Local

TOWN OF MIDDLETON–A proposed 50-dog daycare facility went to the Dane County Board of Supervisors Monday without a town recommendation on a 2-2 vote by the Town Board.

Dan and Marlene La Fleur’s Four Paws Pet Services, LLC currently boards about a dozen horses on 15 acres on the town’s southwest side near Meadow and Valley View roads.

Initially, they wanted to convert the 20,000-square-foot horse stable at 3440 Meadow Rd. to a 400-dog daycare and offer overnight boarding, grooming, training, and veterinarian services.

The La Fleur’s request for a Conditional-Use Permit went before the county’s Zoning & Land Regulation Committee last month with county zoning staff recommending that the proposed operation be limited to 50 dogs on site at a time.

However, on April 25, the ZLR postponed a decision because the town hadn’t acted on it yet.

On April 18, the town’s Plan Commission recommended a 100-dog or small animal limit.

City Council Approves $3.7 Million in Two TIF Agreements 

By Cameron Bren

MIDDLETON–The Middleton Common Council approved two developer agreements to provide tax incremental financing (TIF) assistance totaling more than $3.7 million. If the proposals go forward most of the assistance would go to a mixed-use development in Greenway Center and a smaller portion to an office building on N. High Point Road.

The mixed-use development in Greenway Center would replace the existing two-story office buildings with a single, five-story mixed-use building, including structured parking. It would include 180-200 residential units and 7,000-10,000 square feet of commercial space built in a horseshoe shape wrapped around a courtyard.

MIDDLETON–The Middleton Mayor Emily Kuhn and the Common Council will be tasked with appointing a new alder to District 4 at its next meeting on May 16. The seat was left vacant when Kuhn was elected mayor in April. Kuhn will make the appointment, which then must be approved by the majority of the council.

The seat has generated interest from four citizens who want to serve as city alder: Jenifer Cole, Todd Kalish, Kathleen (Kate) Schneider-Braus and Tom Yost.

Jenifer Cole works for the Wisconsin Department of Administration and has Bachelor of Arts in Theatre & Gender Studies and a Master of Public Affairs degrees.

She lists her personal interests as: Public affairs, public policy, community and organizational leadership, walking my dogs in Lakeview Park and enjoying Middleton’s many great restaurants and businesses.

MADISON–A Dane County judge Monday dismissed a challenge to the construction of the Cardinal-Hickory Creek (CHC) powerline brought by municipalities, counties and environmental organizations opposed to the Dubuque-to-Town of Middleton transmission line.

In upholding the Public Service Commission’s 2019 decision, Circuit Judge Jacob Frost, in a 30-page order wrote:

“This Court understands and respects the massive impacts a major project of this nature holds for the State and the serious concerns its opponents raise. However, applying the legal standards, the PSC properly conducted itself in granting the CPCN (Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity) at issue. For all these reasons, I affirm.”

The 102-mile-long powerline was the most contested project the PSC had considered and after issuing its October 2019 decision, it was challenged in state and federal court.

Town Defers In-Person Meetings Decision Until May

By Kevin Murphy

TOWN OF MIDDLETON–A decision to return to in-person meetings was deferred Monday by the Town of Middleton Board until late May.

With the exception of the Board of Review, the town board, committees and commission meetings have been held virtually since March 2020, after a public emergency declared in response to the Covid pandemic.

While some municipalities have returned to in-person meetings while continuing the Zoom or virtual option, the town doesn’t have the staff or technology to conduct such hybrid meetings, said Town Chair Cynthia Richson.

Town Attorney Eileen Brownlee has advised Richson that with the federal public health emergency ending on May 11, elected officials should probably return to in-person meetings.

Board Supervisor David Bryce, M.D., a pain medicine specialist, wants to continue the virtual meetings for now.

MIDDLETON–The City of Middleton Plan Commission reviewed a concept proposal that would turn a residential lot at 6706 Century Ave. into a beer garden. The plan commission provided feedback to the applicant but did not take any other action.

Sven Krause presented his concept proposal for the Good Neighbor Garden to the plan commission. 

Krause explained the site would be a destination for pedestrians in the area. There would be no on-site park and there is limited street parking along Old Creek Rd. Krause said the site would serve the residential housing in the area and ongoing development.

MIDDLETON–On April 24, Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) plans to begin changing traffic patterns on Allen Blvd. near Marshall Park. The traffic shift is needed to create a safe work zone for repairs to a major sewer line. While MMSD does not anticipate interruption of sanitary sewer service to customers, the work zone will affect traffic until about July 24.

From May 3-June 30, both southbound lanes of Allen Boulevard will be closed, and southbound traffic will be shifted east of the median islands for two-way traffic on the east half of Allen Boulevard. The Lakeview Blvd. intersection will be closed to all traffic except for limited access to nearby apartments. Bus traffic will be maintained but stop locations will be moved a little. Please allow some extra time when traveling through this work zone this summer.

MIDDLETON–Middleton police officers responded to a burglary in the 1300 block of N. High Point Road on April 23 at 10:40 a.m.

The resident there reported an unknown individual entered their home. After a brief physical altercation, the resident was able to scare off the intruder.

The suspect is described as a black male, in his 20s, wearing a black, hooded sweatshirt and blue jeans. He was approximately 6 ft. tall, with a muscular build.

If you were in that area around that time and can provide any witness information, please contact the Middleton Police Department at 608-824-7300, Madison Area Crime Stoppers at 608-266-6014, or on the web at p3tips.com.

MIDDLETON–The Airport Commission last week passed on an opportunity to lower the price of unleaded aviation gas when it’s offered for sale at Middleton Municipal Airport-Morey Field.

The commission debated then decided against recommending that Common Council waive the 10¢ per gallon fuel flowage fee the city collects on fuel sold at the airport.

An additional 6¢ per gallon is collected and paid to the state of Wisconsin.

This year, the fuel flowage fee is expected to generate about $8,000 in revenue, according to Richard Morey, airport manager whose firm, Morey Airplane Co. is the airport’s fixed- base operator.

City Administrator Bryan Gadow opened discussion last Thursday saying he expected that this would be the first of a couple discussions about the fee.

MIDDLETON–The Middleton Common Council approved a specific implementation plan (SIP) for the proposed Rockridge development at 1551 Pleasant View Rd. in the Greenway Center area. The council unanimously approved the plan with several contingencies that will need to be addressed before building permits can be issued.

The proposal from developer LZ Ventures calls for constructing three, eight story residential buildings in a vacant 5.08-acre lot in Greenway Center south of the PPD campus and north of the Le Silve Apartments and Bella Casa Condominiums. Each building would contain 121 to 125 units with a total of 371 units in the total development. Each building would also have two levels of underground parking. 

The site was previously part of the Greenway Center planned development district (PDD) but was never developed. The site was rezoned creating a new PDD during the approval of the general implementation plan.