Meet In CommonNews

News in Dane, WI

Madison365 · Dane, WI

City of Fitchburg, Dane County reject police surveillance technology contracts

The Fitchburg Common Council on Tuesday night rejected a budget amendment that would have funded a seven-year, roughly $1.8 million police technology package that includes automated license plate reader (ALPR) cameras, drones and a camera-sharing program with local businesses. However, they left money in the 2027 budget to fund a “real-time information center” for police, so the issue could come up again in the coming months. Also Tuesday night, the Dane County Board’s Public Protection and Judiciary Committee rejected a smaller, $331,400, five-year contract between Axon and the Dane County Sheriff’s Office for ALPRs only. Committee members said they heard from many residents, none in favor of adding more ALPRs. Supervisor Amy Larson cited privacy concerns. “We can craft the perfect contract with the best litigation-proof terms, but if we don’t have the public confidence and the actors on the other side of the contract, I can’t support having these in place,” Larson said.

Nearby reporting

Stories from surrounding communities, closest first.

Madison365 · Madison, WI

Nearby: Madison, WI

Shiva Bidar-Sielaff honored with Rotary’s Manfred E. Swarsensky Humanitarian Service Award

The Madison Downtown Rotary Club honored Shiva Bidar-Sielaff with its 2026 Manfred E. Swarsensky Humanitarian Service Award on Nov. 11, recognizing her decades of leadership, community service and work building connections across cultural and social differences. The award, established in 1982, recognizes individuals whose volunteer efforts have made outstanding contributions to humanitarian service in the greater Madison community, following the example of Rabbi Manfred E. Swarsensky. Bidar-Sielaff, the vice president and chief social impact officer at UW Health and associate dean for social impact and belonging at the UW School of Medicine and Public Health, was nominated by Juli Aulik. Swarsensky, a Holocaust survivor who settled in Madison after fleeing Nazi persecution, founded Temple Beth El on the city’s near west side.

BGodInspired · Madison, WI

Nearby: Madison, WI

Who Said “People Will Never Forget How You Made Them Feel”? Not Angelou

Read Time:9 Minute, 46 Second No. “People will never forget how you made them feel” was not written by Maya Angelou. The earliest record anyone has found is a 1971 book called Richard Evans’ Quote Book, where the line is credited to Carl W. Buehner, a church leader from Salt Lake City. His version was shorter: “They may forget what you said — but they will never forget how you made them feel.” Angelou’s name was not attached to it until 2003, more than thirty years later. Nobody has found her saying it in any book, speech or recorded interview that can be checked. Almost everyone credits her, and it is easy to see why. The line sounds like her. It has been read at funerals, printed on cards and put at the bottom of a thousand email signatures with her name under it. If someone you love gave it to you, they were passing on what they had been given. The saying is real. Only the name is wrong.

Isthmus · Madison, WI

Nearby: Madison, WI

Candidate tracker: Madison mayor's race 2027

× Expand Magnific A 'City of Madison Mayor's Office' button on a pile of 'Vote' buttons. Having trouble keeping up with the race for Madison mayor? Mayor Rhodes-Conway says she isn't seeking a third term, leaving an open field of candidates vying to be the city's next top executive. The pool is likely going to grow before it shrinks. The filing deadline for the 2027 spring election is Jan. 5, at 5 p.m. The nonpartisan primary, on Feb. 16, will whittle the field down to the two top candidates. Those candidates will go head-to-head in the spring nonpartisan election on April 6. This live tracker will be updated with additional information over the course of the campaign. Candidates are listed in alphabetical order; we will include links to our coverage as well as to other news outlets. Syed Abbas × Expand Chali Pittman Syed Abbas. A Pakistani immigrant who became an organizer in his Eken Park neighborhood, Syed Abbas was first elected to the Madison city council in 2019.

Isthmus · Madison, WI

Nearby: Madison, WI

Tarot therapy

× Expand Chali Pittman Dr. Laura Robu, left, reads the cards for Bethany Vongsiri. Dr. Laura Robu, left, reads the cards for Bethany Vongsiri. The smell of Palo Santo is wafting and people are starting to trickle into Oz by Oz when a tall, dark-haired woman dressed in black and lacy sleeves whirls into the downtown Madison cocktail bar. “The doctor is in,” says Colin, one of two bartenders working this evening. The woman greets him and asks for water with no ice, then settles into a small nook in view of King Street pedestrians. By day, Dr. Laura Robu — her tarot stage name — is a licensed psychologist at ClearPath Counseling and Wellness, where she specializes in trauma therapy and EMDR. Tonight, she’s here for her monthly residency as a tarot reader. She unpacks a small black cloth given to her by a former client, filled with quartz and other gemstones, and a traditional tarot deck.

Isthmus · Madison, WI

Nearby: Madison, WI

Which is Madison’s votingest neighborhood?

× Expand Olbrich Botanical Garden, Spring primary, Aug. 11, 2026. Ward 19, on Madison’s east side, can continue to boast its status as Madison’s votingest neighborhood. There was little question that Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, a Democrat, would carry the Madison area in Tuesday’s election for governor, but the size of his margin over U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, the Republican candidate, was greater than what we’ve seen in recent statewide races. In Madison, Crowley collected nearly 90% of the vote, about five points better than U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris managed in the 2024 presidential election and nearly two points better than Gov. Tony Evers received in 2022. Tiffany proved what many political pundits — and President Donald Trump himself — have long argued: if Trump isn’t on the ballot, Republican candidates suffer. Trump scored over 15% of the Madison vote in 2024, while Tiffany was stuck below 11%. All results can be found on the Dane County clerk’s website.