🗳️ No fooling – it’s Election Day!

🏗️ Madison Public Market Opening Pushed To Late Fall

• We’ve been waiting for the Madison Public Market for two decades, so what’s a few more months? The long-awaited project was slated to open in July, but construction delays have set that back until late fall.
• The $24 million project has been under construction at the former Fleet Services building at 202 N. First St. for over a year. The 45,000-square-foot space will offer room for 30 merchants, food carts, and event space.
• 🎧 Dig deeper: Haven’t been following the long, winding history to bring the market to fruition? The City Cast Madison podcast has you covered. [Cap Times, 🎧 City Cast Madison]

🏫 Madison College Narrows Search For New President

• One of the four finalists seeking to become the next president of Madison College following Jack Daniels’ retirement revealed that he had been placed on leave at his current job.
• Charles Lepper visited campus and took part in a public forum last week, and said he was currently on administrative leave from his job as president of Grand Rapids Community College. College officials have not commented on the reason, and Lepper questioned the timing, noting that he was placed on leave shortly after it was publicized that he was a finalist for the Madison job.
• The fourth and final forum with candidate Tim Casper will take place April 2. [Cap Times, Madison College]

💰 Urban League Helps Madisonians Navigate Financial Issues

• A new four-part series at Urban League of Greater Madison hopes to help people take control of their financial futures.
• Representatives from local banks and credit unions will give tips on buying a home, getting out of debt, starting a business, or saving for college. The weekly series kicks off April 8 with a session on budgeting. It’s free, but registration is required. [Madison365, Urban League]

It’s April, and while the temperatures might only be getting a little warmer, Madison is really heating up when it comes to things to do. On the City Cast Madison podcast today, executive producer Hayley Sperling, host Bianca Martin, and yours truly had a lot to talk about when it comes to the best things to see, do, and eat in our fair city.

And we were just getting warmed up. Here’s a few more ways to shower your April with things to do.

🎥 Festival Fever!

The fever of anticipation is building for Madison movie fans as the 2025 Wisconsin Film Festival kicks off Thursday and runs for eight days. Operations director Ben Reiser talked on the podcast about how strong the early reaction has been, and how many screenings sold out of advance tickets.

But there’s still plenty of opportunities for last-minute buyers to enjoy the festival.You can probably walk up to the big Barrymore Theatre and buy tickets to a movie, such as an indie throuple comedy or a documentary about Japanese Packers fans.

The UW Line Breaks Hip Hop Theater Festival is one of the largest hip hop performance festivals in the Midwest, celebrating the work of student-artists in the First Wave program and attracting national talent to collaborate with them. This year’s fest kicks off April 4 with author Hanif Abdurraqib, and also includes an exploration of hip hop’s roots on April 9, and the hip hop performance showcase on April 11 and 12.

The Wisconsin Book Festival is bringing two high-profile authors to town in April. Colm Toibin will talk about his new novel “Long Island,” the sequel to “Brooklyn,” April 16 in the Capitol Theater. And Abraham Verghese will talk about his new novel “The Covenant of Water” with author Rebecca Makkai (“The Great Believers”) at the festival’s “Lunch for Libraries” fundraiser on April 29.

Meet Toby! This 1.5-year-old pup may take a little time getting comfortable in new situations and people, but once he does, he’s friendly and enjoys receiving affection. He’s crate and potty-trained and can sit, lie down, come, and stay on command. He lived with several cats in his previous home, so he doesn’t mean feline roommates. But he is looking for a home where he can be the only dog with no small children, with a patient family who will continue to work with him on his training while showering him with affection.