City

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Baby orangutan moves to Atlanta zoo

Dane County’s Henry Vilas Zoo decided to move its six-month-old Bornean orangutan named Keju to Zoo Atlanta. Following Keju’s birth, its mother Kawan “became lethargic” to its baby, prompting zoo officials to take on the primary responsibilities of taking care of the orangutan around the clock, according to a Friday statement. “At Dane County Henry Vilas Zoo our number one priority is the welfare of our animals,” said Ronda Schwetz, Dane County’s Henry Vilas Zoo director, in a statement.

Family, friends celebrate Tony Robinson’s birthday

Seven months removed from the fatal shooting of 19-year-old Tony Robinson, community members gathered Sunday to sing “Happy Birthday” to the teenager who would have turned 20.

Experts on restorative justice expand on benefits of program

Two experts from the Center for Court Innovation met with Dane County officials Thursday to discuss the restorative justice programs Madison is implementing for 12-to-16-year-olds.

Eminent domain proceedings for proposed park come to halt

Hours before a resolution to condemn six properties on West Mifflin Street to build a park came to a vote of the Board of Park Commissioners, a property owner in the neighborhood of the proposed park offered to sell their properties.

Drop in Exact Sciences stock elicits questions from mayor

The future of Madison-based biotechnology company Exact Sciences Corporation is less certain after a major drop in the company’s stock value last week.

Police arrest Illinois sex offender for lewd behavior

Madison police arrested a 32-year-old registered sex offender Thursday for disorderly conduct after a number of incidents of indecent exposure at the State Street Capitol Garage.

City of Madison issues court filing to dismiss Tony Robinson lawsuit

Attorneys for the City of Madison issued a court filing Monday asking for the federal court to dismiss a case against the city and Madison police officer Matt Kenny maintaining the officer used reasonable force.

Proposed campus-area park approved for construction

The city’s Board of Estimates cleared another hurdle for the construction of a downtown park near campus Monday, approving a proposal to acquire the current properties by a voice vote. The park, proposed to sit on a six-parcel, one-acre piece of land at the corner of West Mifflin Street and North Bassett Street, would replace six private properties that primarily serve students. Despite criticism from several of the property owners in a previous city meeting, the Plan Commission voted unanimously to approve condemnation of the properties Sept.

MPD brings back law enforcement mentoring program

The Madison Police Department has restored a program meant to provide youth with a comprehensive look at a career in law enforcement and to develop positive community relationships with police.

Madison creates racial equity position to oversee city, community policies

The City of Madison added Toriana Pettaway as the city’s first racial equity coordinator Friday.

Coalition forms to help promote smoke-free properties

In honor of National Fire Prevention Week, a statewide initiative to promote smoke-free housing properties is taking action in Madison this week, according to a Thursday City of Madison press release. Clear Gains Initiative, Public Health Madison and Dane County, the Madison Fire Department and the Tobacco Free Columbia-Dane County Coalition, or TFCDC, are combining efforts to encourage Madison property owners to implement smoke-free environments. Nina Gregerson, assistant coordinator for the TFCDC, discussed the goal of the movement in the release. “The TFCDC is committed to reducing the impact of smoking-related fires and their potential to cause property damage and loss of life,” Gregerson said, adding that smoking-related fires accounted for 88 percent of all property losses in Madison between 2005-’11. The Clear Gains Initiative is a statewide organization, and said in the release it hopes that its success in Madison will inspire the rest of the state to follow suit in enacting these policies.

Violent altercation at Wando’s leads to arrest

After a violent exchange at Wando’s Bar & Grill early Wednesday morning, Madison police arrested a 21-year-old Madison woman on two counts of battery, along with disorderly conduct and damage to property.

Soglin announces 2016 operating budget

Madison Mayor Paul Soglin released the second half of his 2016 budget Tuesday, which he stressed contains no layoffs. “Layoffs have been avoided,” Soglin said of his budget.

Common Council votes against time limit on public benches

Madtown Hopper expands safe-ride service

Community members explore how to end pattern of sexual assault

Community organizer Dayna Long met with area residents Monday to reflect on the “Take Back the Bike Path” protest that took place just over two weeks ago.

Residents question location of homeless resource center

Residents of the Tenney-Lapham neighborhood have expressed concerns over an accepted offer to purchase a property on the 1300 block of East Washington Avenue to open a permanent day shelter for the homeless.

Homeless man arrested for attempted sexual assault

Madison police arrested a 43-year-old homeless man for attempted sexual assault early Saturday morning.

2016 county budget focuses on access to opportunity

Dane County Executive Joe Parisi introduced the 2016 budget Thursday, which focuses largely on improving access to mental health resources and helping those recently released from prison reacclimate to society.

Madison police officer takes on Reddit

Following an increase in outreach efforts, Madison Police Department Public Information Officer Joel DeSpain answered questions from the public using Reddit’s “Ask Me Anything” function Friday. The forum, which focused on DeSpain’s history of using creative language in writing incident reports, addressed personal topics like his favorite color and professional topics regarding his post as the police department’s spokesperson. “There have been a couple of cases where I later learned the report had an unintentional negative impact on someone,” DeSpain wrote on the impact of his unconventional reports of crime in Madison.