Brush Collection Starts Soon, Vote on April 1st, Plus This Week's Updates

Hi Everyone,

I don't know what was worse, watching the Badgers men's basketball team lose to BYU in the NCAA Basketball Tournament's second round or the swarm of political ads for the Supreme Court race one had to endure in doing so. 

Enough! If there was ever an argument for getting big money out of politics, this is it. 

On to this week's updates: 

Boards, Commissions, and Committee 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. 

• Common Council: The Common Council meeting will take place on Tuesday, March 25, at 6:30 p.m. in hybrid format. Agenda items include a briefing on State Legislature Affairs from the Government Affairs Team. 

• Meeting Details 

• Meeting Agenda 

• Register for Public Comment 

• Watch Online 

If you would like more information about becoming a member of a City board, commission, or committee, please visit the page linked here. 

Announcements and News Releases 

• How to Get Your Brush Collected in 2025: Brush collection for 2025 will start soon. Here’s what you need to do so that Streets Division crews can collect the brush you create by trimming your trees, shrubs, or bushes. 

• How to Track Your Absentee Ballot: The City of Madison Clerk's Office has issued absentee ballots to 33,579 voters for the April 1 election.  

• Madison Arts Commission Seeks Artist for Landscape Mural at New Public Market: The City of Madison and the Madison Arts Commission are looking for an artist to design a vibrant native landscape mural for the highly-anticipated Madison Public Market.  

• Local Museums and Libraries Rally Support for the Institute of Museum and Library Services after Recent Executive Order: President Trump recently issued an executive order that would gut the only federal agency dedicated to supporting American museums and libraries. The Institute of Museum and Library Services is a government agency that provides critical funding to museums and libraries in all 50 states.  

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. 

Events 

• Hospitalized Absentee Voting Begins Tuesday, March 25. Voters who are hospitalized may appoint an agent to pick up their absentee ballot from the City Clerk's Office, beginning today. 

• Craft with Kids, Wednesday, March 26 (this event occurs on multiple dates): Be a part of this fun and rewarding intergenerational program. Once a month make crafts and have fun with a local preschool class! All you have to do is show up. If interested, please submit a volunteer application. 

• Community Dinner, Sunday, March 30: Join Madison Parks at the Warner Park Community Recreation Center for a free community dinner! This event is free and open to the public.  

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

Lastly....

I realize as alder for District 13 that not all of my constituents share my worldview. Indeed, there is rarely a consensus on a given subject. Controversies arise, and by their very nature there will be differences of opinion, sometimes strongly held and sometimes strongly expressed. 

Occasionally, I get asked: "Why aren't you voting (on a topic at Council) the way those who elected you want you to vote?"  My response is to suggest that, first of all, lots of people voted for me, and, secondly, that it's a rare subject about which there aren't a multiplicity of opinions. 

Moreover, in questioned this way, I hope to respond by making the point that I'm not only bound to consider those who show up at a meeting and speak loudly in support of their views, but I also feel obligated to consider the voices of those, who for whatever reason, are not able to show up, whose voices often don't get heard at our public meetings. And, then, in light of our rapidly growing population, I find it equally important to consider the sentiments of those who will live in District 13 and other parts of Madison at some point in the future. 

We are the fastest growing city in Wisconsin. Madison is changing and, yes, change is difficult. But we must not ignore the facts. Madison is facing a severe housing shortage. Demand for housing far exceeds supply; therefore, it's imperative we build a lot more housing if we're going to see a leveling off of housing values. 

I'm also aware that not everyone shares my politics. I do hope, however, that you will vote on April 1st. As Bob Dylan once sang, "Money doesn't talk, it swears." Don't let the millions spent in this state election discourage you from exercising your franchise. It's no small thing, this mechanism by which the people can express their collective will. Consider there are many places on the planet where that right is denied, and that there are some in this country and some in this state who are determined to limit the exercise of that right, to make it more difficult for people to vote.

In closing, while the big money folks are breaking national records in dollars spent on this election, how about we break the record of voter turnout in Madison and Dane County? 

Vote on April 1st!

Take care and stay safe,

Tag