After Madison Mayor Paul Soglin expressed a desire to end the Mifflin Street Block Party for 2012,  members of the University of Wisconsin student government are looking to work with the mayor’s office in an attempt to compromise on the polarizing issue.

Soglin has not shied away from condemning the infamous event in recent weeks. He said the money would be better spent on community
services, citing the money spent on the event’s set-up, cleanup and police enforcement.

Legislative Affairs Chair Hannah Somers said the committee
would take an interest in UW students’ reactions to the
event’s possible cancellation and possible methods to gauge such reactions.

Some methods weighed during the committee’s Monday meeting included surveys and emails targeting
students.

“It would be nice to get the student’s perspective,” Somers
said.

Associated Students of Madison Vice Chair Beth Huang agreed that understanding student opinion would prove crucial, especially in areas concerning safety, since these issues are among the most commonly cited as reasons to end the event.

Committee members also debated the best possible outcome for the city’s famed celebration, with representatives split on the merits of the event.

“Do we really need to support something that leads to over drinking and
sickness”? Representative Karen Scott said.

Somers said she believes students would continue to organize the party regardless of whether the city sanctions the event.

She added it would prove safer for student attendees to reach some sort of an agreement with Soglin on the fate of event.

Somers also plans to host a town
hall event later in the year to promote open discussion between city officials and students. This way, opinions from UW
students and Madison community residents will be heard, she said.

Committee members also discussed
the recently introduced Senate Bill 107, which the Associated Students of Madison voted to oppose as the focus of a major fall campaign last week.

Under the bill, landlords could obtain the background and financial information of both current and
prospective tenants. It would also allow landlords to enter the residences of their leasees to show the property whenever they choose.

Prior ordinances, which prohibit such action, would be nullified.

The United Council of UW Students
Advocacy Field Organizer Erika Wolf emphasized that the bill is a statewide issue,
and measures will be taken to ensure tenant rights protections for students remain intact.

Somers said she is currently working to negotiate an agreement with Madison landlords to not require tenant
information. Until that agreement is reached,
tenant privacy is reliant on landlord discretion.

“It’s really up to the good
faith of the landlords,” Huang said.

The committee also plans to host its annual housing informational fair in a effort to continue educating students on
renting rights.

Another item of discussion in the group’s meeting was
the approved Voter ID Law, which mandates that citizens show photo identification when voting.

Huang said the legislation was
important to students because voting could be suppressed through this requirement.

Community members fear student
voter turnout will drop due as a result of the law, viewing this requirement as
an “obstacle” for students wishing to
vote.

Somers emphasized the
importance in educating students on these new changes in moving forward.