🚨 Why tornado sirens will go off today

💸 24-Hour Mens Shelter Faces $3 Million Gap

• Madison does not have a 24/7 men’s homeless shelter, forcing unhoused residents to move from one shelter to another throughout the day. While city officials had originally planned for a new shelter on Bartillon Drive to be open around the clock, funding difficulties may force the shelter to limit services.
• While $1.2 million has been budgeted annually from several sources for the shelter, estimates suggest the shelter would need $2 million more per year to be an overnight shelter and $3 million more to be a 24/7 shelter. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, demand for shelter services has tripled in Dane County.
• 🎧 Dig deeper: On the Friday news roundup, we talk about the shelter’s funding woes and how Madison’s homeless concerns illustrates the city’s affordable housing crisis. We also talk about tensions between Dane County Sheriff Kalvin Barrett and ICE officials, and preview this weekend’s biggest events. Ever want to put City Cast Madison host Bianca Martin in a dunk tank? Now’s your chance! [Isthmus, 🎧 City Cast Madison]

Mother of Abundant Life Shooter Dies By Apparent Suicide

• The mother of a 15-year-old girl who killed two people at Madison’s Abundant Life Christian School in December has died by apparent suicide, according to the Janesville Police Department.
• Mellissa Rupnow was the mother of Natalie Rupnow, who killed a student and a teacher at the school on Dec. 16 and injured six others before dying by suicide. Natalie Rupnow’s father, Jeffrey Rupnow, is facing charges connected to allowing his daughter access to the guns used in the shooting. [WPR]

🏢 Exact Sciences Lays off 4% of Workers

• The Madison-based biotech company Exact Sciences is laying off 200 workers in Wisconsin, including 80 in Madison, as it outsources more jobs to other countries.
• Overall, 4% of Exact Sciences’ total workforce is being laid off. A company spokesperson said some tasks and processes will be moved to a “global operations center of excellence in Mexico.”
• Exact Sciences launched three cancer detection tests in 2025, one of which was an update of its colorectal scan Cologuard. The company reported $811 million in revenue from its second-quarter earnings, up 16% from a year ago. [Cap Times, Investing.com]

⚽ Want an Old Fashioned at a Forward Match?

• The Madison City Council introduced a resolution to approve liquor sales for public events at Breese Stevens Field this week, meaning hard liquor could soon be served along with beer and wine at Forward Madison games and other events.
• As it stands, only private events at the stadium neighborhood could serve liquor. Big Top Events, which organizes and hosts events at Breese Stevens, will still need to apply for a liquor license. [ 🔒 WSJ]

Meet Jerry! This rescue kitty has been in the household for eight months, and Moose the dog (previously featured on Friday Floof) is absolutely smitten! They follow each other around all day and love to cuddle. But Jerry has his own interests, including bird watching from his “catio” or sitting in someone’s lap to gaze upon the eight chickens in the yard.