Attend the Common Council meeting

January 19 @6:30 PM

We can do this together

If you wrote or presented testimony to the Plan Commission in May, you can use the same materials for the Common Council. If you submitted materials for the December 1 meeting, you do NOT need to re-submit.

1. Write to your alder that you oppose allowing Edgewood to install lights and amplified sound. Ask the Common Council to uphold the Plan Commission’s decision to deny the lighting permit.
   Please cc allalders@cityofmadison.com and hstouder@cityofmadison.com and the Mayor. Request that your letter be uploaded to Legistar #60646.Remember to include your address and how close you live to the field.

2. Speak. Make a presentation (5 minutes or less) on January 19. Including a PDF slide with your photo makes it more personal. If you made a presentation to the Plan Commission, please present again to the Common Council.
   Please submit any presentation materials in PDF form (no larger than 20 MB) to hstouder@cityofmadison.com or Tim Parks tparks@cityofmadison.com by Thursday, January 14. You will be identified by your LAST NAME during the testimony.

3. Register your opposition and/or register to speak at the virtual meeting. We will notify you when registration is open

4. Share. Please share this information with friends and neighbors who may be interested. Every voice in the community is necessary and valued.

Contact the Common Council today!

The issue will be decided by the Common Council. Edgewood needs 2/3 of the vote, 14 alders, in order to overturn the Plan Commission’s ruling. No word on the resurrection of the religious lawsuit yet.

Thanks to everyone who showed up on December 1. After a 5 -hour meeting prior to the Edgewood agenda item, Alder Tag Evers requested what was received as a welcome delay. Because there were so many registrants (60 with maximum speaking time of 5 minutes= 5 hours), we were looking at an all-nighter. We will post more information as soon as it is available.

Edgewood High School’s appeal of the Plan Commission’s decision denying their application to install lights on the playing field on Monroe Street is on the Common Council agenda for Tuesday, December 1 at 6:30 PM. EHS continues to ignore the issue of noise and its disruptive impact on the neighboring properties and Lake Wingra. The neighborhood association has offered specific and concrete steps toward a compromise, but EHS has not recognized these. The “new” proposal was very similar to the plan they presented — which the community rejected — in January 2017.

Thank you for the phenomenal community support

Thanks to the tremendous turnout from the community — especially the children —who spoke to the approval standards.

In addition to those who spoke and attended the virtual meeting Monday night, we are so grateful to everyone who wrote a letter, shared an email and made phone calls. DMNA president Rachel Fields and district alder Tag Evers delivered powerful arguments.

The community opposes a stadium

Remember that the Plan Commission found that the application does not meet the conditional use standards, specifically the requirement that:

“The uses, values and enjoyment of other property in the neighborhood for purposes already established will not be substantially impaired or diminished in any foreseeable manner.”

The Plan Commissioners suggested that EHS should take the time necessary to observe, measure and research the impact that day games already have on the community before moving toward expansion of field usage to nighttime hours. The decision also stated that research and meaningful noise mitigation are a prerequisite to further discussion about community support for lights on the field and the impacts that nighttime use will bring.

The Liaison Committee representatives subsequently prepared a response, asking EHS to follow the suggestion made by Alder Marsha Rummel at the Plan Commission hearing May 11th. Rummel suggested that EHS should take the time necessary to observe, measure and research the impact that day games already have on the community before moving toward expansion of field usage to nighttime hours. The response also stated that research and meaningful noise mitigation are a prerequisite to further discussion about community support for lights on the field and the impacts that nighttime use will bring.

Share this video with friends and neighbors, especially those who think “it’s just a couple of football games.”

THIS WILL IMPACT HOMES. Edgewood High School is already permitted to play unlimited day games. The installation of lights will allow them to use the field continuously.

CONTACT THE COMMON COUNCIL TODAY
The Common Council needs to hear from EVERYONE whose property will be impacted. This has the potential to inflict amplified sound around the clock—while you’re putting your children to bed, relaxing in your garden or simply trying to enjoy your home. In addition there will be increased evening traffic and parking on Monroe Street and the narrow streets surrounding the school.

We know there’s a lot going on right now. This is an issue that can affect your health, well-being and home value in the future. Please share this information with anyone who might be interested.

Read the application.
Read the photo metrics document.

We will continue to keep you informed. We depend on your continued engagement in the upcoming public process moving forward, and are grateful for your questions, your presence, and your communications to the press and city staff.

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