New Orleans Take-Out Lifts Ban on Alder

Posted on March 25, 2013 by TheEastSider

Marsha Rummel allowed to eat at favorite haunt after making peace

Madison 6th District Alder Marsha A. Rummel was banned on March 9 for a City Council vote the restaurant owner did not agree with.

District 6 Alder Marsha Rummel is once again allowed to eat at New Orleans Take-Out on Fordem Avenue after being banned by its owner on March 9 due to a vote during a City Council meeting earlier this month.

The exile was over her vote to reduce Sherman Avenue to two lanes and install bike lanes in the curb lanes and a center turn lane. The City’s biking community rejoiced but the Northside Business Association was against the move saying its members will lose money.

At the time of the ban, NOTO owner John Roussos emailed Rummel and said, “You will be told to leave. If you do not comply the MPD will be called.” according to the email she shared with the Isthmus.

“I was really sad when I got the email from John Roussos, and he has subsequently unbanned me which makes me very happy. He was very concerned with the proposals for improvements to North Sherman Avenue,” Rummel told Willy Street Blog. “Honestly, every single person at the Council meeting that night voted for those improvements.”

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Green Turret Brings Retail to Mickey’s

Posted on January 6, 2013 by TheEastSider

Come down for a beer and maybe that Hay Rake you have been needing

A wide selection of "recycled treasures" available at The Green Turret including some wooden skis and a knife holder.

A wide selection of “recycled treasures” are available at The Green Turret including some wooden skis and a knife holder.

You might not have noticed it, or maybe you have; but since last July there are hidden treasures for sale on the second floor of Mickey’s Tavern. The Green Turret, named for the iconic Victorian-esque architectural feature that gives Mickey’s its unique appeal, deals in what proprietor Marybeth Gaffney says are recycled treasures; not really antiques, but interesting older items.

Passing from the bar area in Mickey’s to the back rooms we have all walked past that stairwell and wondered what was at the top. Was it an apartment for some lucky soul who lived above this hipster haven, not minding the bands late into the night and the lively chatter on the patio in the summers? Continue reading →

Wrong Track

Posted on September 20, 2012 by TheEastSider

City to appeal and maybe litigate decision to close isthmus rail crossings

This siding feeds the MG&E coal plant on south Livingston Street. The utility is also opposed to the closing of the rail crossings.

The only people that may be happy about the decision by State Commissioner of Railroads Jeff Plale to close two isthmus rail crossings was Wisconsin & Southern Railroad which operates the tracks, and Union Pacific Railroad which owns them.

For everyone in the City who travels, lives, or works near this 1.06 mile stretch of track, it was a nonsensical decision for Plale to also close Brearly Street after earlier this year Hearing Examiner Douglas S. Wood had recommended only closing Livingston Street. Continue reading →

Two Union Corners Proposals Now on ‘Short List’

Posted on September 13, 2012 by TheEastSider

Gorman and Livesey plans lead the way

Plans from Livesey Co./Stone House Development along with Gorman & Associates are under final consideration for the Union Corners development.

The City of Madison Union Corners Committee held a public hearing Wednesday evening (Sept 12) on the four remaining proposals for development of the Union Corners site. The committee voted to “short list” two of the proposal from Livesey-Stone House Development and Gorman Associates.

The next step is for city staff to conduct a basic preliminary financial review of each proposal. Following that review the UCC will decide what the next steps will be.

Related: C.D. Smith / EUA Withdraws Union Corners Proposal

Related: Where the Sidewalk Ends

Brearly Street Added to Rail Crossing Closures

Posted on September 12, 2012 by TheEastSider

State Rail Commissioner says Livingston and Brearly Crossings must close

Wisconsin’s Railroad Commissioner has ordered both Livingston and Brearly Street crossings closed, leaving five crossings between Blair Street and East Washington Avenues.

Wisconsin Railroad Commissioner Jeff Plale has ordered the closing of two rail crossings along the rail corridor on Madison’s Eastside. Wisconsin and Southern Railroad, which operates the tracks owned by Union Pacific Railroad, had petitioned to close Blount, Livingston, and Brearly crossings in 2009 and Plale had ordered Livingston Street closed earlier this year following a hearing.

The City of Madison was exploring its legal options and during a regular Pedestrian/Bicycle/Motor Vehicle Commission in July options were discussed on a response, but so far nothing has been announced.

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Have You Seen This Thief?

Posted on July 17, 2012 by TheEastSider

Passerby rummages through cars, takes bike from Sector67

This thief wandered into the Sector67 parking lot early Tuesday morning (July 17), looked through these two cars then took a bike.

Management at Sector67, a technology center at 2100 Winnebago Street reports that a thief rifled through vehicles in their parking lot at 12:55 a.m. on Tuedsday (July 17) and stole a bicycle.

Chris Meyer, director of Sector67 asks anyone who has seen the bike or recognizes the person in the video below to contact Sector67 at 608-241-4605 or call Madison Police.

A photo of the stolen bike, a Schwinn Frontier. Courtesy: Sector67

Sir Elton John Conquers Madison

Posted on March 23, 2012 by TheEastSider

Elton John sings “Holiday Inn” at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Madison. He said he wrote the song in 1970, inspired by all the traveling his band had done.

Sir Elton Hercules John gave the royal musical treatment to a sold-out crowd of over 10,000 at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Madison, Wisconsin Thursday night. Weaving through most of his 30 albums, he played crowd pleasers as well as songs from his current release The Union (2010) treating the exuberant audience to extended interludes demonstrating a mix of showmanship and mastery of the ivories.

With a massive discography, Elton John (and his band) doesn’t need a warm-up act but he found a perfect one in 2Cellos, consisting of 20-somethings Luka Šulić and Stjepan Hauser from Yugoslavia who’s dueling cello video set to Micheal Jackson’s Smooth Criminal caught fire on Youtube last spring and landed them on John’s summer tour of England and now the U.S. The handsome pair bring a youthful energy to this classical instrument, (one I played as a child) and they delighted the Madison crowd with the high-energy Criminal as well as covers of U2’s With or Without You, Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit, and ACDC’s Highway to Hell which wound up the crowd and served them on a platter to the Elton John Band. Continue reading →

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