🍝 Take home a piece of Porta Bella

🚧 University Avenue Reducing Lanes This Weekend

• Traffic on eastbound University Avenue between Midvale Boulevard and North Blackhawk Avenue will go down to one lane starting at 9 a.m. Friday.
• The lane will close for the first phase of utility work for construction of a six-story, 146-unit building near Hilldale. The lane is expected to be closed through Sunday. [City of Madison, InBusiness]

💸 Picketing Workers Caution City Council about Developer

• A group of Madison construction workers are urging the Madison City Council to act over a dispute they’re having with their employer over back pay.
• The 13 workers picketing at the Madison City-County Building claim Bear Developments delayed $75,000 in compensation for work done last spring at The Intersect apartment development on the east side. One worker also claims he hasn’t received workers compensation for an injury sustained on the job that left him partially blind.
• Worker Justice Wisconsin organized the protest and wants city council members to be aware of the allegations because Bear Development is currently working on another proposal that's making its way through city government.
• Bear Developments denied the wage theft claim and said there is no evidence to support the workers’ allegations. The workers were reportedly paid the $75,000 earlier this week. [WKOW]

🚨 Madison CARES Adds Vehicles To Provide More Support

• A city program that provides support services for nonviolent 911 calls now has their own vehicles designed for those services. The Madison Community Alternative Response Emergency Services (CARES) program sends crisis workers and paramedics to behavioral health emergencies rather than police officers.
• Those CARES workers will now use specialized red Ford Transit vans with the CARES logo to respond to those calls. The vans are stocked with medications and supplies, and feature a table and seating for private consultations. [ 🎧City Cast Madison, Fox47]

We love our food festivals in Madison, from Taste of Madison to the new True North Food & Music Festival.

But there’s something especially charming about a food festival that’s built around one specific kind of food, one that the locals are particularly proud of. I mean, you have to really love corn to organize the Sun Prairie Sweet Corn Festival, or really love brats to stage the World’s Largest Brat Fest.

Over at the Aldo Leopold Nature Center, they love maple syrup (who doesn’t?), and this Saturday is the center’s annual Maple Syrup Fest. On the City Cast Madison podcast today, host Bianca Martin talked to Virginia Wiggen, the center’s education director, about the sweet science behind maple syrup and what this weekend’s festival has to offer.

Here are some other fun festivals coming to Dane County in 2026 that celebrate one particular kind of food.

Wisconsin Cider and Mead Festival (April 11)

Head to Mershon’s Cidery in Stoughton to enjoy unlimited sampling from over 20 different brands, with plenty of products to take home and a souvenir glass.

Doundrins Annual Bloody Mary Fest 2026 (April 18)

This fifth annual event at Cottage Grove’s Doundrins Distilling will feature 15 different Bloody Mary creations developed by their mixologists, with both alcoholic and non-alcoholic versions available. Get a 2-ounce sample of each and vote for your favorite.

World’s Largest Brat Fest (May 22-24)

There’s three days of music and carnival rides for this Willow Island extravaganza. But the main draw is still those Johnsonville brat. In addition to the OG sausage, you can order a jalapeno cheddar chicken brat or a plant-based brat.

Beer, Bacon & Cheese Fest (June 13)

Okay, this is technically three food items. But since they’re three of Wisconsin’s favorites, we’ll allow it. This event in downtown New Glarus offers unlimited samples of all three for ticketholders, and if that isn’t Wisconsin enough, there’s also a Polka Tent.

Strawberry Fest (TBA)

A date hasn’t been set yet for Fitchburg’s summer celebration of Dane County’s delicious crop, but expect lots of strawberry-themed treats and live music.