A church that owns a private dorm for UW-Madison students wouldnâ??t have to pay roughly $239,000 in property taxes under an amendment inserted into the state budget last week.
Because the Pres House Residence, which opened in 2007, is the only residence hall operated by a religious organization on a public campus in the entire state, it fell into a â??gray areaâ? in the tax code, said Rep. Spencer Black, D-Madison.
A natural gas leak forced the evacuation of several buildings on old University Avenue at Lathrop Street late Tuesday morning, but the gas was turned off and conditions were returning back to normal as of noon.
The cause of the leak wasn’t determined yet, but Madison Gas and Electric crews were on the scene to look for the cause.
Madison Fire Department public information officer Lori Wirth told The Capital Times that the leak was discovered in the Institute for Enzyme Research, a four-story University of Wisconsin-Madison facility in the Biochemistry Department at 1710 University Ave.
A church that owns a private dorm for UW-Madison students wouldnâ??t have to pay roughly $239,000 in property taxes under an amendment inserted into the state budget last week.
Because the Pres House Residence, which opened in 2007, is the only residence hall operated by a religious organization on a public campus in the entire state, it fell into a â??gray areaâ? in the tax code, said Rep. Spencer Black, D-Madison.
Black, who sponsored the legislation, said it is only one of three such facilities in the country.
Dear Editor: I wrote a book in 2004. It was not created to become a bestseller; only 200 were printed. But it was my book, about my family. I say “was” because the University of Wisconsin, in a commercial venture with Google Inc., has digitized it and now holds virtual copies, which I consider digital printing plates, and an infringement of my copyright.
As I registered my copyright with the Canadian Intellectual Property Office-Copyrights in 2004, the University of Wisconsin, with a few clicks of the mouse, could have found the information to contact me for my permission. It chose not to.
I feel that copyright infringement is akin to plagiarism, and universities have strict rules about plagiarism. Most universities of the world teach their students about copyright infringement.
A University Square grocery store could open in October, said Jeff Maurer, former president of Pierceâ??s Supermarkets of Baraboo.
The 18,000-square-foot store would have all retail space on the first floor, with the second floor allocated to back-room operations and storage.
The leader in the Democrat-led state Senate pushed Monday to put controversial measures involving a tax on oil companies and negligence lawsuits back into the state budget, even as several key Democrats said any bill with those provisions in it was doomed.
“I donâ??t know how much clearer I can be in that I think it would be extremely difficult for the budget to move forward with this in it,” said Sen. Jon Erpenbach, D-Waunakee, speaking of the changes to negligence lawsuits. “I donâ??t know how a budget would pass with this in it.”
This summer, it’s hard to miss at the neon signs, chain fences, and huge bulldozers around town.
It seems like half of downtown Madison is torn up.
27 News asked Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz why all the road projects seem to be happening at once.
“We decided it would be better just to get it all done in one year,” he said. “The reduction in disruption by delaying wasn’t going to be that great.”
University of Wisconsin-Madison police were nabbing speeders at a good clip last week, cracking down on fast drivers in construction zones on campus, not unlike county deputies doing likewise in rural area construction zones.
The state Senate plans to draft its version of a state budget quickly, after the Assembly vote to approve a $62.2 billion, two-year spending plan early Saturday.
“We will be busy over the next few days reviewing the changes the Assembly made to the budget so we can have the budget on the floor of the Senate as soon as possible,” Senate Majority Leader Russ Decker (D-Weston) said in a statement Saturday.
That set up a timetable that could put the budget on Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle’s desk by July 1: a Senate vote Wednesday or Thursday, reconciliation of Assembly-Senate differences over the next few days, and votes on the final budget deal in the Assembly and the Senate the week of June 22.
Nearly four years after a consultant’s report cited poor communication, lack of leadership and low morale in the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s School of Education, the problems continue and now include a $1.1 million deficit because of declining enrollment.
The Badger Bus Company plans to close its intercity bus terminal at West Washington and Bedford. The best site for a future central transit hub should not be permanently lost. When the issue comes up at its June 15 meeting, the City Planning Commission should withhold approval of the redevelopment plan until viable plans for intercity bus service have been made.
No plans have been offered for future service other than to pile Madison’s intercity bus activity onto the curb at Langdon Street and have the Union service the passengers. UW-Madison has said it will not cooperate with this development, and the added bus traffic is likely to make worse an already crowded location. But a worse alternative would be for bus service to be completely dispersed to peripheral locations.
With no support from Republicans, the Wisconsin Assembly passed a state budget early Saturday after an all-night session.
The budget plugs a record-high $6.6 billion shortfall over the next two years through tax and fee increases, spending cuts, borrowing and accounting moves.
Under the budget, up to 1,400 state workers could lose their jobs. Most state agencies will be cut 6 percent.
After an hours long overnight debate which saw minority Republicans offer more than 100 amendments to a state budget bill, the Wisconsin Assembly passed the two year spending plan early this morning.
The Public Service Commission voted to approve the controversial 32-mile power line project on Thursday proposed by the American Transmission Company.
“This is extremely disappointing,” said Kevin McSweeney, director of the UW Arboretum. “The negative reverberations of this will continue for years.”
The reason given by state officials for including the UW System in the furlough of all state employees – that it would be “too complicated to assign days off proportionally based on where a state worker’s paycheck comes from” – is ridiculous.
Picnic Point has been a favorite spot of mine for years, so I’m glad there are plans to clear invasive species and make the site more accessible.
However, I was puzzled that some people involved in the planning process think handrails would make the steps too obtrusive.
People who visit Picnic Point all share one characteristic: they don’t know at what age they might need a handrail. Balance problems can affect the young and fit as well as the elderly and disabled.
In unusual move, UW-Madison officials apparently asked legislators to remove a $47 million School of Nursing building from the state budget, said Rep. Spencer Black, D-Madison.
Assembly Democrats voted to cut funding for the project during a closed-door meeting Wednesday night, following a motion sponsored by Black.
The Assembly has put off action on the state budget for another day.
After meeting behind closed doors for much of the day, Assembly Democrats announced they would not be bringing the budget to the floor on Thursday after all.
Other changes by Assembly Democrats made late Tuesday and Wednesday at their budget caucus leading up to floor action, as announced by Speaker Mike Sheridan’s office, included dropping a plan to issue $28 million in bonds for a University of Wisconsin-Madison nursing building. The earmark was one of several that came under criticism after the Joint Finance Committee inserted it into the budget in the middle of the night last month.
The University of Wisconsin Athletic Department will have to turn over nearly $3 million to the state to cover the cost of furloughs and pay cuts for its employees over the next two years.
John Jentz, the UW associate athletic director for finance, said Wednesday the department will pay the state $1.499 million in 2009-10 and 2010-11. That total is comprised of a 1 percent government efficiency fee, a 2 percent pay cut for employees and 3 percent reduction for 16 furloughs for each employee.
The State Public Service Commission is expected to make a ruling Thursday on a new high voltage power line that would run across Dane County.
Sarah Justus of the American Transmission Company says they’ve made a compelling case for the 345 kilovolt line, which the company says is needed to serve massive growth in the region over the last 30 years. The line would run near the UW Arboretum.
The Madison Trust for Historic Preservation has elected Leigh Richardson as its new president, the group announced Tuesday.
Richardson is the owner of The Richardson Group, specializing in custom health programs and communications, and holds a doctorate from the UW-Madison. She has taught at three state universities and directed education and outreach activities at Meriter Hospital here for 12 years.
MADISON, Wis. — University of Wisconsin System officials are commending state lawmakers for investing in new campus building projects despite the recession.
Instead of putting on your bike helmet or tightening your seatbelt for the morning commute on Thursday, grab a paddle and take the water route to work.
As part of the 15th annual Take a Stake in the Lakes Days, the county Lakes and Watershed Commission is hosting the 11th annual Paddle to Work Day, a fun alternative to getting to work or school on Thursday.
When the nation was deep into World War II, soldier Gordon Cunningham was sure he’d die, so he blew his $1,500 savings dining and dancing with his girlfriend. Story tells of the wartime experiences of Cunningham, who taught forestry at UW-Madison from 1963-83.
Gifts and grants to area educational, cultural and civic organizations have been announced by The Evjue Foundation, the charitable arm of The Capital Times.
The grants this year total $1,219,411, considerably less than what the foundation in past years has been able to give the nonprofit and educational communities in the Madison area. Of the total, $452,911 this year has been donated to the University of Wisconsin for 22 projects and $766,500 to 56 Madison area community nonprofits.
This year was bleak for state higher-education budgets. But college leaders are even more worried about what comes next.
The billions of dollars in federal stimulus aid to plug shortfalls in state education budgets have helped limit the damage this year, but the money hasn’t prevented all of the cuts to college budgets. Most states are spending the bulk of the stimulus money they are receiving for education on elementary and secondary schools, and roughly 20 percent on public colleges. In one state, Wisconsin, none of that federal aid is going to higher education.
At the end of 2005, Robert D. Felner was riding high. A well-paid dean at the University of Louisville, he had just secured a $694,000 earmarked grant from the U.S. Department of Education to create an elaborate research center to help Kentucky’s public schools.
The grant proposal, which Mr. Felner had labored over for months, made some impressive promises. Five Louisville faculty members would devote time to the center, and four other people would be hired. The advisory board would be led by Virginia G. Fox, Kentucky’s secretary of education.
Gov. Jim Doyle on Wednesday appointed a University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire student to the UW Systemâ??s Board of Regents.
Aaron Wingad will replace UW-Madison student Colleene Thomas as a student representative. His appointment is effective immediately and will expire May 1, 2011.
A University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire student will join the UW System Board of Regent.
Governor Jim Doyle says Aaron Wingad will replace UW-Madison graduate student Colleene Thomas as the student representative on the 18-member board that sets policy for the UW System.
Former Chancellor of the University of Wisconsin John D. Wiley and serial entrepreneur Eric Apfelbach join the StudyBlue Board of Directors. They will be joining current board members Charles S. Wallman, a securities analyst and a primary investor in StudyBlue, and CEO Becky Splitt.
Most Wisconsin residents probably want good training for our nurses. But last Friday’s budget addition of $47 million for a UW-Madison facility doesn’t seem like a responsible way to deal with the budget deficit.
With so many Wisconsinites concerned about stagnant wages, unemployment and mortgage foreclosures, the budget committee should have given more thought to that last-minute surprise.
The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and the Milwaukee 7 Water Council are joining forces to train students to work in water-related industries, officials announced Tuesday.
Dean Van Galen has been named chancellor at University of Wisconsin-River Falls.
The Wisconsin native comes from the University of West Florida (Pensacola), where he was vice president of advancement for six years. He led alumni relations, development, marketing communications and the foundation.
The UW’s accountability report is new and improved. The University of Wisconsin System’s new report, “Investing in Wisconsin’s Future (PDF),” is the latest in an annual series of accountability reports.
System spokesman Dave Giroux says they’ve try to answer the most frequently asked questions. “For example, people are often understandably concerned about the level of administrative overhead in the University of Wisconsin,” says Giroux. “We now have a section of the accountability report specifically related to that.”
Madisonâ??s Alcohol License Review Committee is recommending tough discipline for another troubled Downtown bar.
The ALRC on Monday voted 5-2 for a rare 30-day license suspension plus new license conditions for Ram Head Ratskeller, formerly Bull Feathers, 303 N. Henry St. The suspension, which would run July 1 through July 30, and license conditions requiring use of better technology to detect fake IDs, will be considered by the City Council on Tuesday.
The University of Wisconsin System released its annual accountability report on Monday. The system has put these studies out since 1993.
The document is basically a self report on a range of topics and issues. This year’s version is titled “Investing in Wisconsin’s Future.” The report will be presented to the UW System’s Board of Regents during meetings later this week at UW-Madison.
Admissions officials across the University of Wisconsin system have made their decisions about who will be in next yearâ??s freshmenâ??s class.
Some UW campuses say the down economy is affecting enrollment in unexpected ways.
Pamela Harvey-Jacobs, director of Admissions at UW-Green Bay, says theyâ??re expecting about 1,000 students on campus next fall, on par with last yearâ??s enrollment numbers. But Jacobs says theyâ??re still leaving spots open specifically for students from across the Green Bay area. (8th item.)
We learned a lot about Madison, but we also learned a lot about Lexington, each other and maybe ourselves.
About 260 Central Kentuckians spent three days last week on Commerce Lexingtonâ??s 70th annual Leadership Visit. Like many others I spoke with, I left Wisconsinâ??s capital city thinking the same thing I did last May when we left Austin, Texas.
Metro Lexington is a more beautiful place, with better year-round weather, than either of those cities. So why do they rank higher on national surveys of quality of life and economic vitality?
John Okonek said he was unaware of how concerned Madison police were about two Downtown bars he owns.
The long list of violations compiled by both bars apparently had made little impression.
But he was snapped out of his ignorance this week by a public hearing on denying the renewal of the bars’ liquor licenses.
When the hearing was over, the city had an important agreement. Okonek got to keep the liquor licenses but only under strict conditions – a month-long license suspension for one bar, plus requirements that both bars make specified improvements to maintain law and order.
Members of the Legislature’s budget-writing committee are hoping to finish their work on Thursday.
After delaying the start of Wednesday’s budget session by nearly nine hours, Joint Finance Committee co-chairman Mark Pocan (D-Madison) announced the panel would not be meeting after all. The Madison Democrat says drafting of the final budget language would likely be done by about 2 AM on Thursday. So, rather than delay the meeting further, the decision was made to push of final votes on the budget plan.
The Wisconsin legislature’s budget-writing committee canceled its Wednesday meeting, but still plans to finish all its work by the end of Thursday.
Committee co-chair Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Madison, said the meeting had to be canceled because of delays in drafting motions for the committee to consider. But Pocan said there is agreement among Democrats who control the committee on the remaining unresolved issues. Those include aid to schools, cuts to state agencies and Gov. Jim Doyle’s proposals to impose a new tax on oil companies and let some felons out of prison early.
Madison is the nationâ??s seventh-best city when it comes to stable employment, new career opportunities and presence of the â??creative class,â? according to a new ranking by Kiplingerâ??s Personal Finance, a money management magazine.
The magazine cited Madisonâ??s unemployment rate, which is lower than the national average; UW-Madison and state government, which account for 20 percent of employment in the metropolitan area; and the cityâ??s â??strong mix of tech and biotech firms.â?
Two downtown Madison bars who faced non-renewal of their liquor licenses are safe for now, but the fate of a third bar is in the hands of the Alcohol License Review Committee.
Madison Avenue and Johnny Oâ??s, located next door to each other on University Avenue, will keep their licenses as part of a stipulated agreement reached between the Madison Police department and the barsâ?? owner, Jon Okonek,. It includes closing Madison Avenue from July 1 to July 30 of this year.
Madison’s Alcohol License Review Committee agreed Tuesday night to accept lesser punishments for two of three bars in lieu of liquor license non-renewal â?? the punishment originally proposed by police.
The agreements allow the Downtown bars Johnny Oâ??s Restaurant and Madison Avenue, both owned by John Okonek, to keep their licenses, while imposing several new requirements on them and suspending the liquor license for Madison Avenue from July 1 to 30.
The full-scale unveiling of a new online jobs tool for highly skilled UW-Madison alumni is set for August, after a successful test launch with about a dozen area firms finished up this month, organizers said.
“We got very good feedback,” said Mary DeNiro, vice president of marketing and communications for the Wisconsin Alumni Association.
Some faculty and staff at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee are concerned that expansion plans could hurt the university by moving academics away from the main campus to other locations, according to a recent survey.
But others said they support the initiatives, a central part of Chancellor Carlos Santiago’s ambitious plans to reshape the university.
UWM’s university committee recently surveyed 298 faculty and staff about the university’s master plan, which includes planned developments on the east side main campus, the planned engineering research complex in Wauwatosa, a School of Freshwater Sciences research facility at the lakefront and a downtown health research complex.
Wisconsinâ??s same-sex couples are a big step closer to having their relationships recognized by the state.
The Legislatureâ??s budget committee voted 12-4 Friday for a plan allowing gay and lesbian couples who live together to form domestic partnerships and receive some of the same benefits as married couples.
Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle and legislative leaders said Thursday that state aid for local governments and public schools will be cut 2.5%, and more than 1,400 state workers might have to be laid off to offset a recent $1.6 billion drop in tax collections.
The University of Wisconsin-Parksideâ??s teacher education program could lose its state accreditation because of â??serious deficienciesâ? in its ability to prepare teachers and meet state requirements, according to the results of a state investigation released on Wednesday.
Parkside staff allowed some students into the teacher education program before they completed the required coursework and allowed some to student teach without passing required tests, Department of Public Instruction officials found after they investigated a complaint about the program.
Three campus-area bars might not have their liquor licenses renewed because of alleged violations, according to papers filed by city officials.
The city attorney’s office filed the formal paperwork on Monday. The complaint alleges that Ram Head, Johnny O’s and Madison Avenue Bar near the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus had repeated violations during the past year that led to the formal police complaint.
During the weekend, a fight broke out inside Madison Avenue Bar on University Avenue. According to the police report, it took 17 officers from four departments to bring it under control, WISC-TV reported.
A former state Supreme Court justice and a commercial litigator from Madison are being recommended to President Barack Obama for consideration for a federal judgeship here.
Democratic U.S. Sens. Russ Feingold of Middleton and Herb Kohl of Milwaukee forwarded the names in a letter to the White House today to fill a vacancy in the federal court for the Western District of Wisconsin created by the retirement of Judge John Shabaz.
So many officers descended on Hoyt Park to join in the search for murder suspect Steven Weber on Tuesday that Madison police spokesman Joel DeSpain lost count of the departments on the scene.
“That happens when you have an ‘all hands on deck’ situation,” DeSpain said, a day following the intense manhunt in the west side park for Weber, 49, accused of shooting and killing his ex-wife Francesca Weber on Saturday night outside her Fitchburg apartment.
A massive manhunt for Steven Weber, suspected in the shooting death of his wife Saturday, ended Tuesday evening with the discovery by Madison police of a manâ??s body in Hoyt Park on the Near West Side.
(UW Police and other law enforcement agenices were also involved in the search. According to the paper’s print edition, Steven Weber was among a group of construction workers inured when a portion of the UW-Madison Pharmacy Building collapsed while under construction in June 1999.)
The Dane County Parks Department announced on Monday that it plans to conduct aerial spraying to fight off gypsy moths this week.
UW-Madison faculty and staff who get paid through federal grants will have to take 16 unpaid days off over the next two years, just like other state workers.
This is according to a document that UW-Madison has posted on its Web site, in response to frequently asked questions.
Fights inside Madison Avenue, a popular campus-area nightclub, resulted in two dozen officers descending on the melee early Sunday morning, Madison police reported.
Only one person was arrested at the nightclub at 624 University Ave., following the brawl that was reported at 1:50 a.m. Sunday.
Jessy Tolkan has squared off against Pat Buchanan on MSNBC’s “Hardball with Chris Matthews.” She counts the oil and coal industries among her fiercest adversaries. But she never imagined that she would one day take on her father in her battle against climate change.
The 28-year-old daughter of a Milwaukee auto dealer and UW-Madison graduate has emerged over the past few years as one of the leading young voices in the country on clean energy issues. Tolkan, who grew up in Glendale, is part of a growing network of advocates trying to build an organized movement of young people committed to solving climate change.
MADISON, Wis. — Baseball commissioner Bud Selig steered clear of controversy in his message to graduates at the University of Wisconsin.
Selig told graduates in a commencement address Saturday not to be afraid of the difficult economy they are entering but instead to dream big and not fear failure.
What Selig didn’t do was talk about the ongoing drug problem in professional baseball, or this season’s drop in attendance.
A former adviser to Senator Harry Reid is President Obamaâ??s choice to lead the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, giving opponents of a nuclear waste repository in Mr. Reidâ??s home state of Nevada another well-placed ally. The new chairman, Gregory B. Jaczko, has served on the five-member commission since January 2005. He will now serve as the commissionâ??s official spokesman and as its chief executive, overseeing day-to-day operations as well as long-range planning. [Jaczko earned his doctorate at UW-Madison]
