City Cast Madison

Wisconsin’s next official state symbol could be something you can’t even see without a microscope. Sure the microbe Lactococcus lactis may be tiny in size, but its contributions to our state’s dairy industry are huge. So say two UW-Madison graduate students campaigning for it to become Wisconsin’s state microbe.  Producer Molly Stentz speaks with Natalia Rosario-Melendez and Austin Hall with the C...

Winter’s coming. As of tomorrow, parking in Madison gets a little more complicated. Alternate side parking starts November 15th, meaning you have to park your car on the correct side of the road each day to avoid getting a ticket. If you live in the central city, this applies to you whenever there’s significant snowfall and the city declares a snow emergency. City officials say that while enforcem...

Dane County is Wisconsin’s largest local government outside of Milwaukee. Home to Madison, it’s one of the fastest growing parts of the state. The county has thousands of employees and a nearly billion dollar budget. It runs our local zoo, airport, jail, landfill, foster care system, and 911 emergency center, just to name a few things. It also manages our lakes, operates parks, issues marriage lic...

The City Cast Madison team is here to round up the news of the week. Dylan Brogan and Molly Stentz recap the latest findings from the Marquette Law School Poll on how Wisconsin voters are feeling. Plus, local mayors agree: the Madison area needs more housing and fast. Some argue that we need to loosen zoning rules to encourage more development. What do YOU think? Mentioned on the show: Latest Marq...

D.B. Pedersen has been a chef in the Madison area for years. He’s worked at L’Etoile, Weary Traveler, the former Taqueria Gila Monster, and the Taliesin School of Architecture, to name a few. His latest venture? A soup delivery business called Soups! I Did It Again.  Along with partner Bazile Booth, they cook up high-quality soups from scratch, using fresh local ingredients. They do home delivery...

Dog parks are plentiful in Madison and generally popular. A lot of us have small yards and our doggoes want space to run.  But some dog trainers say dog parks actually aren’t all that great. Some dogs get overwhelmed and just don’t vibe with others, leading them to lash out or shut down.  Producer Molly Stentz caught up with Allison Stoffel of Copper Ridge Dog Training in Madison to learn why and...

It’s not hard to find a store selling Delta-8 products in Madison. We recently spoke to Alan Robinson of Herbal Aspect, who argues that this cannabis product is safe and legal.  But Dr. Ana Pearson says there’s reason for caution. She says that the lack of regulation means it’s buyer beware. Production processes can be uneven, so dosing information can be unreliable. There’s the possibility of ing...

You may not think of deep-blue Dane County, home to liberal Madison, as important to Republicans. But Dane County is one of the top three sources of Republican votes in statewide elections. Republicans hope to shore up their chances of winning Wisconsin in next year’s Presidential election by making inroads in Democratic areas. Dylan Brogan sits down with the new 23 year-old leader of the Republic...

City Cast Madison’s Dylan Brogan and Hayley Sperling round up the news this week. Madison Metro officials say they’ve treated and quarantined two buses after findings bed bugs on board. A bipartisan bill would require disclosure of AI-generated content in campaign ads. And listeners give us their picks for their favorite Madison buildings.  Read more: Metro Transit confirms reports of bed bugs on...

Sam Thayer says you can eat local all year round in Wisconsin, despite our frosty weather. He’s best known for writing guide books on edible native plants in Wisconsin, like The Forager’s Harvest. He’s speaking about local nuts, roots, fruits and more at the Madison Herb Fair at Olbrich Botanical Gardens in Madison this Saturday, November 4th. Molly Stentz sits down with him to learn what’s cookin...

Madison’s going through a building boom. The city’s growing up, literally. So we’re taking a moment to reflect on the architecture all around us in the Capital City.  City Cast Madison’s Dylan Brogan, Hayley Sperling and Molly Stentz are up to the challenge. Here are our picks for Madison’s best buildings, plus the quirkiest and downright ugliest, too. Read more:  The Kastenmeier Courthouse is Mad...

UW Madison has started tracking students who rank at the bottom of their classes. Starting this year, a select number of undergraduates have their academic progress tracked by administrators. They’re flagged if they rank in the bottom fourth of their class for two or more classes. They’re also flagged if they have assignments more than five days late. The idea is to find the students who need extr...

Madison and Dane County are investing in a new way to offer emergency shelter for people facing homelessness. A new, purpose-built men’s shelter on Madison’s east side is in the works and expected to open in 2025.  Madison’s Community Development Director Jim O’Keefe tells host Dylan Brogan how the new shelter represents a fundamental shift, years in the making, in how local government supports re...

The City Cast team is here to round up the news of the week. Dylan Brogan, Molly Stentz and Hayley Sperling discuss the plan to turn the old Ale Asylum brewery into a new elections center. Plus, we’ve got a few ideas for Madison-themed Halloween costumes. And Slate’s Political Gabfest was in town to for a live podcast taping with Governor Evers.  Mentioned on the show: Dane County wants Ale Asylum...

Supper clubs are a Wisconsin staple. Whether it’s the overflowing relish tray at Tornado Steakhouse or the American cheese-laden hash browns at Toby’s, supper clubs have always brought cozy vibes and enormous portions to the Madison culinary scene.  But what makes a place a true supper club? And who gets to claim the title of best supper club in Madison?  Molly Stentz speaks with Cap Times food ed...

Congress ain’t working so well right now. The House of Representatives is without a speaker for the longest time in U.S. history. We’re weeks away from the government shutting down. All while the U.S. is playing a major role in the war in Gaza. And there’s still a war in Ukraine. Mark Pocan is the Madison area’s representative in Congress. Dylan Brogan caught up with him from his office in D.C. to...

The Madison area has seen strong economic growth this year. Construction cranes abound. Housing prices have soared. Unemployment is low. We’re the fastest growing part of the state. You might think we’d be sitting pretty when it comes to city services.  But according to Madison Finance Director Dave Schmiedicke, things are tighter than you’d think. City expenses are going up faster than the city’s...

Madison has its fair share of poltergeists, lingering spirits, and maybe even a few lake monsters. You just need to know where to look. Bianca Martin learns more about Madison’s scary side with Lisa Van Buskirk and Mike Huberty from Madison Ghost Walks. Mentioned on the show: 🎃 Downtown Madison Family Halloween — Wednesday, Oct. 25 👻 Warner Park Community Recreation Center Family Fun Night — Fri...

The City Cast team is here to round up the news of the week. Dylan Brogan, Molly Stentz and Hayley Sperling recap how the Madison Public Market may get built after all. We also discuss how raises for thousands of university employees are the latest cudgel in the fight between the state legislature and UW. Plus, sometimes you just need to cry in public.  And if you’ve got a Madison-themed Halloween...

According to UW-Madison professor Jennifer Gaddis, most kids don’t eat school lunch in Madison. She studies school lunch programs across the country, including ours. It’s a problem because kids need healthy food to grow and learn. But Madison schools don’t have the kitchens, staff or money to make fresh meals from scratch every day. And last year, complaints piled in about the food. How did school...

The first school choice program in Wisconsin was created more than thirty years ago - and it’s been fought over ever since. If you’d rather send your kid to a private school than your local public school, and you have a low income, the state will pay for it. It started out as an experimental pilot program and now pays for more than 50,000 private school students.  A new lawsuit by Minocqua Brewing...

Madison journalist Bill Lueders learned first-hand what happens to dogs who attack. His dog Stella was attacked by a neighborhood pit bull left to roam. What followed was an investigation by the public health department that, months later, is still open. What Bill learned is that public health will investigate, but there are no easy answers. Meanwhile, the dog can attack again. Dylan Brogan gets t...

Madison started the CARES, or Community Alternative Response Emergency Services, program in 2021 after a wave of protests and a series of deaths. Paramedics and crisis workers now respond to non-violent 911 calls in Madison, rather than police officers. Two years and thousands of calls later, the program seems to be working. But it’s not staffed on nights and weekends and it’s only available withi...

The City Cast team is here to round up the news of the week. Dylan Brogan, Molly Stentz and Hayley Sperling talk about Madison schools gaining more kids this year, the UW system’s sudden rebrand, and how Madison residents are dealing with the war in the Middle East after a week of escalating conflict.  Mentioned on the show: 🎒 Madison schools see surprise enrollment increase [Cap Times] 🏫 The Un...

Seven Acre Dairy is many things - a cafe, a restaurant, a hotel, a butter plant.  But if you talk to founder Nic Mink, it’s also a place for restoration. He renovated a shuttered old butter plant in Paoli, Wisconsin, a small community about twenty minutes from downtown Madison. It’s drawing neighbors near and far to enjoy locally-made butter, soft serve ice cream and a farm-to-table restaurant.  I...