In a surprisingly short meeting Tuesday, Madison's Common Council voted to make band members of Wilco honorary citizens in addition to granting final approval for several city projects and liquor licenses.
The council voted to allow the construction of a Target store at Hilldale Shopping Center on University Avenue. According to Jackie Bell, who spoke on behalf of Target, construction could begin as early as this spring.
""We've had a lot of great input from citizens on [the project],"" she said. ""We would like to get under construction … right away when the ground thaws this spring and open the following summer in 2011.""
According to Ald. Chris Schmidt, District 11, there has been a great deal of support for the Target project.
Ald. Marsha Rummel, District 6, said the project was ""a model for how the system is not broken,"" referring to comments made by Mayor Dave Cieslewicz in the past in reference to problems encountered by the Edgewater Hotel project.
Plans, specifications and a schedule of assessments—such as a change in lighting—for Broom Street renovations were adopted without debate.
The council also adopted without debate a request for a liquor license by Quaker Steak and Lube, which will replace Uno Chicago Grill on Gorham Street.
In addition, the council members voted unanimously to make Wilco band members Jeff Tweedy, John Stiratt, Glenn Kotche, Mikael Jorgensen, Nel Cline and Pat Sansone honorary citizens of Madison.
One Madison resident, however, did speak against the measure. Kyle Bowden said he saw it as a form of ""injustice"" that this resolution could be adopted while there are still many disparities in Madison and Dane County's criminal justice systems.
""For many years we haven't been, within Madison or Dane County, … totally just with our actual citizens,"" he said. ""People of color are arrested much more than white citizens even though they make up a much smaller percentage of the population.""
""I'd like for that personally to be remedied somehow,"" he added. ""We [need] equity in the criminal justice system.""
