Transcript
Fly Your Kite At Your Affordable Housing (Hour 2)
Daybreak w/ Brian and Jamie · Mon Jun 1, 2026
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Wisconsin wakes up here.
Back to Daybreak with Brian and Jamie.
I'm Brian Noonan.
Jamie, it's time.
It is.
This is it.
It's very exciting.
It is time for the first word of our Accelerate Your Summers text to win multi-state contest.
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Every entry puts you into our grand prize drawing for $250 in gas and another $250 in groceries.
Jamie, what do people need to do?
So if you haven't downloaded that yet, you're going to have until eight o'clock to get us the word.
And we're going to give that to you in just a second.
Text us through that Civic Media app.
You're going to have multiple chances to qualify throughout the day for the next couple of weeks.
And it's really literally just.
that easy.
All you have to do is text through your app.
So are we ready?
Are we ready?
All right.
So your very first word in our accelerate your summer text to win multi-state contest is start ST.
A-R-T.
Start.
That is the word you need to text us right now so you can qualify for that $100 or that Wisconsin Dells prize package for the daily prizes.
Then of course, as Brian so eloquently put it, the grand prize drawing for $250 in gas and another $250 in groceries.
Again, your word this hour is start.
S-T-A-R-T.
Start is your word.
Text us using your Civic Media app.
Good luck to you as well.
Fun, fun stuff.
I love it when we get to give away some good
It's a wake up call in more ways than one.
Time for some shit you need to know.
Six Ukrainian trauma surgeons traveled to the University of Wisconsin-Madison for a two-week intensive training program in advanced microsurgery techniques.
The surgeons treat severe war injuries caused by Russia's invasions, including amputations, nerve damage, and devastating blast injuries from missiles and drones.
Microsurgery can help save limbs, restore function, and improve outcomes for patients who may otherwise face permanent disability.
So UW-Madison has become a global leader in microsurgery
surgery training and has developed low-cost portable microscopes that help expand training opportunities worldwide.
Science!
The
Ukrainian doctors practiced on chicken thighs and cadavers before returning home to apply the skills in hospitals treating war casualties.
UW officials say the partnership highlights Wisconsin's role in advancing medical innovation while helping doctors save lives in one of the world's most active war zones.
That is
That is really cool portable microscopes and for people who don't believe in science or don't believe in doctors, man, you're wrong, right?
It's very, very cool.
In other stuff you need to know, a group of 15 young Wisconsinites is appealing a court decision that dismissed their lawsuit over climate change and state energy policies.
The lawsuit argues that Wisconsin laws limiting renewable energy requirements and restricting how regulators consider pollution violate their constitutional rights.
A Dane County judge said the concerns raised by the plaintiffs
are real but ruled the energy and climate policy decisions could be addressed by lawmakers, not the courts.
The young plaintiffs say climate change has already affected their lives through flooding, stronger storms, reduced snowfall, poor water quality, and impacts on outdoor activities like skiing, fishing, and swimming.
Environmental groups backing the lawsuit argue courts have a responsibility to protect constitutional rights when government policies contribute to climate-related harm.
The appeal comes as Wisconsin continues
to see warmer temperatures, heavier rainfall, and more extreme weather like those fast droughts that we were talking about earlier this morning.
While the state remains heavily dependent on electricity generated from coal and natural gas.
I mean, you knew this was going to come.
These young Wisconsinites are not really backing down on this lawsuit.
So not surprised.
Some other stuff you need to know it might take you a lot longer to get enough walleye for your next fish fry because Wisconsin's Natural Resources Board has approved the next step in creating new walleye fishing regulations for lakes where fish populations are declining.
The DNR is proposing stricter limits on struggling lakes including a one walleye per day limit and an 18 inch minimum size requirement.
Anglers would also be prohibited from keeping walleye between 22 and 28 inches to protect prime breeder
fish and help boost natural reproduction.
The rule would allow the DNR to respond more quickly when surveys show low numbers of young walleye in a lake.
Walleye populations, if you didn't know this, have been declining on many northern Wisconsin lakes for years due to a combination of fishing pressure and environmental changes.
Walleye are one of Wisconsin's most popular sport fish.
They're also currently important to the Ojibwe tribe of making their long-term health important.
for both recreation and tribal traditions.
So I didn't realize, I mean, I know everybody wants to catch walleye.
We all love to eat walleye.
I didn't realize there was such a scarcity of walleye.
word in and ready to roll yet this hour.
So hopefully fingers crossed, somebody is able to do that.
If not, I will remind everybody that when that happens, we are able to take those names and we still put them into the drawing.
So even if you aren't able to do it through the app, we will get it fixed and you will still be entered into the contest with your submissions this morning.
But we are diligently working on that
We listen, we want the contest to go smoothly as well.
So trust us, we are, we are on this.
JV is, JV is taking care of it.
See, that's the, that's the bonus of Parker.
When you have one of the suits working on the show, the, the bosses, just, if it was just you and I and even Frank, cause we don't know where Frank is, but if it was just you and I, there'd be, there'd be trouble, but we got Jamie on the case.
So it will be straightened out.
I
I promise, even if you are getting a bounce back text, we'll be able to keep those and get you into the drawing.
But hopefully by the end of this hour, we'll be good and you'll be good for the rest of the day.
So what's the big story?
Well, this is an interesting one because, as we talk about stuff you need to know, because there was a national investigation, a reporting investigation that was recently done.
And this is actually, when you think about this, especially for rural areas, this is a little scary because it found more than one in five dispatch centers.
You know, when we're talking emergency services, all across America's 100 largest cities,
failed to answer 911 calls quickly enough to meet national standards.
So yeah, these emergency call centers are aimed to answer 90% of calls within 15 seconds and 95% within 20 seconds because obviously delays affect how quickly police firefighters and EMS reach people in a crisis.
Well, staffing shortages remain the biggest challenge.
And a lot of these dispatch centers across the country lost employees during
and after, you didn't wanna bring it up again, Brian, but we have to during and after the pandemic due to burnout, which I can
imagine
So these 911 dispatchers are obviously handling some very traumatic situations.
Everything from shootings to suicides, overdoses, domestic violence, serious accidents, and even medical emergencies.
all while trying to keep callers calm and gather all of this critical information.
And research has shown that these dispatchers actually face risks of depression themselves, anxiety, acute stress disorders, and even post-traumatic stress disorder because of the nature of their work.
there's a
You can...
In other things, when we're blaming COVID still six years later, it's like, all right, let's look at another thing.
But this one, it's like PTSD, if you're in the service, it might not hit you right away.
But the direct cause of that can be linked back to those experiences.
So that's why when I balk at using COVID as an excuse
for
And
In fact, some Wisconsin counties have struggled with also staff shortages in recent years, forcing dispatchers to work in mandatory overtime, double shifts, and even extend their hours to keep emergency services running.
throughout the state say that those shortages of staff creates a really vicious cycle.
And we all experience this in our own jobs, right?
Overwork dispatchers burn out, they leave the profession, which places even more pressure on the people who stay there.
So some dispatch centers in this state have made some significant progress by raising wages, improving benefits, investing in employee wellness, and focusing on hiring people
who are really good fit for high stress environments.
In fact, one Wisconsin Dispatch Center highlighted in the report was able to maintain staffing levels near full capacity, helping it consistently meet emergency call answering benchmarks.
You got to think how obviously these dispatchers are super important no matter what, but when you live in a state as rural as Wisconsin, especially when you have shared services and
sometimes
people burned out and you want to make sure there's enough people doing the job.
To be honest, when you think of dispatchers in the normal life, most of us don't have to call 911 that often, thank goodness.
So we don't think about the constant stress and imagine if you were in a city like Madison or Milwaukee.
those dispatchers are getting calls non-stop and you know they're timed and it has to be you have to get everything correct and you're the person listening to someone in one of their most dire moments and it has to wear on you so whatever whatever we can do even though most of us may never use this service whatever we can do to make those people
More comfortable and make it them last without burnout.
I think we should be looking into it
Sometimes they have to coordinate multiple agencies that are spread across a really large area.
So these are people who have to be on top of their game and have to be well trained and know exactly what's happening and still at the same time be compassionate and yet sometimes walk people from a point where if
They might be in hysterics because of the situations
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I hope that you are having a great start to your Tuesday morning.
Another quick reminder that if you were trying to enter text to win, we are working on our technical issues.
If you did enter this morning, even if you've got a bounce back text, you will still be entered for the daily prize as well as the grand prize.
And hopefully we will have that fixed so that it works throughout the rest of the day and the rest of the contest.
First one, always, always a little bit of an issue, but we are on it this morning.
Thank you to everybody for letting us know those so that we can make
sure it's
This time it's for onstage shenanigans.
Wallen had technical difficulties at a show in Denver, Colorado, which prompted him to flip his piano, shattering it onstage.
The internet seems divided on this move, some pointing out that rock stars break guitars and instruments all the time, while others are calling his behavior immature and unsurprising, given his track record.
Does he get a pass for this because other musicians have broken instruments?
HBO and show creator Sam Levinson finally confirmed that last night's episode would be its last.
Leading up to the finale, HBO never referred to it as a series finale, but instead called it a season finale, so people were unsure.
However, I don't think you can get around your main character saying they're ready to move on from the show.
And was anybody really surprised?
I mean, it had already basically been touted, even before Levinson said anything, that this
was
it.
And honestly, if you've been watching the show, you can't take any more.
Because it is to the point where it is so ridiculous that you literally can't take any more.
You're just
like, okay, I'm out.
And I have not seen last night's episode yet.
I haven't had a chance to watch it, so I have
Daybreak, Civic Weekend.
Now back to more of Daybreak with Brian and
735 right now.
Hopefully you're having a great start to your morning.
Some warmer temperatures today.
Maybe a few showers across portions of the state as well.
That includes here in Madison.
If you're listening in Wausau and WXCO or in Appleton and Oshkosh on WISS or in Hayward on WBZH, thank you so much for joining us this morning.
We do appreciate it.
My name is Jamie Martinson.
on it.
We
Start just text that word on the civic media app and you'll be entered to win a daily hundred dollar and Wisconsin does prize package Plus there's a grand prize drawing for two hundred and fifty dollars in gas and two hundred and fifty dollars in groceries We know some of you are getting bounce backs, but Jamie these people
Even if you're getting a bounce back, you will still be entered, correct?
Yes,
It's a whole database thing.
It holds those texts, even if you're getting a bounce back.
So we go through and we manually take those names, put them into the drawing.
So you will still be entered to win all of these great prizes, including the grand prize, which is $250 in gas, another $250 in groceries.
It is being worked on as we speak.
I'm getting those texts in right now to my personal text line.
And here's the thing.
This is also not the only chance you have.
to qualify.
You
have
opportunities today, all through this week and then all through Monday, Monday through Friday of next week as well.
So you will have plenty of opportunity to qualify in this.
Accelerate your summer, text to win multi-state contest.
But again, the word this hour, start S-T-A-R-T.
You have until eight o'clock to get us that word so that you're qualified for all of those fantastic prizes.
I feel like Vienna this morning.
So keep texting, and again, the word is start, S-T-A-R-T.
So has the American dream of home ownership become unattainable, or do we just need to adjust our expectations?
You get your opinion at 85575 Civic 8557524842.
It's tough, one of my good friends is looking for, he has a home, but they're looking to move closer to his parents, and looking for houses now is tough, but if your first time,
buyer, it's even harder.
The Coralus in Milwaukee is said to become the largest privately developed affordable housing project in Wisconsin history.
creating 576 affordable apartments, including 144 units for seniors.
The project has a $197 million price tag highlighting how difficult and expensive it has become to build affordable housing due to higher construction costs.
Labor shortages, supply chain issues and rising interest rates while Wisconsin has a major housing shortage, which we have.
talked about before.
So Wisconsin needs, according to state estimates, about 200,000 additional housing units by 2030.
That seems like an insurmountable
I mean, I'm going to be honest.
We rent in Madison.
We don't have the most expensive home.
We have a pretty median rental price at our home, and we're paying near $3,000, which is pretty normal for the Madison market for a home, right?
We have a three bedroom home with two baths because there's three people living in our house, and that's what we're near $3,000.
Not living in the lap of luxury either, people, let me tell you.
It
is, it's amazing how much rented, rent used to be for, you know, if you couldn't afford a house, you could always afford rent.
And now it's like, I don't have enough money for a down payment.
And most of the time your mortgage payment would end up being less than your rent is.
But if you don't have that down payment, or you have wonky credit, then all of a sudden all your rent payments don't matter.
You could have paid rent for 15 years.
at a higher level than what your mortgage would be but you still can't get that loan because well what if you can't make the payment
I don't know, then I would be out on the street because my landlord wouldn't have put up with it for the last 15 years.
familiar with
TIF is how most of us know that.
cleanup assistance and also private investments.
Affordable housing projects usually require this type of funding because the rents alone aren't going to cover your construction costs.
And this is a massive, as you pointed out, this is a massive apartment complex.
So you can imagine
maybe
they're, maybe they're not the best, maybe they're not in the best neighborhoods, but this is affordable housing in a desirable area in a building that looks as high rent as any other apartment building you're going to see constructed in the Milwaukee area.
It's all of that.
And I've been reading now there's also builders.
You know, they're they're building either developments that are just meant to rent which is a sad state of affairs So they're building like little neighborhoods of homes single-family homes, but they're doing it just for rentals.
in that house
And here's the thing, I mean, it is really spendy to buy a home and we're not talking just in the urban areas of Madison and Milwaukee.
In fact, prices are up all over the state.
And if you are a young family, the median home price has climbed in this state to $340,000.
That is over 6%, that's up more than 6% over the past year and nearly 96% over the last decade.
Home prices have risen much faster than wages because, again, Wisconsin's still at minimum wage and the average first time home buyer is now around 38 years old.
Wow.
I mean, you know...
But back when we bought our first house.
a $340,000 house would have been a mansion.
Yes, that's what I was just going to say.
For what you could have gotten for $340,000, those were the kind of houses that were out of everybody's reach.
You would look at those homes and go, what do the people do that live there?
I know.
And that's just it.
I mean, and when we bought our very first house, it was an older home, full basement.
It had three bedrooms.
It had two bathrooms.
It had everything that we possibly needed, including just under a quarter acre living in the city so that, you know, our young children could run around in the backyard and we could live that American dream because that's what everybody envisions in their life.
right?
Turns out that we're getting priced right out of our own markets is essentially what's happening.
That's why I love this idea of the coreless as well, because this could be, and that's what the
the property managers and investors of this are hoping is that this can eventually be some sort of prototype that they can use in multiple places across the state and tailor it to what that market specifically might need.
So it's not just something that they could use in Milwaukee or Madison.
It could be put in population areas with just under $10,000.
Obviously you're not gonna have, or with 10,000 people, I'm sorry.
You're
not
needs
That's essentially what's happening.
When you're only paying people $7.25 to do a job, you can't keep up with the demands of what we're talking with these housing prices.
In Madison and Milwaukee, for instance, the median home now costs about five times the median household income.
So what are people supposed to do?
I mean, this is why people are struggling so much to make ends meet.
It doesn't help that, you know, everything else is escalating in price as well.
But at the same time, housing, we are literally in a housing crisis, I would say.
Especially in this state.
I mean, if this is what we're talking about, if we are not keeping up with the price to income ratio, and if in some areas it's five times the median household income, and the median household income in this state,
including lower populated areas is $340,000.
What are people supposed to do?
And there's no more.
You remember the term starter house.
Our first house was definitely a starter house.
Experts here in Wisconsin are saying, we need more starter homes.
We need workforce housing, apartments, affordable housing.
But yeah, you can't, like a starter home, that's where most couples
if they were going to buy a house.
And ours was small.
It was a bath and a half, three bedrooms.
But it was a nice little brick cape cod, and it had a little yard.
And it was our slice of the American dream.
And that was at that time, that was what we could afford.
And I look back on it now and go, man, we didn't realize how lucky we had it.
Because at that time, it's always a stretch, right?
You're
I mean, when you're literally choosing between how to pay mortgage and what bills you should pay, or if you're able to get your medicines this month, we have a problem.
There is a major problem in the economics of this country, and I can guarantee that none of it is designed to help the average homeowner.
When everybody, they were giving out all these horrible mortgages.
People were buying houses way, way above their knees.
And then the bubble burst.
And so corporations started buying up all these homes, turning them into really expensive rental properties.
And there was never a reckoning.
Everything
just kept
to have a
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As we start this Accelerate Your Summer text win multi-state contest, you have about eight more minutes to get us the first word of the hour, so you qualify for the daily prizes of $100 or Wisconsin Dells Prize Package.
entry puts you into the grand prize drawing for $250 in gas and another $250 in groceries.
I will let you do the honors and give the word
Oh, thank you.
The keyword for this hour is start.
S-T-A-R-T start.
Just text the word start on your Civic Media app and you will be entered and don't worry if you entered
earlier in the hour and you've got a bounce back or something your name is still being entered for today but you have you can enter again if you want now you've got about six minutes to get everything in and don't worry you'll have more words as the day goes on so get your entry in like mr plow king just right
would
You know, I'll be honest with you.
I didn't have that in my wheelhouse.
I looked up kite songs Okay, that was the first one that came up and actually it got confused at first because it gave me I didn't see that it was from Mary Poppins I just saw the dick Van Dyke was in it.
I'm like that what he was and then I figured out Mary Poppins
I would like to watch it now at home.
Oh, call back to upset Frank about me not liking the theaters.
Anyway, why do we play Mary Poppins?
Because the Wisconsin Kiders Club has about 70 members statewide and helps organize roughly 15 kite events each year across Wisconsin.
The club members fly everything from simple single line kites to giant show kites that can reach up to 100 to 130 feet long and 30 to 45 feet wide.
I'm gonna say it without any sort of irony or any sort of shame.
I love seeing giant kites
They have
be
There is nothing more peaceful than sitting there.
And honestly, we live at a time that's a little crazy.
I don't know if you've been paying attention to the news headlines.
little crazy.
So what I really love is being able to sit there and there's a simplicity, right?
And just watching a kite dance through the sky, especially when the sky is bright blue and it's a little sunny.
It's the most and watching kids sheer joy of how science works and how you get these kinds into the air.
It's so much
And you're at the beach and you see people flying these giant kites.
I haven't flown a kite since Molly was little.
But
I still am not the greatest at getting them up.
Once you get that once you get them going.
Yeah, it's terrific
But the running and the holding and the tossing and the head.
And then when you're working with a little kid, they're not really good at the string.
So I can't do both.
And they're too little to run and throw the flag.
Throw the
what's cool about the Wisconsin Kiders Club, if you're lucky enough to be able to attend one of their events, it's not just watching the kites, which is just a perk, right?
But a lot of their festivals include opportunities for kiddos so that they can build and then fly those kites.
They make events.
and very educational.
And of course we all know that, you know, flying a kite is a little weather.
dependent.
Lightwinds require specialized ultralight kites.
Strong winds above 20 miles per hour can force kite flyers to bring kites down to avoid any sort of damage.
And if you're an experienced kite enthusiast, you probably know all of this.
But some of these events also include a lot of massive specialty kites.
They have stunt kite demonstrations, which I had no idea was a
I was walking the dog and We have a really small everybody in our neighborhood has really small yards and I was watching a family they had this kite It was probably about 10 and this kite was bigger than he was And he had it up in the air for a little bit and then he got bored with it And so as I'm walking the dog I'm watching him.
He's taking this kite He's trying to get it through the two pillars of the the front porch.
He's banging the thing around
Then he had to try to get it through the front door.
And I was like, and he looked at Aspen and I said, you know, that kite's probably never going to fly again.
It
was massive, though.
It was beautiful.
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