Hundreds of North Side residents came out to Warner Park Sept. 7 to celebrate Madison’s North Side at the annual Northside Festival.
The Northside Festival, filled with food, fun and family-friendly activities, marked an opportunity to build community — an issue the area’s two alders note as they hope to see neighborhoods grow. The festival was the third, nonconcurrent time it was held, but hope with Madison’s growth and the COVID-19 pandemic over, it can continue to operate every year now.
“The North Side doesn’t have the Urban League, doesn’t have the Boys and Girls Club, but what it does have is that community,” said Charles Myadze, alder for District 18. “This is what makes the North Side great. It’s a sense of community that we have, and we look out for each other, everybody, every small business, is what makes Northside grow.”
Attendees of the annual festival had the chance to experience the area’s thriving food truck businesses. Food trucks around Madison are frequently housed at FEED Kitchens, 1219 N. Sherman Ave., where they use the space to prepare for their rounds around the city.
(Photo by Omar Waheed)
Myadze and fellow North Side alder, Amani Burris (District 12), see FEED Kitchens as one of the anchor points for the area. The two hope that they can continue to work to bring more opportunity to their side of Madison.
“We know it’s going to take a decade of hard work, but we’re committed to doing that,” Burris said. “FEED is exploding with food carts and people wanting to do business, and we’re hoping that we’re going to bring investment here.”
The Northside Festival also was all about family fun and community outreach. Children could be seen running around with balloon animals while comparing theirs to others.
Tables were set up for things like blood drives, information on the upcoming Bus Rapid Transit system launch and voter registration. The two alders took the chance to hear community feedback — especially on the North-East area plan.
The two are looking towards how they can use the area plan to help bolster small businesses. The plan is highly residential, but Myadze and Burris want to capitalize on the small businesses in the area to invite more entrepreneurship on the North Side.
