The most prominent part of the project is an 11-story hotel addition, built in a neo-classical style, on the north end of the property.
The project would have 228 rooms, 364 parking spaces, fine dining, casual restaurants and a bar — including a revival of the memorable Rigadoon Room — a spa, fitness center, pool and a large inside space overlooking the lake that could be used for concerts, lectures, films, weddings and other events.
Dunn, a Madison native whose parents were married at the Edgewater, said he intends to build on the storied history of the hotel, which has hosted Elvis Presley, Bob Hope, Bob Marley, Indira Gandhi, George H.W. Bush and other notables. The hotel is also special to generations of people who attended weddings and parties, met for dinner or drinks, or worked there.
“It’s a lot more than a hotel,” he said. “We’re trying to take an asset that’s aged and put it on a course for the next 100 years.”
Soglin on the development aspects:
The city made a commitment forty years ago to fight the decline of downtown. As enclosed shopping malls populated the landscape ofthe 1960’s and suburbanization spread across the country, Madison made a commitment to a thriving downtown with a mix of residential, commercial, retail, and governmental uses.
This commitment meant higher densities. Those densities would mean more efficient use of infrastructure avoiding the Washington D.C. syndrome of a dark desolate city after 6:00 pm. It meant less reliance on the automobile and greater utilization of public transit. It meant a commitment to encouraging student housing closer to campus taking the pressure off adjacent family neighborhoods from Vilas to Tenney Park.
I think unquestionably students would enjoy the potential options available at a redeveloped Edgewater. Surely, from their perspective, the current building is useless to them. Excluding the once-a-college-career trip to the Admiralty Room or something.
21 Comments
June 30, 2009 at 1:45 pm
OH WOW WYNDHAM MANNING IN THE NEWS AGAIN
“Forward Fest organizers Bessie Cherry and Wyndham Manning have announced that the festival is set to include at least 50 bands and 11 local venues. But here are some acts that popped out on the list so far: Richard Buckner, Japanther, Garaj Mahal, Milwaukee’s Collections Of Colonies Of Bees, former Madisonians Solid Gold, unwieldy noise collective Excepter, Rock Plaza Central, Wavves, Punchline, and Yacht. The fest will once again try to emphasize Madison and other Wisconsin and Midwestern bands, including local ambient-pop duo Peaking Lights and Eau Claire bands like Meridene and The Daredevil Christopher Wright—though it sounds like a lot of the local and regional stuff has yet to be filled in. We’re only scratching the surface here—for a bigger list of what’s confirmed so far, just scroll down and read the fest’s new poster below. Also, contrary to the poster, $35 “early bird” tickets will go onsale July 10.”
http://madison.decider.com/articles/andrew-bird-low-and-dozens-more-set-for-forward-mu,29309/
SHOCKING, NOT A SINGLE OUNCE OF EFFORT SPENT OUTREACHING TO STUDENTS
June 30, 2009 at 1:46 pm
WE THE PEOPLE ARE STARTING A RECALL WYNDHAM PETITION. MORE INFORMATION TO COME.
June 30, 2009 at 8:41 pm
So Wyndham helps organize a music festival, and that’s a bad thing? What kind of outreach should he do, it’s the middle of summer?
June 30, 2009 at 9:05 pm
Why does he seem totally capable of anything hipster or musical related but cannot get off his lazy good for nothing ass to do student outreach?
June 30, 2009 at 9:08 pm
8:41
What outreach has he done when it’s not summer?
June 30, 2009 at 9:15 pm
I think he’s done quite a bit of outreach but the right-wing campus press doesn’t cover his close work with progressive and student activists. Wyndham has done a fantastic job on the Dane County Board!
June 30, 2009 at 9:32 pm
“I think he’s done quite a bit of outreach but the right-wing campus press doesn’t cover his close work with progressive and student activists.”
IP address, anyone?
June 30, 2009 at 9:45 pm
I bet the IP address is from Madison. OMG! OMG! OMG!
June 30, 2009 at 10:34 pm
“I think he’s done quite a bit of outreach but the right-wing campus press doesn’t cover his close work with progressive and student activists. Wyndham has done a fantastic job on the Dane County Board!”
Example.
June 30, 2009 at 10:58 pm
Or perhaps Wyndham would like to offer one.
June 30, 2009 at 11:06 pm
He took a principled stand against the xenophobic Sheriff showing more guts than any campus figure since Ashok. He has yet to miss important committee meetings like certain others and secured millions of dollars for the environment as he signed on to co-sponsor numerous budget resolutions. I am proud to be a supporter of Wyndham Manning.
July 1, 2009 at 10:10 am
Xenophobic? Should be pretty obvious who that is.
July 1, 2009 at 11:42 am
Took a principled stand: okay. Aside from putting his name on a letter or co-sponsoring a resolution (see below), what else has he done in that area? (authentically curious)
Didn’t miss important committee meetings: whoo hoo, he performed his duty. I’m not familiar with the particulars of his attendance record but they could definitely be an improvement over Certain predecessors.
Signed on to co-sponsor something: you know that takes no effort at all to do, right? You can simply email someone to asked to be listed as a co-sponsor and your done. To my knowledge, he could have co-sponsored every single amendment to the budget and, according to you, could have taken full credit for all of the measures he put no effort into passing.
July 1, 2009 at 7:58 pm
Wyndham’s great =)
Gooooo Wyndham! Keep up the great work! <3
July 1, 2009 at 7:59 pm
What I like most about Wyndham is that he’s not a piece of shit politician. He genuinely cares about student rights and fighting for a progressive, inclusive Dane County. I think it’s great that he cares so much about the Madison music scene and it makes him an even stronger student leader.
July 1, 2009 at 8:11 pm
sigh.
July 1, 2009 at 8:29 pm
To be fair here:
1) The attendance at his committee meetings seems to have improved since he was called out on it in December.
2) He has championed the cause of the illegal immigrants who feel Sheriff Dave Mahoney’s policy of reporting immigration status of those checked into the Dane County Jail has been lauded by the district’s progressives. I disagree with it, I think that it’s an even more indefensible position now that the federal government IS mandating that they report this (as they weren’t before) and given his rationale for this position in the past — that it takes away from the diversity of the community.
Umm. No. If you want to make the argument that it rips families apart, that I can buy. I still side with the Sheriff since they’ve been charged with a criminal offense (although I think there may be merit to the discussion of what constitutes an egregious enough violation to merit reporting…I would like to know that.), but at least the people who make that argument are using a legitimate concern rather than some bullshit buzzword argument.
What I think will really determine whether Wyndham deserves another term is what he does during the upcoming budget debate. He’s been on the board enough to get out the bugs and learn the ropes…Now’s the time to help make the hard decisions in a time of immense fiscal strife. And since Falk seems to have a bit of a fiscal conservative edge to her (except in situations to cover herself, as she stated the 911 Center is exempt from any cuts in this budget…not that anyone would disagree with her, but I wonder if there was any merit to discussing ANY cuts there, is only for efficiencies sake.) it’ll be interesting to see if Wyndham takes a stand where it REALLY matters.
End Rant.
July 1, 2009 at 9:07 pm
Jason Smathers: The Wyndham Manning apologist.
July 1, 2009 at 9:10 pm
Clarification on the above: One budget does not excuse two years of neglect, broken promises, frequent absenteeism during the first third of his term, misappropriated time management (think hipster panel), and failure to show leadership. A cure for AIDS or securing $10mil for the Wyndham Manning Dance Academy in downtown Madison for troubled youth might be a significant accomplishment, but giving him yet another chance to prove himself after all he has done wrong is downright madness.
July 3, 2009 at 12:22 pm
Back to the Edgewater: please let me know your thoughts on the project, since it’s in my district (district2@cityofmadison.com), and please PLEASE come out to the neighborhood meeting that Mike Verveer and I are working to put together -look for it the end of July/beginning of August. I really wanted to get a neighborhood meeting in early May, but the developers totally shot me down on that, that they weren’t ready to present yet, that their animations weren’t complete, etc.
I’m very interested in what the neighbors’ perspectives are on it. Students or not, I highly encourage you to get involved.
The website the developer folks have put together is http://edgewater2012.com/
CB already linked to the State Journal story on it.
July 3, 2009 at 2:21 pm
Excuse me, 9:07 — when have you known me to EVER explain away Wyndham’s lack of action?
I’m only doing this time as a devil’s advocate: There’s going to be people making the case for a second term if he decides to run and you should know what they’re going to point to.
Now, if all we get is “co-sponsored” this or that, then we can readily call bullshit.
Even if you’re a troll, I have to defend my rationalization of Wyndham Manning.