Meetings and Updates Week of January 6
posted- City Meetings
- Finance Committee 1/6
- Transportation Commission 1/8
- Board of Park Commissioners 1/8
- Potential Traffic Signal Changes - Discussion at 1/8 Transportation Commission
- Southeast Area Plan Online Comment Map – Please Add Your Feedback!
- Events & Announcements
Winter Storms and Extreme Cold: The best way to stay safe during extreme winter weather is to be prepared and stay indoors. Learn how to prepare for winter storms.
City Meetings
Finance Committee
The Finance Committee meeting will take place on Monday, January 6, at 4:30 p.m. in virtual format. Agenda items include the restructuring of existing land contracts with Madison Ice Inc. and East Madison Ice Collective into forgivable loans and authorizing the sale of those properties.
Transportation Commission
The Transportation Commission meeting will take place on Wednesday, January 8, at 5:00 p.m. in virtual format. Agenda items include the review and approval of Metro Transit bus stop changes (none in District 3) and a discussion of the 2024 Traffic Signal Priority List, see below section for more information.
Board of Park Commissioners
The Board of Park Commissioners meeting will take place on Wednesday, January 8, at 6:30 p.m. at 330 E Lakeside St. Agenda items include approving the Madison Mallards request for firework displays for the 2025 Mallards and Night Mares season at Warner Park Stadium.
If you would like more information about becoming a member of a City board, commission, or committee, please visit the page linked here.
Potential Traffic Signal Changes - Discussion at Wednesday’s Transportation Commission Meeting
City Traffic Engineering staff will present to the Transportation Commission on Wednesday a list of the intersections where they’ve received requests to add or remove traffic signal operations over the last year. This meeting will be the first of two meetings on the topic. Staff are recommending a list of intersections for further studies and analysis and will be looking for the Commission’s feedback and approval for further study.
Traffic Engineering recommends that the Transportation Commission approve two District 3 intersections for further study for a traffic signal:
- For Milwaukee Street and Sprecher Road, they recommend a study of the 1-year and 5-year crash history, measuring the current peak-hour traffic delays caused by the intersection, and conducintg a side-by-side intersection analysis to compare potential design alternatives. Note: at the request of the North Star Neighborhood Association, and with my support, Traffic Engineering staff agreed to explore the feasibility of a traffic circle at this intersection instead of stoplights. I’ve asked staff for an update on this which I’m hoping they’ll share during the meeting.
- For Milwaukee Street and N Thompson Drive, they recommend performing a 1-year and 5-year crash history review. Note: this intersection didn’t actually score very well in Traffic Engineering staff’s analysis under the requirements, but they’re recommending it for further study anyway because the City receives a LOT of requests for better traffic handling at this intersection and because the angle of the elevated bridges over the Interstate create visibility concerns for drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists traveling through this intersection.
If the Commission approves the recommendations from Traffic Engineering staff, they will conduct these further studies and return to the Commission with those results. Then, in March, Transportation Commission will make a decision about whether or not to approve these intersections to get traffic signals based on those results. Watch for more updates about this in future weekly updates posts.
In addition, Traffic Engineering staff reviewed these District 3 intersections at my request as the alder or at nearby residents’ request, and with the crash and traffic data available they determined that these do not currently meet the minimum requirements for a new traffic signal: Swanton Road & North Thompson Drive, Commercial Ave & Nakoosa Trail, Cottage Grove Road & South Thompson Drive; Milwaukee Street & Thompson Drive; Milwaukee Street & Walbridge Ave; Milwaukee Street & Witter Road, Cottage Grove Road & McLean Drive, Milwaukee Street & Swanton Road, Cottage Grove Road & McClellan, and Sharpsburg Drive & Sprecher Road. Here is a resource that explains how the City uses Criteria for Installing Traffic Signals, which are based on the Federal Highway Administration’s Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices.
Residents with input on District 3 intersection signals at this point in the process may consider emailing their feedback to the Transportation Commission members: TransportationCommission@cityofmadison.com, and feel free to copy me: district3@cityofmadison.com.
Southeast Area Plan Online Public Comment Map – Please Add Your Feedback!
As a reminder, the Southeast Area Plan is an opportunity for residents to give input on their neighborhoods' land uses, transportation and traffic issues, park amenities, tree canopy, public art, and more, within the planning area. City Planning staff will use all of this input and information to draft Plan recommendations, which the public will also have more opportunities to review and provide more input later in this process.
The Southeast Planning Area is bounded by I-39/90 to the east, Sigglekow Road/Village of McFarland to the south, Starkweather Creek/City of Monona to the west and Highway 30 to the north. The planning area includes the Hiestand Park, Heritage Heights, and Rolling Meadows neighborhoods within District 3.
One of the ways the City hopes to get residents’ input is through the Plan’s interactive online comment map! You can review a map of the Southeast planning area and either add new comments with your feedback, or use the thumbs-up and thumbs-down feature to show your agreement/disagreement with other comments on the map. Please consider checking it out and adding your thoughts!
Events & Announcements
- Ice Skating in Madison Parks Starting Today: Ice skaters, rejoice! Tenney Park and Vilas Park lagoons and many rinks are opening today and this weekend for free ice skating! Bring your own skates or rent at Elver, Tenney, and Vilas with staff available: Friday: 4-8pmSaturday: 12-8pmSunday: 12-… [posted January 3, 2025]
- Statement on Wisconsin Election Commission Investigation : I fully support this independent review, and look forward to WEC’s findings and recommendations, which will inform any changes we make to prevent a similar situation from occurring in the future. [posted January 2, 2025]
- Groove & Glide at Olbrich Park, Friday, January 10: Make the most of winter at a Groove and Glide event! Experience the fun and beauty of ice skating under the lights with fun music and games. All ages and experience levels are welcome. Grab your friends, a date, or family, and have fun on the ice.
- Mobile Vaccination Clinic: Badger Prairie Needs Network, Saturday, January 11: Public Health Madison & Dane County are hosting mobile vaccination clinics throughout the county in partnership with community organizations!
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.
