📝 The average Madison home costs…

🏘️ The Value of Madison Property

• The city has come out with its annual property tax assessments. Overall, the value of local real estate increased 9.3% for 2024. Broken down, commercial assessments increased 10.5% and residential assessments increased 8.5%. The value of the average single-family home in Madison increased 7.8% to $457,300.
• The city attributes the increase to steady growth and continued development in Madison. You can see the breakdown by neighborhood here.
• Dig deeper: Some Madisonians say more housing and development will help ease the city’s housing crisis. [Wisconsin State Journal, City of Madison, City Cast Madison 🎧]

🤪 Crazylegs This Weekend

• The 42nd annual Crazylegs Classic is this Saturday and 10,000 people are expected to descend on downtown Madison for the event. (AKA expect traffic.)
• The 8k run starts at 10 a.m. and the two-mile walk will kick off shortly after. The races begin at Library Mall and finish outside the Kohl Center. UW-Madison Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin will serve as this year's Grand Marshal in honor of the university’s 175th anniversary. [UW Athletics]

📣 The County Wants to Hear from You

• The county is looking to hear from residents “regarding their concerns and priorities for Dane County government.” To do this, the county is conducting what it calls “strategic community engagement” via focus groups. You can sign up to participate here. [Dane County]

🗳️ Your Lunchtime Read: Wisconsin voters with disabilities demand a better way to vote absentee

• “When Stacy Ellingen, a 38-year-old Oshkosh resident with athetoid cerebral palsy, wants to cast a ballot, she relies on voting absentee because she can’t drive, and caregiver transportation to the polls is unreliable. But even voting from her home is a struggle — and the process may well mean sacrificing her constitutional right to a secret ballot.”
• Dig deeper: How will the newly approved constitutional amendments impact our elections? [Wisconsin Watch, City Cast Madison 🎧]

⬆️ Last Week’s Answer

Last week’s photo scavenger hunt seemed to be a hard one for y’all, since only a few people chimed in with guesses. For what it’s worth, I’m never trying to stump you, but I’m taking this one as a win for myself.

So where can you find this cheeky sign? None other than Los Gemelos restaurant on West Gilman Street.

🥳 Congrats to this week’s winners Todd A. and Mimi H. I hope you party like it’s 1995!

⬇️ This Week’s Clues

Where can you find these space hunks?

• This spot is a family-run business that sells vintage toys, knickknacks, and collectibles.
• The shop’s owner began his own collection back in the 1980s.
• At this shop you’ll find E.T., Garfield, Trolls, and much, much more.

Spring Cleaning for the Mind and Body in Madison

Kosa Spa in the Garver Feed Mill on Madison’s east side, offers meditation, massage, hot stone saunas, an aromatherapy steam room, nourishing meals and more.