Award-winning Veggiez

Happy Friday, Madison!

A local business has been recognized as a 2023 National Small Business Week award winner.

JustVeggiez was named the  2023 SBA Wisconsin Emerging Small Business of the Year. The Black- and family-operated vegan business got its start catering events and hosting pop-ups in 2018. The plant-based menu features burgers, Italian sandwiches, pizzas, and more.

The business plans to a restaurant on the 500 block of State Street. The owners are currently running a GoFundMe campaign to help cover some of the restaurant's opening costs.

Vegan food is definitely having a moment in Madison. If you don't believe me, read this.

— Hayley

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🚧 More campus-area housing proposals from the group behind the Hub.

• Core Spaces, known for its luxury student housing developments, is looking to expand its footprint in Madison. The Chicago-based developer is working on two student housing projects along West Johnson Street.
• The first proposal is for a 12-story, 254-unit student housing building across the street from Bassett Street Brunch Club and Hampton Inn. The project would require the demolition of 11 residential structures, according to Cap Times. The second proposal is also for a 12-story student housing building on the other side of the hotel.

🌮 Pedro’s Mexican Restaurante is switching gears.

• Pedro's has been a mainstay of the east side for the past 42 years. Now, its owner has closed its dining room doors and shifted focus to catering and selling tortilla chips and margaritas in stores.
• Why the change? Staffing issues, according to the State Journal.
• But it's not all bad news: Though the dining room closed in March, Pedro's owner hopes the shutdown will be temporary. The State Journal reports the owner is also considering paring down the menu and just offering carryout.

🐰 Looking for egg hunts?

• Madison Mom rounded up several local Easter egg hunts happening this weekend.
• The list includes: Verona Egg-Stravaganza Spring Festival, Elvehjem Neighborhood Egg Hunt, Cottage Grove's annual Free Easter Egg Hunt, and Sun Prairie’s Best Easter Egg Hunt.

⚖️ The governor signed the first bill of his second term.

• Gov. Tony Evers signed new bipartisan legislation into law this week that will increase penalties for reckless driving in Wisconsin.
• What does the law do? It allows local law enforcement to impound a vehicle "if its owner is cited for reckless driving and has a prior conviction for reckless driving and has not paid the imposed forfeiture for that offense."
• While the bill's supporters acknowledge the legislation won't solve the problem immediately, they call it an important first step to addressing reckless driving.
• "Everyone deserves to feel safe in our communities and on our roads and streets, whether they’re taking their kids to school or driving home from work, but reckless driving and other dangerous behaviors are putting folks at risk across our state," Evers said in a statement.

⛔️ Your lunchtime read: Bill could help ‘innocent purchasers’ clean up contaminated Wisconsin land.

• Via Wisconsin Watch: "Ken Koeppler is being held liable for contamination beneath a building he owns in Madison, Wis., despite the fact he was never involved in the dry cleaning business that operated there in the 1950s and 1960s.
  
  'I was in grade school when these people were dumping chemicals there,' Koeppler says. The building had been converted into residential housing before he purchased it in the 1980s."

🎙️ Today on City Cast Madison

Your Election Roundup: Supremes, Impeachment and Winning By a Coin Toss?

Dylan Brogan, Bianca Martin, and Molly Stentz round up the news this week, which means we’re unpacking election day results.

What could Judge Janet’s win mean for 2024 and the next presidential race?

Why did Wisconsin vote for the liberal-backed judge while also supporting tougher bail measures and work requirements for welfare?

Are the purple state eulogies a bit premature?

And what will happen in the Madison race that came down to two votes?

We don’t know the answers, but that doesn’t stop us from talking about them! Come along for the ride. Yeehaw.

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🏦 Finances 101

This is a sponsored column from Bank of Sun Prairie.

Whole vs. term life insurance: which is the right for you?

Related:

• How to successfully use credit card churn strategies
• Home equity loans 101: are they right for you?
• Six personal finance podcasts worth adding to your playlist
• Self employed? Read these tax tips.
• How to maximize your 401K employer match for 2023

📅 Events

Today

• A Tribute to R.E.M. and Genesis at The Harmony Bar and Grill
• Aly & AJ: With Love From Tour 2023 at Orpheum Madison
• BURLESQUE REVUE! at The Bur Oak
• The Canopy Sessions: Samba Novistas at Olbrich Botanical Gardens
• Mad City Story Slam at Mother Fool's Coffeehouse
• Very Garcia - A Jerry Garcia Tribute at High Noon Saloon
• Yes Ma'am at Glass Nickel Pizza Co.

Saturday

• April Watershed Reading at Arts + Literature Laboratory
• Best Night Ever: Boy Band Bash at Majestic Theatre
• Kids in the Rotunda: Drum Power at Overture Center
• Foo Foo Dolls at Red Rooster Madison
• Latin Night: Orquesta SalSoul Del Mad + La Combi at The Bur Oak
• Madison Makers Delta Market at Delta Beer Lab
• Mae Simpson and Rare Element at High Noon Saloon
• Queer Makers Market at Blue Bar Quilts
• Whethan at Liquid Madison
• Wisconsin Landscapes: An Art and Science Fusion Workshop at UW–Madison Arboretum

Sunday

• Bird & Nature Adventures at Turville Point Conservation Park
• SIN on Sunday at The Rigby
• Live Jazz with Sarah Pray at The Cider Farm Tasting Room
• DISNEY DRAG BRUNCH! Hosted by Bianca Lynn Breeze

🐶 Friday Floof

We've made it to the end of the week, which means its time for a little treat. Meet Bisou. This cutie is a pitsky rescued from a roadside ditch in Texas. Bisou enjoys full days of running around outside, sniffing, swimming, hiking, and exploring.

😸 Do you have a floof to share with the Madison Minutes community? Fill out this form for the opportunity to be featured.

📝 Miss a Minute?

Check out the headlines from our last newsletter.

• From brewery to volleyball courts?
• This race for City Council isn't over.
• Meet the newest member of the Madison School Board.
• Yard waste set-out dates are here.
• Cleaning up after the Park Street fire.