For generations, Madison has been a place where life is good.
Plenty of good jobs with government and UW-Madison as the solid, steady anchors. Good schools, chock-full of middle-class, college-bound students. Easy to find a nice, affordable place to live.
That was then.
This is now: State government shedding jobs. Madison businesses moving to the suburbs. Companies facing business competition from Austin, Texas, to Shanghai. More families short on cash and stuck in low-paying jobs. Growing numbers of trophy homes priced exclusively for the rich. And a feeling among business people that Madison’s city leaders are out to get them.