Late noticed City meetings and a random sampling of things I found to be of interest, hopefully you do too! West Wilson St. and E Johnson St. road reconstructions, watershed study public meetings, Bernie’s coming to town (will you be able to find him?), jumping worms and more.
MO’ MEETINGS
Meeting: Madison Development Corporation Housing Committee
Date: Wednesday, April 10, 2019 at 8:30am
Location: Teleconference, Madison, WI
Agenda:
– Discuss the RFP Responses from General Contractor(s) and Housing Committee’s Recommendation
WILSON STREET CORRIDOR STUDY MEETING TONIGHT
From Alder Mike Verveer:
As you likely know, West Wilson Street from South Broom Street to South Henry Street is scheduled for reconstruction in 2019. Water main breaks and deteriorated pavement over the last year have made this project a priority. As part of the approval for the 2018 reconstruction project on West Wilson Street, the Common Council required that the City conduct a more comprehensive transportation study of the Wilson Street corridor—South Broom Street to South Blair Street. A map of the study area is available here.
With another project scheduled, the City is currently studying how the Wilson Street corridor (South Broom Street to South Blair Street) functions for all modes of transportation. Project public meetings were held in November, December and February, and laid out project background, goals and objectives, existing conditions and possible design alternatives. For this information, see the meeting materials at the project website here.
A fourth public meeting will be held in order to discuss and get feedback on new alternative designs in development.
This meeting will focus on details of the street design options, especially for the South Broom Street to South Henry Street block (the 2019 construction project). The alternatives to be discussed provide different options for accommodating cyclists including: conventional bike lanes, a contra-flow bike lane, and a protected bike facility, and also provide different options for parking and loading. The City is also considering adding two to three blocks of South Broom Street (John Nolen Drive to West Doty Street or West Main Street) to the 2019 project. Previous meetings included some discussion on this portion of South Broom Street, and more detail will be provided at this meeting. A preliminary report is now available on the corridor study website.
Wilson Street Corridor Transportation Study Meeting:
Tuesday, April 9 at 7:00 p.m.
Room 215 (formerly Room 260), Madison Municipal Building, 215 Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard
Public comments are encouraged at the meeting.
SPRING WORK DAY AT LAPHAM ELEMENTARY SCHOOL GARDEN
Happy Spring!
Hibernation has come to an end and the warm weather is inspiring thoughts of seeds and veggies and endless garden discovery. Lapham is fortunate to have a garden as an outdoor classroom. The Gardener-in-Residence (Ms. Katy) teaches lessons and helps grow minds through exploration in the Lapham school garden. The first day of Spring lessons will be Tuesday, April 16–preparations are underway, but we could also use your help at a community work day!
SPRING WORK DAY – Saturday, APRIL 13th, 10am – Noon
(Rain Day: April 14th)
Come join us in the garden for spring garden preparations. Please bring a wheelbarrow, if you have one.
No experience needed. Get to know the garden, the gardeners, and families from Lapham.
If you are interested in helping out with the garden and outdoor classroom, the next Green Team meeting is April 15th – 6:00pm @ Cargo Coffee. We have monthly Green Team meetings, every 3rd Monday of the month.
Thanks!
Maya Wilkes
mayawilkes@gmail.com
608.616.2154
FINDING BERNIE SANDERS
Will he be at James Madison Park? Won’t he? Seems like there is some confusion:
From Alder Ledell Zellers this morning (9:02 am):
While the site of Bernie Sanders visit on April 12 has not yet been confirmed by the Madison Police Department (MPD), MPD has indicated they will be putting up no parking signs in the vicinity of James Madison Park noting “it is better to post early and then pull the signs than starting too late.” Given the expressed early preference by the Sanders group to hold the rally in James Madison Park (JMP) and that no other location has been agreed upon I am expecting JMP to be the visit location. If that changes I will let you know.
From Ledell Zellers yesterday (2:26 PM)
The Madison Police Department notified all alders at 2:15 today that “MPD has recently gotten word that Bernie Sanders will be visiting Madison on Friday, April 12th, in the late afternoon. The site of the visit has yet to be determined.” The Wisconsin State Journal has reported that the visit will take place in James Madison Park. That has yet to be determined. While that may be the location, it is not yet firm and is still under discussion.
LGBTQ+ EQUALITY DAY
DON’T MISS LGBTQ+ Equality Day at the Capitol, the only legislative advocacy day focused on the LGBTQ+ community and the issues important to us: ending discrimination, ending conversion therapy, promoting true lived equality for all!
When
April 16, 2019 @ 9:30 am – 4:00 pm
Where
First United Methodist Church
203 Wisconsin Avenue
Madison, Wisconsin
Join us in Madison for just part of the day, or make a whole day of it. After a legislative landscape briefing and some advocacy training in the morning, we will have afternoon activities including scheduled meetings with legislators and more. Hosted by Fair Wisconsin and Wisconsin Transgender Health Coalition, with partners GSAFE, Diverse & Resilient, and HRC-Wisconsin.
This is a totally free event to attend and includes lunch. Donations of any size to help cover the cost of lunch are always welcome.
Registration is free, but RSVP is required so we can ensure enough materials and food for participants.
CLICK HERE TO RSVP: https://act.myngp.com/Forms/
MORE INFO: https://fairwisconsin.
NEW WORM IN TOWN
I’m not referring to any politician here . . . from the Parks Department:
If you haven’t heard, there’s a new worm in town and it isn’t a good one. In fact, no worms are good for your soil, but this one is the worst of the bunch. Wait a minute…we’ve all been told that worms are good for our gardens, at least that’s what we learned growing up. However, contrary to popular belief worms really do more harm than good and prior to European settlement, there wasn’t a worm in the state of Wisconsin.
The worms that we’ve grown up with aren’t great for the soil, especially soils in our natural areas, but none are as terrible as the newest invaders – several species of jumping worm, Amynthas. Jumping worms are super aggressive consumers of organic matter and quickly transform a fertile well-structured garden soil into a dry pelletized soil that resembles coarse coffee grounds. It is interesting to note that the soil is so adversely altered that no other earthworms survive in it after the jumping worms do their thing.
So, how do you know if you have these bad guys in your garden? Easy – just go the Wisconsin DNR’s ultra-informative website and educate yourself on what to look for in both the worm and the soil they create.
Fortunately, experts at the DNR are incredibly knowledgeable and at the forefront of the latest research on the jumping worm. Everything you need to know and then some is on their website so definitely check it out for detailed information and photographs.
As the DNR experts point out, there is no “magic bullet” to control jumping worms at this time, but we can all help prevent their spread until better control options are available. Here are some things they recommend we all do:
- Educate yourself and others to recognize jumping worms
- Watch for worms and signs of their presence – impacted soil, cocoons, etc.
- Don’t spread the worms or their dormant cocoons through soil, pots, and divisions of plants, infected equipment, leaves, mulch, etc.
- If you own property in “The Northwoods” or a similar natural area, be extra careful not to spread the worm to them.
We all care about gardens and our natural world and love the beauty of what Mother Nature has so generously given us. The world is getting very small these days, which is both good and bad and unfortunately, invasive species arriving from all over the globe each year is part of the bad. The jumping worm is just one of thousands of organisms that are negatively affecting our environment. We can all make a difference by educating ourselves about invasive species, volunteering with groups that are helping with the environment and by treading lightly on the land each and every day.
Jeff Epping
Director of Horticulture
Olbrich Botanical Gardens
FLOODING AND WATERSHED STUDIES MEETING
I shamelessly stole this from Alder Keith Furman:
Watershed and Flood Studies – Public Informational Meeting
The Engineering Division is providing the following update on the upcoming watershed and flood studies:
The City now has consultants hired to complete 3 watershed studies and the City is working concurrently on a 4th study. Engineering will soon hold the first public informational meetings (PIM).
The format for the meetings will be an open house with a general presentation followed by time for attendees to visit stations that will be set up for questions and comments. The presentation will also be available online in the next few weeks. Residents and property owners will get a postcard mailing with details on the meetings within the specific watersheds (details are below as well). The initial set of meetings will all be the same format, which will give everyone various opportunities to attend if you are not able to make the day and time that is specific to your area.
Generally, Engineering is planning on touching on the items listed below for the first meetings. As the consultants get further into model development, Engineering will be able to provide additional details on the flood concerns and potential solutions. Engineering also plans to offer neighborhood or focus group specific meetings as needed to talk very specifically to individuals that have been impacted by flooding. Those focus groups will be offered after the initial PIM.
PIM #1 Agenda
- Put the August 2018 rain event into context with real measurements, and how variable the rain was.
- Define the project area for the particular studies.
- Explain the City’s approach to addressing the needs.
- Explain the process of the Watershed Study.
- Make sure the citizens understand that they will be involved throughout the process.
- Get public feedback.
This will be Engineering’s first group of projects; they plan to add more for a total of 8 watershed studies this year.
Below is a map of the watersheds, meeting times and locations.
1. Strickers/Mendota (District 19)
2. Spring Harbor (District 1, 9, 11, 19)
3. West Wingra (District 10)
4. Madison Pheasant Branch (District 9, 19)
SPECIFIC WATERSHED STUDY WEBSITES:
As more details on the specific watersheds becomes available these websites will be updated.
Spring Harbor http://www.cityofmadison.com/engineering/projects/spring-harbor-watershed-study
Wingra West https://www.cityofmadison.com/engineering/projects/wingra-west-watershed-plan
Strickers/Mendota https://www.cityofmadison.com/engineering/projects/strickers-mendota-watershed-study
Madison Pheasant Branch https://www.cityofmadison.com/engineering/projects/madison-pheasant-branch-watershed-study
WHAT’S GOING ON WITH THE JOHNSON STREET RECONSTRUCTION
From City Engineering Website – you can sign up to get the updates yourself the bottom of the linked page:
Construction Update
Project Schedule Overview:
Stage 1 (present thru mid-April):
- Traffic: East Johnson one lane each direction on existing outside lanes
- Construction: temp pavement crossover construction in medians, water main on First Street
Stage 2 (mid-April thru early-July):
- Traffic: East Johnson one lane each bi-directional on existing eastbound lanes and temp crossovers
- Construction: westbound East Johnson, First Street southbound widening, Fordem intersection
Stage 3 (early-July thru mid-September):
- Traffic: East Johnson one lane each direction on new westbound pavement and temp crossovers
- Construction: eastbound East Johnson, First Street median and northbound left turn lanes
Stage 4: (mid-September thru late-October):
- Traffic: East Johnson one lane each direction split to the outside lanes
- Construction: East Johnson median and center pavement, Thornton cul-de-sac and Yahara path
Stage 5: (late-October thru mid-November):
- Traffic: East Johnson closed and detoured for 3 consecutive days each direction
- Construction: East Johnson final layer of asphalt pavement and pavement markings
Overall Completion Date: November 15, 2019.
- Current Stage: Stage 1A/1B
Work this week (week of 4/8/2019):
• East Johnson westbound left turn lane just east of First Street (concrete pavement and curb & gutter)
• East Johnson median temporary crossovers (removals and grading)
• First Street utility work (water main & sewer)
Work next week (week of 4/15/2019):
• East Johnson median temp crossovers (temp asphalt pavement scheduled for Monday April 15th)
• Stage 2 construction to start on westbound East Johnson (pavement removals, water main, storm sewer)
Traffic Impacts:
• East Johnson traffic switch to Stage 2 scheduled for Tuesday April 16th
- One lane bi-directional traffic shifted to existing eastbound lanes
- Sidewalk closed on north side of East Johnson and west side of First Street
Project Details
Limits
E. Johnson St. from Baldwin St. to First St.
Schedule
Design 2015 – 2018
Construction April 1, 2019 – mid-November 2019
During construction, both East Johnson Street and First Street (STH 113) will be constructed in multiple stages to maintain at least one lane of traffic in each direction. Short term closures of E Johnson Street and Fordem Avenue will be required during construction and directional detours will be utilized.
Pedestrians will be accommodated throughout construction. One side of the street will remain open to pedestrians at all times. Intersections will be staged so that at least one crosswalk is provided across each street at the intersections of Fordem Avenue and First Street (STH 113).
The City will remove the concrete pavement and replace with asphalt pavement and new gravel base. The curb and gutter will be replaced on both sides of the street for the entire length of the project.
As part of the reconstruction bus stop and pedestrian and bicycle crossing improvements will be made. Existing sidewalk will be spot replaced as needed and new 10-foot wide multi-use path, 1-foot-wide buffer and 5-foot-wide sidewalk will be constructed along the south side of East Johnson Street from the Yahara River through North First Street (STH 113).
The proposed project also includes widening of North First Street (STH 113) between East Johnson Street and East Mifflin Street to provide two southbound lanes to East Washington Avenue and to provide dual left- and right-turn lanes at the East Johnson Street intersection. Driveway aprons will be replaced to match the existing driveway width at the back of the sidewalk.
The project also includes the replacement of sanitary sewer, water main, storm sewer inlets, street lighting, pavement marking, and signs.
In addition, because of the 2018 flooding that impacted E. Johnson Street, the roadway will be raised between Dickinson Street and the Yahara River to reduce the potential for future roadway flooding/closures.
An overall plan of the project can be found here: Overall Plan PDF
Public Information Meetings
A public information meeting was held on Thursday, April 4, 2019 at Lapham Elementary School, 1045 E. Dayton Street, Madison, WI 53703, from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm. in the school auditorium. The City provided a presentation and answered questions regarding the project. The presentation from the meeting can be found here: April 4, 2019 Public Meeting Presentation PDF
November 10, 2016 – Festival Foods
A public information meeting was held on November 10, 2016 at Festival Foods (Community Conference Room), 810 E Washington Ave. Madison, WI 53703, 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm. The City provided a presentation and answered questions regarding the project.
Press Release PDF
Handout PDF
Presentation PDF
Plans PDF
April 28, 2016 – Lapham Elementary School
A public information meeting was held on Apr 28, 2016 at Lapham Elemetary School, 1045 E. Dayton St. Madison WI 53703, 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm. The City provided a brief presentation on the project and answered any questions and listened to public input. Materials from the meeting are available below:
Press release PDF
Handout PDF
Presentation PDF
Plans PDF
