Special Event with Paul Soglin, Mayor of Madison, Wisconsin

ISPS HEALTH POLICY SEMINAR

Mayor Paul Soglin is the 51st, 54th and 57th Mayor of Madison, elected for tenures in 1973, again in 1989, and 2011. He is now serving in his 20th year. Following his first tenure, Soglin was a fellow at the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University. Mayor Soglin’s terms are noted for the balanced investment in human capital and appropriate municipal infrastructure. Whether it was the bicycle path around Lake Monona, or the Monona Terrace and Community Convention Center, or thousands of units of low income and senior housing, or neighborhood centers and community gardens, the focus has been on equity and developing a tax base that can support human services.

Mayor Soglin’s priorities include measuring city projects against the finest standards for livability, equity, and sustainability, and ensuring that all basic needs are within walking distance of every neighborhood. He believes that a healthy city with a strong inclusive economy is based on creating a sense of place, walkability, and social cohesion. Mayor Soglin is a strong proponent of using Tax Incremental Financing (TIF), as a development tool but is reluctant to provide any tax breaks as an incentive to attract business. He believes that public investment in infrastructure, the arts and active and passive recreation is what attracts private investment.

Mayor Soglin currently serves on US Conference of Mayors: Transportation and Communications Committee, Vice Chair for City Livability/Bicycling, the Advisory Board and is the chairman of the Food Policy Task Force. Mayor Soglin also serves on the Project for Public Spaces Placemaking Leadership Council.