Smoky Jon's robbed...help 'em out!

Madison's best barbeque joint was robbed Saturday night by a masked, gun-toting thug. This is particularly disturbing for me, given that he fled down Manley Street toward my house and neither I nor my family were any the wiser. And those of us who live nearby and frequent Smoky Jon's know the employee who had a gun pointed in her face; it must've been terrifying.

So if you're grabbing a bite to eat over the next few weeks, make a point of patronizing Smoky Jon's. Show this local treasure the neighborhood has their back.

Standing up for Vera Court

With 7 (!) charged in the apparent gang homicide on October 20th, neighbors and community leaders are getting together Thursday night to organize against this crime. The meeting is at 6:30 p.m. at the Vera Court Neighborhood Center, and everyone in the neighborhood is invited to attend.

Community involvement is crucial to ensuring that isolated incidents of gang violence do not metastasize into ongoing problems. A meeting like this is a great place to start, but it's just that - a start. Keeping this from growing into a problem requires a real commitment. Fortunately Ald. Weier and other neighborhood leaders seem to get that, and I'm hopeful for the future.

Johnson/Gorham moving forward...where are our alders?

As mentioned a month ago, the City will soon conduct a study on switching East Johnson and Gorham Streets to two-way traffic, as part of the reconstruction of Johnson. What's billed as the first of four meetings on the proposal will be held on November 10th.

Where are our Northside alders on this?

Troubling week on Troy Drive

Tuesday we had a "drug deal gone wrong" that led to a shooting. Thursday we had a murder, probably gang-related. Both took place a block apart along Troy Drive, a problem area well over a decade ago. If nothing else, this should remind us how important it is to keep working on troubled parts of town even after it seems like a crime problem has been addressed.

But the "isolated" incidents are racking up this year...

Voting: Block out some time, and other changes

This week the City Clerk's office ran a mock election to study the results of the new voter ID law, and the results were unsurprising. It could take over a minute to process each voter. If the line is long - say, for the presidential election next November, or the recall of Gov. Walker that Wisconsin Democrats are promising - you could be there awhile. So plan ahead.

Meanwhile, my neighbors and I are looking at some electoral changes for next year.

Ruskin BB update...and what else is going on?

I emailed Ald. Rhodes-Conway for an update on the status of the Ruskin Street bike boulevard. She said that she asked Traffic Engineering to revise the project based on comments at the August public meeting, but didn't mention any reaction to the neighborhood's opposition or other feedback. She also said it's "likely" there will be another public meeting or a formal hearing once the revision is complete.

Meanwhile, there are developments on Sherman Avenue...

Mayor prioritizes basic services

After a lengthy and unprecedented process of public input, Mayor Soglin released his proposed 2012 operating budget today. The lede is that it prioritizes basic services, raises city property taxes 3.2%, and cuts the subsidy to Overture Center by a third.

One thing I learned in grad school is that a budget is a statement of priorities. Based on what the Mayor is proposing, it's clear he agrees with me that public safety and other basic services are the most important priority for city government. And his attention to slashing borrowing and considering the consequences of across-the-board cuts makes me feel like the $40-$60 property tax hike Northsiders face is reasonable.

With layoffs and cuts to major services avoided, the major point of contention will be the cut to Overture's operating subsidy. Personally, between this and reopening the Edgewater controversy, I'm glad we're finally having a public debate that directly connects the grand plans of Madison's elite to their impact on the average taxpayer.

Ale Asylum's new home good for Northside

It's been discussed on the neighborhood listserv, but today saw the first news reports of Ale Asylum's proposed new brewery on Pankratz Street. The city's Urban Design Commission will take it up tomorrow night.

They should be swift about giving it their blessing.

Isthmus to Northside: Drop dead!

For those of us on the Northside, a trip downtown, to campus, or the west side means taking Johnson and Gorham Streets. Our transportation infrastructure is designed specifically with that route in mind. And it's not just our cars - Metro runs six separate routes down that corridor for the people of north and northeast Madison.

It's long been rumored that residents on the upper Isthmus would like to dump us onto East Washington Avenue. What's different now is that the City is studying that very idea.

County Board no place for Tea Party antics

With shadows of last month's brinksmanship over the federal debt ceiling, most of the self-identified conservative minority on the Dane County Board are threatening a routine financing resolution. As the County Controller pointed out, the county uses this procedure every year to cover its fall obligations. The resolution requires a 3/4 vote because it involves financing, which is why the minority is able to hold it up.

Deadly shooting on Fordem

Yesterday morning, two young men were shot in the parking lot outside Camelot, on Fordem Avenue. Today we get the news that one of them has died and police believe a drug deal was involved.

A couple of weeks ago I talked about the importance of making public safety Madison's first priority as it crafts a truly challenging budget for 2012, in the shadow of a shooting on Ruskin. And this is not the first "targeted" shooting on Fordem...we remember last year's gang killing outside Webcrafters.

Two shootings in two weeks. Do we need any more reminders of the importance of giving our police the resources they need?

Neighborhood opposes bike boulevard

Tonight, the Sherman Neighborhood Association voted to oppose the Ruskin Street bike boulevard proposal, which falls within its boundaries. The association could be the first in Madison to express such an opinion on a proposed bike boulevard. Instead, it called for the City to maintain the current posted bike route, and to organize an overall Northside bike plan with community participation.

How about an awesomer Omaha?

Former mayor Dave Cieslewicz has a blog on Isthmus, and his post today is about how Madison should strive for becoming a New Urbanist mini-metroplis, lest we sink into the doldrums of the small-town Midwest. What I want to know is, why must we settle for such a Manichean choice?

Mayor's explosive budget quiet for Northside

This week Mayor Soglin released his proposed 2012 capital budget. Thus far the big item of contention is his major reduction of the City's TIF subsidy for the Edgewater Hotel project, which has created a firestorm of controversy and reopened this contentious issue. Meanwhile, there's not a whole lot in there that directly affects our part of town.

Legislature attacks local control on rental housing

The Cap Times' new city beat reporter has a blog post about a letter several local officials wrote to Gov. Walker about a proposed bill to override all local landlord-tenant ordinances. This is a terrible bill for the Northside, and for all of Madison.

Budget priority: public safety

Over the past month the City of Madison has been holding community budget forums on different aspects of the 2011 city budget. Tonight's final forum at Warner Park is on public safety. Due to a prior commitment I can't attend, but here's what I'd say if I was there.

Mind the gap...the City replies

Two days after I started this blog and posted about the Ruskin Street bike boulevard proposal, City Traffic Engineer David Dryer replied to the email I sent his office over a week ago. I appreciate the reply, but I don't think it really answered the questions that were asked.

What's the big deal? It's just a few signs

Early feedback on yesterday's post about the Ruskin Street bike boulevard proposal falls into two camps: residents who feel the City isn't particularly concerned about what the neighborhood thinks (one reader called it "cramming down our throats") and folks who wonder what the problem is. "It's just a few signs, you'll hardly notice."

Really?

The Bike Boulevard

About a month ago, my neighbors and I got a postcard from the City inviting us to a meeting at the library, where we'd be presented with the City's proposal to turn Ruskin Street into a bike boulevard.

So what's the plan?

Welcome to Ruskin Street

Hello, my name is Dan. My wife and I live on the corner of Ruskin and Manley Streets, on Madison's lovely (and affordable!) Northside. In most respects it's a typical, quiet residential street in a mid-sized Midwestern city.

This blog is about the issues facing those of us who live on or near Ruskin Street. Planners, organizations, and City Hall have some big ideas for our part of town.

Unfortunately, our Sherman neighborhood doesn't have the political muscle that folks on Willy or Monroe Streets enjoy. As a neighborhood in transition from older folks to young families, it's time for that to change. Hopefully this blog can be a part of that.

To my neighbors old and new, welcome! Be part of the conversation!