It's all about April (voting)

Happy Tuesday, friends!

A couple of quick notes before getting into today's news: Our previous emails listed the January Really Really Free Market on the wrong date. The event is scheduled for Jan. 29.

Thank you to the sharp-eyed readers who brought this to our attention!

Additionally, we ran into some technical issues yesterday resulting in some folks not receiving the Monday morning newsletter. We’re still working to figure out why this happened.

With that said, all of our emails also live on the Madison Minutes website. It's your one-stop shop if you miss a day of news, want to check out past stories, or find cool events in town.

Now let's get into it.

— Hayley

🗳️ A look at the referendums that will be on your ballot.

• Mark your calendars because the spring election is April 4. (The primary is Feb. 21.) In addition to voting on candidates for the state Supreme Court, City Council, and other public offices, voters will also decide on a constitutional change surrounding the state's cash bail system and a non-binding advisory referendum on job search requirements for those receiving public assistance.
• Bail amendment: The constitutional amendment was put forward by Republicans in the state Legislature to make it harder for those accused of violent crimes to be released on bail. If passed, the measure would allow judges to consider a defendant’s criminal history and whether they present a risk to public safety when setting bail conditions. Currently, Wisconsin law dictates that cash bail only be set when there's reason to believe a defendant might not show up to their next court date.
• Job search referendum: The referendum will ask voters "Shall able-bodied child-less adults be required to look for work in order to receive taxpayer-funded welfare benefits?" This question is an advisory referendum, meaning it's not legally binding and serves rather as a means of measuring public opinion.
• Dig deeper: Wisconsinites to have final say on bail question in April after Assembly gives final approval (Wisconsin State Journal)

🍝 Bringing the red sauce back to Greenbush.

• The owner of Leopold's Books Bar Caffe is opening an "old-school Italian restaurant" in the former Rocky Rococo location on Regent Street.
• The new spot will be named Fabiola's after the owner's grandmother's best friend, the State Journal writes. So far, the owners have been quiet about the menu — and whether or not it will serve pizza — but have described the new spot as a "red-sauce spaghetti house" with retro looks.
• ICYMI: The Rocky's at 1301 Regent St. closed in August.

🚌 Sun Prairie is getting in on BRT.

• The City of Sun Prairie approved a measure to expand its bus services and join the Madison Metro’s Bus Rapid Transit system.
• Sun Prairie won't get its own BRT line, but starting this summer, it will have a direct link to Madison's Metro services. The new routes will ultimately replace the Madison Metro Route 23, which currently operates in Sun Prairie.
• The new route will soft launch June 11, according to the Sun Prairie Star.

🥤 Last call for juice.

• These Days Juice Co. launched in 2021 with the mission to bring organic, cold-pressed juice to the Madison community.
• But now that mission is being put on hold, the company announced today is their "last day in the kitchen until further notice."

🚪 Everyday Kitchen is closing.

• The west side restaurant announced their last day of service will be Feb. 5.
• The restaurant is part of Lodgic Everyday Community, which includes a co-working space, childcare, and event space. The Lodgic Kids Camp and Lodgic Workplace will remain open.

💡 Your lunchtime read: Madison artist John Hitchcock honors Native roots in prints and neon.

• Via Cap Times: "To view artist John Hitchcock’s work — prints of buffalo skulls, horses and deer, Native words crafted in neon light, paintings inspired by Indigenous beads — is to glimpse where he grew up, on Comanche tribal lands in the American Southwest.
  
  Hitchcock is a professor of printmaking in the Art Department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He has lived in the Midwest for more than two decades, but he doesn’t think of it as 'home.'"

🎙️ Today on the pod

Your Guide to Madison City Council Races

From potholes and speeders to construction in your neighborhood, local government can make your life easier… or it can infuriate. Who do you want making choices on your behalf? All 20 members of the Madison Common Council are up for election soon… with some interesting twists in some neighborhoods. Producer Dylan Brogan gives City Cast Madison the scoop on who’s on your ballot.

Read all about the candidates in Dylan’s article: How the Madison City Council Races are Shaking Out.

To register to vote, change your address, or find your polling place, check MyVote.WI.Gov.

And if you wanna practice voting, check out the City Snow Plow Naming Contest. Yes, they’re letting us pick the names. Don’t let us down.

📅 Events

Today

• COMEDY BOOM! Hosted by Will Byrd at The Bur Oak
• Virtual: Winter Wonderland Acrylic Art Pouring with DreamBank
• Lucid Tuesday at Crucible
• Webinar: Protect LGBTQ+ Youth in Schools: Know your Rights & Identify Discrimination with Fair Wisconsin and GSAFE
• Salt Wise on Tap at Starkweather Brewing Company
• Virtual Talk: The Discovery of Ancient Canoes Found in Lake Mendota with the Friends of Pope Farm Conservancy

Tomorrow

• Acoustic Happy Hour Ft. Adem Tesfaye at Garver Feed Mill
• Trivia at Starkweather Brewing Company
• Madison Handpan Meetup Group at Unity of Madison

📝 Miss a Minute? Check out yesterday's newsletter.

Is Coke ok?

Coke vs. Pepsi — Culver’s has taken a new side.

Madison MinutesHayley Sperling