ECONOMY & OPPORTUNITY
For major City decisions, we should be able to answer:
What problem are we trying to solve? What are we spending? What outcome are we trying to produce? Is it working? And can we sustain it?
That means connecting the problem, the money, the strategy and the result—understanding long-term costs, looking beyond one year's budget, and testing what happens when the assumptions underneath our financial plans change.
But measurement isn't the end. If something isn't producing the result we expected, we need to find out why. Then decide what comes next: protect what's working, invest where it makes sense, fix what isn't working, or reconsider the approach.
Then measure again.
The goal isn't to prove we were right. The goal is to get the outcome right.
HOUSING & UNHOUSED PEOPLE
Housing needs change throughout life—from a first apartment, to a family home, to downsizing as we age. And when housing is lost, people need a clear path back to a permanent home.
Madison is growing, but simply counting how many units we build doesn't tell us whether the housing system is working.
We should be asking:
What housing do we need? Where are people getting stuck? What barriers can we remove? And when someone becomes houseless, are we helping them reach permanent housing and stay there?
That means looking at supply and affordability, rental access and homeownership, working with landlords and lenders, and measuring whether our homelessness investments are producing sustained housing outcomes.
The goal isn't more programs. The goal is a housing system that works.
PUBLIC SAFETY & COMMUNITY TRUST
Madison does not have one experience with public safety. Many residents trust Madison police and have positive experiences with officers. In other communities, trust has been deeply damaged.
The question isn't whether we support police or communities. It's whether our public-safety system is aligned to serve both effectively.
For major public-safety decisions, we should be able to answer:
Are we sending the right responder to the right problem? Do our professionals have the capacity and preparation they need? Are our programs producing the outcomes they were created to produce? And where trust is broken, do we understand why?
That means looking at how CARES, police and other responders are being used; giving professionals the opportunity to maintain critical skills; addressing problems that repeatedly consume emergency resources; measuring outcomes instead of activity alone; and going directly to communities where trust has broken — while listening to the officers serving them too.
The goal isn't more policing or less policing. The goal is better public-safety outcomes.
CONNECTED MADISON & COLLECTIVE POWER
Madison has great neighborhoods, parks, businesses, schools, bike paths and public spaces. But too often, they function as separate pieces of the city instead of parts of something connected.
Collective Power asks a different question: What becomes possible when the things we already have begin working together?
A park becomes a gathering place. A bike path connects people to neighborhoods, businesses and recreation. Public spaces create reasons to stay, while surrounding businesses create reasons to return. Those connections can make it easier to walk and bike through Madison while strengthening community and economic activity along the way.
Before we ask what Madison needs to build, let's ask what Madison can connect.