Counting Cranes: thoughts from Madison, WI
This is the one post I'll keep to 250 words
Chemical engineering brought me to Madison, WI…
and the City made me stay. I met my fiancée and amazing friends here. I found a place interested in growing and being better than what it was the year before. I observed an active community with weather that keeps me miserable enough in February to make me grateful for May. I wanted to plant roots. Which is what this kind of is.
The best time to plant a tree…
is now (I can’t time travel). I’ve been observing and planting seeds since 2021. My “Joker” moment was the Wonder Bar redevelopment. As a senior in college, watching people fret over historical preservation of this building frustrated me as I watched housing costs rise. I watched Not Just Bikes videos about suburban development and realized the vision for my ideal life (bikeable/walkable neighborhoods, engaged communities, a fun place to raise a family) was shared by many and needed more people showing up to meetings and saying they wanted it.
Not everyone wants what I want.
And that’s okay. I don’t expect everyone to live like me. But there are many barriers to building housing, better transportation systems, and better governance. And “Counting Cranes” is here to document some of those obstacles that we can improve to make people’s lives better1.
Looking across Lake Monona towards the Madison skyline fills my heart with hope. I see cranes building us up. I hope to continue to count them as we work towards a greater future.