🦷 DeForest residents target anti-fluoride trustee

🖼️ The City’s New Murals Are Trash

• Two Madison collection trucks have new artwork along the sides, turning them into “rolling murals” as they pick up garbage around the city. One of the trucks features Catherine Capellaro’s painting of a turkey, while the other has Rachel Christopoulos’ Madison cityscape.
• Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway said the trucks are the brainchild of a four-year-old constituent who wrote city officials asking that the blue trucks be decorated in different colors. [City of Madison]

🏗️ Costs May Keep New Homeless Shelter From Being 24/7

• The good news is that Madison’s multimillion-dollar men’s homeless shelter is on track to open in early 2026 on the far east side. But the bad news is that the shelter hasn’t yet secured enough funding to stay open 24 hours a day.
• The city and county have secured the $27 million needed to build the facility on Bartillon Drive, but currently there is only $1.2 million budgeted for operations annually. The shelter would need $4 million a year to operate 24/7, officials said.
• Another concern is that the city-sanctioned campground of tiny shelters on the Southeast Side is scheduled to be closed down on Sept. 30, several months before the new shelter will open. [ 🔒 WSJ]

🦷 DeForest Residents Want To Extract Anti-Fluoride Trustee

• A group of DeForest residents have filed a petition to recall village trustee William Landgraf over his vote to remove fluoride from the village’s drinking water, and what they describe as a pattern of intimidating behavior against his critics.
• The Village Board voted 4-3 in February to remove the fluoride over the objections of many residents, who allege that trustees paid more attention to a prominent anti-fluoride advocate from Green Bay than the public. A consensus of health experts, such as the Wisconsin Dental Association, agree that community water fluoridization reduces tooth decay and improves overall health.
• Police records indicated that Landgraf engaged in some concerning behavior in retaliation against his critics. Including calling the workplace of a dental hygienist, whom he sparred with on social media, to report misconduct. [Madison365, News 3]

Welcome to our list of the best new restaurants opening in and around Madison! We’ll update this list each month. If we’ve missed a new spot you think we should feature, let us know!

On the City Cast Madison podcast today, Cap Times food and culture editor Lindsay Christians dishes on a bunch of new restaurants that have opened recently, and a few that have closed.

Jinx Coffee Co (West Side)

Commuters in a hurry on University Avenue can stop into this new locally-owned drive-up coffee stand in the parking lot of Felly’s Flowers. Jinx has a full selection of hot and cold beverages made from Madison’s Rusty Dog Coffee and 6&12 Tea Co., and the owner’s two-year-old cat is featured on every cup.

Dinotto Deli (Downtown)

This long-awaited sandwich shop that’s a spinoff of D’Vino recently opened on Webster Street in a former Cousins Subs. It’s an Italian deli and grocery store that serves piled-high sandwiches like chicken parmesan, muffaletta, and meatball grinders.

Pa’Que Roberto (Southwest Side)

I’ve heard good things about this new Mexican restaurant located next to the Kwik Trip on Raymond Road, which serves arepas, empanadas, and the savory pastry known as pastelitos. The place is small, and carry-out is the focus.

When you become a City Cast Madison Neighbor, you’ll get all the new perks of our expanded membership program like the chance to shout out a local business, nonprofit, or some other cool Madison thing in our newsletter. Here are a few things our Neighbors are celebrating this week.

📣 Bryn O. wanted to give flowers to the Greater Madison Writing Project! “It offers amazing opportunities for young writers in the Madison area during the summer. From journalism to advocacy writing, graphic novels to fan fiction, poetry to memoir - there is something for everyone!”

📣 Katelyn H. wanted to raise a mug to The Malt House! “Kind owner/staff who are supporters of local music, and provide a safe and welcoming space for all neighbors.”

📣 Anna J. wanted to bring awareness to the Madison Rafah Sister City Project, which is “deeply involved in the ongoing situation in Palestine and helps keep Madison informed by helping to organize calls to action, fundraisers, and events.”

Got something or someone you want to shout out? Become a City Cast Madison neighbor today!