This week on Mel & Floyd: Ruby’s back plus a visit from Esty!; An update on Mel’s conversion to cyborg [including a failure of the 2nd amendment]; Another farmer bailout; Some “wah-wah” trombone; The latest medical treatment from China; And other random topics; Notice something missing? For the complete Mel and Floyd Experience, buy the CD “The Very Best of James Brown” and play it on your Hi-Fi while listening to this podcast! Or listen live at 89.9 FM or wortfm.org/listen-live/ every Friday from 1 to 2 PM Central Time.

Photo courtesy Tom Hermans on Unsplash

Note: This was a Fall Pledge Drive show, so some edits have been made.

Dustin Oler and Justin Hanson share their three-year journey transforming a historical building in downtown Stoughton into “The Shop Lofts,” a 17-unit apartment building that blends modern living with original historic charm.

The building at 211 S Water Street has a history as a Model A automotive factory, constructed between 1904 and 1912. This project aims to restore the building to its original appearance, preserving many original components that have endured for over a century.

Discover how this piece of downtown Stoughton’s past is given new life as a unique housing opportunity for the future.

On the show today, long time-host Esty Dinur celebrates 30 years on A Public Affair. We flip the script and instead of Esty sitting in the host chair, she sits in the guest’s seat to be interviewed about her time on the air by Norman Stockwell. She says her driving motivation has always been to focus on issues that aren’t covered by mainstream media and to cover mainstream issues from the perspective of the folks most impacted.

Featured image of Esty Dinur and Norm Stockwell via Sara Gabler/WORT.

The Friday Buzz talks with cast and crew of “Dracula: A Feminist Revenge Fantasy. Really.” opening Oct. 16 at the Bartell Theater.

Dr. Jennifer Berne joins the Friday 8 O’Clock Buzz to discuss her vision for Madison College, equitable education, and community collaboration.

Cannabis is illegal in Wisconsin, but many hemp-derived products on the shelves can still get you high. That’s thanks to a change in federal law in 2018 under the U.S. Farm Bill, adding to an already confusing patchwork of federal, state, and local laws.

The state’s regulation of hemp-derived products is relatively lax, leaving consumers vulnerable and with little legal recourse if something goes wrong. Just last year, dozens of people went to the Emergency Room after a mix-up at a Stoughton restaurant contaminated their food with THC oil.

A recent article from Wisconsin Watch takes a deep dive into the public health investigation and lawsuit following the incident. Statehouse reporting intern Margaret Shreiner joined our News Producer Faye Parks to outline the gray areas in Wisconsin’s regulation of THC.

Image courtesy: Anthony Quintano via Flickr.

If you regularly commute across Monona Bay, it’s time to start planning ahead. The reconstruction of John Nolen Drive officially kicks off this coming Monday.

Work is expected to take at least two years from beginning to end and, with one of Madison’s busiest thoroughfares at reduced capacity, it’ll be a big change from the city’s usual traffic patterns.

Image courtesy: WORT News.

The Wisconsin Court of Appeals ruled in February that the city of Marinette violated the Open Meetings Law while meeting in closed sessions to discuss PFAS-related issues. The ruling reaffirmed when exactly secrecy is allowed, and how much notice and context a government body must provide when entering closed session.

This week on “Transparency Talk”, hosts Bill Lueders and Tom Kamenick discuss the laws that allow a public body to enter closed session, and how to tell when closed session meetings are being held improperly.

But before we turn it over to Tom and Bill, our standard reminder that this conversation is not intended to be specific legal advice but rather a discussion of general legal issues. If you have a particular legal issue, please consult an attorney.

On today’s show, host Allen Ruff is joined by award winning historian, Greg Grandin to talk about his new book, America, América: A New History of the New World. Grandin’s book tells the story of the Americas plural, and how the creation of concepts like humanity, sovereignty, abolition, and emancipation grew out of European conquest of the Western hemisphere.

Featured image of the cover of Greg Grandin’s book, America, América: A New History of the New World via Penguin Press.

It takes a lot of staff to keep the city running, but many of them work behind the scenes.

WORT reporter Sutton Johnson headed back to City Hall last week for this latest edition of “Get To Know Your Local Government.” This time, he sat down with the city of Madison’s Finance Director Christof Spieler, who’s held the position for just two months.

Spieler explains how his job impacts your day-to-day life, his extensive history in the field of transportation, and what he’d like you to know about his position.

Image courtesy: Dylan Brogan