📝 Cheers to many more Vintage years

🍔 Vintage Spirits and Grill Is Here To Stay

• Developers have scrapped their plans for a new 12-story housing project at 529 University Ave. The news means Vintage Spirits and Grill, which currently occupies the small corner spot, is no longer facing the threat of demolition.
• While the win for the restaurant has been celebrated by many, the city had previously determined that the space it occupies would be best used for high-density housing like the developers proposed.
• Vintage’s owners want to buy the property from its current owners, who have had it since the 1950s.
• “The plan is not to do anything, just continue it as we started 22 years ago,” one of the bar’s co-owners said. “She’s definitely our baby, it’s just such a great space, such a great community that gathers there, so she’s staying.” [The Badger Herald]

🔒 Lock Your Bikes

• The Madison Police Department has seen a spike in bike thefts this year and is urging residents to remain vigilant when it comes to storing bikes safely. Police recorded 44 stolen bikes, more than double from the 21 stolen last February. [Channel 3000]

🍺 Karben4 Files for Bankruptcy

• Karben4 Brewing has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection but the brewery will remain open. The brewery, famous for its Fantasy Factory IPA, whose label features a gun-slinging cat riding a fire-breathing unicorn, cited a downturn in the craft beer industry and its struggle to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic as reasons for its financial woes.
• The company does not have plans to liquidate at this time and is reportedly in talks with potential investors.
• “We are eternally grateful for the support you have shown our business over the past decade plus, and we ask that you continue to provide us with an unbreakable foundation as we navigate through this restructuring. We plan to emerge on the other side stronger than ever,” the business wrote in a social media post.
• Related: Last year, the team at Karben4 began brewing Hopalicious and other beers after Ale Asylum abruptly closed. [Cap Times, Instagram, City Cast Madison 🎧]

⬆️ Last Week’s Winner

Last week’s prompt proved to be a tough one for y’all. (I told you some of these would be hard!) This sculpture can be found outside of the Broom Street Theater, which is actually located on Willy Street. If you haven’t seen a show there, I highly recommend it. Not too long ago I saw the post-apocalyptic “Paul Blart 3: Blart Of Darkness,” which I can only describe as a trashy delight.

🎉 Shoutout to Bernadette F. for being the first to correctly guess the location of this sculpture!

⬇️ This Week’s Clues

Where can you find these chickens?

• The farm where these chickens live has been growing certified organic vegetables since 2001.
• The farm ran a successful community supported agriculture program (CSA) but ended it earlier this year.
• The land is open to the public during daylight hours, has walking paths and a kids' garden.

A Sneak Peek at the 2024 Wisconsin Film Festival

The Wisconsin Film Festival is April 4 through 11 at theaters across Madison. Bianca Martin catches up with Ben Reiser, Operations Director of the Wisconsin Film Festival to learn what’s changing in the wake of the AMC closing at Hilldale (RIP Sundance) and what surprises they’ve got in store.