Morning Update

Nominate us for Best of Madison

‘Tis the season for Best of Madison voting. So, um, nominate us, maybe?

In this newsletter

Photo by Hayley Sperling

Goooooood morning, Madison!

‘Tis the season for Best of Madison voting. So, um, nominate us, maybe?

Through the end of the month, you can nominate your favorite people, places, and things of the isthmus for Madison Magazine's annual Best of Madison contest.

We’d be honored if you nominated us in the "Local News Website" category. And while you're at it, vote for our friends at City Cast Madison in the "Local Podcast" category.

You can vote once per day in each category per valid email address. So vote early and often!

— Hayley

✏️ Help name Madison's new elementary school.

The Madison school district is opening a new elementary school this fall serving students who currently attend Allis Elementary School and Nuestro Mundo Community School. The new school will be located at 501 E. Badger Road.
Members of the community are invited to submit suggestions for the school by March 9.
Dig deeper: Bold plans, extraordinary giving are forging a new South Madison (State Journal)

Captured on Portobello Road, London — Photo by Ed Robertson / Unsplash

📚 Last year at the library.

Last year was the first full year the Madison Public Library system was fully open to the public since the Covid-19 pandemic began, and Madisonians took full advantage of what the library had to offer.
In 2022, people checked out 1.7 million items across the library system, which is 16.7% increase from 2021.
Sequoya Library was the most popular location, followed by the Pinney and Central locations. As the saying goes, having fun isn't hard when you've got a library card.

🏙️ City officials have introduced a plan to bring more affordable housing downtown.

Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway and several City Council members are proposing a zoning change to encourage the development of more affordable housing downtown.
The proposal would allow developers to exceed current limits on the number of floors in a development if at least half of the new space is used for affordable housing. The buildings would still have to meet overall downtown height limits.
Some context: The city limits both the number of stories and the heights of downtown buildings to "protect the view of the State Capitol." Typically, the heights of residential floors are lower than commercial floor heights, allowing for more residential floors without worry of exceeding the height limit.
Related: High rents are pushing many out of the Madison area market (Wisconsin State Journal)

😋 There's a new restaurant coming to Greenway Station.

The Middleton shopping center recently announced Cooper’s Hawk Winery and Restaurant will move into the former Tanner’s and Maurice’s space.
In addition to food, the new spot will have tasting rooms and an artisanal market, according to NBC15. It's expected to open this fall.

Taken at a Denver Brass concert — Photo by Lucas Alexander / Unsplash

🎺 Your lunchtime read: Tubas in Wisconsin: Getting down to brass tacks.

Via WPR: "It feels like everyone’s dad in Wisconsin plays the tuba. That was Elizabeth Renner’s impression after she moved to Madison from Chicago a year ago.

Her other thought was that people are still very much into polka music."

📬

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🎙️ Today on City Cast Madison

Hands holding a Philodendron verrucosum. — Photo by feey / Unsplash

Give Houseplants Instead of Flowers This Valentine’s Day

This week, we’re honoring love in its many forms. We’ll offer you things to do, places to go, and advice on how to care for friends, lovers… and yourself.

Looking for a gift for your special someone this Valentine’s Day? Flowers are beautiful, but you know what lasts longer? Plants!

With our cold, dry midwest winters, we can use all the fresh oxygen and life we can get this time of year. But where’s a good place to start? We turned to our friends at Olbrich Botanical Garden for a little advice. Conservatory curator Colten Blackburn has ideas for good starter plants to wow your sweetie… and how to care for them.

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