January 2026

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Referendum Question to be on April Ballot

In December, City Council voted to place a referendum question on the Tuesday, April 7, 2026 ballot. Voters will be asked to decide whether they support a $3.95 million increase to the City's annual property tax levy to maintain the high-quality existing services and programs the community enjoys.

Learn more about upcoming referendum by listening to the interview below. 

Interview with Aaron Oppenheimer, City Administrator

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Join us for an Election Open House

You're invited to attend our Election Open House on Tuesday, January 6 from 3:00-6:00 pm. The event will be held at City Hall, and serves as an opportunity for residents to observe and get familiar with our election equipment. You'll also be able to update your voter registration! 


Learn more by listening to the interview below. 

Interview with Megan Meyer, Deputy City Clerk

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Preserving the Historic Columbus Street Water Tower

One of Sun Prairie’s most recognizable landmarks recently received much needed restoration work thanks to a public-private partnership between the Sun Prairie Historical Library & Museum and the Sun Prairie Historical Society! 

Learn more about this important project by listening to the interview below.


Interview with Sunshine Anderson, Museum Programing & Design Coordinator


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Mark Your Calendars for Frozen Fest!

This year's Frozen Fest kicks off on Wednesday, January 28! Join us for six days of family-friendly winter fun, concluding with our annual Groundhog Day Prognostication. You won't want to miss it!

Interview with Jade Pekol, Community Events & Development Manager

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Parking Tips for Winter Weather 

Winter weather brings its fair share of challenges - including parking on and navigating our Sun Prairie roads while the City works to keep things safe. Listen in to gain some insight into our wintertime operations and get helpful tips for snowy conditions. 

Interview with JR Brimmer, Public Works Fleet & Contracts Supervisor

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You can also tune in to 103.5 The Sun every Wednesday at 7 a.m. to hear all the interviews.

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Administration: A referendum question will be on the April 2026 ballot. To learn more about the referendum and our funding challenges, visit our website. More information below. 

Clerk's Office: The City of Sun Prairie Clerk's Office is hosting our first-ever Election Open House. Scroll down to learn more.

Parks, Recreation & Forestry: Frozen Fest kicks off on Wednesday, January 28! Learn more about all of the family fun to be had. 

Sun Prairie Historical Library and Museum: What's happening at the museum? Find out below! 

Sun Prairie Public Library: The Sun Prairie Public Library has activities for all ages as we kick off the New Year. 

Sun Prairie Utilities: Sun Prairie Utilities is hosting a sticker design contest for kids grades K-12 with the theme "what water means to you" - learn more about how to submit a design by scrolling down!

Administration

Stay in-the-know on all things referendum

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As we approach the April 2026 election, the City of Sun Prairie will be working to educate our residents on the referendum. We know that the topic of levy limits and referendums aren't always easy to understand, so we are putting all of the relevant information in one place. To learn more about the referendum and what happens if it passes or fails, please visit www.cityofsunprairie.com/referendum. If you have questions, please reach out to staff by emailing refteam@cityofsunprairie.com. 

Clerk's Office

Join Us For Our First-Ever Election Open House!

Sun Prairie - Election Open House


Parks, Recreation and Forestry

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Sun Prairie Historical Library & Museum

The Museum is open to the public Wednesdays 11:00am - 4:00pm and by appointment for research and events. To learn more, visit www.cityofsunprairie.com/museum. 

Staff can be reached by phone at (608) 825-0837 or by email at museum@cityofsunprairie.com.

The Historical Library and Museum is located at 115 East Main St. Sun Prairie with parking behind the building. Admission is always free.

Announcements:

Columbus Street Water Tower Restoration Complete

One of Sun Prairie’s most recognizable landmarks recently received much needed restoration work thanks to a public-private partnership between the Sun Prairie Historical Library & Museum and the Sun Prairie Historical Society! 

The Columbus Street Water Tower was built in 1899 as Sun Prairie’s first public works project. Its history reaches further back to the mid-1800s, as the prominent dolomite limestone was salvaged from the Stevens Grist Mill that stood five miles to the northeast. The tower served the community until decommissioning in 1991 when a group of Sun Prairie residents formed the Columbus Street Water Tower Board to fundraise for the restoration and preservation of the tower. The tower was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2000. 

In December, work such as stone repair and cleaning, mortar replacement, and windowsill replacement was completed by Masonry Restoration, Inc. While funding for the work came primarily from the City’s Capital Improvement Plan, prices rose significantly since initial estimates. The Sun Prairie Historical Society, Inc. stepped in to contribute $7,900 to help make up the difference of cost to preserve this landmark for years to come.

To learn more about the Columbus Street Water Tower, check out its page on Clio! Clio is a free educational website and app that guides the public to historical and cultural sites throughout the U.S., including several locations in Sun Prairie.  https://theclio.com/entry/150150

Upcoming Events at the Museum

  • Community Puzzle Swap on Wednesday, January 14 from 4:00-6:00pm
  • Chamber of Commerce Coffee Chat on Friday, January 30 at 8:30am
  • Night at the Museum with Jimmy the Groundhog on Sunday, February 1 from 5:00-7:00pm

Sun Prairie Public Library

Holiday Closures 

The library will be closed Monday, 1/19 for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The drive-thru book drops will remain open.

Construction Updates

We are almost to the finish line of our interior renovations! The library will be closed Monday, January 26 thru Sunday, February 1 as we transition from Phase 3 to Phase 4 (final phase) of our Expansion and Renovation project. During this closure, adult collections will be moved into their permanent locations. We will reopen on Monday, February 2. 

Please pick up your holds by Sunday, January 25 at 5pm. Any holds left on the shelves will be held until February 9.  

Our drive-thru book drops will remain open during the closure.   

Thank you for your support, patience, and understanding during our Expansion and Renovation project. For more information, visit https://www.sunprairiepubliclibrary.org/library_expansion

Model Train Show featuring the Southern WI Sandhouse Crew

Saturday, January 17 9:30 a.m.- 4:45pm, Youth Program Room
 Sunday, January 18 1:30 - 4:30pm, Youth Program Room

The Southern Wisconsin Sandhouse Crew is an H.O. Scale Model Railroad Club. The Crew will display their trains, answer questions, and talk trains all day!

Children’s & Teen Services

Wiggle & Play

Wednesday, January 7 10:00am – 12:00pm
 Tuesday, January 13 10:00am – 12:00pm
 Wednesday, January 21 10:00am – 12:00pm

Wiggle and play with a variety of different toys, puppets, puzzles, and more. The Youth Program Room is converted into a space to play, dance, socialize, and shake out some wiggly energy! Caregivers must stay in the room to tend to their children; no library staff will be present in the Youth Program Room. It’s a great time to connect with other caregivers and network in the community! Wiggle and Play is free and has no registration. Geared for ages 0-4.

Adult Services

Book Clubs

The Sun Prairie Public Library hosts several book groups for adults. Groups are free and open to all adults. For more information about any of our book clubs, please call the Welcome Desk at 608-825-7323 or email us at sunref@sunlib.org. 2026 Book club selections are available on our website: https://www.sunprairiepubliclibrary.org/book-groups

The Afternoon Book Club meets on the second Wednesday of the month at 1:30pm at the library.

 The Eclectic Book Club meets on the third Thursday of the month at 7pm at the library.

 The Evening Book Club meets on the fourth Tuesday of the month at 7pm at the library.

 The Urban SUN: Black Voices Book Club meets on the fourth Sunday of the month at 4:00pm via Zoom.

Sun Prairie Utilities

Sun Prairie Utilities Sticker Design Contest Now Accepting Submissions

SP Utilities Sticker Design Contest

Sun Prairie Utilities (SPU) is hosting a sticker design contest for kids in grades K-12! Each child may submit/enter up to two of their favorite creations.

The design must follow the theme "What Water Means To You" and include a written statement explaining the reasoning behind the design. 

There will be a winning design in each grade! The winners will be contacted and announced after the contest closes. The top design in each grade will be made into stickers, shared with the participants/community, and showcased on several SPU promotional materials for at least a year.

Requirements:

  • The designs must be emailed as a PNG, PDF, or JPG to communications@myspu.org by February 27, 2026.
  • Participants must be customers of Sun Prairie Utilities.
  • Number of entries per K-12 child limited to 2.
  • Any design size is welcome as long as it can be scaled down into the 2-inch by 2-inch dimensions of a circle.
  • Each entry must include a short paragraph written on the contest form explaining how the design reflects the theme.
  • All colors must be flat and solid, with no shading, blending, or halftones.
  • The entries must be original designs and cannot be created using A.I.
  • SPU reserves the right to alter the design if necessary. This includes adding its logo, editing, resetting type, and changing colors.
  • SPU judges will choose a winner in each grade, K through 12, if artwork is submitted in each for the contest.

City Services Guide

Have you ever wanted to learn more about the City's departments and the services they provide? Check out the new city services guide that will get you connected! Print copies will be made available in city buildings such as City Hall and the Westside Community Services Building. Click the graphic below to access the online version. resident city services guide

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Upcoming Events

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Model Train Show-January 2026

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Committee of the Whole

The Committee of the Whole, consisting of all 8 seated City Council members, addresses multi-committee issues, reviews the annual budget, manages real estate transactions, engages in long-term planning, has the authority to sanction Council members and officials, and handles matters not assigned to specific committees. Chaired by the Council President, it convenes on the first and third Tuesdays of each month at 5:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 300 E. Main St., Downtown Sun Prairie, with meeting times occasionally subject to change (refer to the events calendar for specific times).

Check out the latest Committee of the Whole meeting (12/16/2025)

Check out the latest Common Council meeting (12/16/2025)

Sun Prairie Media Center

Sun Prairie Media Center consists of three main entities, each with its own individual mission:

KSUN: The mission of KSUN is to train and nurture Sun Prairie residents in providing original video programming designed to educate, inform, entertain, and enlighten the city of Sun Prairie. KSUN programming should appeal to a wide range of Sun Prairie residents and reflect the diverse nature of the Sun Prairie population.

KIDS-4: The mission of KIDS-4 is to promote media literacy to the youth population of Sun Prairie as well as to teach students all aspects of producing original video and audio content. Students enrolled in KIDS-4 become more discriminating consumers of media, better communicators, better collaborators, and receive vital hands-on experience on a wide range of media-making tools.

103.5 FM The Sun Community Radio: The mission of 103.5 FM The Sun Community Radio is to train and nurture Sun Prairie residents in providing original radio and podcast programming designed to educate, inform, entertain, and enlighten the city of Sun Prairie. 103.5 FM The Sun Community Radio programming should appeal to a wide range of Sun Prairie residents and reflect the diverse nature of the Sun Prairie population.

Check out the abundance of quality community programming at https://www.sunprairiemediacenter.com/

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