Madison’s Classy Music Scene

 

Madison bars are known for offering great selections of brews, rails, darts, pool, air hockey and televised sports events. However, if you are looking for a slightly more upscale venue and entertainment, the isthmus has some new offerings that DMI members and staffers are currently digging. 

If you haven’t heard the tinkling of ivories yet, you are missing out on Downtown Madison’s growing musical scene. The Ivory Room on West Mifflin and the Brink Lounge’s Piano Bar on East Washington offer classy accoutrements to the bar scene downtown. Patrons can request songs to be played by local, master pianists at the Ivory Room in an intimate setting. Thursday through Saturday individual and dueling pianists are featured at the Brink Lounge, offering guests keyboard rivalry to beat “The Devil Went Down to Georgia”.

The newly remodeled Majestic Theatre has concerts and events that range from emo to extravagant. Though the building purportedly lacks a single 90 degree angle, the theatre boasts a look that is sophisticated and inviting. Seating is comfortable and situated for excellent stage-viewing. It’s hard to not feel trendy while taking in a show or an après-work drink.

If you’re looking for a more relaxed scene, Brocach is a beacon to those with real or imagined Irish heritage. The large, two level badger den is intimate no matter where you sit. Local artists are featured throughout the week and range from bluegrass to country to Irish trad (as in, traditional).

It can be very difficult to track events at these locations and others, that’s why we have The Daily Page and Madison Verve to keep us in the loop.

These are staff favorites at the moment, but we’re always willing to try new places to discover, Any suggestions?

Homelessness in Madison

On Saturday December 15^th, thirty individuals came to the Madison Central Library to discuss homelessness. Some were established residents of Madison, others were shelterless community members. Representatives from Capitol Neighborhoods Inc, DMI, the Madison Police Department, and the UW campus were in attendance to present different points of view.

This was the third discussion in a series created by CNI in an effort to break down barriers of communication between homed and homeless residents of downtown Madison. Professional mediators encouraged open and honest discussion and group leaders from previous discussions directed conversations on topics such as housing, mental health, communication & resources, and respect. Each group was given the assignment to talk about their subject, brainstorm ideas to address the problem, and then present the best idea to the full group at the end.

The central problems were narrowed down to the following.

Housing: More personal assistance is needed in shelters and agencies. Users of the agencies want to be treated as people, not numbers.

Mental Health: There is a general need for more mental health assistance when necessary.

Transportation: More options are needed to allow travel to day labor sites, such as the one in Monona. Most shelters are downtown, day labor sites are not and many find it difficult to find reliable transportation back and forth.

Resources: A central database or resource center is needed to provide information on services which many agencies offer for the homeless. Central postings describing where to find simple amenities such as free phone service and public restrooms are located can be particularly useful.

 

Respect: Preconceived notions of homelessness act as a barrier to communication with those that are without stable housing. Establishing a relationship with a homeless individual can be an important step in understanding the difficulties that they are going through.

The issue of respect was the biggest topic of the session, and many people chimed in with personal stories and opinions about their experiences. One person argued that respect is a two-way street. Those without shelter must show consideration for the physical environment and residents must understand that the homeless also deserve to be treated fairly and without prejudice. Safety concerns were also raised, and it was advised that the best way to establish a line of communication is for each side to approach one another in a neutral setting, such as Savory Sundays, a weekly meal for the hungry held at the Capitol basement.

Although some used the forum to vent frustrations about homelessness in Madison, others took the opportunity to work together productively and create ideas for improvement. Some groups even moved to act on their ideas and will continue to meet between the ongoing CNI discussions forums. All participants were optimistic about what Madisonians can do to make the city better for both homed and homeless residents.

CNI will be hosting similar discussions once a month trough March. Check out CNI’s webpage to see the full schedule.

Snow Row

Snow removal in Madison, whether downtown, on the main arteries or the side streets, has proven to be quite a controversial issue. As soon as the flakes started falling, so did the barrage of criticisms onto the road maintenance crews. Even when the snow stopped and newspapers tried to move on, residents wouldn’t have it. The front page of Thursday’s Wisconsin State Journal Your Opinion was devoted to the fermenting frustration over slick intersections and not enough salt on the roads.

The biggest problems downtown right now are: poorly plowed curbs for street parking; chest-high snow banks that are difficult to see around and block parking meters; and icy or rutted side streets. The main arteries are as good as they’re going to get but the sidewalks are pretty much hit or miss. (City property is clear but resident street sidewalks can be dicey. Though private owners are fined if they don’t clear their sidewalk, the city has three weeks to take action and clean it for them)

There have been proposals to correct a few of these issues, such as heated sidewalks or intersections, allowing for more sand/salt mixture to be spread, and putting out more small-capacity plows to do a tighter job. Alders Eli Judge and Brenda Konkel have been speaking and blogging on the issue and listening to their constituents’ problems and suggestions.

However, all of the proposals will cost $$$ and the year’s snow removal budget is completely decimated. With more snow expected in 2008, what’s a city to do?