The Brewers are in first place in their division and the Bucks are on the brink of an NBA championship. What a time to be a Wisconsin sports fan!
The one caveat that I would add to this list is that the request I made at the finance committee to fund the transportation utility study now, rather than wait until 2022. Mayor Woodford has written a memo to this effect for the council to act on this week. It will take $50,000 from the enhanced crosswalk program and $25,000 from the Jones Park project items listed above to fund doing the study in 2021.
Before I dive too deep into the council agenda for Wednesday night, I want to mention a proposal that I co-sponsored with Ald. Brad Firkus that will come before us Wednesday.
We put forward a resolution at the last council meeting to request the mayor put money in the 2022 budget to fund a transportation utility study. A transportation utility would be able to assess a fee for road use that would help us better fund our road program. We noted in the resolution that we would repeal the wheel tax if a study shows that a transportation utility and associated fee would be a better option to generate revenue from sources that are currently exempt from the wheel tax. We want to find a more even-handed way to administer a fee to fund our roads, to help add additional revenue at a time when the cost to build roads continues to rise.
Over the last decade-plus, the city has been borrowing more and more for roads instead of paying cash as was the previous practice. I believe we need to explore our options to both generate more revenue and reduce our costs as far as our road program is concerned. This study is one step in that process.
Over the last decade-plus, the city has been borrowing more and more for roads instead of paying cash as was the previous practice. I believe we need to explore our options to both generate more revenue and reduce our costs as far as our road program is concerned. This study is one step in that process.
Board of Zoning Appeals
Monday 7 p.m. - The board will take up a request for a variance for on-site parking at the former church at 621 N. Bateman St. A group is planning to turn the former church into a non-profit photography studio. The site has no associated parking with it and any use, whether this proposal or any other, would need a variance from the requirement to provide parking on-site.
Library Board
Tuesday 4:30 p.m. - The Library Board will get an update on the building project, a mid-year and 2022 budget update as well as policy discussions and training for trustees.
Task Force on Resiliency, Climate Mitigation and Adaptation
Wednesday 4:30 p.m. - The agenda for this group is always very limited with information. It appears to show the group will discuss merging some sub-committees and have a discussion about planning for the next steps for the group.
Finance Committee Special Meeting
Wednesday 6:30 p.m. - The Finance Committee will hold a brief special meeting to approve the sale of promissory notes and bonds for capital improvement projects and utilities projects for the water and wastewater utilities. These items will then be on the council agenda for approval.
Common Council
Wednesday 7 p.m. - Among the items on our busy agenda is to approve the recommendation to appoint A new H.R. Director. The candidate is no stranger to the city however. The current deputy director, Jay Ratchman is the mayor's choice and one I am excited about. Jay is an excellent public servant who is dedicated to improving the city and creating processes that streamline the work the rest of the city staff do. Jay is an excellent choice and I am excited to see him be able to put his stamp on the department and the good work he will do in the future.
An item that was a topic for discussion at the municipal services committee this week will also be back at council for the second time Wednesday. Concerns were raised by one of my colleagues about parking on the block of Alvin St. at Wisconsin Ave. This is the site of the Planned Parenthood clinic in Appleton, which often sees protestor vehicles parked across from the clinic.
In my view, this is not an appropriate discussion related to the item on the agenda, which is to approve reconstructing a portion of Alvin St. The concern about protestors parking near the clinic does not have any merit when it comes to traffic or parking issues as shown by data from the traffic engineers for the city. To attempt to limit parking there expressly to prevent protestors from parking there will just move them to the residential portion of the neighborhood and could be seen as a violation of the first amendment. Whether it is or is not is, in my view, not worth taking the chance that the city could find itself involved in unnecessary litigation.
We will also be asked to approve a modified public works operations plan that I have written about many times in the past six weeks. Under this plan, the public works department will assume the duties of snow removal on sidewalks that we previously had done by a contractor. The current contractor is no longer doing that work and no other contractors are willing to bid on work that may or may not materialize due to the unpredictability of snow.
That necessitated a series of other changes. Residents will actually see more yard waste collection. Residents will get four weeks of collection in April and one week per month from May - November. We will see a reduction in the bulky item collection the city currently does. Instead of essentially unlimited items every other week throughout the year, residents will get to put two items to the curb every other week from April - November. The last change is in how leaves are collected in the fall. Residents will now rake leaves onto the terrace instead of into the street. Brush and yard waste will need to be bagged or bundled and set off to the side of leaf piles. The city will start using vacuums to suck up leaves to help the city continue working toward DNR-mandated phosphorus runoff goals.
This proposal has generated a fair amount of concern related to the bulky item collection piece of this change. However, as I have discussed previously, I believe the public works department has made good faith efforts to make impacts to this program minimal and I will support this item Wednesday.
The other big item we will take up is a proposal for how to allocate $1.2 million in 2020 fund balance. The city had a surplus of over $5 million at the end of 2020's audit, thanks to a combination of things, including federal COVID dollars, income from TIF districts and a few other areas. A very wise policy the Common Council passed years ago, states that 75% of any fund balance must go toward debt reduction for the city. The $1.2 million represents the 25% left over.
Of the list of projects Mayor Woodford submitted, the largest is a branding project for the city. At a cost of $500,000 for a study and implementation of a new brand, this is a major investment for the city. But as I have written about when this item first came up, I support this and did work on this project when I worked for the city. This branding project will include a new logo, but it is not solely a logo project. Branding is a talent and attraction tool, its also an economic development tool. I have and will support this project that can pay very big dividends for the community for potentially decades to come.
Other items on the list include:
Get In Touch
I am always available to answer questions at district15@appleton.org or (920) 419-1360. As always, agendas can be found on the agenda and meetings page of the city website. Meetings can be viewed live on the website or watched at a later date. Meetings are also open for anyone to attend in person and all meetings take place in the Common Council chambers on the 6th floor of City Hall, unless otherwise noted.
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