City Risks Gardener Revolt with Parks Alcohol Permits

"Sprouts Garden Club Meets" is the kind of headline that makes the Madison Daily Leader the diverting local paper that it is. It's also the kind of headline that I usually skip.

But my lovely wife just happened to notice a bit of politics tucked into this meeting notice in Tuesday's paper. Amid English tea ("on china dishes from a linen-covered table"), "useful hints," and discussion of the July picnic and August garden tours, the June 3 meeting brought this:

The group also discussed beer in the city parks, and the consensus was that alcohol is not necessary in public parks.

Was this the temperance sentiment cited by Commissioner Nick Abraham at Monday's Madison City Commission meeting? And is the city really willing to ignore such consensus and go forward with a permit process for allowing beer parties in city parks?

I respectfully suggest that the Sprouts Garden Club represents an important political demographic in Madison: wise older ladies with time to attend garden meetings... and to vote. If they say, "No beer in the park!" I would tend to listen, especially if I were an elected official.

Next meeting for the Sprouts is July 1, 6 p.m., in the Westside Park picnic shelter. No beer will be served, in china cups or otherwise.