How often do Madison residents have the chance to spend the day with the mayor, and various community leaders, business owners, decision makers, non-profit organizations, and City staff? The upcoming Mayor’s Neighborhood Conference will be a chance to take advantage of this event and join over 300 active residents to learn about important neighborhood issues, gain new skills and celebrate community.
The full-day event, taking place Saturday, Nov. 17, 9 a.m.-3:15 p.m., will be a lively exchange of ideas that will help shape the community Madisonians want and find ways to work together to make the City a better place for all. It will include an array of topics that you can choose from based on your interests. Six main tracks will include topics such as effective government, neighborhood leadership, transportation, healthy neighborhoods, neighborhood businesses and various City plans and projects. Attendees will be able to network, learn about what others are doing to make their neighborhood special, and communicate issues that are important.
Twenty-five workshops and ten table conversations are planned. One highlight of the conference will be a panel discussion by Sabrina Madison from Progress Center for Black Women, Alexis London, Nou Thao, Xong Vang, & Leneal Clendening from Bayview Foundation; and Tom Solyst from Vera Court/Broadway-Lakepoint-Waunona Neighborhood Center will be sharing their creative approaches to build strong community leaders.
(Photo by Marcus Miles)
For the first time ever, the Mayor’s Neighborhood Conference will have a workshop about immigration with Fabiola Hamdan, Immigration Affairs Specialist from Dane County Department of Human Services. She will talk about immigration issues that currently affect the Latino community. There will also be a discussion about City of Madison resources for Latinos, as well as gaps. This workshop will be in Spanish but interpreters will be available for English speakers.
(photo by Michelle Stocker)
Some other City plans and projects will be featured including Bus Rapid Transit, the City Budget and the Comprehensive Plan. Last August, the City adopted its Comprehensive Plan in our history. A very unique and inclusive engagement campaign called “Imagine Madison – People Powered Planning” set the stage for the planning process. This campaign undertook a very unique and inclusive public input process. City staff and community groups went beyond usual public meetings and hearings to work directly with community organizations to facilitate conversations with historically underrepresented groups. Over 15,000 people participated and provided their insights.
The City want to make sure that this opportunity to shape community and drive action at this city-wide neighborhood is accessible for all. Register for the event at www.cityofmadison.com/neighborhoods or call the Planning Division at 608-267-8727. There will be on-site childcare and language assistance in Hmong, Spanish and ASL. Other languages can be requested prior to the event.
