SUN PRAIRIE RISING

Press Release from Becky Binz

Sun Prairie Housing and Equitable Development Planner

The City of Sun Prairie will be recognizing May as Affordable Housing Month by offering community members a variety of events designed to increase understanding of and engagement in housing issues. Activities planned are outlined below and are offered in partnership with the Sun Prairie Housing Coalition, Sun Prairie Area School District, Dane County Historical Society, Sun Prairie Public Library, Boundless Tiny Homes, and UW Health.

Small Homes, Big Impact: A Talk on ADUs

The series of events will kick off with a panel held at the Westside Community Services Building on Thursday, May 7 from 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. The panel will dive into Sun Prairie’s draft accessory dwelling unit (ADU) ordinance and will include a developer currently building these in Dane County, and a homeowner who has just added an ADU to their property in another community.

Stable Housing, Strong Community

This panel event will take place on Thursday, May 21 at the Westside Community Services Building on Thursday, May 21 from 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. The panel will look at how not having enough good housing affects people, families, and the community. No policy jargon, just people and their experiences. We’ll hear from the Sun Prairie Police Department, the Sun Prairie Area School District, and UW Health.

Book Club (Part 1): The Color of Law

On May 28 from 12:00 p.m. to 1:15 p.m. The Color of Law book club will meet in a hybrid format – in the Sun Prairie Library Community Room or virtually. Rothstein’s book explores how government policies caused ongoing segregation in America, the impacts of which are still visible today. The author will participate in a virtual discussion and Q&A. Bring your lunch while we provide dessert! Copies of the book are available at the Library Welcome desk.
Register here: https://sunprairie.librarymarket.com/event/ColorofLaw

Unjust Deeds: Racial Covenants in Dane County

On Thursday, June 4 the Dane County Historical Society will be at the Sun Prairie Library Community Room from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. to discuss racial covenants, which in the 20th century barred nonwhite residents from owning property in American suburbs. Despite becoming unenforceable after the Fair Housing Act of 1968, their effects linger. A local historian will present this history, and a traveling exhibit will be available at the library throughout June.

Book Club (Part 2): Just Action

On June 25 from 6:00 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. the Just Action book club will meet in a hybrid format – in the Sun Prairie Library Community Room or virtually. Join us for the follow-up book club to The Color of Law.
Co-written by Richard Rothstein and his daughter Leah Rothstein, Just Action lays out practical actions communities can take to undo some of the harms discussed in The Color of Law. Leah Rothstein will join us virtually for this book club. Copies of Just Action will be available to check out from the Library Welcome desk beginning in May!
Register here: https://sunprairie.librarymarket.com/event/JustAction

All events are open to the community and free to attend. For additional information about the City’s efforts on housing, please visit http://www.sphousingforall.com.