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| What Madison's Talking About |
|  | A fifth attempt to redevelop the property where the Essen Haus stands has fizzled out. (Rob Thomas / City Cast Madison) |
| 🍻 Essen Haus Survives For Another Round: Developers have dropped plans to build apartments on the site of the iconic German restaurant Essen Haus and the neighboring Come Back In bar. This is the fifth time since 2000 that Essen Haus has seemingly faced the wrecking ball and survived. [ 🔒WSJ, City Cast Madison] | | 🎒 Madison Extends Middle-School Tutoring After Trump Cuts: The Madison School Board OK'd $430,000 to keep Middle Schools of Hope, a joint tutoring program between the district and Urban League of Madison, funded through the end of the school year. The Trump administration killed AmeriCorps funding for two other tutoring programs, Elementary Schools of Hope and the math-focused Achievement Connections. [ 🔒WSJ] | | 🪆 Meet Daisy, American Girl’s New Madison Doll: While in a sense every American Girl doll was born in the Madison area at the Middleton-based company, Daisy Davenport is actually a Madison local. The American Girl 2027 Doll of the Year lives in Madison and goes to summer camp for the first time. No word if she hangs out with her friends at West Towne Mall to buy boba tea and shop at Claire’s like other Madison tweens. [WISN, American Girl] | | 💰 How Should Wisconsin Spend its Opioid Money? Wisconsin is looking for suggestions on how to spend the money from a multi-year lawsuit settlement against opioid companies. State health officials have launched a survey to ask residents what areas of addiction mitigation and what communities ought to be prioritized in spending those dollars. [Cap Times, State of Wisconsin Department of Health Services] | | 🟪 New Purple Terrace Chair to Support a Good Cause: While the metal sunburst chairs at the UW Memorial Union are traditionally orange, yellow, or green, the Union will sell a special purple mini terrace chair to support victims of sexual assault and dating violence. The mini chairs will go on sale Oct. 1, and a portion of the proceeds from each mini chair sold will go to University Health Services’ Survivors Empowerment Fund. [WMTV] | | 🏖️ Madison Ends Clean-Beach Program at Warner Park: A city project to clean the beach at Warner Park is ending after persistent problems. Madison launched the program in 2021 to address algae at the beach, but soaring costs and persistent clogs in the filtration system have made it unsustainable, city officials said. [ 🔒WSJ] |
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| | | Homecoming is just a week away! Even if you’re not a Badger grad, it’s a great time to invite friends and family in to experience timeless Madison traditions—from the festive parade to the BIGGEST game day. | | Plus, hosting during HOCO will have you on your way to winning one of six Wish You Were Here getaway giveaways. We’ll provide the postcards, host tips and itinerary ideas. All you have to do is start inviting! | | Get started. |
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| | | When Breese Stevens Field was built in 1926 as a baseball stadium, it would have been hard to envision what the stadium on East Washington Avenue would become a century later. | | In addition to being the home of two soccer teams and an Ultimate Frisbee team, Breese has become an outdoor multi-use facility, hosting festivals like Curd Fest and Distill America and, most significantly, becoming the city’s largest outdoor concert venue for touring musical acts like Brandi Carlile, Alabama Shakes, and Train this summer. | | As Breese Stevens enters its second century, its owners have big changes in mind, especially to increase the number of concerts and events. But some neighbors of the field aren’t happy about it. Here’s a look at the past, present, and future of Breese Stevens Field. | | ⚾ There’s the Pitch | Built on a block of land formerly owned by the widow of the late Madison mayor Breese J. Stevens, the field officially opened on May 5, 1926. Gov. John Blaine threw out the first pitch to Mayor A.G. Schmedemann. | | In 1934, the field’s iconic stone walls were built by the federal Civil Works Administration, and lighting towers were installed as well. The field was mainly used for high school games and minor. league baseball until 1982, when it was converted into a soccer facility. The complex was designated a Madison landmark and joined the National Registry of Historic Places in 1995. [City of Madison] | | ⚽ Playing the Field | Breese Stevens became home to Madison’s new Ultimate frisbee team, the Madison Radicals, in 2013. The Forward Madison FC soccer team played its first game in 2019, and Madison’s first USL W pre–professional soccer team, Rally Madison, kicked off this year. Big Top Events, which also owns the Madison Mallards, owns both soccer teams and operates Breese Stevens Field. | | FPC Live began booking concerts at Breese in 2015, with the Avett Brothers playing the inaugural show there. Since then, 50 acts have played the stadium, including Phoebe Bridgers, Willie Nelson, Bon Iver, and Wilco. [Madison Radicals, Forward Madison, Rally Madison, Big Top Events, Breese Stevens Field] | | |
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📰 Extra! Extra! Treinen Farm in Lodi has one of the Top 10 corn mazes in the country, and there’s been lots of buzz about what the theme will be this year. Now it’s been revealed. “The Birds and the Bees” features a giant bee at its center flanked by a few winged friends. If you and your kids get lost in the maze, maybe that would be a good time to give them “the Talk” while waiting to be rescued 🐝 |
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