New plans for Madison's central library and a new city police training facility were among the topics up for discussion at Tuesday's second half of the Board of Estimates capital budget hearing.
Many Madison residents and city business officials spoke out in favor of the proposal to build a new central library on West Washington Avenue, saying it would provide job opportunities and an economic boost to the downtown area.
""The projects will bring steady, permanent jobs to Madison residents,"" said Mark Hoffman, business manager of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. ""Growth will take off if we get the project going.""
A representative from the Board of Public Works also said 20 to 25 percent of workers unions are experiencing unemployment at this time and construction projects are being completed at up to 18 percent less then their original budgets.
A new proposal that excited many community and board members was the idea of creating public community gardens on the rooftop of the new library building. Madison resident Jane Anne Morris found strong neighborhood support for the garden idea and has already collected hundreds of signatures in favor of the proposition.
""I'd love to be able to get a book and a tomato,"" resident Mike Fino said of the idea.
The library design team was receptive to the idea but expressed doubts about its feasibility.
Some members of the design team said a ""green"" roof might be possible, but it might not work to grow crops on the roof.
Representatives from the police department also addressed the board, proposing the purchase of a new $2 million training facility to replace their current location and accommodate growing class sizes. There was talk of a departmental partnership with Madison Area Technical College, but those plans were ultimately rejected.
""We would love to have a partnership with MATC, but we have not been able to come to an agreement that would leverage our needs,"" the representative officer said.
