President’s Message

What’s Next for Westgate?

by Ed Rogers

SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2016

Calendar: September 13: Neighborhood Watch, Midvale Community Luther-

an Church, 6:30 p.m.

September 27: MHCA monthly

board meeting, Sequoya Branch Library, 6:45 to 8:45 p.m.

October 1: Friends of the Library book sale, Westgate Mall, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

October 11: Neighborhood Watch, Midvale Community Lutheran Church, 6:30 p.m.

October 15: Friends of the Library book sale, Westgate Mall, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

October 15: Copy deadline for No-vember-December Midvale Mes-senger.

October 25: MHCA annual mem-bership meeting, Sequoya Branch Library, 6:30 to 8:45 p.m.

November 5: Friends of the Li-brary book sale, Westgate Mall, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.

November 8: Election Day. Polling place open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., Se-

quoya Branch Library.

Midvale Messenger

Westgate Mall remains home to many local businesses, in-cluding three that offer our members discounts: Nails U Luv, Rocky Rococo, and Wisconsin Craft Market. However, it’s fair to say that Westgate Mall has seen busier days and that some change is needed at the site.

As many neighbors may know, the property running from Tokay Blvd to Odana Rd, has changed hands in recent years and is now owned by grocer HyVee, Inc., which is consider-ing a redevelopment to attract new businesses. However, es-tablished retailers at the location, such as TJ Maxx, have leas-es that must be honored throughout the process.

In all the development talk between the property owner and the retailers at Westgate Mall, the city promises that we, the neighborhood, will also have a voice. In 2009, we created a neighborhood plan that clearly articulated our hopes for the future of the Westgate Mall area. This mixed-use plan in-cludes underground parking, prominent use of glass at street level, improvements to area traffic flow and pedestrian safety, and upper story condos or apartments with views of the neighboring Odana School Park.

The choices to be made in this development are critically im-portant for a few reasons. First, it’s safe to assume that what-ever is done at Westgate Mall now is likely to establish its ap-pearance and use patterns for the next three decades or more. Second, with this property sitting so close to the West Trans-fer Point, work done here could increase use of our city’s bus system and take a few more cars off the road. Third, we can expect that whatever is finally chosen will likely set the tone for future commercial property development along Odana Rd.

Would you like to join in the discussion? Do you have ideas about how the site could be improved? Are there retail areas elsewhere in Madison with features you hope to see recreated at Westgate? Get in touch with me, and let’s help this project succeed. Contact me at MHCA-President@midvaleheights.org

MIDVALE MESSENGER

The Midvale Messenger is published six times a year by the Midvale Heights Community Associa-tion. Copy deadlines are the 15th of February,

April, June, August, October, and December.

Editor: Denise Lamb

newsletter @midvaleheights.org

Distribution: Kelly Murdock

Kelly.Murdock@dwd.wisconsin.gov

President: Ed Rogers

Area11@Midvale Heights.org

Printed by Lakeside Press on recycled paper.

Page 2

Neighborhood News Briefs

Friends of the Library

Book Sales Upcoming book sale dates are Saturdays October 1 and 15 and November 5, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Westgate Mall next to TJMaxx. A $2 bag sale on dis-counted items begins at 2 p.m. Tell your friends about our sales. Fewer stores and less foot traffic at the mall mean we need to spread the word about what we have for sale: books for chil-dren and adults, CDs, DVDs, art, and more. Book or media donations can be left at the li-brary or brought to the Friends of Sequoya shop Thursday mornings or on sale days.

Triad Plans Fall Events

for Seniors Triad is a national program that promotes safety and crime pre-vention for seniors. The group has scheduled the following events this fall. On Thursday, September 22, seniors can take advantage of a free winterization car check at Firestone Complete Auto Care, West Towne Mall, 7105 Mineral Point Rd., from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Anyone who is interested can call 608-441-7897 for a reserva-tion. On Friday, October 7, seniors are invited to attend the Triad State/Dane County 14th Annu-al Crime Prevention and Safety Conference, “Staying Safe in an Unsafe World,” from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the American Family Insurance Training Cen-ter in Madison. Call 608-441-

7897 or email mstamstad@rsvpdane.org for more information.

MMoCA Seeks Docents The Madison Museum of Con-temporary Art (MMoCA) is re-cruiting new docents and will begin a new training class with sessions from 1 to 3:30 p.m. on Tuesdays from September 20 through December 13 at the museum. Docents offer tours of the mu-seum’s exhibitions to groups that range from school-age chil-dren to older adults. Docents encourage participants to look closely at and interpret the works of art. A background in art and art history is not required. The 12-

week training course is offered every other year and includes presentations on modern and contemporary art, art media and processes, behind-the-scenes museum operations, tour tech-niques, and more. There is no course fee beyond a $25 cost for training materials. Docents also should become members of MMoCA at the individual level and be willing to make a two-year commit-ment. For a position description and application, visit www.mmoca.org and click Support/Docent Program or contact Sheri Castelnuovo at 608-257-0158 or sheri@mmoca.org. Application deadline is Friday, September 9.

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Neighborhood Watch News

by Wendy Reichel

The Madison Police Department (MPD) recent-ly reported a 64% increase in the number of sto-len vehicles in the first half of the year, with sev-eral occurring in Midvale Heights. Typically, the vehicles are taken by teens who use them to get around the city or to simply take a joyride, but some of the young people aren’t even old enough to have a driver’s license. One police officer encountered a 9-year-old driving a stolen car. Police estimate that 90 % of these incidents involve unlocked vehicles in which victims leave their keys in the ignition or store a spare key in the glove compartment, although some thieves do possess the tools to hotwire older cars.

Thefts from vehicles have increased 52%, which officials attribute to the growing heroin epidemic in the area. Thieves prefer money or items they can quickly sell for cash, including CDs, DVDs, radar detectors, portable GPS units, and fire-arms. The MPD warns that some thieves steal garage door openers from unlocked vehicles and later use them to break into garages or homes.

You can protect yourself from these thefts by keeping your vehicle locked at all times, even when it’s parked in your garage. Don’t store spare keys in your vehicle and keep all valuables out of sight; put them in the trunk or bring them inside the house with you each time you return home. If you see a suspicious person peering into vehicle windows or trying to open doors in your neighborhood, call 911. Since many stolen vehicles are abandoned on random city streets, if you notice an unfamiliar vehicle parked on your street for more than a week, report it to the po-

lice in case it has been stolen.

On the second Tuesday of each month, the Midvale Heights Neighborhood Watch group hosts events at 6:30 p.m. at Midvale Community Lutheran Church (4329 Tokay Boulevard). On September 13, Dr. David Drake from the UW Urban Canid Project (UWUCP) will talk about his research on the coyotes and foxes that are now seen regularly in Midvale Heights. With help from citizens, the UWUCP live-traps and radio-collars coyotes and foxes to monitor their health and study their behavior, including how and where they interact with people, pets, and other wildlife.

At our October 11 meeting, Josalyn Longley, Community Deputy and Emergency Prepared-ness Coordinator for Dane County, will give a presentation on how to avoid violence in the workplace and in the community and what pre-cautions should be taken during an active shoot-er situation. Events are open to everyone, so join us and invite your friends.

Hope everyone had a great summer and is looking for-ward to a beautiful fall. Here is some news about county board activities:

Changes to Bail Assess-ments: When people are arrested and taken to Dane County Jail, they eventually

go before a judge who decides whether they should be released from jail to await trial. Some are released on a “signature bond,” while others are assessed bail and must leave a monetary amount with the court to ensure they return to court. Those who are assessed an amount they cannot afford must remain in jail.

Judges consider many factors when determining bail amounts. The problem is the disparate racial impact of bail assessment: Those left behind in jail are those who cannot afford bail, and not nec-essarily those who are dangerous. Those who own their home or have savings can use this col-lateral to post bail. Those without homes, savings, or stable employment will struggle to afford bail.

Remember that this does not make us safer: Al-lowing me out because I can afford to be out of jail doesn’t make it more or less likely that I will commit another crime while awaiting trial, just as requiring someone to stay in jail only because their financial situation prevents them from post-ing bail does not mean they would have commit-ted a crime if they were out.

Yes, this is an oversimplification. And it certainly is not our judges’ fault that everyone cannot af-ford bail. But it’s our responsibility to acknowledge that the system we have neither keeps us safer nor treats everyone equally. The County Board has begun an assessment of bail criteria, and we are working with the Arnold Foundation and Harvard University to test out a new bail assessment that will use racially neutral risk factors. Credit goes to Dane County Board staff and the Criminal Justice Council who re-searched alternatives and pursued these national

leaders to work with us. The assessment will take two years, including breaks for data analysis and review. I’m one of the lead sponsors of this legis-lation and will work with our staff to monitor the impact.

Budget: County budget consideration begins Oc-tober 1 and will continue until the board passes the budget, usually the week before Thanksgiving. More details to come, but my priorities remain criminal justice reform, increased mental health services, and meeting housing/homeless needs.

Domestic Abuse of Elders: The county board will host a Domestic Abuse in Later Life Conference on November 11. Our 2015 conference was at-tended by more than 150 people. This year’s con-ference hopes to build on last year’s success, edu-cating our community professionals on how to better detect and serve survivors of this hidden, under-reported act of violence.

As always, let me know if you have any questions or comments. You can reach me by cell phone at 608-658-7333 or by email at

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County Board Supervisor Report by Carousel Bayrd

I hope everyone had an enjoy-able summer. Fall’s beginning brings back-to-school for many and back-to-budget sea-son for the Madison City Council.

The mayor will release his ex-ecutive budget in two parts again this year. His capital

budget will be made public the first week of Sep-tember, with his operating budget following in the first week of October. The council will review his proposed budgets and make changes based on the city’s and our districts’ needs and ultimately pass a city budget during our November 14 and 15 budg-et meetings. While the budget will be made up of countless important choices, I expect two big-ticket items to receive special attention:

Public Market: The mayor describes the vision for a $14 million Madison Public Market on East Washington as a place with a mix of food selling, wholesaling, and processing; arts/craft vending; community uses; and events. The common council has made it clear that our investment in such an endeavor must be tied to substantial private invest-ment to lessen the burden on taxpayers. This budg-et season will provide an opportunity to revisit and further explore this topic.

Midtown Police Station: As most of you know, we live in the West police district, the largest in the city. For the past several years, the Madison police department has advocated splitting it into West and Midtown districts and building a new Midtown station. A majority of the council (including me)

has been responsive to this concern since 2014, while the mayor has previously opposed creating a new Midtown district, citing the financial burden of building a new district office. It is likely that this issue will be revisited during this budget season.

Paid Leave Study: Madison does not offer any paid leave to city employees. The city was recently awarded a $155,000 federal grant to determine the fiscal and operational impacts of providing a paid-leave policy for all city government employees and to share our findings as a model for private sector employers in the city. I helped apply for this grant, and I welcome the opportunity to promote a com-monsense policy that will benefit all employees when they need to care for an ill loved one.

I appreciate your feedback throughout the year, but especially during the budget process. Please do be in touch with me with any suggestions, con-cerns, or comments about this year’s budget or any other issues affecting Midvale Heights. I can be reached at district10@cityofmadison.com or 608-620-1994.

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Common Council Alder Report by Maurice Cheeks

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Neighborhood Preschools Begin New Year

Fall activities for preschoolers are beginning at The Playing Field, located at 3910 Mineral Point Road at Bethany United Methodist Church, and University Houses Preschool, located at 6033 Odana Road.

The Playing Field

The Playing Field, a new early childhood pro-gram that aims to reduce the disparity between white and minority children in the community, has openings this fall. One third of the available enrollment spaces are reserved for children funded by an Early Head Start grant that gives priority to homeless children under age three, while another third has openings available for privately funded families.

The program is also opening a second infant-toddler classroom and adding a preschool pro-gram for children from ages 3 to 5 this year. The preschool program offers flexible schedules, in-cluding part-time options. The Playing Field is accredited by the City of Madison and rated five stars with Young Star, Wisconsin’s quality rating system. Tours of the facilities are offered every

Monday at 9:30 a.m. For more information about the program, see www.playingfieldmadison.org.

The center also provides free parent training on Conscious Discipline, which helps parents change conflict to cooperation and to interpret all behavior as communication. The next class is Monday, September 12, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Interested parents should RSVP to in-fo@playingfieldmadison.org.

University Houses Preschool

University Houses Preschool will sponsor free playgroup sessions from 10:30 a.m. to noon on the second Saturday of each month from Sep-tember through May. Parents are invited to come along to play, chat, and sing with their children. They are encouraged to bring a snack and talk to other families while the children en-joy the toys and dramatic play area. Everyone is welcome to attend these monthly free events.

www.grace-els.org

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Green Team Plans October Cleanup and Garden Tour by Nan Lager

The Midvale Heights Green Team plans its fall cleanup and a garden tour on Saturday, October 29. The Tokay Median Fall Cleanup will run from 9 a.m. to noon and will be followed by a tour of the gardens at 4805 and 4813 Tokay Blvd. from noon to 3 p.m. Volunteer gardeners should bring rakes, clippers, and garden tools to the Green Team table at Tokay and Piper for work assignments, coffee, cider, and treats. The team needs help in getting the beds ready for the winter and encourages all MHCA members who can to volunteer for an hour or two on the 29th.

Neighbors may remember last spring’s daffodil display, and the team wants to plant additional daffodils in the median this fall during the clean-up. Anyone who cannot work on the cleanup date but wants to help plant bulbs in the median can contact Nan Lager at 608-273-3337 or at nan.lager@gmail.com to obtain bulbs.

Anyone with questions about the cleanup or with ideas for improving the medians can also contact Nan at the phone and email noted

above. We thank everyone who helps with the medians for your continued support in maintain-ing the medians and keeping our neighborhood beautiful. Following the cleanup, Holly McEntee and Eric Sandgren will host a garden tour at 4805 and 4813 Tokay Blvd. as they invite neighbors to solve the mystery of Tokay Blvd.’s “boulder house!” Homeowners Holly and Eric will be on hand to answer questions, and describe the work in these two yards. They tell us, “As many of you know, gardens are never-ending works in pro-gress. The gardens at 4805 Tokay were estab-lished in 2006 and show a 10-year-old forest. Those at 4813 have been under development for the past two years and were designed to show-case autumn colors.” Families are welcome at the garden tour, alt-hough garden paths are rough and uneven, so visitors should watch their step. For the same reason, the owners request no dogs. Light re-freshments will be served, and we hope to see a good turnout at the tour.

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The 2016 MHCA annual membership meeting will be Tuesday, October 25, beginning at 6:30 p.m. at the Sequoya Branch Library. Our guest speaker will be Sarah Day, Midvale Heights resi-dent and long-time American Players Theater performer. Day grew up in Midvale Heights and returned to live in her family’s home about five years ago. She has acted with APT for 31 sea-sons and recently became affiliated with For-ward Theater, so we hope to hear a bit of back-stage gossip.

Also on the agenda is the election of area direc-tors, a report from MHCA board president Ed Rogers on the state of the neighborhood, and reports from our alderperson Maurice Cheeks and county representative Carousel Bayrd.

Members will elect area directors for even num-bered areas. Those elected will serve two-year terms. Current directors are:

Area 2-Gary Poulson Area 4-Peter Schell Area 6-Paul Haskew Area 8-Tom Jarvis/Lorie Raihala Area 10-Wendy Weber Area 12-Jenny Chipault/Greg Fischer Area 14 Jonn Lager All current directors are willing to serve another two-year term, but anyone interested in running for their area’s seat is welcome to throw their hat

into the ring. Some areas have co-directors, and this is another way for interested neighbors to get involved. Contact MHCA board president Ed Rogers at MHCA-President@midvaleheights.org if you are interested or have any questions.

The board would also like to hear from mem-bers about any new initiatives they would like to see in the neighborhood, so plan to attend both to listen to the speakers and to voice your opin-ions. This is a great chance to meet your area director and MHCA officers and get to know them better.

Watch for a reminder post card in early October with further details on the meeting, where we hope to see many old and new MHCA mem-bers. Join the board and your neighbors for an informative evening and our traditional Hallow-een treats.

MHCA Annual Meeting Set for October 25

by Denise Lamb

Welcome MHCA Members—

New and Old! Thank you for supporting the Midvale Heights Com-munity Association in 2016-17. Your MHCA mem-ber directory and discount cards should reach you shortly if you have not already received them. Take a look at this Messenger to find out what we have been up to and what we have planned. Feel free to attend our monthly meetings and annual meeting to learn more about the neighborhood and suggest ways we can make it better for everyone who lives

here. Welcome!