By Peter Nause The beginning of the Madison Park System in 1931 grew out of the rich legacy of the “Park & Pleasure Drive Association” starting in the 1890’s by wealthy benefactors with notable names we recognize today as parks…
By Roger Bannerman Rain gardens help improve the quality of our lakes by capturing pollutants and infiltrating runoff. One additional benefit for Lake Wingra is that increased infiltration can help restore spring flows, which is the main source of year-round…
by Casey Hanson A lot of activity is happening in our watershed this year! We have Monroe Street construction, Vilas bridges reconstruction, Wingra shoreline restoration, and more. While many of these activities are physical in nature, some aren’t visible to…
By Casey Hanson Beach and boat season are almost in full swing! These activities are relaxing, playful, adventurous, and downright unpredictable. To borrow from Forest Gump’s mama, having an experience with aquatic vegetation (aka macrophytes) “is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re going to…
by Phil Gaebler, City of Madison Engineering The Monroe Street reconstruction project is underway and the City would like to provide an overview of the erosion control and post construction storm water management. During the actual construction process, the Monroe Street project is taking efforts…
By Casey Hanson Lake Wingra’s natural setting and calm waters may lead you to believe that erosion is not a large concern there, but it is at Wingra Park. Erosion, a natural process that results in part from…
By Phil Gabler, City of Madison Engineering An innovative underground screen structure in design for Wingra Park will offer the public a peek at what debris can be kept out of the lake, while providing treatment to…
By David Thompson As the monarchs make their migration to Mexico, we reflect on another exciting year of Monarchs for Kids and eagerly look ahead to the next year. This year we served roughly 124 classes in 36…
By Casey Hanson Have you heard the superstition that spilling salt is bad luck and that if you did, throwing a pinch over your left shoulder should help avert any evil omens you’ve just incurred? Maybe they…
By Roger Bannerman The Friends of Lake Wingra (FoLW) have been cooperating with the city of Madison for over four years to determine how selected leaf control efforts in the fall can reduce the amounts of phosphorus reaching…
