Culture
In 1996 Money magazine identified Madison as the best place to live in the United States. It has consistently ranked near the top of the best-places list in subsequent years, with the city's low unemployment rate a major contributor.
The main downtown thoroughfare is State Street, which links the University of Wisconsin campus with the Capitol Square, and is lined with restaurants, espresso cafes and shops. Only pedestrians, buses, emergency vehicles, taxis, delivery vehicles and bikes are allowed on State Street.
On the other side of the Capitol Square is King Street, which has more upper-end restaurants and cafes than on the more student-budget State Street.
On Saturday mornings in the summer, the Dane County Farmers' Market is held around the Capitol Square. This market attracts numerous vendors who sell fresh produce, meat, cheese, and other products. On Wednesday evenings, the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra performs free concerts on the capitol's lawn.
The Great Taste of the Midwest craft beer festival, established in 1987 and the second longest running such event in North America, is held the second Saturday in August. The highly-coveted tickets sell out within an hour of going on sale in May.
Madison is host to Rhythm and Booms, a massive fireworks celebration coordinated to music. It begins with a fly-over by F-16s from the local Wisconsin Air National Guard. This celebration is the largest fireworks display in the Midwest in length, number of shells fired and the size of its annual budget.
During the winter months, sports enthusiasts enjoy ice-boating, ice skating, ice hockey, ice fishing, cross-country skiing, and snowkiting. During the rest of the year, outdoor recreation includes sailing on the local lakes, bicycling, and hiking.
Madison was named the number one college sports town by Sports Illustrated in 2003. In 2004 it was named the healthiest city in America by Men's Journal magazine. Many major streets in Madison have designated bike lanes and the city has one of the most extensive bike trail systems in the nation.
There are many cooperative organizations in the Madison area, ranging from grocery stores (such as the Willy Street Cooperative) to housing co-ops (such as Madison Community Cooperative and Nottingham Housing Cooperative) to worker cooperatives (including and engineering firm and a cab company).
In 2005, Madison was included in Gregory A. Kompes' book, 50 Fabulous Gay-Friendly Places to Live. The Madison metro area has a higher percentage of gay couples than any other city in the area outside of Chicago and Minneapolis.
Among the city's neighborhood fairs and celebrations are two large student-driven gatherings, the Mifflin Street Block Party and the State Street Halloween Party. Rioting and vandalism at the State Street gathering in 2004 and 2005 led the city to institute a cover charge for the 2006 celebration. In an attempt to give the event more structure and to eliminate vandalism, the city and student organizations worked together to schedule performances by bands, and to organize activities. The event has been named "Freakfest on State Street." Events such as these have helped contribute to the city's nickname of "Madtown."
In 2009, the Madison Common Council voted to name the plastic pink flamingo as the official city bird.
Read more about this topic: Madison Fire Department
Famous quotes containing the word culture:
“The second fundamental feature of culture is that all culture has an element of striving.”
—Johan Huizinga (1872–1945)
“As the traveler who has once been from home is wiser than he who has never left his own doorstep, so a knowledge of one other culture should sharpen our ability to scrutinize more steadily, to appreciate more lovingly, our own.”
—Margaret Mead (1901–1978)