no uncertain terms that the Mayor just isn't interested. So, I'll keep pushing for things for my district and good policies and hope the Council can try to make the best decision based on what they know and the merits of the issues, not based on personalities. Luckily, I think we have a Council that can and will do that. Read more!

Dane County Housing Authority Opens the Section 8 Waiting List

It's been about 5 years since people were allowed to apply for Section 8, so this is a HUGE deal in the housing world. Here are the highlights of their announcement:

Dane County Housing Authority is reopening their Section 8 waiting list starting July 30, 2007. Applications can be picked up at their office (2001 W Broadway, Suite 1, Monona, WI 53703) between 9:00 and 4:00. Applications can also be downloaded from the website www.dcha.net starting July 30, 2007

A date has not been set to close the waiting list but it will NOT be open for an indefinite period of time. ( i.e. do this asap!)

Some helpful suggestions they sent:
1. Incomplete applications will not be processed, they will be returned for completion.
2. Make sure you complete and sign all the attached forms.
3. Do not call and ask how long it will take to come to the top of the list or where you are on the list, as they will not know the answer.
4. They will not accept faxed applications.
5. Applications must be returned by mail to: Dane County Housing Authority, P.O. Box 6097, Monona, WI 53716-0097. Applications will not be accepted at the office.
Read more!

The Week Ahead: July 30 - Aug 3

Here's what's going on this week.

Monday, July 30, 2007
Board of Estimates 4:30 PM Room 260 Madison Municipal Building
Halloween
- accepting donations for Halloween costs and authorizing fencing
- increasing budget for police, parks, streets and engineering for Halloween
- glass ban
$2.7 in TIF for Arbor Gate in 2008
Tenney-Lapham Neighborhood Plan
Borrowing to create affordable rental housing

Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Community Services Commission 5:35 PM Room 300 Madison Municipal Building
Cuts to agencies due to Mayor's request to departments to cut 3%

There may be more of interest, but there are some agendas not yet available or meetings that aren't on legistar yet, so I'll have to update this later in the week.
Read more!

Bus Detours: Cap Square and Atwood Summerfest

Here they are:

CAPITOL LOOP DETOUR: Bus Stop Shelter Replacements
Starts Saturday, July 28

Due to the demolition and replacement of the bus shelters on the Capitol Square, buses will follow the Capitol Loop Detour starting Saturday, July 28.

Routes operate one block from the Capitol Square on Doty, Webster, Dayton and Fairchild streets.

This detour will be in effect throughout the project, which is expected to be completed in the middle of September.

• Complete Info

ROUTE 7 DETOUR: Atwood Summerfest
Saturday, July 28; 6 AM - 9 PM

Due to the Atwood Summerfest on Saturday, July 28, Atwood Ave. will be closed between Division St. and Winnebago St. from 6 AM until 9 PM.

During this time, westbound Route 7 buses will detour via Dunning St., LaFollette Ave. and Winnebago St. Passengers are directed to catch westbound buses on Atwood Ave. at Jackson St. or Winnebago St. at First St.

Eastbound Route 7 buses will detour via Eastwood Dr. Passengers are directed to catch buses on Winnebago St. at Riverside St. or Eastwood Dr. at Division St.

• Complete Info Read more!

Good News: Improvements to Railroad Tracks on Blair/Williamson

For all of you who have been riding your bike and wiped out on the railroad tracks by Blair/Williamson, we have good news!

Interim repairs to the railroad crossing of Wilson Street at the intersection of John Nolen Drive, Blair Street and Williamson Street will begin Monday July 30 and are expected to continue until Wednesday August 8th. The railroad crossing will be repaved, and a cut-in at the island will allow for a straighter crossing of the tracks by bicyclists. A bike lane will also be marked on westbound Williamson and Wilson Streets in this area. Here's a drawing of these changes.

For more info, contact:
Arthur Ross, Pedestrian-Bicycle Coordinator
City of Madison Traffic Engineering Division
215 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd, Suite 100
PO Box 2986
Madison, WI 53701-2986
608/266-6225 Read more!

The banging is over!

Yes, the all-night-long banging has come to an end! Here's a note from City Engineer Larry Nelson that was sent yesterday with some interesting information about the future of this type of work:

Dave Beck-Engel of Findorff confirmed that the pile driving on Johnson Street was concluded this morning. While we did not get complaints in the immediate area, we had quite a few complaints from areas east of the square and reports that people in Monona could here the sound. George Hank reported that he could hear the sound at his residence some 2.8 miles from the site.

Apparently, the dampening of the energy waves was more detectable out some distance. To my knowledge, we have not generated a similar response from pile driving during the day. Barring additional information on the type of hammer used, its probably not a good idea to do pile driving at night in the future.

Read more!

Amplified Sound: Tenney Park 5 - 9 on August 6th

On Monday, August 6, the Madison Area Peace Coalition will hold their annual festival at the Tenney Park Shelter. They will have amplification between 5pm and 9pm. Read more!

16% Hike in Water Rates Proposed

The Water Utility is proposing to the PSC that they raise their rates by 16%. Please see the public notice below, which includes the date and time of the public hearing.

PUBLIC NOTICE TO ALL CUSTOMERS OF MADISON WATER UTILITY

Madison Water Utility has filed an application with the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSCW) to increase water rates.

The increase is necessary due to increased operating costs and plant additions since the last full water rate case in 2005.

The total increase in water revenues requested is $2,769,244 which will result in an estimated overall rate increase of 16% over the water utility's present revenues.

If the request is granted, the water bill for an average residential customer with a 5/8-inch meter who uses 4,300 cubic feet of water semiannually will increase from $66.21 to $77.10, or 16%, for general service; and from $71.81 to $83.10, or 16% overall, when the public fire protection charge is also included.

A public hearing on the application has been scheduled for

Wednesday August 8, 2007
10:00 a.m.
Amnicon Falls Hearing Room
Public Service Commission Building -- 1st Floor
610 N. Whitney Way
Madison, Wisconsin

Scheduling questions regarding this hearing may be directed to the PSCW at (608) 266-3766.

If you have any questions about the rate increase, please contact Robin Piper, Finance / Accounting Manager, Madison Water Utility, at 266-4656.

Read more!

Cities and Schools working Together

A former City Council member sent me this article about how Portland is spending spending $1.6 million to keep poorer kids in their schools. They have a program they initiated to keep poorer students in gentrifying areas of the City. Apparently they lost 11,000 students as the poorer people move out of the area and the richer people move in and send their kids to private schools. And of course, that then meant that the school district was losing state aids. The money is used for rental assistance, gap mortgages and grants to parent and neighborhood groups.

The program is called the Schools, Families, Housing Initiative. And the money will be spent as follows:

• $950,000, will go to the Portland Schools Foundation for grants aimed at promoting neighborhood schools, so newcomers will decide to send their children to them. The grants could be for anything from repairing broken windows to designing an after-school program.
• $450,000 in rental assistance for families with school-age children in schools with high student turnover. I should help 80 families avoid eviction and keep their children in the same school.
• $200,000 for a cash reserve, allowing the Portland Housing Center to offer about 40 below-market second-mortgages to help first-time home owners bridge the gap between the money they borrow and the house they want. The average amount would be about $5,000 per family.
  

This is an interesting concept. It's great to see the City working with their School Board. Do you think the City of Madison City Council, the School Board, Mayor's office and School Administration will ever get to the point where they are actively looking at the impact of schools on our neighborhoods and develop strategies to help keep our schools and neighborhoods strong? Or will we continue down the path where we say "It's the school board's problem"? And the School Board says "It's the City's problem"? It's not our responsibility, with everyone pointing in the other direction.

It's painfully obvious to so many in the community that as the schools go, so goes the City. I had thought there was some serious momentum to work on these issues between the City and Schools after last year's school budget, but those efforts seem to have fizzled or taken the back seat to other issues and I think that is a shame. In fact, the Board of Education-City Liaison Committee hasn't even met since the new council has been appointed. They have agendas for January, February and March but only minutes for their February meeting. Note, the two City Council members (Knox & Thomas) didn't even show up.

Just think, if the Cities and Schools were working together in a meaningful way, perhaps we could find partnerships and ways to help each other with the following:

• Getting kids safely to schools
• Crossing Guards
• Bussing (I think the schools spend something like $750,000 to get kids to school, in addition to $250,000 for bus passes for poor kids.)
  
• Space sharing
  
• Community and Neighborhood Meetings
• After school uses of space for community uses
  
• Sporting events & activities (We could coordinate usage of the parks. Most notably rentals at Breese Stevens, Warner, and a West Side park plus MSCR activities cost $80,000)
  
• Police Officers in the Schools - The schools pay for 4 police officers
  
• Coordinating planning efforts so that when we create new neighborhoods we are working with the schools to figure out where the kids will attend schools and what impacts it will have on the school district
• Coordinating human services
• Coordinating services at our libraries

I'm sure you can probably think of more areas where we could overlap and mutually benefit each other. But it seems, we can't even get this conversation started. I'd like to see it happen before the schools face their next big crisis and before our neighborhoods have to struggle more. Now is the time to be working on these issues, instead of taking a 4 month vacation from meeting. Or worse, before we're spending even more money like Portland to fix the problems we helped to create. Read more!

Making Money Off Inmates?

So . . . could you imagine not having enough money to make bail or pay for a decent attorney, trying to figure out how to pay rent so your family doesn't get evicted, attempting to keep your job while negotiating the county jail system and needing basic services and getting gouged to purchase them? Please consider supporting the good work of the folks at Madison Urban Ministry, Voices Beyond Bars and the Prison Ministry Program. Life is hard enough for some folks, they shouldn't be getting taken advantage of by County Government on top of it all.

End Unfair Profiteering in County Jails

Each year the County and private corporations rake in millions of dollars from inmates and their families in the county jails. The county contracts with companies in the jails that overcharge the families of inmates to provide for telephone, vending, and laundry services. For example, every time an inmate calls a family member, a loved one, or their attorney it costs those on the receiving end a $4.25 connecting fee and $0.50/minute. This brings in massive profits to the private telephone contractor, ICSolutions, and generates over $800 thousand in revenue to the county. The County also makes over $200 thousand/year by overcharging inmates for basic hygiene/medical products and laundry services. Jails largely consist of people from the poorest most marginalized neighborhoods of the county, and many of these inmates are incarcerated because they couldn't afford bail.

An ordinance to end all unfair profiteering in the jails has been introduced to the Dane County Board of Supervisors and is being propelled by the Madison-area Urban Ministry, Voiced Beyond Bars, and the Prison Ministry Program. The proposed ordinance would end county revenue generating from services provided to inmates in the jails. It would seek the lowest cost to inmates with all jail services, reversing the current practice of rewarding contractors who guarantee the highest revenue to the county. The proposed ordinance will help curb an exploitative and growing jail industrial complex in Dane County...

TAKE ACTION!
Email all Dane County Board Supervisors and County Executive Kathleen Falk and Urge them to Support this Ordinance: county_board_recipients@co.dane.wi.us , county_executive@co.dane.wi.us Read more!

Gender & City Employment - The Controversy Continues

So, Vikki Kratz calls me and asks me what I think about the Mayor hiring another man. I say, you can't look at this on a case by case basis. I don't know who applied so I can't really comment. I also say that until the report comes out, I don't expect anything to change and that likely, our problem is in recruitment and maybe not in the actual hiring decision and that I look forward to the committees recommendations about how to get more women to apply for jobs.

So, Vikki writes a story, Jason Joyce starts a thread on thedailypage, I get attacked (again) and the thread goes to hell. And so it goes. However, it does give me an opportunity to update you on some information I have about how the City of Madison is doing in general.

The Department of Workforce Development groups jobs into job families and somehow, they can tell you the percentage of women and people in racial/ethnic groups are available in those jobs. We can then compare this to the number of women and people in certain racial/ethnic groups that are currently in those positions. Here's the areas in the City where women are being under-hired compared to their availability in the job market:

Job Family 1A - 1B (Senior Official & Executives; Unit Directors & Managers)
Available in the Job Market: 36.6%
Currently Hired: 28.89%
Women are 13 of 45 employees in these job families

Job Family 1C - 1F (Program Managers & Supervisors; Major Program, Project or Operations Administrators and Supervisors; Program, Project and/or Operations Administrators and Supervisors; Program, Project or Operations Supervisors)
Available in the Job Market: 49.9%
Currently Hired: 36.11%
Women are 39 of 108 employees in these job families

Job Family 2F - 2J (Police Captains; Police Lieutenants; Fire Captains; Fire Lieutenants)
Available in the Job Market: 21.9%
Currently Hired: 17.28
Women are 14 of 81 employees in these job families

Job Family 2K - 2M (Expert Consultants; Public Health Protection; Heath Care Services)
Available in the Job Market: 87.4%
Currently Hired: 80%
Women are 36 of 45 employees in these job families

Job Family 3A - 3E (Police Sergeants and Special Investigators; Firefighters/Paramedics; Fire Inspectors and Investigators; Advanced Specialized Regulatory and/or Code Enforcement; Specialized Regulatory and/or Code Enforcement; Inspectors)
Available in the Job Market: 32.6%
Currently Hired: 27.62%
Women are 50 of 81 employees in these job families

Job Family 3F - 3K (Engineering Program Specialists and Surveyors; Engineering/Planning Technicians; Architectural/Engineering and Related Aides; Property Assessment and Real Estate Aides; Biological and Chemical Science Technicians)
Available in the Job Market: 32.6%
Currently Hired: 19.67%
Women are 12 of 61 employees in these job families

Job Family 6A - 6K (Advanced Administrative and Program Support; Fiscal Processing; Resource Assignment; Administrative and Program Support; Advanced Administrative and Clerical Support; Administrative and Clerical Support; Clerical Support; Library Clerks; Library Page; Cashiers; Inventory Clerks)
Available in the Job Market: 84.3%
Currently Hired: 76.98%
Women are 408 of 530 employees in these job families

Job Family 7A - 7F (Crafts Group; Advanced Electrical Systems Installation, Maintenance and Repair; Facilities and Buildings Maintenance/Construction; Water Supply Operators, Skilled Mechanical Maintenance)
Available in the Job Market: 12.1%
Currently Hired: 1.35%
Women are 2 of 148 employees in these job families

Job Family 8A - 8B (Service and Maintenance Leadworkers, Coordinators and Crew Leaders; Specialized Grounds, Conservatory and Arborist Workers)
Available in the Job Market: 23.20%
Currently Hired: 12.96%
Women are 7 of 54 employees in these job families

Job Family 8D - 8P (General Public Works Maintenance and Equipment Operations; Advanced Public Works Maintenance and Equipment Operations; Advanced Equipment Operators; Refuse Collection, Street and Sewage Maintenance Operators; General Facility/Equipment Repair and Maintenance; General Maintenance/Mechanical Repair Work; Custodial and Facility Maintenance; Metro Transit Custodial and Service Workers; Hourly Public Facility Service Providers)
Available in the Job Market: 30.8%
Currently Hired: 22.28%
Women are 123 of 552 employees in these job families

So, for those who think that we don't take various factors into account, such as availability in the market place, you're wrong, we do. And even after taking those factors into account, we're still failing. Read more!

Changing E Johnson and E Gorham to 2-way Streets

You'd think that asking City Staff to look at changing E Johnson and E Gorham back to 2-way streets was the beginning of the end of the world. It's not like this is an idea that hasn't been discussed before. In fact, as long as I have lived in this neighborhood (since 1991), traffic on those two streets have been of constant concern.

In fact, this idea was adopted by the Common Council as part of the current Tenney Lapham/Old Market Place Neighborhood Plan that was approved in 1995 and therefore is part of the adopted Comprehensive Plan:

Evaluate making both E. Johnson and E. Gorham Streets two-way between N. Blair and N. Baldwin Streets as recommended in the Isthmus Area Traffic Redirection Study (1978). Evaluate this option in light of its diversion potential and impact on the central business district. (page 74)

The language in the proposed Tenney Lapham Neighborhood Plan is much the same.

1. Develop a Transportation Management Plan for the central City that will implement Transportation System Management (TSM) and Transportation Demand Management (TDM) strategies that will (1) make central neighborhoods more livable and (2) improve mobility for all residents and visitors by distributing trip demand across multiple modes (auto, bike, bus, streetcar, commuter rail and pedestrian).

2. As part of the Transportation Management Plan for the central City, explore strategies to reduce the arterial operation of East Johnson Street and East Gorham Street, by redesigning the traffic flow on both streets to two-way instead of one-way streets between Wisconsin Avenue and Baldwin Street (East Johnson is already two-way from Baldwin to East Washington Avenue.)

However, the staff are completely resistant to traffic planning for the Isthmus as we first discovered in the East Washington BUILD process when they issued their staff report last May.

The article in the Cap Times yesterday sparked discussion on three different neighborhood listserves (Capitol Neighborhoods, East Isthmus Neighborhood Planning Council and Tenney Lapham Neighborhood). Here's some of the interesting comments from neighbors:

COMMENT ONE: (TE = Traffic Engineering)

This is part of a long-range, grass-roots generated isthmus traffic plan that SASY & Wil-Mar hoods were involved in as well.

Of course, TE has to trot out their old bugaboo:

>McCormick said the neighborhood association is "proposing shunting the
>traffic onto other street in other neighborhoods where we don't think it
>can be sustained."

That is complete & utter balderdash. It which completely ignores just such a (relatively) successful situation on the south side of the isthmus. Two way streets, such as Willy & Atwood foster urban vibrancy in a way that the mini-interstate feel of E. Johnson & E. Gorham could never achieve. I think they deserve better. And McDonnell proposes better.

COMMENT TWO:

It sounds like TE, based on their public statements, has already disqualified themselves to conduct or lead the proposed study in an objective manner. The basic sentiment expressed was, it’s a stupid idea but we can study it. Measures should be taken to ensure an objective assessment of 2-way streets.

COMMENT THREE: (MH = Mansion Hill)

The call for two way on Johnson and Gorham was in a street use document endorsed by CNI a couple of years ago. (Number one under Neighborhood Rules on the attached). This would be good for MH and has been called for by many for the MH plan, which is still in draft form. Two way streets results in 20% fewer turns and reduced miles driven. In the recent Nolan Conference it was promoted as being a better approach for city planning...also supported by Donovan Rypkema, downtown economist/consultant who spoke to many groups in Madison about 5 years ago.

COMMENT FOUR:

In general terms two-way streets are better than one-way streets, Adam. They certainly bring about significant degrees of traffic calming; slowing things down and reducing accidents. The one-way streets were designed by a generation of engineers who's main driver was unimpeded movement and speed of the car.

COMMENT FIVE:

Hopefully with the joint effort of multiple neighborhoods pushing, a transportation study can more forward.

The city of Madison needs to start thinking outside the box now when it comes to transportation. In 20 years, when the United States war coffers are bankrupt, where will the oil come from? We need to have in place a transportation infrastructure that will take into account the skyrocketing cost of fuel. Cities that continue to expand on the model of the automobile are going to suffer greatly. Will we let the traffic engineers, whose sole job it seems is to increase auto capacity, continue to dictate our city's transportation directions?

We not only need to reclaim Johnson/Gorham from the one car/one person commuter pattern, we MUST get Madison policy makers to look at how we as a city will fare once the cost of oil will force major changes in our lifestyle. We need to stop building massive parking structures that one day may sit empty. I think we can get people out of their cars with a series of incentives and disincentives:

-employer subsidized mass transit (the university has a successful free bus pass program)
-pay people not to drive
-increase parking fees for those who insist on driving with waivers for those who need to drive but cannot afford the fees.
-reduce auto capacity (johnson/gorham) and increase capacity for alternative modes (peds, bikes, rails, busses etc.) This will equalize the transit options, perhaps giving mass transit an advantage

A side benefit to reduced single car commuting will be cleaner air for all of us!

I'm sure folks have noticed that the students are migrating closer to campus which makes the johnson/gorham corridor full of vacancy signs. So much of that housing stock is already in disrepair, what will happen when they become even harder to rent? Returning Johnson/Gorham would breath new life into some of those tired old houses.

These comments came from a wide variety of people of different political persuasions and philosophies of how to deal with local government. They also came from a wide range of neighborhoods. This issue at least deserves some discussion and study.

Read more!

Madison Metro: Dream Big!

With all the talk about trolleys and trains and regional transportation authorities, it seems that the Madison Bus system is being ignored. Well, here's your opportunity to talk about what you think the future of Madison Metro should look like. Express busses to and from transfer points? Express busses from cities and towns surrounding Madison? 24 hour service? On demand late night service from the transfer points? More weekend service? Or maybe, you just want a bench to sit on at your bus stop. Here's your chance to dream big and get your ideas into the long range plans for Madison Metro. This announcement comes from Ald. Satya Rhodes-Conway.

Four Public Participation Meetings have been scheduled to get feedback on the work of the Long Range Metro Transit Planning Ad Hoc Committee.

Feedback will be focused on the Midterm Report of the committee. (A complete copy of this Midterm report will be available soon.)

Additional meetings on the north and west sides of Madison as well as the University of Wisconsin campus will be scheduled later in the year.

Monday, August 6; 5:00 PM
Lakeview Park Shelter, 6300 Mendota Ave., Middleton

Wednesday, August 8; 5:00 PM
South Madison Health and Family Center - Harambee
2202 S. Park Street, Room 310, the Villager Mall
Please enter through the South Madison Library.

Thursday, August 9, 2007; 5:00 PM
Madison Public Library - Pinney Branch
204 Cottage Grove Road, in the Meeting Room.

Tuesday, August 14
Transit and Parking Commission Meeting
Madison Municipal Building, 210 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Room 260.
Note: The Public Participation Meeting will be held at the beginning of the TPC Commission's agenda which starts at 5 PM.

Read more!

BSR: 4 Shows in 3 Days!

You have four chances to catch Baghdad Scuba Review in the next 3 days.

Mr. Roberts
Thursday, July 26th
2116 Atwood Ave
9:45

Cosmic Railroad Family Gathering Festival
Friday, July 27th
Camp Rotamer 5245 E Rotamer Rd Janesville, WI

Atwood Summerfest
Saturday, July 28th
Maximum Ink / Berghoff Rock Stage
(located in M & M Investments parking lot behind Player’s Bar)
They play 4:15 - 5:15 and open for Canned Heat

Cool Rock Chaos
Saturday, July 28thach Rd. in Cross Plains
You just need to read the details of this event for yourself.
Read more!

Workers' Rights Picket Cancelled, but Childcare needs your help!

This just in from the Worker's Rights Center . . . and Wisconsin Council on Families and Children

The WRC Board has called off the picket scheduled at La Hacienda for Wednesday, July 25 at 5pm as a show of good faith to representatives from a number of community organizations working to resolve the dispute. Representatives from the WRC board will be meeting early next week with the owner of La Hacienda to discuss the wage and hour complaints. We will keep supporters posted on developments. The WRC board would like to acknowledge the overwhelming support that the community has show as the key that has brought the owner to the table.

Patrick Hickey
WRC Director

However, childcare issues could use your support tomorrow. This is from the Wisconsin Council on Families and Children. And its only part of the picture of how childcare funding is being slashed at the state capital.

Help Ensure Wisconsin’s Budget Reflects Our Values!

Every parent who needs it should have access to high quality early care and education for their children.

Wisconsin Shares funding is in jeopardy. Wisconsin child care providers need your help to maintain the bipartisan funding package for WI Shares and quality improvement initiatives.

Budget Background: The Wisconsin legislature is continuing its work on the state budget. The eight legislators who make up the conference committee (see bottom of email for names & contact information) are expected to start their work on the state budget this week. They face the daunting task of trying to reconcile vastly different Senate and Assembly versions of the budget – budgets with very different priorities. Whatever budget document the conference committee comes up with goes back to the Senate and the Assembly for up or down votes (no amendments or changes are allowed) and then to the Governor.

What can you do to help make sure that WI Shares is protected?

1. Contact the Conference Committee:

Take 2 minutes THIS WEEK and email all 8 members of the conference committee with the touch of a button! Click the Take Action button above you will have a sample message ready to add to and/or send as is. Thanks!

2. Join us for the Wisconsin Values Event

State Capitol Building, Senate Parlor
Thursday, July 26th @ 11:00 a.m.

The Wisconsin Values Event: A large and diverse set of organizations (including SEIU, AARP, AFT, AFSCME, Wisconsin Counties Association, WI Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Planned Parenthood, Wisconsin Early Childhood Association and the Wisconsin Council on Children & Families) are coming together this Thursday, July 26th for this Wisconsin Values event to provide an opportunity for policy-makers, the public and the media to hear from individuals whose daily lives are impacted by the decisions on this budget. These individuals could be our neighbors, our friends, or members of our families. Like all of us, they value good schools, access to health care and child care, protection for our most vulnerable residents, strong communities, and higher education.

You’re invited: To ensure that the state legislature sees the strength represented in our collective voices, we need you to join us at the Capitol this Thursday morning! The event will last less than an hour, and participants will then stop by conference committee members’ offices to deliver a Wisconsin Values message about the budget. Your participation in this event is critically important and we hope you can take the time to join us.

More information about the state budget is available on WCCF’s website: www.wccf.org

Questions? Contact Vicky Selkowe at WCCF at vselkowe@wccf.org or (608) 284-0580, ext. 326.

This morning, the City's Early Education and Childcare Committee had to make recommendations to request supplemental funding in the City's budget for the following programs due to CCCI State funding cuts that are likely to affect the following programs:

• Dane County Parent Council - Latino/Hispanic Program $13,930
• Rainbow Pride Project $23,483
• Community Coordinated Child Care - Latino Child Care Project $26,985
• Wexford Ridge - Elementary AFter School and Summer Camp $5,300

That's on top of the cuts we made because of the Mayors 3% cut budget instructions, where funding was cut for:

• Simpson Street Free Press - Elementary School Summer Writing Workshop $8,647
• Community Coordinated Child Care - Training and Professional Development $33,554
  

Those are completely different cuts than the cuts to Wisconsin Shares listed above, so childcare funding is getting hit all over the place, so please, if you have time, consider stopping by the State Capital or emailing in support of both Wisconsin Shares and CCCI funds.
Read more!

Banging: All Night Long!

What is that noise?!? That is the single most popular question I've had for the past two days? Most of us who live on the Isthmus don't have central air and leave our windows open for the breeze. However, for the past few nights, people all over the Isthmus, Sherman Avenue, E. Dayton, N. Livingston, E. Gorham, E. Mifflin, Few St. and others have been forced to shut their windows and try to drown out that sound of metal pounding on metal.

So, what is it and where is it coming from?

Campus/Murray St. And worse yet, I found out the council unanimously approved the all-night-long noise, in early June. Never did I imagine that when I approved noise for W Dayton, W Johnson and University Ave that I would have complaints from as far away as Sherman Ave or the 900 block of E Dayton.

How much longer will it last?

Our City Engineer Larry Nelson says:

I talked to Findorff and they say Sunday night the pile driving will be done. However, Terra Engineering, the subcontractor doing the work is hopeful that they will conclude the work by Thursday night.

What's the theory on why there are complaints far away, but not closer to the site?

Our City Engineer Larry Nelson says:

We are not getting complaints in the immediate area of the construction but rather a considerable distance away. This must be the frequency of the sound of the pile hammer.

Why is it necessary?

Traffic.

Lessons Learned!

1. Noise travels in an interesting way throughout the Isthmus, especially with the lakes. I have to say, its odd I don't hear the noise downstairs in my house with all the street noise, but when I go upstairs, I clearly hear it and I live on the 500 block of E Mifflin. It doesn't bother me, but its interesting how irritating it is once you start hearing it. It's like being at a concert and dancing on squeaky chairs, you don't notice it until someone points it out and then its all your brain hears.

2. Ask more questions before approving pneumatic hammers as noise after 7 pm or before 7 am. Even when it is two alder districts away.

Here's an update on the situation. Read more!

Watch what you eat . . .

While it is good to "buy local" and support small local businesses, sometimes, it just isn't enough. Sometimes, you need to think about labor practices of that local business and make another decision.

A message from the Workers' Rights Center:

Support the workers from La Hacienda
Join the Picket Line
Wed. July 25 at 5 pm

Come help us make some noise to send a message that Madison does not support businesses that don’t treat their workers right!

La Hacienda has engaged in systematic violations of State and Federal wage & hour laws, failing to pay many of its workers for all hours worked, for overtime worked, or at the minimum wage.

For years the Workers' Rights Center (WRC) has assisted workers at La Hacienda Restaurant at 515 S. Park Street to receive their proper wages. La Hacienda has been cited by the Department of Labor for these violations. The WRC has tried to work with the restaurant over the years to get it to clean up its act. But the violations continue.

Read more!

Well 3 Replacement Newsletter Updates

Here's a not-so-pretty version of the newsletter.

About the Project
Madison Water Utility is in the process of abandoning Well 3, which served east isthmus neighborhoods since 1928. Well 3 was taken out of service in September 2006 due to documented industrial contamination from past land uses. To replace this water source, the Water Utility is beginning a search for a replacement well site. In the meantime, all homes and businesses in the former Well 3 service area are receiving drinking water primarily from Wells 7, 8, and 11 although some locations also receive water from Wells 13 and 15.

A team of consultants led by Montgomery Associates is under contract by the Water Utility to lead the search for a new site to replace Well 3. The team is conducting detailed groundwater analysis, mapping potential sources of surface pollutants, and coordinating public involvement.

The search for a new well site in the east isthmus area is challenging because of the history of industrial use and landfills with contamination, lack of land open for new development, and desire to preserve park land and open space.

Due to the strong community interest in this project, the Water Utility formed a Working Group of east isthmus community representatives to help inform the siting process and guide public involvement.

What Is Happening Now?
This summer, the consultants are conducting assessments of surface contamination and subsurface geology in the search for a set of candidate sites for a test well. About 25 technical factors have been identified for evaluation and mapping; the majority of these are required by Wisconsin Administrative Code NR 811. Examples include minimum distances from storm sewer mains, fuel storage tanks, landfills, and existing drinking water wells.

If there are no candidate sites identified, the search will extend beyond the immediate area of the east isthmus.When and if this occurs, we will seek participation from the alders and neighborhoods added to the search area.

The expectation is that a set of well sites that meet the technical criteria will be identified in the fall. At that time, we will bring the results to the community for feedback on the candidate sites and to help weigh the pros and cons of each. More detailed scientific assessment of the prospective sites will also be underway at this time, as will initial consideration of construction and operational costs.

The DNR must approve any recommended test well site before drilling and sampling may begin.Test wells are used to collect site-specific hydrogeologic and water quality information to assure their suitability for a permanent water supply well. The replacement for Well 3 is to be operational in 2012.

What Is the Working Group?
Working Group and Project Team members are working together to inform the site selection and public involvement process. Community representatives to the Working Group are:

• Alders: Brenda Konkel (District 2), Marsha Rummel (District 6), Satya Rhodes-Conway
(District 12)
• Neighborhood Associations: Emerson East (Marty Cieslik), Marquette (Fae Dremock), Schenk-Atwood-Starkweather-Yahara (Dan Melton),Tenney-Lapham Neighborhood Association (invited, not represented)
• Community Organizations: East Isthmus Neighborhoods Planning Council (Cassandra Garcia & Mikelanne Northrup), Friends of Starkweather Creek (Laura Hewitt)
• If the project area for the new well extends beyond the east isthmus area, we will extend the representation on the working group.

The Project Team providing support and information to the Working Group includes Joseph Grande (Water Utility), Steve Gaffield (Montgomery Associates),Anne Forbes (Partners in Place), Bill White (Michael, Best, and Friedrich), and other technical experts.

The Water Utility has asked the Working Group to help make sure that:
• The community's issues and concerns are consistently understood and considered.
• The invitation to the community to participate is welcoming and inclusive.
• The technical information is crafted so citizens can understand and participate in the process.
•We communicate how community issues and concerns are reflected in the alternatives.
•We provide the rationale for the final decision, including information about how public input was considered.

What are the Community Issues?
Thanks to the previous public meetings about drinking water hosted by the East Isthmus Neighborhoods and Water Utility from October 2006-April 2007 and to the many people who attended, there is an existing base of information about community interests and needs. Working Group and Project Team members are reviewing the notes from these meetings to make sure that the issues identified to date are addressed. There will be an opportunity for people to review and add to this list of issues at upcoming public meetings. Some of the key issues citizens have identified to date are:
• Concern about surface contamination in the east isthmus area and its relationship to the deep aquifer, our source of drinking water
• Concern about constraints for a location for a new well on the east isthmus, including preserving park land, history of industrial use and landfills, lack of land open for new development
• Need for confidence that public health is not at risk
• Desire for a communication and accountability throughout the well siting process
• Concern about the cost of the replacement well to consumers
• Citizen interest in “coming to the table” to learn, be heard, and be part of the solution
• Interest in water conservation, citywide as well as on the east isthmus

How Can I Learn More and Get Involved?
Everyone in the community is welcome and encouraged to participate in public meetings about the project.

• This fall, the Water Utility and Working Group will host a public meeting where we will bring everyone up to date and provide opportunity for input. An informational open house providing background information will be part of the meeting agenda.
• To be put on the mailing list to receive information about public meetings, or for general information, contact Joseph Grande (266-4654 or jgrande@cityofmadison.com).
•Watch the Water Utility website for a link to the East Isthmus Well Replacement project page in early September.
• Information about the project and public meetings will also be posted on the East Isthmus Planning Council website at http://eastisthmus.org.
• To get news about drinking water, join the East Isthmus Neighborhoods Planning Council (EINPC) Yahoo! Groups Drinking Water listserve. Send an email to the list Moderator, Dan Melton, oakville000@yahoo.com. He will email you an invitation to join the list.

The expectation is that a set of well sites that meet the technical criteria will be identified in the fall. At that time, we will bring the results to the community for feedback on the candidate sites and to help weigh the pros and cons of each. Read more!

Barely Navigating the Madison Weekly Schedules

After trying to post the interesting meetings coming up this week, I was so frustrated I wrote the following memo to several city staff members and the Mayor's office. You really shouldn't have to check three places on-line and go to the clerk's office to figure out the week's schedule and you really shouldn't get differing information.

Every week I try to look at the "Weekly Meeting Schedule" on the city clerk's website, what is listed in Legistar and the Notice of Additional Meetings to figure out what is going on in City Hall and every week, I find several issues that cause confusion for me and leave me wondering if the meetings that I am going to are properly noticed. Here's this weeks sources of confusion. Can someone please tell me if the meetings are all properly noticed ( i.e. hanging in the clerk's office) or if something else needs to be done.

These meetings are in Legistar and not on the Weekly Meeting Schedule posted on the Clerk's website:
Mon 4:30 Landmarks
Wed 8:30 Board of Assessors
Thurs 5:00 CDBG
Fri 8:00 IZ Oversight

These meetings are on the schedule and I can't find an agenda in Legistar or the Notice of Additional Meetings
Mon 1:30 Capital Improvement Review Committee
Tues 9:00 Capital Improvement Review Committee
Tues 4:30 Madison Election Advisory Committee Annual Report Subcommittee
Thurs 5:00 Madison Board of Police and Fire Commissioners
Fri 10:30 Board of Health for Madison and Dane County Budget Committee

And here's a few other issues:
In Legistar on Wed is a CDBG meeting with no agenda - I presume this is a mistake since it is also not on the Weekly Meeting Schedule
In Legisar on Wed is a Street Use Staff Team meeting with no agenda - but it also is not on the Weekly Meeting Schedule
On Wed at 5:00 there are already minutes listed for the Vending Oversight Committee meeting

At least this is what was showing up this morning as I was trying to catch up and figure out where I needed to be this week. Can someone please figure out how to resolve this persistent confusion and tell me how I know if the meetings I am going to are properly noticed or not? After all, the members of these committees are the one's that will get fined if there is an error and there should be a way to figure this out without calling and bugging the clerk's office or running down there ( i.e. I always presumed that the official schedule was what showed up on the Weekly Meeting Schedule, but I recently discovered this was not so.)
Thank you all.

Sincerely,

Ald. Brenda Konkel

Honestly, all I want to be able to do is look in one place on-line and know that these are the officially noticed meetings for the week, that shouldn't be too much to ask, is it? And worse yet, the public shouldn't need to know the secret code to know that they have the correct information as well. Read more!

The Week Ahead: July 23 - 27

Last week of the month things are always a little slower . . . but here's what I've got: (NOTICE: This weeks schedule is a little screwed up.)

MONDAY

5:00 - Long Range Metro Transit Ad Hoc Committee
201 W Mifflin ST Room 202 (Downtown Public Library)
This group is nearing completion of their report and things should start getting interesting, plus, they are taking up the resolution on the Regional Transportation Authority.

5:30 - Plan Commission
Room 201 City County Building
Of interest to the second district is Cliff Fisher's project at 119, 123 & 125 North Butler Street and 120 & 124 North Hancock Street.

6:00 - Allied Area Task Force Housing Subcommittee
Room LL-120 Madison Municipal Building
They're discussing the appeals process if their application is denied to live in the City owned properties

TUESDAY
4:00 Board of Water Commissioners Special Meeting
119 E Olin Ave
Special meeting to talk about security cameras. (Don't they have other things to be worrying about.)

4:30 Madison Election Advisory Committee Annual Report Subcommittee
Room 103A City-County Building
No agenda available on-line.

WEDNESDAY
8:45 Early Childhood Care and Education Board
Room 300 Madison Municipal Building
Includes a public hearing on budget cuts to Childcare programs.

4:15 Urban Design Commission
Room 260 Municipal Building
For people in district 2, there is a Don Miller site demolition happening but I don't know of any concerns with this proposal. Read more!

10K Lakes Festival - The Final Day

The final day was probably the best of all . . . here's a bit of what we were able to catch:

The Grasshoppers


We caught one song by Kaki King and she was pretty good, but we were on our way to grab some food and catch a bit of Keller Williams.

Little Feat was interesting to see, but then we wanted to go catch


Chinese Fingertrap and I'm glad we did. I really enjoyed their show. They had a great sound and the woman singer was worth catching.


Then we were lucky to hear a few songs by Toubab Krewe, including the drum finale which was worth sticking around for


Then it was finally time for Government Mule. I swear, I could listen to Warren Haynes sing all day long.

We started out up above, but had to make our way down to the dance floor.


I was thrilled to hear him sing Patchwork Quilt and Beautifully Broken. Patchwork Quilt was so good it had me in tears and I'm certain I wasn't the only one.

We were thrilled to see Government Mule joined by Derek Trucks

And the absolute best part of the entire weekend was the encore when they did Soulshine.

Next up, Bob Weir & Ratdog


And more Bob Weir & Ratdog. I was a little weirded out when Bobby started singing Lazy River Road. I just couldn't fathom anyone but Jerry singing the song, and was somewhat offended, but the more I listened, the more he won me over and I was glad he did it so well. Made me miss Jerry even more than the Warren Haynes song.


Speaking of which, Warren Haynes also came out to play a few tunes with Bobby & Ratdog


When the dancing was all over


then there were fireworks.

As if that were not enough The Derek Trucks Band played as we walked back to camp, too tired to walk back up the hill to catch Dumpstaphunk. Overall, it was just a beautiful few days.


In the morning, we packed up camp, drove back to Madison and when I got home I found cake from my sister (her own special recipe)

and flowers (from whom I still have to discover)


And now, back to the grind. Tho, its always great to be back in Madison!

See here for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday 10K Lakes reports. Read more!

10K Lakes Festival - The Birthday Edition

So, I couldn't imagine a better place to spend my birthday!

After my shots of tequila to kick off the day, we wandered back to our usual spot to use the electricity and wireless internet. While doing so we were able to catch Cosmic Railroad

Outformation

Some WBPN and then Fancy Bastard which we stayed to watch based on the name alone . . .

I missed the Everyone Orchestra which is always fun to see, Rob caught of little of it.

We then walked back to camp, dropped off our stuff and stopped by the tent in Lake Sallie and caught Pert Near Sandstone on the excellent advice of our neighbors to the south

Then we went back to see Down Lo with MC Deploi

and The String Cheese Incident which sounded the best of the three times I have seen them

And a good time was had by all!

Well, at least everyone I saw seemed to be having a good time! We went back to camp and hung out with our neighbors to the North. We have excellent neighbors on all sides. The neighbors from Minnesota even bought me birthday cupcakes when they went to town! So we hung out, had some beers and birthday cupcakes and called it a night.

The oddest things we saw yesterday: a guy with a kusch ball cut open and put on his head, some guys in hockey helmets, a fully dressed magician, lots of fairies and body paint and just people having fun! Mostly we saw lots of fun and sun and music.

The crowd is moving slow this morning - tho I'm sure people are saving their energy for Government Mule, Ratdog, Fireworks and then a tough choice between Derek Trucks and Dumpstaphunk. Another beautiful cloudless day, not too hot, and a great breeze. Cheers.

See here for Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday 10K Lakes reports..
Read more!

10K Lakes Festival Update: Thursday.

The birthday update . . . yes, it's my birthday today and Rob tells me he can see some gray hairs today . . . I don't believe him . . .

So, as you can see from yesterday's report, we woke up, ate breakfast and headed to the Barn and Saloon stages. I found a place where the wireless was working and I could plug in to the electricity and settled in to do a few things on line - sadly, it took me nearly 3 hours! But, if you have to be doing some work and blogging, how much better can it get than doing it while drinking a Guinness and listening to music.

I was able to catch portions of:
Super American Happy Fun Good Time Jamband
Hunab
Green Lemon
Polydypsia

All while working. They were all great bands, Polydypsia and Green Lemon seemed the best to me as they had the most energy. I really enjoyed the long Particle-like jam at the end of Green Lemon's set.

And of course, The Super American Happy Fun Good Time Jamband was just all of that. Tho I will never remember their name. Rob says his favorite band yesterday was Polydypsia, at least that was the band that impressed him the most.

After all that we checked out a little bit of Particle, but Galactic was calling to us from the Field Stage, so we had to go down there and finish listening to their set,

all the while being tortured by the bouncing crowd up at Particle . . .

it seemed so unfair to have two really good bands playing at the same time . . . and interestingly enough, there we met several groups of people from Madison. I was most impressed by the woman with the broken leg that got in a motorcyle accident less than a week ago . . . she was hardcore. I asked her why she was here as she was clearly in pain and she said "Well, I bought the ticket." Made sense to us.

We listened to a little of Zappa Plays Zappa. I was never a Zappa fan, so it wasn't too thrilled by it, but Rob definitely liked it. I think the only song I recognized was Joe's Garage, but I wasn't paying that much attention. We grabbed some food, did some shopping, walked back to the tent, dropped off all the electronics and headed back to festival grounds for Umphrey's McGee.

We listened to most of Umphrey's McGee and then walked back to the tent after a long day of drinking and sun. Tho I have to say, if I would have know that The Disco Biscuits were going to be so good, I would have convinced Rob to stay. They almost made me want to get up and start dancing right there in the tent, almost.

Oddest things we saw yesterday: Santa, the guy that's been wearing the blue bunny ears for two days, the girl with the leopard tail, and the top two favorites were the guy I just can't describe, he was in full white body paint and some weird mask like thing on his face, really, somethings you just have to see to believe. And my favorites, the teenage mutant ninja turtles that were wearing watermelons on their heads. I'm just sorry I wasn't quick enough to get some pictures for you.

The cutest thing I saw . . .

or maybe this



This morning, Rob let me sleep until 11:00 . . .we ate a little lunch and wandered over to the camp of some friends we know from Madison. We hung out with Fee from Yokanizu Project and Cory from Northern Pines Band. They gave me some birthday tequila and a PBR to start the day out right. And we had some great entertainment from Cory playing the guitar with a little improvisation from the woman sitting next to him. Some of the best entertainment to date at the festival. However, we had to leave to go see Cosmic Railroad who at the moment are being drown out by Outformation. I liked Cosmic Railroad, and Baghdad Scuba Review will be playing at their festival coming up soon.

See here for Wednesday, Friday and Saturday 10K Lakes reports. Read more!