📝 Lions, tigers, and bears? Oh no.

🍜 Morris Ramen to Close

• Owners of the downtown ramen restaurant announced their plans to close this month. Francesca Hong, now a state legislator, and Matt Morris opened the restaurant at 106 King Street in 2016 with restaurateur Shinji Muramoto. It quickly became a go-to spot for ramen fans. But the pandemic hit the restaurant hard and it didn’t fully reopen until the summer of 2021.
• Morris Ramen’s last day of service will be Feb. 24.
• “This has been the most difficult decision we've ever had to make and one we do not take lightly. We are both terrified and heartbroken to say goodbye,” the owners wrote on social media. “Our wish is that we as a community remain hopeful and safe. That we continue to keep our hearts open and take care of one another.” [Cap Times, Instagram]

🏘️ Raemisch Farm Development Hits a Snag

• A proposed development that would bring 900 housing units to Madison’s North Side is being held up by a condition laid out in a 75-year-old deed. The 1949 deed says no building or structure should be built greater than 85 feet above the east-west runway of the nearby Truax Field. But the Raemisch family claims newer city ordinances allow for heights in the proposed development’s plan.
• Some context: A St. Louis-based developer proposed building 716 apartments, 76 single-family homes, and 112 townhomes on the 65-acre site at the 4100 block of Packers Avenue. City Council approved the plan in 2022, following years of controversy. [Cap Times]

🚫 Stay! Off! The! Ice!

• A jogger fell through the thinning ice of Lake Mendota earlier this week, prompting a response from the Madison Fire Department. Thankfully, the jogger was able to get out of the water and off the ice on his own shortly before rescue crews arrived. Let this instance serve as your general reminder that just because the lake is frozen, doesn’t mean it’s safe.
• Dive deeper: Check out the angler’s guide to safe ice fishing in Madison. [Madison Fire Department, Dane County Sheriff, City Cast Madison 🎧]

Last Week’s Answer

Last week, nearly 100 of you flooded my inbox to answer a simple question: Where is it?

You can all give yourselves a pat on the back because pretty much everyone got the basic area correct. But the specific answer I was looking for was Alumni Park.

Congrats to the readers who guessed correctly! You've won my undying love and admiration. But two readers went above and beyond when they guessed the location correctly and gave me the formal name of the statue, and for that, they won this week’s shoutout.

🎉 Everyone please say congratulations to our inaugural winners Lori G. and Elaine S.

This Week’s Clues

On top of what Madison business does this giant skeleton call home? This week, rather than wrangling all of your emails, please submit your answers in this form.

• Years ago this business used to be home to go-go dancers and drag queens.
• These days, you’ll want to bring quarters to enjoy your night at this spot.
• No, it’s not just a Halloween decoration.

Real Talk About Race In Madison From Departing YWCA CEO

For over 160 years, the YWCA has been on a mission to empower girls and women. And, for almost 10 years, Vanessa McDowell-Atlas has been on a mission to change the internal culture of YWCA Madison and to expose racism in our community. Her appointment as the YWCA Madison CEO made history, as she was the first Black woman to hold that role. And now, after nearly 7 years at the helm, this week is her last.