Sun Prairie Rising Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Episode 65: Santiago Rosas & Bill Baker, District 2 City Council Candidates Mar 15, 2024

Show notes

Do you vote at Heartland Church or United Methodist? You probably live in District 2 and can vote for a new City Council representative on April 2nd! The 2 candidates running are Santiago Rosas and Bill Baker - Andy had them both on the most recent episode of "What Are We Building?" Hear about their backgrounds, priorities for the city, and thoughts on recent projects like the Black Mens Coaltion housing and the proposed downtown hotel.

Episode 64: State Senator/Dane County Executive Candidate Melissa Agard Mar 01, 2024

Show notes

Maybe the biggest political name we've had on the show yet! Andy sat down with Wisconsin State Senator Melissa Agard. Among other things, he learns she's also running for Dane County Executive. Serious discussions about Cannabis legalization, Abortion Access, Taxes and more.

Plus, Andy opens the show with a lot of news about what we're building in Sun Prairie: find out where we're getting more apartments, a new medical clinic, bar & grill, corporate HQ and a bank branch in 2024!

Note: we have reached out to the other candidates for Dane County Executive and hope to have them on the show as well if they choose.

Episode 63: District 4 City Council Alder David Virgell Feb 03, 2024

Show notes

This month's guest is David Virgell, City Council Alder for District 4. We had a great chat about the Westmount Roundabout, big cities vs small towns, and the Black Men's Coalition proposal. Also, listener mail(!) and an update on Hyvee and the Corner of Bristol & Main downtown.

Episode 62 - Cassi Bendict, Candidate for City Council, District 4 Dec 01, 2023

Show notes

Cassi Benedict wears a lot of hats, from working for the State of WI DPI to being a Mom of 2 kids and 4 pets, and she's looking to try on another one: City Council Alder.

We had a great conversation about how her background and lived experience inform her views on policy and the role of city government.

Episode 61 - Korab Krasniqi, Edward Jones Sep 22, 2023

Show notes

How does growth and progress affect your civic pride and satisfaction with where you live? We talked about that and so much more in a spectacular conversation with Korab Krasniqi, a Financial Advisor with Edward Jones and owner of 240 E. Main St. Downtown.

Korab's fascinating story led him to Sun Prairie, and also to understand the importance of building relationships, community and why "communication is life."

Episode 60 - Ryan Swingruber, Heyday Development Aug 23, 2023

Show notes

Hey Hey! Have you heard about the Heyday Development in Sun Prairie? It's a brand new neighborhood of 4 and 6-unit townhomes at the corner of Bird and Egre Rd. Ryan Swingruber, the Developer stopped by "What Are We Building?" to talk about the unique features of the properties, and how they're meeting the changing demands of renters from Millenials to Boomers. We talked about renting vs buying, Internet, EV charging and a whole lot more...

Episode 59, Ismael (Izzy) Hassey Nevarez, Centro Hispano Jul 18, 2023

Show notes

What are We Building? is back with a terrific conversation with Izzy Hassey Nevarez of Centro Hispano. Great to hear about the amazing work they're doing in Madison and Dane County to support the Latin community. We talked about Izzy's journey from Chicago to Juneau to Sun Prairie and the debate over the best way to do corn on the cob!

Please check out their 1st ever Summer Resource Fair on Thursday, July 20th from 3-6pm at 1632 W. Main St!

Episode 58 - Rick Wicklund, Utility Manager, Sun Prairie Utilities May 31, 2023

Show notes

Turning on a faucet and flipping on a light switch is something most of us take for granted...but we shouldn't. On a special "joint episode" of What Are We Building? and "Roundabout Sun Prairie", we did an interview with Rick Wicklund, Utility Manager for Sun Prairie Utilities. We talked about the unique structure of a municipal utility, it's obligation to the public, and their plans for a new office space and warehouse facility. Rick also addressed the recent issue with high levels of fluoride in the water and how it was fixed.

Episode 57 - Jenni Lippitt, Director of Property Management, The Alexander Company May 09, 2023

Show notes

On a new episode of "What Are We Building?" I shared some additional thoughts about the recent controversy surrounding the situation with a transgender student in the East High Locker Room. Then, I sat down for a chat with my good friend Jenni Lippitt, Director of Property Management for the Alexander Company. Jenni is a wealth of knowledge about apartments, and had heaps of excellent information about the "behind the scenes" of why affordable housing is important to any community. She also had some pointed criticism of the Colorado Commons project on Main & Thompson and some ideas of what we SHOULD be building in Sun Prairie.

Episode 56 - Mike Jacobs, Sun Prairie District 3 Alder & History Professor with UW-Platteville Apr 14, 2023

Show notes

I’ve been wanting to do this one for a long time! On the latest “What Are We Building?” I sat down for an interview with Sun Prairie’s District 3 Alder Mike Jacobs. We had a wide-ranging discussion about what drew him to academia and City Council, as well as apartments (of course!), the history of anti-intellectualism and the value of sustainability to our present and future.

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